ska invita
back on the other side
Some teachers walked out in solidarity but it wasn't a union action
Let Our Kids be Kids - 3 May 2016: Primary School Kids to strike against SATS
- Thread starter eoin_k
- Start date
wiskey
Albatross Admirer
^^^ my friends response when asked if they will strike... I hate attendance awards anyway and that made me mad.
So far of 30 people who've replied I'm the only one considering it.
Quite a few are teachers and 'it would be frowned upon if I took my children out' is a theme.
But mostly they just think it's a waste of time.
kenny g
Sheeple Awake!
Considering the number of shit has been teachers stalking the classrooms for so many years it is difficult to.know what should havebeen done other than tests to bring standards up. As with so many things it looks they have probably served their purpose and are nowbeing subverted in a shockingly unprofessional manner by some teachers. One of the children in our family has year 6 SATS and is pretty relaxed. Tried not to make an issue out of it at home. It is less than a week after all. If she was being taught shite though I would arrange a chat with the Head pronto.
Thora
Differently Ethical
If the government wants testing and performance related pay then it's pretty inevitable that teachers are going to make a big deal about SATS.
Anyway there aren't any has been teachers any more, they're all about 23. The Headteacher at my school has only taught for 6 years and she's the longest serving member of teaching staff at the school.
Anyway there aren't any has been teachers any more, they're all about 23. The Headteacher at my school has only taught for 6 years and she's the longest serving member of teaching staff at the school.
eoin_k
Lawyer's fees, beetroot and music
Since the main social function of schools is to provide state-funded childcare so adults can work, it isn't realistic to expect most parents to get involved. That said this seems to have already gained lots of support given that a handful of people have organised it and provided ridiculously short notice. I can see plenty of people getting involved whose parents are unemployed, self-employed, carers, part-time workers or playground friends of any of the above (who could potentially provide some of them with childcare/playdates for the day). All of which could make for interesting conversations -like this one?- about work, education, non-paid work, taking political action... The organisers have included a sample letter on the website for parents to send in to school if they support the campaign, but aren't taking action on the day themselves, which suggests an awareness of the issues.
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gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
yes - I agree with all of the above - especially the state-funded childcare statement. I have a number of friends sending in the letter who can't make it themselves but wish it to be known that they support the action.
wiskey
Albatross Admirer
I'm going to keep my son at home, I hope he's not too upset about attendance. Luckily his school do attendance awards weekly for classes/termly for individuals rather than yearly so he still gets lots of certificates and non-uniform days
I'm going to talk to werv, if he wants to stay off shall we do something?
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
There is a small group of us locally and we have arranged some group-learning in the park and the velodrome have offered us a free cycling lesson in the afternoon. The local home-ed maths leader also offered us to come and join in but sadly his session is out of our area on that day and too far to travel to. I'm quite excited now.
Thora
Differently Ethical
I think we'll probably not be in Bristol unfortunately.
sheothebudworths
Up the bum - no babies!!!
This is not a national policy, though.
I'm in Brighton and we do get penalty notices for single days of unauthorised absence.
Also, after direction from the council the schools here will be marking any absences tomorrow as unauthorised but most of them have stated that they will not then be issuing penalty notices - so it's very clear that most of the schools are openly supporting the action
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gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
This is not a national policy, though.
I'm in Brighton and we do get penalty notices for single days of unauthorised absence.
Also, after direction from the council the schools here will be marking any absences tomorrow as unauthorised but most of them have stated that they will not then be issuing penalty notices - so it's very clear that most of the schools are openly supporting the action
Yes I am aware of that, having worked across different boroughs as a teacher and having had my pay progression linked to my students' attendance. As you say - the policy changes from council to council (which is why I alerted Maharani to the policy in the area where we both live, as opposed to Thora's) - the main point I was making is that it's not the schools who are fined but the parents/carers.
I hadn't, however, realised that Brighton will give penalties for 2 sessions's unauthorised absence. That seems incredible! The Brighton and Hove council website, in fact, states that it will be given for 4 of more sessions in a term (which equates to 2 days) although it is (deliberately - I expect) vague. So I would definitely contest a fine if one were given for a singles day's absence (I appreciate that you say this is unlikely to happen on this occasion due to supportive schools). Fixed Penalty Notices (FPN) | Brighton & Hove City Council
It is, indeed, murky water and people should be checking their own council websites and talking to their schools if they are worried about FPNs.
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
Good luck. I know you didn't mean it to sound this way, but I'd like to point out, in case anyone has that impression, that O will not be skiving. I'm not going to bore everyone with detailed plans from us, but rest-assured she will definitely be learning!
I spend hours and hours making lesson plans, writing schemes of work etc and don't feel they are necessarily a guarantee of learning taking place, nor the absence of them a barrier to learning. So she won't be hearing the lesson objectives as the start, or starters, plenaries, pit-stops, extension work, literacy, numeracy and other myriad things that we are expected to cram into a lesson plan. Things that change regularly depending on the current whim of oftentimes non-educationalist leaders with no evidence to support their ideas. (this rant is not directed at you but a wider rant about current trends in education - I can absolutely bet that Elliot is going to have a fantastic day with you learning loads).
sheothebudworths
Up the bum - no babies!!!
The four sessions seems to relate to 'poor attendance' - but for eg taking a single day off for a holiday will incur a fine at at least some of the schools here.
ETA - Had only responded to your original post there cos it was a reply to Mr.Bishie who'd been talking specifically about Brighton schools, iyswim!
ETA - Had only responded to your original post there cos it was a reply to Mr.Bishie who'd been talking specifically about Brighton schools, iyswim!
Maharani
Just like Heaven
I got lots of this too.
trashpony
Hag
Oh gosh no, I didn't mean that at all! You're a proper teacher and know what you're doing. I don't so I've got some help from TES
We're going to do some drama/imaginative stuff about the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (and a bit of reading comprehension because I have to do some work in the morning) and then we're going to talk about marine foodchains and make a mobile using stuff we find on the beach
I'm quite looking forward to it
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
Oh gosh no, I didn't mean that at all! You're a proper teacher and know what you're doing. I don't so I've got some help from TES
We're going to do some drama/imaginative stuff about the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (and a bit of reading comprehension because I have to do some work in the morning) and then we're going to talk about marine foodchains and make a mobile using stuff we find on the beach
I'm quite looking forward to it
To be honest - proper teachers sometimes get help from TES too...
... and actually I kind of want to come to your school tomorrow - it sounds amazing!
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
It's all in how it's logged tbh. There's a difference (as you will see on the council site) in authorised/unauthorised/holiday/medical etc. If you call and say you're keeping your child off school to go on holiday and the school hasn't authorised that, then the council site could be read to mean you'll get a fine for a single day. Again, I would, personally, contest that. Actually I wouldn't say we were on holiday if it were a single day anyway! There have been a few cases recently of parents fighting their ground in court over this and the courts have come down on the parents' side.
Schools also have the option to log it as "educated offsite" - which many schools do now when they exclude students but don't want the exclusion to show up in their attendance record. Some festivals will provide on-site schools so that parents can bring childen to the festival but also provide SOW and lesson plans to show that their children have been learning.
As I say - it's all murky water.
So, as you say, I think very few schools will be likely to log children as "unauthorised absence" in this case. However, as is now becoming my mantra - Talk to the school first!
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
What is pleasing is the amount of publicity this protest is getting - quite disproportionate to the numbers striking. It was on the front page of the Times yesterday, it's been in all the other major papers as far as I can tell. LBC spoke about it at length yesterday. "The Wright Stuff" has been running with it. The BBC and other news sources are all reporting it. There are letters of protest and support being published from some big names. I guess it's a new level/kind of protest and it's all adding up to a lot of discontent nationally about educational policies at the moment.
sheothebudworths
Up the bum - no babies!!!
My daughter's school has a rigid policy of recording ALL holidays during term time as unauthorised (whether you formally request it or not) and fining for them, too.
Personally, next time I do it I will just lie
- but that seems ridiculous in itself, eh - wtf do they expect is going to happen?!And tbc, all of the kids in Brighton who miss school tomorrow due to the strike WILL be recorded as taking unauthorised absence, as instructed by the council - but beyond that the schools are then taking individual decisions as to whether they'll issue fines or not and most seem not to be
(but the very fact that they're indicating this only goes to show that as a general rule the schools here WILL fine for a single day).
trashpony
Hag
I feel obliged to follow the 'fun learning' thing. Plus every now and then I toy with the idea of home ed so this will be good practice to see if we want to kill one another by lunchtime
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
My daughter's school has a rigid policy of recording ALL holidays during term time as unauthorised (whether you formally request it or not) and fining for them, too.
Personally, next time I do it I will just lie
As far as I know most, if not all schools, will mark holidays during term time as unauthorised - because they won't/can't authorise them. Certainly in my time teaching there has been a massive change towards that. I teach many children whose parents request long periods off to take them back to their parents' home country - usually the Carribean or similarly long-haul. They used to be allowed to go when I first started teaching but not anymore. When it comes to short periods off most people lie - or I have heard that some people work out that the amount they will pay in fines is offset by the savings they make by taking the holiday during term time.
I was very honest with my daughter's school about a one day absence being due to going away on the Friday. I spoke to a senior member of staff (I'm a bad liar) and he told me to call in sick.
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
NUT will ballot for strike action over academy plans | Schools Week
There is a limit as to what teaching unions can strike over. My understanding is that it has to be linked to pay, terms and conditions in order for it to be legal. (disclaimer - I am not a legal eagle so this is my loose understanding). I have just been balloted to strike this summer by the NUT which is worded as being over pay, terms and conditions but in fact, it is in protest to the forced academisation plans. I don't think we can just legally strike over any issue related to education.
obviously this doesn't mean that we are all in favour of things like university fees - as evidenced by some teachers walking out in solidarity.
sheothebudworths
Up the bum - no babies!!!
Yes, seems to be an absolute rule now - and then down to the headteacher as to whether they then fine or not. I get why they do with the pressure applied to schools to reach targets on attendance etc but it does seem a bit pointless not to have some discretion when parents will just lie otherwise.
Lord Camomile
Yipchaa!
I know one of them!
Blue glasses who calls it "very bizarre" But yes, on a more serious note it's horrible to think what it will be doing children.
gaijingirl
Well-Known Member
I looked at the tests a while ago and I will come clean and say that even though I teach grammar (albeit "foreign" grammar) there were terms there I didn't know. I can work out what they mean but I've never really seen them used. Despite this, my students and I have managed to get A* results in some of the hardest language GCSEs out there.
Plus when they come into secondary we re-test them anyway and use that data as our baseline. There are so many things about these tests that are wrong wrong wrong. I've already seen letters from local schools cancelling children's break times so they can study harder for these tests. WTF!
Plus when they come into secondary we re-test them anyway and use that data as our baseline. There are so many things about these tests that are wrong wrong wrong. I've already seen letters from local schools cancelling children's break times so they can study harder for these tests. WTF!
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