Add a subject, bin a subject

[noblegiraffe]

Lots of cries of 'why aren't they taught X at school, it's really important' with the response 'what would you like to see binned to make the time for that?'
I would like to add all aspects of managing finances - mortgages, credit, car finance, gambling, loans, costs associated with owning/renting a home, savings, investments, interest rates, the general economy. I know it's supposedly done a bit in PSHE, but I'd want it done properly. With homework and tests.

In order to make space for this I would bin: KS3 Drama.

You don't have to bin a whole subject, so for example you could bin the study of poetry in English, or anything involving circuits from science, but you can't bin the study of oxbow lakes from Geography and replace it with learning Latin - they should take about the same time.

Maths teachers are masters of getting kids to engage with things they think aren't relevant

Some "good" ones are yes. Some are useless and don't make that kind of effort.

Kazzyhoward

One of my subjects in computer science, you have kids not choosing it who would do well and others thinking it is the same as playing games.

One of my subjects in computer science, you have kids not choosing it who would do well and others thinking it is the same as playing games.

Hence why the school should offer some taster sessions before choices are made. I just don't understand why some schools don't do it. It makes no sense at all. All the while, making kids have music or art for 3 full years when relatively few choose it as an exam option.

Kazzyhoward

I hear you, I really do. I ate options taken in year 8, the pupils don't really have any idea what they want to do and what some subjects entail.

One school I was at whilst training had a 2 week timetable, the brighter kids had 2 ICT/computer science lessons in year 7, the 'not so bright' only had 1 hour.

They then all sat the same exam, it must be soul destroying to only have access to 1/2 the exam.

it must be soul destroying to only have access to 1/2 the exam.

That’s how it is with the new maths GCSE, most kids get under 50% whichever paper they sit.

Talking of tasters for GCSE, it becomes even worse when they have to pick A-levels on the basis of maybe one taster lesson which is made deliberately jazzy.

boney Touch typing, for the reason I said: as an adult in pretty much any job you are much more likely to be typing than handwriting anything. If you can touch type you can do this more efficiently, leaving you more time to do the more interesting and important parts of your job.

Also if you are going to go to university you are going to need to type up dissertations and essays (and I expect by the time today's primary kids are at university, exams will be done on laptops too) and it will save you so much time and effort if you can type easily and quickly.

Bin woodwork, textiles, art.

Replace with Design. Covering all three.

Bin woodwork, textiles, art.

Definitely woodwork needs scrapping. 40 years ago, I made a wooden fish and a metal trowel. 3 years ago, my son made a wooden fish and a metal trowel. Considering all the changes in technology and manufacturing over the past 37 years, it's shocking that they still teach the same thing as if none of the tech developments have happened.

My son's tech department have a room of computers with cad and cam software, a laser cutter, a 3d printer, a router, a vacuum former, electronic/robotics, etc., but the kids aren't allowed to even see any of that in action unless they choose tech as a GCSE option - they don't even know it's there.

Where is the drive and enthusiasm for getting kids into the technical skills? Why not let them design things using cad/cam in earlier years whilst it's compulsory to try to engage them and develop their interest?

My son developed a real interest in robotics after seeing the Lego Mindstorms "robot" solve the rubik cube at a child's science event. Now, a few years later, he found that his own school also had Lego Mindstorms and had the rubik cube solver - he only found out by accident - why on Earth wasn't it on display at open days and the option choosing evening?

unenthusiasticfuturedancemom
Bin woodwork, textiles, art.

Replace with Design. Covering all three.

they could call it design technology, oh hang on

Kazzyhoward

The problem is with your son's tech department, not the subject.

As for mindstorms, flimsy as fuck, and £180 for a basic set up + god knows how much for the additional parts to solve the cube.

"the school that used to offer a 2.5 year course to take the ECDL in years 7-9 but decided to drop it without notice, leaving kids 1 or 2 years into a course that they couldn't finish"

The DfE to made that decision, a couple of months after the list of qualifications that schools could report on for league tables was published they suddenly withdrew the ECDL

The creative industries are big UK employers. I would keep Art at KS3 building eye to hand co ordination, creativity and problem solving all important. Add coding to maths lessons.

Add to PSHE, cooking, ,, first aid, yoga,

Drop RE, IT (it's used in all subjects now) PE should be optional.

As a drama teacher it makes me so sad to hear so many people saying they would get rid of the subject. I love seeing students being creative, working together and developing their confidence. The Arts are being cut across so many school now, but there is more to education than academic subjects.

"Drop IT (it's used in all subjects now)"; given we have students coming up with absolutely zero IT skills (they might be able to badic code, but havent got a clue about spreadsheets) when do you think the other subjects will be able to include this?

Basic! Maybe add lessons to help typing on a phone on a moving train

cricketballs3

The sad thing is that because the kids play games some parents seem to believe that the kids can use word, excel etc. or in extreme cases code/design an entire game (cos they can use kodu)

boney this is our saying about this stupid thinking from the DfE..."apparently because they can use fb they are IT proficient", however ask them what a cell reference is and even in some cases how to log on (not kidding!) and anyone would think we've asked them to split the atom

Cricket balls my Y8s can make slide presentation and use excel. They use laptops in every lesson. No need for it to be a separate subject.

50andgoingstrong

There are schools that are lucky to have a trolley of laptops for the entire school.

Some only have a couple of computer suites.

Not all schools have the ability for computers to be in every lesson.

True, but they are all moving that way.

I am in a state comp, we are struggling with cuts like all schools are but most subjects use ICT in lessons now and most students have laptops (they can buy at discount, or borrow.) lots of new academies have great ICT provision.

50 when/where did they learn to use excel? In our primary feeders they no longer do it, if it wasnt for us in IT lessons having to start from the very basics then no other subject would stand a chance of having students capable of using any software correctly/efficiently and that's if they could ever get to use any IT resources which as boney has stated.

In my school a department may have some laptops available but no where near enough for all lessons/classes

kazzy I'm a music teacher in a secondary school. Music is one of the original Seven Liberal Arts at degree level, and our music exports are worth about £90 billion to the economy each year.

25% of our students do Music at GCSE, we make it fulfilling and worthwhile at KS3.

I was good at creative subjects at school, but not to the detriment of other subjects. I got 3 As at A-level and went to Oxford. Music can be incredibly beneficial to general intelligence and musicians tend to be expert learners.

shack I'm thinking that those of us that don't teach core should step away from this thread as all we seem to he doing is constantly defending our subjects!

Although it's quite funny that my main subject is treated with utter contempt on the majority of options threads but so many posts on here are saying students should be taught issues covered in my subject

cricket I'm actually planning to set up a business selling my current KS3 offer as a primary after-school club/wrap-around care. I think music and other creative subjects will be increasingly sidelined as state schools focus on maths/English/science. Creativity will be a private school thing.

ShackUp I left mainstream school last year and have set up a business. I'm still teaching and it's still state funded, but I do it in partnership with a theatre rather than at a school. The students I teach have a great experience (all 6th form) but it was just getting miserable trying to fight against the government and the general derision from parents and colleagues. Unsurprisingly, the school didn't replace me when I went, and KS3 Drama has now gone (quick everyone, move your children there!) New academy trust has just taken over and have imposed an extra hour of lessons on Year 11 meaning that they can't do any of the sparse extra curricular music/drama things that were still on offer, and the teachers who were teaching them can't offer extra curricular to anyone as they're teaching Year 11! It's just depressing.