Comments on: Insane Teacher Bothers the Prime Minister

By: anonmum

anonmum — Mon, 19 May 2008 09:56:53 +0000

You’ve been Delphied.

Look up the Delphi technique.
Public meeting, split into tables, a table discussion,table reports back to panel…….strangely seems to be only ideas the panel wants that are included.

By: Aspadistra

Aspadistra — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:34:08 +0000

If you Google “Kirkcaldy High School” and “HMiE”, you should get the most recent reports on the P.M.’s alma mater. There are three issued fairly closely together, because the school has not been “signed off”.

The most recent one hit the tabloids in Scotland. Gordy hasn’t commented, to my knowledge.

By: Pat

Pat — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:07:21 +0000

It seems like if it is not on the political agenda, what you say goes in one ear and out the other. But it shouldn’t stop teachers from telling it like it is. I applaud you for taking time to tell what life is really like in the schools.

By: The 166th Carnival of Education « The Elementary Educator

The 166th Carnival of Education « The Elementary Educator — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 01:56:12 +0000

[...] Net result of a UK gathering where Gordon Brown used a community meeting to get the preconceived outcome he was hoping [...]

By: by other means » Blog Archive » bits and pieces in brief

by other means » Blog Archive » bits and pieces in brief — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 15:17:36 +0000

[...] Andrew from Scenes from the Battleground met Gordon Brown and tried to discuss bullying with him – go see… why do governmental types never seem able to hear anything past their own current [...]

By: Daniel Ken

Daniel Ken — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 22:40:39 +0000

What exactly does ‘early intervention’ mean? Ante-natal asbos? Ritalin with their bottles? Social contracts stencilled onto their Silver Cross buggies? Or does it mean yet more ’support staff’ in every secondary school’s special unit (because we know how useful they are)?

Actually, it means anything, it means everything, and it means nothing, but it sounds good. So it’s bound to be Gov’t policy in the near future.

I think we should expect ‘early intervention’ criteria, targets and monitoring soon…

By: Ranting Teacher

Ranting Teacher — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 19:17:12 +0000

I must be working at one of the only semi-honest schools in the country. Our Head sets out our anti-bullying policy at the open evening for new Year 7 parents. Last time I was present, several parents expressed shock that the Head had admitted bullying takes place in the school. It wasn’t at all what they wanted to hear.

However, I don’t think our bullying policy works. It’s too namby-pamby. Despite PSE sessions etc kids in my form have said they would never tell a teacher they were being bullied, because if they do, they get bullied even worse afterwards. The only couple of cases I’ve been involved in resulted in: the bully’s parent(s) brought into school for a meeting; the parent(s) refusing to comply with the school and instead siding with their child; no more action taken against the bully. In one case the mother of a Year 9 girl who, along with at least one other, had been bullying a new girl, told her daughter to hit the new girl in the stomach, because it wouldn’t show there.

The only solution I can see is to give Headteachers / governors more power to punish bullies – how, I don’t know, but if parents blame schools and schools have no support from parents, somebody has to break this deadlock.

By: Neil

Neil — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 16:08:45 +0000

This all sounds so typical, and shows how meaningless it is when a minister calls for a ‘national debate’ about an issue, when it has already been decided behind closed doors. Worse, participating actually legitimises what they tell you you’ve decided.

By: Duncan

Duncan — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 11:39:39 +0000

That’s the way focus groups/policy forums work. I’ve been to loads and I’ve never heard a ‘facilitator’ correctly sum up the discussion of a group yet. Indeed, I have regularly heard them conclude exactly the opposite of what was being discussed!

By: Paul

Paul — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 10:43:38 +0000

And there, in a nutshell, is why the country is screwed.

A moron who either refuses to listen to people, or is incapable of taking in what they’ve said. Either way, he’s unfit to run a whelk stall.

Not interested in what anyone else thinks, all he can hear is what he thinks the solutions are ; more meddling.