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Anyone who has school age kids will love this guy


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If they had got a 1st or 2nd class degree would that have mean't they'd have been a better teacher?  Personally I make my judgements about my childrens primary school teachers based on them as people not on certificates hanging on the wall.

It can be the case that the higher academic achievers actually make poorer teachers because they cannot appreciate or communicate their knowledge to a child who is unable to grasp the subject they, the teacher, has excelled in. 

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You clearly don't understand teaching if you think a 3rd grade B.Ed makes for a poor primary school teacher. A degree of any kind gives a primary school teacher knowledge way beyond anything a child would require, and the skill of a teacher is not in their own academic achievement (aside from sound literacy and numeracy) but in their ability in the classroom, which is a skill that cannot be taught but only enhanced.

Only this week we've heard countless people claiming they had PhD or MA qualifications but were unable to get even 50% of the marks in the SATs sample tests.
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It can be the case that the higher academic achievers actually make poorer teachers because they cannot appreciate or communicate their knowledge to a child who is unable to grasp the subject they, the teacher, has excelled in.

Equally, my school has brought a number of academic high flyers into assemblies recently (as part of our careers and aspirations programme), to try and offer an insight into their jobs, but we've canned it as their communication skills, pomposity and emotional intelligence were at levels totally inappropriate for their audience. Perhaps it's a good job they 'can' as it would be a disaster to find them responsible for teaching our children.

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Only this week we've heard countless people claiming they had PhD or MA qualifications but were unable to get even 50% of the marks in the SATs sample tests.

Yeah, but they may have been garbage at English!  (In 2006 when I was in my final year at uni studying English Literature & Language, I was astounded when the lecturer for my dissertation module held separate grammar and spelling classes, for English undergrads for heaven's sake!)

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You clearly don't understand teaching if you think a 3rd grade B.Ed makes for a poor primary school teacher.  A degree of any kind gives a primary school teacher knowledge way beyond anything a child would require, and the skill of a teacher is not in their own academic achievement (aside from sound literacy and numeracy) but in their ability in the classroom, which is a skill that cannot be taught but only enhanced.

I clearly understand that my opinion of my childrens education is more than a match for any 3rd rate B.Ed should I wish to prioritise family time over two weeks of their continued teaching and be assured of it being absolutely no detriment to their education whatsoever.

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It can be the case that the higher academic achievers actually make poorer teachers because they cannot appreciate or communicate their knowledge to a child who is unable to grasp the subject they, the teacher, has excelled in. 

it is also definitely the case that many people here will remember being taught by poor and insipid teachers who had a long career. Communicating knowledge has a very wide appreciation and doesn't seem to be judged by the childrens improvement but by other factors.

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I'm a teacher and a parent so I do appreciate the arguments on all sides. What I will say is that the situation in the UK system has lost all perspective.

 

My nieces school refused permission for her to have five days off so she could travel to NZ with my sister (tacked onto the Easter holiday meant the journey would be feasible.....two weeks is not enough given jet-lag, etc).

 

By going on the trip she would get to see me, my wife and her three cousins. FOR THE FIRST TIME. That in itself is a hugely important reason.

 

She also got to roam in the countryside of NZ, collect eggs from our hens, feed lambs, see whales an dolphins in Kaikoura, run around in forests, collect firewood and sit around campfires toasting marshmallows with her cousins.....along with a host of other unique experiences so totally different from her day to day life in Walthamstow.

 

We even organised for her to go to school with my youngest son for a few days (the holiday didn't coincide with NZ school holidays) so she could experience both education and other cultures.

 

All this was made clear to the school yet still permission was refused. 

 

My niece is SIX....and had 100% attendance until the holiday.....I found it staggering that the benefits of the trip were not self evident and that permission was not granted.

 

Needless to say they came anyway. So I'm pleased to hear about this case as it means they will be able to fight the fine (which went on top of an already expensive trip).

www.fatalerror.co.nz - A Musical by Lattimer & McRae

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I'm a teacher and a parent so I do appreciate the arguments on all sides. What I will say is that the situation in the UK system has lost all perspective.

 

My nieces school refused permission for her to have five days off so she could travel to NZ with my sister (tacked onto the Easter holiday meant the journey would be feasible.....two weeks is not enough given jet-lag, etc).

 

By going on the trip she would get to see me, my wife and her three cousins. FOR THE FIRST TIME. That in itself is a hugely important reason.

 

She also got to roam in the countryside of NZ, collect eggs from our hens, feed lambs, see whales an dolphins in Kaikoura, run around in forests, collect firewood and sit around campfires toasting marshmallows with her cousins.....along with a host of other unique experiences so totally different from her day to day life in Walthamstow.

 

We even organised for her to go to school with my youngest son for a few days (the holiday didn't coincide with NZ school holidays) so she could experience both education and other cultures.

 

All this was made clear to the school yet still permission was refused. 

 

My niece is SIX....and had 100% attendance until the holiday.....I found it staggering that the benefits of the trip were not self evident and that permission was not granted.

 

Needless to say they came anyway. So I'm pleased to hear about this case as it means they will be able to fight the fine (which went on top of an already expensive trip).

Precisely the attitude and the point.

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Thirdly when they get 3 times the national average holiday eating into their 13 weeks by a few days is no particular issue, at the very least they could tack them onto holidays or bank holiday weekends to enable parents to enjoy the benefit.

To be fair our local infant and junior schools both tag on at least 2 teacher training days at the end of the school summer holidays which means we can usually get a week away after the prices have dropped a bit from the summer peak. This has made the head teachers a lot of friends and seems a very sensible approach.

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.

That said I didn't like the idea that 90% was given as good attendance. There's a difference between missing 1 week (less than 3%) and 10%. When I've taught, children with low attendance do tend to struggle more than those that don't and 90% is very low compared to the average. There'd be maybe 1 or 2 children in a class with a percentage like that.

 

My daughter is in Year 2, has never missed a day at school, and has had 100% attendance & Punctuality, and her Head Teacher has just refused us permission to take her to Turkey for my Partners Cousins wedding. You might have seen him on TV, He was in the dance group that finished 2nd to Diversity on "Britain's Got Talent" a couple of years ago. They have family all over Europe and Asia, and the Caribbean, and we are also going to Ephesus, as an Educational "Treat" for her, and he still refuses to give permission.

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Yes, but don't make it sound like the majority of schools makes such decisions. You'd be wrong.

I'm not making it sound anyway. Taking the kids away is the correct attitude to have and the experience they will have is the point. Are you saying the majority of schools will have no opposition to children having such opportunities?

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I think the bigest problem is there aren;t really any set guidelines.

 

A friend of mine wanted to take their two sons to Australia over Christmas which meant 3 days off at the beginning of the year. One of their sons is in trhe Junior School and one of them is in the infant school - one headteacher said yes, the other said no.

 

Both had exemplarary attendance records.

 

It boils down to being a very emotive decision which is wrong

Now then, it's a race between Sandie....and Fairburn....and the little man is in........yeees he's in.

I, just like those Castleford supporters felt that the ball should have gone to David Plange but he put the bit betwen his teeth...and it was a try

Kevin Ward - best player I have ever seen

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The real Mick Gledhill is what you see on here, a Bradford fan ........, but deep down knows that Bradford are just not good enough to challenge the likes of Leeds & St Helens.
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It sounds like a bit of a mess.

 

Heads judge each case on it merits?  Lots of arguments: favouritism - well, you let their Johnny have a few days off, so why not  let our Jane off? 

 

Heads have rigid rules and no compromise. Still lots of arguments. 

 

Me? I'd just say no: you can't have what you want every time all the time. 

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I'm not making it sound anyway. Taking the kids away is the correct attitude to have and the experience they will have is the point. Are you saying the majority of schools will have no opposition to children having such opportunities?

No I'm not.

I'm saying most schools will try to use as much discretion as possible to grant genuine requests for 'holidays' during term time where there are no obvious solutions otherwise. A cheap holiday cannot be considered as the only reason for a request to be authorised, whether you or I like it. Furthermore, schools must make sure they don't stitch themselves up. They can only manoeuvre within the wriggle-room afforded by their respective Local Authorities.

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No I'm not.

I'm saying most schools will try to use as much discretion as possible to grant genuine requests for 'holidays' during term time where there are no obvious solutions otherwise. A cheap holiday cannot be considered as the only reason for a request to be authorised, whether you or I like it. Furthermore, schools must make sure they don't stitch themselves up. They can only manoeuvre within the wriggle-room afforded by their respective Local Authorities.

I doubt any school can verify a genuine request for a holiday when the only information comes from the parent. The expense of a trip is no less a reason than anything else. So if what you say is accurate it seems the schools do favour opposition to such trips. 

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I doubt any school can verify a genuine request for a holiday when there only information comes from the parent. The expense of a trip is no less a reason than anything else. So if what you say is accurate it seems the schools do favour opposition to such trips.

Your doubt is rather misplaced, unfortunately.

Whilst cost is the most frequent reason for in-term requests, such circumstances do not permit a Headteacher to use their discretion to authorise the holiday. This was taken away in the last set of reforms. It helps to deal with facts rather than suppositions here, I feel.

I would prefer a relaxation of the rules, but alas, I can only work by the current rules.

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It sounds like a bit of a mess.

 

Heads judge each case on it merits?  Lots of arguments: favouritism - well, you let their Johnny have a few days off, so why not  let our Jane off? 

 

Heads have rigid rules and no compromise. Still lots of arguments. 

 

Me? I'd just say no: you can't have what you want every time all the time.

Unless one of the rigid rules was that discretion can only be used when a child's attendance is above a certain percentage? I'd go for that.

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Rightly or wrongly, unless there is a re-write, does last week's verdict not indicate some 'relaxation'?

Dictats to schools this week from local authorities indicate a rethink of policy, certainly. However, until such time this comes about, schools in my area are being asked to apply the same rules (under which current Ofsted judgements will be made).

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I guess that opens up the opportunity of further very expensive legal challenges that are likely to be highly criticised in the light of last week.... particularly if another authority also fails to successfully prosecute...

"I love our club, absolutely love it". (Overton, M 2007)

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Your doubt is rather misplaced, unfortunately.

Whilst cost is the most frequent reason for in-term requests, such circumstances do not permit a Headteacher to use their discretion to authorise the holiday. This was taken away in the last set of reforms. It helps to deal with facts rather than suppositions here, I feel.

I would prefer a relaxation of the rules, but alas, I can only work by the current rules.

 

Well cost for many = availability/ opportunity so semantics aside their discretion also seems not to acknowledge opportunity? And in this small selection of contributors,  see comment 58 by Kier, there seems evidence of a zero tolerance approach that goes against all reasonable judgement. 

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Well cost for many = availability/ opportunity so semantics aside their discretion also seems not to acknowledge opportunity? And in this small selection of contributors, see comment 58 by Kier, there seems evidence of a zero tolerance approach that goes against all reasonable judgement.

But that's exactly the point. Cost is not an exceptional circumstance under the current regulations. Whether I agree with that or not, is totally immaterial. Do you see that?

On the basis of your argument, would you authorise any of these term-time requests in normal term time? Any different during exam periods? If so, why?

1. Affluent family taking a month out in North America

2. 4 nights in Skegness with Aunty June

3. Taking children on a honeymoon

4. 2 weeks religious observance in Pakistan to include the sacrificing of a luck-giving cow

5. 2nd holiday of 1 week duration over an academic year?

I don't know how many rules and regulations you are prepared to break (and then have them publicly reported by a government department) in the process of doing your own job, but I prefer to do mine to the book. It doesn't mean to say I like it.

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