Our kids refused time off school during term time - please advice

Nessun_Dorma

Only an absolute moron would so stupid to take their children out of school, in the term that they will be studying for their GCSE assessments. But, I suppose they can take the next forty years to reflect on the fantastic, but ultimately pointless holiday they had in India, when they ask, "do you want fries with that?"

Nessun_Dorma

missbiggles1 wrote: »

A NQT may have studied/trained for only 30 weeks and will probably teach a couple of hundred students each week - just doesn't compare with a parent's knowledge.

I see the usual MSE hyperbole is still alive and well. I suggest you try telling that to a NQT, but stand well back.

missbiggles1

Nessun_Dorma wrote: »

I see the usual MSE hyperbole is still alive and well. I suggest you try telling that to a NQT, but stand well back.

Just how many weeks' study do you think a one year PGCE involves?

fierystormcloud

missbiggles1 wrote: »

A NQT may have studied/trained for only 30 weeks and will probably teach a couple of hundred students each week - just doesn't compare with a parent's knowledge.

Completely agree.

It is quite shocking how little some teachers know these days actually.

No wonder the standards of education are slipping.

I have literally met people who failed to get jobs at McDonalds who are more clued up about life.

FBaby

What I'm trying to work out is what would suit all - because I think it is impossible. And whatever your starting point, there will be those who don't agree with the rules.

I did say it was a compromise.

5 days does allow for a week off, or 2 weeks off if next to some holiday, or even 3 weeks in other cases. I think that allows quite some additional flexibility for parents, especially when the main issue is cost.

Saying that, I think our LA's fine system is not per day either but per episode, so again, it will be the same cost whether 5 days or 10 days, with the LA still with the option to issue an order if they do believe that the child's education is compromised on an individual basis.

There will always be parents who don't agree with the rules, but that's nothing new. Even before fines, the LA had the option to take the parents to court and fine them that way anyway. Our LA has changed their rules last year when they were given the option to be more flexible. Someone, or a committee at the LA must have decided that this was more reasonable without compromising children's education.

Jagraf

That's a child absent from class every week of the year through holiday (without illness, or those adding illness onto a weeks holiday). It's options week, or exams week, or d of e week, or mocks week, or the three weeks leading up to the school production your child is in. Or the week of parents evening. Even if you took all these weeks out (which is virtually impossible to police) that would then mean an average of two kids out of a class per week. I know we will have to agree to differ, but I think the rules will get tougher personally not more lenient, as schools and the government become more answerable for the formal (and I stress formal) education of our society. In my opinion that's a good thing.

Spendless

Before the current ruling came in, I didn't find children in my kids Primary school year/class off every week. I can only think of one child who was regularly taken out for a 2 week holiday. This was not to do with affordability but because both parents work full-time in the building trade and their busiest months are when the light nights are, and didn't (or possibly couldn't?) take holidays in the summer.

FBaby

Sorry don't understand the 'that's a child absent every week'. Not all parents take their kids out every year just because they can. Many do it for as a one off opportunity not make it an annual event.

notanewuser

DD's primary school haven't adopted the local authority's policy on charging. It's a small school and the governing body have decided that the Head knows best whether a child should be authorised to take time off for a holiday (up to 10 days a year). Happy days.

However, the local authority policy is that only one fine can be levied per child per term. So if I wanted to take DD for 2 months in Australia (for example) so long as it didn't span terms it would cost me all of £60. Sounds like a bargain to me!

Nessun_Dorma

Spendless wrote: »

Before the current ruling came in, I didn't find children in my kids Primary school year/class off every week. I can only think of one child who was regularly taken out for a 2 week holiday. This was not to do with affordability but because both parents work full-time in the building trade and their busiest months are when the light nights are, and didn't (or possibly couldn't?) take holidays in the summer.

I teach additional reading, as a qualified special needs support assistant. There were two my students taken out of school last term, for family holidays, because these students do no reading during the time they had off, it took me over a week to get them back to the standard they were before they went away.