ok weird EMA question

[2shoes]

seems that the punishment for misbehaving at college is to loose a couple of weeks ema.
ok no probs you do the crime you do the time.
but how do they punish someone who doesn't get EMA?

what isa EMA?

Educational Maintenance Allowance Misdee, where people under 19 can get 10, 20 or 30 quid a week to attend college if their family income is below a certain amount. It's dependant on attending and achieving.

I work at a college and this has always been a problem since EMA started. Attendance can be rubbish for those not on EMA because what have they got to lose? Not any money like the others.

so if you had 2 students who both say (makes sonething up) swore at teacher.
one could loose his/her EMA, but what would happen to the other one?

Sorry, i'd gone to bed so I didn't reply...

Well both would be disciplined - written or a verbal warning etc but yes only the EMA student would lose their money.

Another reason why EMA is a joke. Either pay them all or don't pay anyone. Totally divisive system.

Not divisive at all! children with rich parents get money from them and children with poor parents get the EMA. What's the problem.

Anyway, back to the OP, make both punishments the same. If you can't take away the EMA because only one of them gets it, then presumably other sanctions are in place. The same sanctions that were used before the EMA was invented.

Agree with violethill. Apparently we are "rich" parents but I can't afford to give my daughter £30 a week.

She's got herself a part time job.

I don't understand what is stopping children of low income families doing the same?

sorry, just have to say;

My parents were not rich parents yet I went to college and wasn't given any money to do so. I got off my arse and got a job to pay my bills. I worked in the evenings, weekends and hoildays as my single parent father could not have supported me.

I am in a postition to give my children the ema amount (when they are old enough) but won't be. Why should I pay my child to go to college???

we can't afford to give dcs £30 pw but they don't get EMA
I suppose the idea of EMA is to compensate families who would other wise expect their dcs to bring in a wage at age 16+. But none of my dcs friends who get EMA are actually in that position- the EMA is effectively pocket money for them, although they do have to buy books etc out of it. If student is doing an expensive course (like theatre studies) may be more important.
maybe the situation in the OP arises because the 'misbehaviour'=skiving- EMA isn't given in a week where there is unauthorised absence.

I wasn't talking about skiving.
just general silliness.
so bascially a kid from a low income gets his/her money stopped, yet another kid who has done the same thing, would not.
whether you aggree with EMA or not, surely the punnishment should be the same for all.

I agree the punishment should be for all otherwise it is unfair to all but I totally disagree with ema in the first place.

but how can kids have something taken away that they don't get in the first place?

If my daughter messes about at college should she have her wages that she has earnt taken off her?

I generally support the idea of EMA, though in my relatively well heeled area, many of the kids who receive it (children of divorced parents) find it helps them pay for the petrol for their cars.
I presume that students receiving EMA have to sign a document agreeing to good behaviour as well as good attendance - and are penalised if they misbehave/don't turn up.

nametaken "Not divisive at all! children with rich parents get money from them and children with poor parents get the EMA. What's the problem."

Of course it's divisive. Just like further education funding. If your parents have been silly enough to stay together and go to work you get nothing and have to work hard yourself for every penny, ending up with student debts. If your parents choose to work part time or not at all you get free money given to you. Explain how that is fair.

I can't afford to give my DS £30 a week. I'm not rich. I go to work.

Well said Elvis!

We made changes to our EMA procedure last year as it was becoming a joke - students were off "sick" and their parents would just sign a note saying they were sick as they often expected some of that EMA money at home. One mum came in and went through all the absences on the computer with her daughter - about 2 a week unauthorised for the best part of 6 weeks saying "oh you had a cold then i'm sure" or "I think that's when you had a headache" and we couldn't do anything about it because she had authorised it. So this year - no absences except for hospital appointments or no pay! We live in a pretty poor area where we have a very high take up of EMA but it can be abused unless managed properly.

I think when it comes to punishment for young people, some sort of community service would work best - picking up litter for an afternoon, cleaning toilets etc. It needs to be something they want to avoid to act as a deterrent.

oh dear,
I just wondered how to students would be treated if one got EMA and the other didn't.

elvis is absolutely correct.

My dd had friends in the 6th form at a fee paying school FGS who got paid EMA. How? Simple. Parents divorced. Daddy earning big bucks - enough to pay school fees. Mummy being a lady who lunches or possibly getting off her arse a couple of times a week to do a little job for pin money. As long as the kids technically have 'main residence' with mum, they qualify for EMA - even though they move freely between both parents. Most of my dd's friends who got EMA actually saw it as drinking money.

The idea that it is somehow poor, deserving students who receive it and that anyone who doesn't get it is 'rich' is the biggest crock of shite. Get real!

violethill - I know that sort of thing happens, which is why I think the EMA should be awarded based on both parents income. Regardless of who lives where and with which child.

Exactly nametaken. It's all part of acknowledging that if you have children, you have ongoing responsibility, whether you choose to stay married or not. You don't divorce your children!

It was exactly the same with the old means tested grant system for higher education. When I was at uni, because both my parents worked, I got a very small grant (about 10% of the full grant)and my parents were expected to pay the rest. I was on the same course as a boy who got a full grant yet whose father used to send the chauffeur to pick him up when he went home for holidays/weekends. His father used to supplement his full grant with extra money every week. He had got his accountant to fill in the grant application forms.
No matter what the system in place is you will always have those who are adept at fiddling/manipulating it. EMA was meant to encourage those in low income families to stay on in further education but like all other benefits will never entirely used in the way it was intended and will be abused by some.

I knew a few like that at Uni! Lots of family money, but because the parents divorced, the student would get the full grant.

I agree that some people will always try to manipulate systems, but the problem here is the system itself. People aren't fiddling it - they are just able to claim money they don't need because the system allows it.

I also work at an FE college and find that a lot of them just come in to college just to get that money, they don't want to be there to learn or be educated and they often distract those of whom do. I guess its a great scheme for the college as a business as it means many more bums on seats and more funding etc. As a staff member though can say that it can be a total nightmare! I get paid to be considerate to them, shame they don't see it that way!

As for punishing those who don't receive it I don't know ... its not really a fair system ...