Teachers

Ive had two careers, one as a university academic with lots of teaching experience (and qualifications) and another as a psychoherapist. I have seen, and do see now, hoards of students/people fall into poor mental healthy precisely because of ideas about having to be 'perfect' according to somebody else's standard. The teacher in question needs whipping - yes, I mean that s/he will be responsible for the anxieties of countless children who may grow up with poor self-esteem. Makes my blood boil. If the teacher is doing his/ her job properly, there's absolutely no need or room for this punitive approach.

Apologies for the errors in the above, eyes are bad today.

Back in the olden days, when I was at school, detention was quite a rare punishment and only given for bad behaviour like fighting, swearing, etc. It was the same when my DDs were at school.

My 12 year old DGD now attends the same secondary school where her mum and aunt were pupils. Detention is handed out all the time for what I would consider to be pretty small stuff, such as forgetting a piece of PE kit or being 5 minutes late. Things which teachers used to deal with by giving the offender a sharp telling-off. Doesn't a punishment lose its impact if there is no difference between the consequences for inadvertent mistakes and deliberate bad behaviour?

My DGD worries about getting detention and has managed, so far, to only be detained once. This was for forgetting to hand in a piece of homework. Again, wouldn't a telling-off have done the job? She was very upset and ashamed to be in detention. Her former friend - no longer in the same class, thank God - gets detention several times a week for being rude, disruptive in class, skipping lessons, etc. She couldn't care less and it has absolutely no effect on her behaviour. If, for example, the punishment for insulting a teacher is the same as for forgetting a library book, how is it supposed to be a deterrent? The good kids are cowed and the naughty ones know that they might as well be hanged for a sheep as for a lamb.

As for schools which give detention for not sitting up straight, not facing the front, etc... You send your kids to school to learn, not to join a chain-gang. And detention for getting less than 100%? Why should you be punished for something that you couldn't do, as long as you tried? I don't think I could have got 100% in algebra if you had held a gun to my head. I would have been in detention all the time.

Ex teacher, sadly this is how 'outstanding works nowadays'. The picture included states he can take the test up to 3 times to improve his score? If he didn't get that chance before the detention that's unreasonable. I also think and said in the past, this type of disincentive is dreadful - being taught only perfection matters!

Horrible. Especially for one so young. Still, that's Ofsted inspections, league tables and our "wonderful" National Curriculum for you.

Hell's bells....80% gor an exam was considered really good when I was at school. Giving a child detention for not scoring 100% is terrible. I would talk to the head about that!

My grandson had a Science lesson and did a squiggle in the margin to get his pen working before completing his work. The teacher tore out the page from his work book and threw it at him. I could have cried. A friends daughter at the same school got a detention for not having a prit stick. How petty is that ? These are quiet , hardworking kids.
Some of the more challenging kids go to school in track suit bottoms and trainers repeatedly with no consequences and it really makes me cross and sad. It is so unfair.

I remember our whole class getting detention once but I can't remember what it was for so it obviously had no impact on me whatsoever.

Who called it "detention" ? It may have been a little remedial work. If I were you I'd not encourage the boy to feel sorry for himself or feel victimised for insufficient reason.

Ridiculous. I am a retired teacher and can't bear the practice of treating every pupil the same. Their circumstances are often different. Before I retired a system was introduced at my school where all teachers in the department had to teach in the same style which is crazy. Good teachers bring their own quirks to the job. That's why we often remember our favourite teachers. Not because they were all the same. His parents should definitely complain.

So difficult for the children with anxiety.

This 'quiz' doesn't seem to be a test of memory, more one of using and understanding the resources. Read the book, copy the information into a quiz. And you get three tries! Doesn't seem particularly onerous. You'd only fail by not taking the trouble to do it.

Talks about HW (homework) so missing the lesson in school SHOULD make no difference. I do accept the comment that ‘this is happened they become outstanding’ but since ‘satisfactory’ is no longer accessible and league tables are driving school finance (Gove et al) having ‘decided’ that the drive to improve schools (as exemplars in London proved) is ‘unConservative’ and, despite Truss, no one really believes restarting Grammar Schools is viable, this is today’s pathetic education system in play

Tuskanini

This 'quiz' doesn't seem to be a test of memory, more one of using and understanding the resources. Read the book, copy the information into a quiz. And you get three tries! Doesn't seem particularly onerous. You'd only fail by not taking the trouble to do it.

They're quite good fun!

If I were this Childs parents I would be seeing the school Headteacher and the Governor! The teacher is nothing less than an intimidating bully and should not be in the profession with an attitude like that! No wonder the child was upset, and I hope they are ok now.

Absolutely, unbelievably ridiculous. In our school I have NEVER known a teacher give detention because of any test score. Failing to hand in homework or disrupting the learning of others, yes. And 80% is a fantastic result. It is no wonder our kids get so stressed and anxious and end up with mental health problems such as self harming. This is definitely on the rise. Teachers are meant to be aware of this and their role in students' wellbeing. Doing your best is the most important thing of all.

When one of my relatives started senior school the first maths lesson was with a new teacher who set homework. My relative didn't understand the work so the mum sent a note explaining this. Next lesson about 3/4 of the class hadn't done the homework as they couldn't understand it. Those without a note were stood at the back of the class against the wall and repeatedly shouted at for the whole lesson.
My relative was terrified to watch this even though they were not affected. Her mum wrote a huge complaint letter to the head basically saying that public humiliation ceremonies and dunces stood in corners had no place in today's schools. Also the fact that even not being affected had frightened her daughter so much she didn't want to go to school. It never happened again but the damage was already done.
They failed GCSE maths and needed it for university. Relatives parents then paid for a lovely private tutor and their re-take was successful. They now teach maths in a school.
The teacher left after a year but the damage they did was ongoing as a lot of other children in that class failed maths exams.
A harsh regime does so much damage.
The parents of your DGC should write a letter of complaint.

I am a retired teacher and I think that, unless the test was extremely easy, expecting everyone to get 100% and punishing those who don't is a little excessive.

I’m ex teacher and it is ridiculous. Have no words!!

I come from a family of teachers, my daughter is a teacher, albeit Primary and I was a school governor for over 12 years and I think it’s utterly disgraceful a) to expect students to get 100% in exams and b) give detention for anyone failing to reach this and 80% is a great pass mark ! Nope you’re not being at all unreasonable but that teacher and/or school are certainly being so !

Having taught for 36 years I find this to be totally unacceptable by the school! Some family member needs to discuss this with the said dept and sort it asap !! I am speechless with disgust

Somebody (I forget who) called my DGS lazy! This is far from the truth, he suffers high anxiety and worries constantly about dropping a set as the schools expectations of him are so high! His self esteem suffered during the isolations of lock down and has been built up with lots of careful work. This type of punishment does not help. He was also upset because the instructions stated that if he failed he would need to show his work but instead the teacher went straight to detention, this is an hour and a half after school in a room with others and not extra help from the teacher, as was suggested. His school also gives detentions for petty misdemeanours such as not have a pritt stick with required amount left, or not having a green pen. He knows these rules and while, as a 12 year old, he often cant see the point does carefully follow them. His issue was as much about it not being stated in the instructions that it would merit an automatic detention as about the detention itself. My issue is that I strongly believe in carrot rather than stick in education. I too was a very compliant and hard working and anxious pupil and know that a punishment like this would have meant depression rather than incentive. I also do not believe that it is good for a child's mental health to be sent a message that only perfection is acceptable!!
In other ways he likes his school, enjoys the work and the quality of teaching especially in STEM subjects and English are excellent which suits him. I merely was seeking a teachers perspective not looking for unwarranted accusations of laziness

As teacher I have always objected to the very idea of quizzes, as these in my opinion often mean the American style quiz where the pupil ticks of the most appropriate answer of three or four possiblities. This has in my opinion no value at all in helping me, the teacher, gain an insight into what, if anything, a pupil has understood and remembered in my classes.

Not having seen this particular quizz, I don't know if it was of this type, but I suspect it was, as such a paper can be corrected quickly and the results easily converted into percentages that look good, teachers hope, in reports to the educational authorities.

Which explains why they are increasingly being used.

There is nothing educational about them, and the very thought of a teacher giving detention for a mark of 80% is disgusting. A child who has been off sick and still gets 80% deserves praise, not punishment.

No child should be punished for doing less well than he or she could, or others in the class do, unless the teacher knows and can prove (which you rarely can) that the mistakes were not due to incomprehension of the subject, but made deliberately out of sheer naughtiness and a desire to be provoking. This CAN happen, but is rare.

I am also shocked at a teacher who makes no allowances for children being off school sick. After all this can and does happen to us all.

Unless you are the child's guardian, you should not try to discuss this with the school, but in your place, I would advise his parents to complain about this unfair and frankly quite wrong way of treating a child.

My neice missed many days of school as she was being investigated for a health condition which meant numerous hospital visits, days when she could not attend due to extreme pain and heavy bleeding from her bottom (she was 7 and 8. Eventually at 11 she was offered a colostomy bag.
The school were informed every step along the way. The school reported the mum for non attendance and she had to go to court while waiting for results of a biopsy ( possible cancer) It turned out to be a necrotising problem of the bowel.
I know this isn't in same context but I feel that the authorities have lost their way with education as a whole.

As a retired teacher/lecturer, I am appalled at this for many reasons ( I see no reason to think the OP has misrepresented or misunderstood the events). Learners need encouragement and good quality teaching, not threats of punishment for getting less than 100%. It is fine for young people to learn that disrespect, breaking rules, and so on may have consequences, and detention may have its place in this. Punishing children based solely on test results is, in my opinion, a form of abuse and could have long lasting adverse effects. There is also the danger that such an approach could be particularly detrimental to those with (perhaps undiagnosed) dyslexia or dyscalculia or who have challenges due to some level of neurodiversity. As a parent or guardian, I would seek to talk to school management and submit a formal complaint if necessary. In Scotland, local authorities are responsible for the state schools in their area , so complaints can be submitted to them and, if necessary, escalated to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman. There are around 79 independent schools in Scotland and the Registrar of Independent Schools has a role in handling complaints. I understand with academies and trusts in England, the governance and complaints processes may be different. (excuse my ignorance of this). A wee personal note - I remember being ridiculed by a teacher in primary school because we had moved to a different area and, unlike the rest of the class I was placed in, I had not been taught long division. The teacher also refused to show me how to do it! I did manage to put this bizarre situation behind me and actually went on to teach maths.