No one is saying that the sylabus shouldn't evolve as new discoveries are made but it is apparent that many schools are not teaching the basics thoroughly enough. Especially in the sciences and mathematics.

One excuse I have heard from teachers is that there is now too much in the sylabus and something had to go. In Physics that was the maths parts as reported earlier.

In History a recent study reported;

The study – published by the think-tank Politeia – said it was “difficult to name a European country that teaches history in such a manner, one which can leave the majority of school-leavers in the dark about the unfolding story of their past”.

It warned that typical secondary school students failed to study any aspect of British or European history outside Tudor England, the Industrial Revolution and the World Wars.

Full story in the Telegraph;
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9229379/Pupils-failing-to-study-British-history-at-school.html

But I found my youngest knew very little about the Industrial Revolution so I gave him "The Most Powerful Idea in the World" by William Rosen. He is astounded by how much he didn't know.

Same thoughts I was just about to post Ofsted chief: ‘teachers don’t know what stress is’

Parents 'failing to get children ready for school'

Not strictly education, education.
Girl's school dinner blog becomes internet hit or go to the blog at http://neverseconds.blogspot.co.uk/

Well here we go, what about this idea then? When I titled this thread, this wasn't quite what I had in mind ....


Parenting classes

Why Boots.

In my nearest town, Boots is in a prime position, but has competition from two others, one 50 m away, the other right by the bus station, that is the busiest. Also Boots tend to be only in town centres and if a chemist is needed people tend to use the closest, or the one that is open that evening/night, again not boots, or the local 24hr supermarket. Also main doctors clinic, four GP's is less that 100 m from a co-op chemists.

Plus I would think that the people who need this most might regard Boots as being up market and use supermarket, £1 shop or market for cosmetics, so again not liable to use Boots.

Jeebers, what next? Waste £10 milllion on teaching them how to potty train their kids?

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Ofsted

Utter rubbish from a rubbish head of a rubbish outfit! The sooner Ofsted is abolished the better.

Of course teaching is stressful. You've got illiterate thicko parents who can't or won't, teach their illiterate thicko kids that you are supposed to turn up for class, behave, and do some work.

Typical quango nonentity basking in the twilight of his career.

LMAO. Just say what you think Chris. Don't hold back. :D

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Reality Internet Personality

Hi Es <waves> where ya been, I was expecting you to jump in a lot earlier :-) Yep you know me, there are times to call a spade a spade, and I now have the freedom to do it.

Not been around much Chris, too busy. :)

The College that I used to work at has had a "Satifactory" grading for the last 3 inspections in a row. That means that it is doing the job it is supposed to do at an acceptable level of competence. Which in Civil Service appraisements was known as "Fully Acceptable". But because of that the next inspection will be a drains up one because the inspectors haven't seen what they call any progress. In theory every school or College will have to reach "Outstanding" at some point, else be labelled not improving. Which is of course a total nonsense.

I've known teachers to be labelled outstanding during one inspection to failing in another despite doing the same thing. At my last job Ofsted came in with the mission to shut the school down because the most of the departments were failing (mainly due to the difficult intake of the pupils and the resulting problems with retaining teachers. I had in fact taken over the classes of the former deputy head who had walked out one day and refused to come back). The science department was the only successful department and was the reason that the school had not been put on special measures. So Ofsted came in and targeted the science department. The inspector it turned out was being inspected himself. He came into the prep room and declared it unsafe because we drank our tea in there and ordered it cleared out (not even within his remit and he shouldn't have done that). All the experiments that we had prepared for the next day ended up in the dumpster (including the Agar plates my pupils had been growing bacteria on). The result was that the department came in the next morning to discovered that all their carefully planned lessons had been destroyed. The inspector came into my year 9 class that absolutely hated me because I was the 5th teacher they had had that year and they had been dumped on me a couple of weeks before hand. They had driven all their other teacher's away. They were a pretty frightful bunch and was doing the best I could with them considering they had thrown things at me and one pupil had shoved me. At one point half the class had torn their books up refusing to be taught.

The lesson I prepared according the new government laid out syllabus for the applied science course was exactly as I had told it should be. The Ofsted inspector said that they weren't learning anything. All I could think to say was that maybe he should try and control these feral children who regularly swore at me, refused to work. Walked in and out of the classroom at will and whenever I set out practical work they would deliberately destroy the equipment.

Considering that they had driven all their previous teachers away I thought I was doing a damn good job and at that point I realised that Ofsted didn't have a clue what was really going on in schools.

As a supply teacher I've been asked to come into schools during ofsted inspections to wait in the staffroom "just in case" I was needed.

Head teacher's freak out and bully the staff when an ofsted inspection is due. Teacher's will bribe pupils to behave (my horrible year 9 class did actually behave for the full 20 mins the inspector was in my room which was a bloody miracle, but the minute he walked out the classroom they started cheering and throwing things, which he heard.)

The things I could tell that go on in the failing UK school system you would not believe...and bullying teachers, trying to force them to make an broken system work is NOT the answer.

I went to a teacher's recruitment fair here in Vancouver and a London, UK teaching agency was here trying to recruit Canadians to go teach there. Does anyone sit and ask for a minute why they can't get teacher's to stay???

Now we have a new 2012 framework as well New Ofsted Framework I have every sympathy and respect for anyone that chooses to be a teacher, but I am so glad that I'm out of it now, as you're on a hiding to nothing.

I have no plans on going back. Right now I actually quite content doing math tutoring to lovely sweet Canadian teenagers. I really hope the Canadian education system doesn't go the way the UK one has. The teacher's are currently fighting changes the government here wants to bring in to save money that will take us down that dark path.

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Reality Internet Personality

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/meet-the-worst-8th-grade-math-teacher-in-nyc/2012/05/15/gIQArmlbSU_blog.html

Reminds me of the occasion I was sent on a course, because the rules and regulations said you had to. Before you could work on the equipment. Even though I had been on the initial equipment trial at the manufacturers, with all the design staff etc.

First day of course, sit exam to see how much students know of the techniques, score 100%. Then spent 6 weeks correcting the "knowledge" of the instructors. End of course exam 100%. Damning course report because I had made no improvement.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9275114/GCSEs-and-A-levels-two-grades-easier-than-Far-East-exams.html

Just found this, but not read thoughly, my chauffeur has arrived, C U later.

Not been around much Chris, too busy. :)

Thanks for that detailed response Es, and being aware of the locations in which you previously worked, your experiences do not surprise me one bit. And I am sure you could tell many other horror stories as well. I actually do feel a little sorry for Ofsted as they are just trying in their own cack handed way to deal with the general malaise that has hit British Education.

Parents don't care, therefore the kids don't care, society looks the other way, the Government isn't dealing with it, and I just can't see an answer at the moment. Meanwhile the out of work queue gets longer, and specifically IT wise, we are the poor relation in Europe,

My advice to you is to stay where you are. You are actually quite good at your job and you might as well get some thanks and recognition for it over there, rather than being kicked from backside to breakfast-time over here!

Thanks Chris.

I was actually quite appreciated over there by the people that mattered, most of my pupils (even the evil hateful ones) and the other staff. That particular school begged me to stay, but I was leaving for Canada and could not. They were excellent people doing their best in a really tough situation. I am well aware that I am very good at my job, and that is also being reflected back to me here.

However, Ofsted is a joke that makes things worse and doesn't deal with the real problems. By all means, let the parents come in and see how little Johnny behaves when they aren't around.

I had one pupil (a year 7) who was pretty much unteachable. He once got upset with me because I was trying to get him to settle down and do some work so he said he was going to phone his mum and complain. I told him to go ahead as I wanted a word with her. He dialled her and put her on speaker phone and all I could here was her screaming down the phone at him "What the F**k are you doing calling me??" before she hung up on him. At that moment it all became clear to me why him and his older sister (who I also taught) were so terrible in class.

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Reality Internet Personality

And here's one for Esme ....

Ofsted

Well..Daily Mail..but this is one article I can believe. Having heard many similar stories from other teachers.

Like I said, experienced teachers have been marked outstanding by one inspector then failed by another for teaching in exactly the same way the same thing.

As to your article on parenting classes..I am not sure they are bad idea at all. However, if they are going to attempt to fix "marriage" then they need to look at the root cause of why so marriages are failing. Perhaps the parenting classes should also be targeted at the absent fathers rather than the just parents who actually are sticking around to do right by their children.

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Reality Internet Personality

I think that all teachers & schools (within each level that is) should be "preaching from the same hymn book" & also, realise that the school's "dress code" should not impinge a person's body.

it's summer for christ's sake!

Good job I'm not at school in today's society as come summer, I went as low as a number 1!

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Have they left it too late?

Dumbed down teachers need schooling to teach

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Have they left it too late?

Dumbed down teachers need schooling to teach

Probably. This was in yesterday's Telegraph.

School leavers 'unable to function in the workplace'

More than four in 10 employers are being forced to provide remedial training in English, maths and IT amid concerns teenagers are leaving school lacking basic skills, it emerged today.

Another alien from the planet "Muppetdom"......

Ugly sisters

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Ooops, double post, sorry.

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Have they left it too late?

Almost.... But after over 10 years of the Loony Left being in charge of UK education from age 5-15, FE and HE, and University, it's gonna hurt big time to redress the problem. It's not the teachers fault, at the time they were employed they didn't have to be any better than what they were. Now I'm afraid they have to be, to meet the new necessary increases in standards.

We have to start somewhere, and from the bottom up, i.e. primary education is the best place to start.

Interestingly the Fail mentions:

The Daily Fail wrote:

Many teachers may not have been taught grammar at school, having been educated in the 1970s and 1980s.

What was the "looney lefty" administration during the 1980s?

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I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that ...

1964 Harold Wilson Labour
1970 Edward Heath Conservative
1974 Harold Wilson Labour
1976 James Callaghan Labour
1979 Margaret Thatcher Conservative
1990 John Major Conservative
1997 Tony Blair Labour
2007 Gordon Brown Labour
2010 David Cameron Conservative-Liberal Coalition

During the later 1970's we had a Labour government, in the 1980's we had a Conservative government. However it needs to be recognised that every political party has its left wing, centre, and right wing. Traditionally in the UK it has always been the left wing policies that has held sway in Education.

Thanks. If I'm reading your post correctly, for 5 out of 20 years of the 70s and 80s that the Fail mentioned there were Labour governments, for the remaining 15 there were Conservative. As for your comment on left wing policies in Education, perhaps you would be so kind as to remind the younger folks here who was the Minister responsible for Education under Edward Heath ;-).

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I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that ...

Not at all, happy to.

Margaret Thatcher had a rough ride as Education Minister. The early 1970s saw student radicalism at its height and British politics at its least civil. Protesters disrupted her speeches, the opposition press vilified her, and education policy itself seemed set immovably in a leftwards course, which she and many Conservatives found uncomfortable.

I still stand my ground upon education. Until we get back to basics with the three R's philosophy, as generally supported by the right wing, we are doomed. I will agree that perhaps my general comments may be more applicable to the turn of the last Century, but that's the only concession you are getting ;-)

Why did you drop the last sentence from the quoted paragraph "But she mastered the job and was toughened by the experience", and why not provide its source?

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I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that ...

Good one, considering Bobby brought that subject matter up in the 1st place, it should be down to him to provide the statements & source....


...best laid traps of men & mice... :)

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Why did you drop the last sentence from the quoted paragraph "But she mastered the job and was toughened by the experience", and why not provide its source?

Oh dear we are being Mr. Picky today aren't we. She might have been a good Prime Minister but she will be forever remembered as "Thatcher the milk snatcher" for her time as Education Secretary, and I don't think she did a particularly good job in that role. And no, before you ask, I'm not going to quote you chapter and verse as to why.

I'm just waiting for your Freudian slip - "Why? because you sez so?" then I will know it's Rush back under a nom de plume.

There are some old threads on these boards where Rush and I discuss various topics, that you feel my comments are deserving of comparison with his, is to my mind, highly complimentary.

And no, I don't feel I'm being Mr Picky, when you dropped "But she mastered the job" I believe you substantially changed the full text. If you believe I am being picky when asking for links, not citing your source is an insult to the original author.

Sirius wrote:

Good one, considering Bobby brought that subject matter up in the 1st place, it should be down to him to provide the statements & source....

Sirius, it was your post of a Daily Mail article and Chris's comment about "looney lefty" practices that started my line of questioning about administrations in place when today's teachers were being taught.

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I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that ...