Fuss over too English school

I agree that Ofsted seem OTT over this school report but I can also understand the circumstances. Realistically it is very difficult for a school in deepest Lincolnshire to "arrange" to get their children more ethnic diversity.

Taking a trip say to Bradford school for a day would be a shock to their systems poor mites and actually probably;y do more harm than good. A school of black children in funny clothes with strange language and smells would be more like visiting a zoo for the children and not let them experience these people properly as equals.

Here in deepest Lincolnshire its like stepping back 50 years. It was a shock to my system when I first came here. They are very insular. Any "outsiders" are treated with caution. Its taken 10 years but I think they accept me as an incomer - I'll never be a yellow belly but they make jokes with me not at me now about "yorkies" (the tourists from Sheffield etc).

The problem here is the culture. They have this "slagging off" banter, but its not offensive, at least not meant to be offensive to the people concerned. Every body gets taunted and picked on but its a form of affection though if you're an outsider you'd be appalled and some things could get people locked up. So if you ARE an outsider say "black" or "gay" then you'd feel offended at the homophobia or racism but its not "meant" that way, but that's how they are.

Only when the minorities actually start appearing in larger Numbers will this change. I wonder when that will be? I often say Lincolnshire is the Land time forgot.

Why Bother Having Children?

Why Bother Having Children?

Why do so many parents have children then as soon as they can shove them in a Nursery. then they go to school till their 18 then hopefully start work/leave home? Where are the family values etc of raising a family?
I despair.
To me this is the root of ALL society's problems now. We have no Family unit, we don't "care" for each other. We are isolated, just me, me, me. Parents spend all their time on iPADs or phones, I know a teacher who had to ask a parent at parent's evening to "stop using the phone" (she was texting) while he was talking about her daughter.She gave him mouth full of abuse and left.

Money isn't everything, I know its important and essential to a good healthy life but what's wrong with prioritising your Children first? We did. Sacrifice when they're young and teach them your values etc. the benefits will come later.

Look at this letter written to BBC news , highlighted by MHMT

Dear Sir/Madam, I have been married for nearly 18 years and we have 3 children aged 13, 11 and 9. When we got married we bought our house with the intention that we would be able to pay the mortgage on one salary so that I wouldn't have to work if we had children. I do work, thankfully I managed to secure a permanent part time job as a Community Paediatrician in my local hospital. I chose not to continue my training to become a consultant as the hours I would have had to work would have meant barely seeing my children!
My children did attend childcare when they were pre school age - for up to 2 days a week which they loved but those hours were more than enough and they were exhausted after those days!
As they have got older and attended school I have been very fortunate to be able to work fairly flexibly and have my mum nearby to do school pick ups if I can't.
As my children have got older they need me more rather than less and I tend to come home from work earlier than I did when they were younger. If my job had not been so flexible and I had felt that it was impacting on my children I would have given it up. Money would have been tight but we would have managed.
I certainly would not ever consider more childcare regardless of how cheap or expensive it might be. My children need me.
I spend my days at work trying to pick up the pieces for children from chaotic broken homes and also from middle class homes where children never see their parents apart from the weekends!

Obviously some people have to work to make ends meet and not all children suffer negative effects of long hours of childcare. But why as a society can we not make it easier for parents to care for their own children instead of forcing them into the workplace and taking even more parents away from their children to care for other people's children!!

Let's think about what children need, not what the economy needs or what parents need! Our children are the economy and the society of the future so their needs are what is really important!

Thank you to the author of this letter from MAHM. Let's hope someone listens somewhere!

Not all kids have Computers

You may know I'm passionate about education. It makes me angry when it is taken for granted that all kids have a computer and Broadband access. They don't.

Besides I know that most kids do their homework by Google, copy, and paste!
Do they learn anything? yes, how to search.

What happened to Books?

My teacher wife knows a plagurised piece of work and it goes in the bin!

So sometimes the kid with NO internet gets the best marks and has learned something.

This school in Bolton has given ALL its 800 pupils iPADs. WOW - £500 each - where has that money come from? There are schools where they are short of books and the roof still leaks - this is not just sour grapes. Lets have iPADs for all.

I bet many get "lost" or broken? Then what do they do?

Same old story the rich get richer and the dregs get trampled on. But Bolton isn't Hampshire so how are they doing it?