Taking kids out of school

davehills

ilikewatch wrote: »

As far as I'm aware, school management still have discretion as to what leave they will authorise during term time.

There is quite some difference between:
a)Allowing a family from a legally recognised ethnic minority term-time leave to pursue a centuries old tradition.
b)Allowing a family term-time leave to drag the kids to torremolinos for 2 weeks because it'll save them a few quid.

Anecdotally, a school I am involved with has a large traveller family on roll, this family tend to travel from spring half-term until September, and have weekly learning plans and homework sent on to be collected from "post restante" locations - it is returned each week like clockwork.
The school experimented with offering the same service to families who were taking children out of school for holidays without authorisation in order to at least help them to not fall too far behind - so far no-one has accepted this offer, generally with a reply along the lines of "get lost, - the kids will be on holiday why would they want to be doing boring school work".

Personally i disagree with term-time fines too, I think that if parents have so little respect for their childrens education that they will intentionally allow them to miss school, then the children should be automatically unenrolled, with no future school having an obligation to enroll them in future. Unfortunately this would have the biggest impact on the children who most need the education because their parents value it so little.

There is some discretion, but Head teachers are given very strict guidelines that they are expected to adhere to.

As you say, a week in Tenerife because it's cheaper in term time is not a good reason and will be refused.

Many parents don't realise that the child falls behind by taking breaks in term time. A week off can mean a term time of playing catch up.

I agree that fines shouldn't be required but parents didn't play ball previously, taking the "what is the school going to do" attitude to taking holidays in term time. Some parents were simply talking the mickey beforehand.

Well, this is what the school is going to do - fine you.

davehills

meer53 wrote: »

In my opinion, Sats are more for the schools benefit than the childrens. The sooner Sats are abolished, the better.

Whilst you might be correct that SATS are measuring the performance of the school, isn't that a good thing also for the children at the end of the day?

If the school your child attends isn't doing its job, wouldn't you like to know and for the school to make appropriate improvements?

snowcat75

ilikewatch wrote: »

As far as I'm aware, school management still have discretion as to what leave they will authorise during term time.

There is quite some difference between:
a)Allowing a family from a legally recognised ethnic minority term-time leave to pursue a centuries old tradition.
b)Allowing a family term-time leave to drag the kids to torremolinos for 2 weeks because it'll save them a few quid.

Anecdotally, a school I am involved with has a large traveller family on roll, this family tend to travel from spring half-term until September, and have weekly learning plans and homework sent on to be collected from "post restante" locations - it is returned each week like clockwork.
The school experimented with offering the same service to families who were taking children out of school for holidays without authorisation in order to at least help them to not fall too far behind - so far no-one has accepted this offer, generally with a reply along the lines of "get lost, - the kids will be on holiday why would they want to be doing boring school work".

Personally i disagree with term-time fines too, I think that if parents have so little respect for their childrens education that they will intentionally allow them to miss school, then the children should be automatically unenrolled, with no future school having an obligation to enroll them in future. Unfortunately this would have the biggest impact on the children who most need the education because their parents value it so little.

However whats allowed and what is not falls with the whims of the headteacher,

At my sons school I made it clear from the start before enrolling that I would be taking him out for around a week a year, I am a 3rd generation farmer and my son attends a rural primary school, It is incredibly difficult to get any time off, weekends included, and the summer season from green crop harvest through to cereal planting starts from the first week in June through to November, during this time my wife is very much like a single parent so I consider it very important that we try and have 10 days away before the silly season, I go in this half term, and include some extra days into the following week.

The old headteacher had no problem understood fully, just requested that I checked there was nothing important being missed.

New headteacher who is obsessed with Stats and we no longer get the permission.

The thing that really !!!!ed me off this year was getting the refusal the letter the day before the school went on strike, because of course in some way that's different????

meer53

davehills wrote: »

Whilst you might be correct that SATS are measuring the performance of the school, isn't that a good thing also for the children at the end of the day?

If the school your child attends isn't doing its job, wouldn't you like to know and for the school to make appropriate improvements?

I don't need Sats to know whether my childs school is doing well. I can tell for myself. It's not difficult.

I have moved my daughter from one "Academy" school as it is easier than trying to get the school to make "appropriate improvements"

adonis

meer53 wrote: »

I don't need Sats to know whether my childs school is doing well. I can tell for myself. It's not difficult.

Some parents wont unfortunately, and the teachers need to put pupils into the right ability groups.

If your child is bright do you want him or her put into a low ability group where they will be held back.:(

notanewuser

snowcat75 wrote: »

The thing that really !!!!ed me off this year was getting the refusal the letter the day before the school went on strike, because of course in some way that's different????

It is different. If teachers strike it's for 1 day and every pupil in the class is in the same position. If you take your son out for 3 days the teacher has to spend time catching him up as well as keeping the other 29 occupied.

Air_Cooled_75

I don't agree. I took 3 holidays during term time (1st, 2nd and 3rd year at secondary school, in the 80s) for 2 weeks, in May (and then I broke my arm after one holiday). No teacher I had spent time helping me catch up! I got 11 GCSEs, all A and B grades. How do they explain away the extended summer break? To me, it isn't necessarily the cost of a summer holiday (supply and demand, and of course, if you don't like the 'peak' season prices try booking a resort that is cold/off season July/August) but it's the being too busy I don't like.

I think the traveller thing is a pointless example, the girls are taken out of school at a certain age aren't they?

DevilsAdvocate1

Air_Cooled_75 wrote: »

I don't agree. I took 3 holidays during term time (1st, 2nd and 3rd year at secondary school, in the 80s) for 2 weeks, in May (and then I broke my arm after one holiday). No teacher I had spent time helping me catch up! I got 11 GCSEs, all A and B grades. How do they explain away the extended summer break? To me, it isn't necessarily the cost of a summer holiday (supply and demand, and of course, if you don't like the 'peak' season prices try booking a resort that is cold/off season July/August) but it's the being too busy I don't like.

I think the traveller thing is a pointless example, the girls are taken out of school at a certain age aren't they?

I took my boys out for 2 weeks every year for 5 years as my husband couldn't get time off during the school holidays. All 3 are doing really well. Waiting for my eldest's GCSE results (predicted A and A*s). My middle son is doing very well and my youngest is currently working with the children the year above him.

Also when I was in year 11 I was off for 5 weeks due to a serious illness and passed all my 'O' Levels (though I did only get one A).

I think this is just another money making scheme for the school or government. They should tackle the real truants - the ones who are in the park or shopping centre in gangs when they should be at school.

karenmay33

i took my son out of school for 5 days in October & 5 days in May for holidays abroad, he had 1 day off sick... i have not been fined by the county council NOT the school as it is the County Council WHO issue the fines.... and your child has to have under 85% attendance..

just use your brain if you want to take your child out of school for a holiday.. look at the school calendar and don't pick weeks they have trial exams, Parents evenings ect (things important to you & your child)

Spidernick

Ignoring the wrongs and rights of this, surely most families don't have enough annual leave to cover the usual school holidays, let alone anything extra? We struggle as it is and I'm sure most families have both partners working these days and so would probably be in the same boat.