Parent – UK
My stories
My School Story
*Trigger warning*
I went to primary and secondary mainstream school in the 1980's and 1990's.
From a young age, I was bullied and resulted in attempting to end my own life at the age of 14.
Despite telling trusted adults, nothing was done and I was forced back into the same school, with the same students, and left to fend for myself.
I was always told that I was over-reacting, I was too sensitive, and I needed to grow a thicker skin.
I performed badly academically because of this, and the pressure from teachers and parents to "do better" overtook the education I should have received.
I left secondary with alot less than what I was capable of because I just hated being there.
When I saw the same in my own children decades later, I almost broke because I didn't know what to do.
I stood up for my children, made sure the options the school gave were carried out, and if they weren't I followed up until they were.
Mainstream secondary schools are very incredibly difficult to work with as a parent, and seem determined to sweep problems under the rug instead of dealing with the cause.
Add in to this the constant threat of sanctions for the students, and fines for the parents, and it is a perfect storm for stress from all sides.
Teachers have favourites, and use the others as targets to dish out punishment for doing nothing wrong - in some lessons, my children have been given sanctions just for asking for help! It is so obvious that schools are now businesses there to make money, not to educate children.
I find the current school system abhorrent, and while home education was an option previously, it no longer is.
Before berating parents for choosing to remove their children from mainstream schools, the education system needs to look at itself and ask why so many children are being failed by the very system that was set up to supposedly serve them.
I went to primary and secondary mainstream school in the 1980's and 1990's.
From a young age, I was bullied and resulted in attempting to end my own life at the age of 14.
Despite telling trusted adults, nothing was done and I was forced back into the same school, with the same students, and left to fend for myself.
I was always told that I was over-reacting, I was too sensitive, and I needed to grow a thicker skin.
I performed badly academically because of this, and the pressure from teachers and parents to "do better" overtook the education I should have received.
I left secondary with alot less than what I was capable of because I just hated being there.
When I saw the same in my own children decades later, I almost broke because I didn't know what to do.
I stood up for my children, made sure the options the school gave were carried out, and if they weren't I followed up until they were.
Mainstream secondary schools are very incredibly difficult to work with as a parent, and seem determined to sweep problems under the rug instead of dealing with the cause.
Add in to this the constant threat of sanctions for the students, and fines for the parents, and it is a perfect storm for stress from all sides.
Teachers have favourites, and use the others as targets to dish out punishment for doing nothing wrong - in some lessons, my children have been given sanctions just for asking for help! It is so obvious that schools are now businesses there to make money, not to educate children.
I find the current school system abhorrent, and while home education was an option previously, it no longer is.
Before berating parents for choosing to remove their children from mainstream schools, the education system needs to look at itself and ask why so many children are being failed by the very system that was set up to supposedly serve them.
My Home Ed Story
I was never deregistered.
How I think schools could be better.
Tougher bullying policies that are actually adhered to, a reform of teaching standards and styles to accommodate every child's learning, reduction of pressure to "pass" SATS and GCSE's, teaching staff that actually want to teach children!