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Secondary education

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What is your private boarding school offering post half term? Year 13

5 replies

likely · 10/05/2021 19:06

Just that really... Wondering what other schools are doing as mine seems to be 'optional' after half term with me already having paid a full terms fees...

OP posts:
Revengeofthepangolins · 11/05/2021 09:31

Optional circa 10 day programme of activities. Then a leavers’ day and back for the school picnic. I don’t yet have a feel for how many will come back after half term fir the activities. I hope most of them. I guess the activities fit in the time finishing a levels would have taken - in normal years enduring fades away after exams, busy coming back for the days mentioned above. All a bit desultory.

likely · 11/05/2021 10:38

Thank you. Our school is just offer a pre uni course for the first 2 weeks which was optional. My daughter may not go to uni, certainly doesn't know what she wants to do, yet nothing else is offered. They've been allowed to just opt out but aren't allowed to remain at school if they aren't doing the pre uni course!

I'm really struggling with paying fees after this year - we've had to borrow money just to get her to finish line. This just sounds just so wrong!!

OP posts:
EllieNBeeb · 11/05/2021 12:50

I think it's pretty standard, even non-covid that y13 go on exam leave/are pretty much done by this point.

ChnandlerBong · 11/05/2021 13:15

pretty standard i think? DS is at a day school Y11 and they're more or less finished on 21 May.

School are grudgingly doing A level taster lessons for a couple of weeks after half term- when the kids would normally have had their GCSE exams - but they're still finished by 18 june.....

WombatChocolate · 11/05/2021 18:54

In usual times, Yr 11 and Yr 13 would already be on study leave. They would come in for exams but that would essentially be it. There might be a taster day of 6th Form for the yr11s and the yr13s would have their Ball and a book return day and couple of social events, but essentially their time of lessons and input would be over, although usually teachers are available until exams to give help and further support if needed.

People often ask why they have paid for a term plus exam fees when they left about 3 weeks after Eater, and it’s always explained as in you pay for the school year that is appropriate for that year group and the fees just happen to be split over 3 terms.

This year, most are in school at least until half term. By then most yr11 and yr13 really will have had enough...it will have been a long and strung out last phase of assessment. Many schools only have 4 weeks after half term left until the summer anyway, this is often the time when schools run exams for younger years and perhaps activities week and lots of trips. There isn’t actually much scope to offer stuff to the exam classes who will have been the key focus for much of the year.

Last year, the yr 11 and yr13 went before Easter and then didn’t have to Oreo for asssessments. It was more important to offer bridging programmes as leaving was sudden and it was more than a full term. Our school offered a 5 week online bridging to A level programme for 5th years where they had online work/lessons and 3 hours per week of work per subject. Current 5th years wouldn’t be glad to do this after the return in June. U6th had 4 weeks of uni bridging programmes. Some engaged better than others with these. Creating both these bridging programmes whilst also running all the usual things that have to happen in the last half term is an incredible extra burden.

So, I guess I’m saying that I don’t think there is a need for lots to be offered after half term in June. It is already a week into June by the time half term finishes. School will still be working on the grading of assessments and submitting judgements. There might be an induction into 6th Form day for yr11 but I wouldn’t be expecting much else and it is right for the exam classes to have a bit of time after their exams/assessments.

I wouldn’t think if it in terms of ‘getting money’s worth’ for a term of fees. It’s not quite the right way to think about it. The exam classes have a heavy focus on them for the whole year and lots of input ..it is just all front-loaded in the school year really. Other year groups need a bit if input in the last term and the time is already allocated to lots of events like exams or activities that take lots of time. Running full scale programmes for 2 espxam year groups just isn’t the norm for the last half term.

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