how to apprach school

cheepskate_2

hi All

Just looking for opinions , a bit(total understatement)fumming after schoolcontacted me at 5.

Got a call at 5, my sons maths set teacher,saying my son was moving down a set in maths ...tomorrow am.
Said it was because he wasnt doing too well in various bits, low score on test 2 weeks agao and then they were doing a rejig of the maths sets.

All very well if he needs to move, i have no problem in that, but they only moved him up to this set 2 months ago and until today's call i had no idea anything was wrong.

i have said i am seriously not happy that they are doing this as my child is going to be upset and they should know what my child was like and what the set was doing , told them i would raTHER HE HADNT MOVED than this.

We have slowly been building his confidence up in maths and this has just knocked it, he is so upset

i am going to see the head of maths tomorrow, really just want ideas opinions as to me there is a lack of pastrol care here .

thanks

laurad85

I am a teacher and know that any changes in sets are as a last resort as we know how demotivating it can be. Getting a pupil into the right set is really important, not only so teachers can plan effectively and give the right support but also so pupils can access the curriculum. Also, there may be extra support in a lower set so it has it's advantages too. When I was in the wrong set in maths when I was at school, the set I was in was too had and I couldn't do the work, I didn't have the confidence to ask to move sets and really hoped my teacher would see I was struggling-he never did and as a result I had to take night classes as an adult.
I'm not suggesting you will but please don't into the meeting angry, see what the head of dept has to say and their reasons behind. I'm sure they have you child's best interests in mind. It may also be worth remembering that having a completely new set will be difficult for the teachers as they will have to build up new relationships with pupils etc, so I doubt this decision has been made without being thoroughly thought through

moomoomama27

cheepskate wrote: »

hi All

Just looking for opinions , a bit(total understatement)fumming after schoolcontacted me at 5.

Got a call at 5, my sons maths set teacher,saying my son was moving down a set in maths ...tomorrow am.
Said it was because he wasnt doing too well in various bits, low score on test 2 weeks agao and then they were doing a rejig of the maths sets.

All very well if he needs to move, i have no problem in that, but they only moved him up to this set 2 months ago and until today's call i had no idea anything was wrong.

i have said i am seriously not happy that they are doing this as my child is going to be upset and they should know what my child was like and what the set was doing , told them i would raTHER HE HADNT MOVED than this.

We have slowly been building his confidence up in maths and this has just knocked it, he is so upset

i am going to see the head of maths tomorrow, really just want ideas opinions as to me there is a lack of pastrol care here .

thanks

If I'm being honest I think you're making too big a deal of it! He was moved up 2 months ago because presumably they thought he could manage, after a trial of 8 weeks he's obviously not, so they are acting in his best interests by readjusting to make sure he's in the best set for his ability!

There is no point him struggling, it's obviously a bit above him (which is fine). Friendships shouldn't come into it, he needs to be able to achieve what he can, who he's with is irrelevant.

cheepskate_2

hi

Thanks.

It is nothing to do with friendships, friends are inhis form class not math set.

What is annoying is they have not said anything about him not managing, baring in mind it is only a few aspects that he is slower with, but to get told at 5 with no time to prepare my child, as far as he is concerned there were no probs.

claire16c

If theyre having a rejig then perhaps a few children are being moved.

At the end of the day they obviously want him to be in the best set for him, and you getting upset over it isnt going to help your son or make him feel more confident if he sees you getting annoyed about it.

I think you should trust that his teachers know what they are doing.

Spendless

How old is your son? I'm guessing Secondary school age since you said 'head of maths'. I've had similar with my kids at primary level. My DD is currently sat at the bottom table for maths but being given the middle tables work, something she isn't happy about, but when I raised it at Parents evening I got nowhere. If you get a similar response, continue to encourage and help at home and if you can afford it look into a home tutor. I did this at easter to raise my DS's literacy standards and it was the best money I've spent and took very little time to sort out.

Good luck.

singlestep

At the school I work at, we sometimes (not always) move pupils between sets without notifying parents. Usually this is in response to the most up-to-date information we have in terms of performance in tests and performance in/lack of committment to homework and classwork. In a situation such as you described, the pupil who moved down might have since proven that they deserved to be in the better set or that perhaps that earlier 'poor' performances were due to absence or some kind of genuine problem that has now been sorted. There may have been a new pupil who is gifted in maths who would benefit most from a higher set. Sometimes we do have irate parents, but very infrequent misunderstandings can arise if, for example, pupils have not passed on information or have themselves misunderstood it.

Teachers do try to get it right for every child, although I can see why you are upset at this. I hope it gets sorted out.

mountainofdebt

I'm assuming that your son is at secondary school and if so I am very surprised that you were even contacted to be told this - I certainly can't remember my parents being told that I was moving sets in any subject when I was that age (can still remember having to come clean about being put down a set in french in the 2nd year!)

Oldernotwiser

cheepskate wrote: »

We have slowly been building his confidence up in maths and this has just knocked it, he is so upset

Sometimes it's better to be competent rather than confident.

thegirlintheattic

In our school we always try to notify parents ahead of a move to explain it, doesn't always happen though, in which case it is handled sensitively with the pupils and they are given the opportunity to speak to the HoD about the move, as are there parents. .

Setting is done with the best interests of all the children in mind, and a lot of thought is taken into placing children in the appropriate set where they can make the most progress. Regular set moves can be a good thing as it shows the school is quick to react to changing needs. Sounds like the data indicated your soon might be better in a higher set, this was tried but the next assessment showed that he wasn't doing better (or indeed doing worse) and so a move back down is in his best interests.

mountainofdebt

The other thing to bear in mind is that the teacher in the higher set may not be the best teacher to teach your son (if that makes sense).

My son was in the top set for maths and had the same teacher for his entire time at secondary school. Whilst he always did OK in maths, 9 months before he sat his GCSEs it became obvious to us that he didn't have a clue. Luckily OH and I managed to teach Junior the stuff so well that instead of getting a predicted B he got an A*.

He then changed schools and did maths A level where he got a B.

I would also add that I wouldn't go in all guns blazing either - I personally would go there to find out what problems your son is having to the extent that the school feels a move down a set would be more appropriate