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  • #19946

    I work at a primary school and I feel children’s behaviour is getting worse. I think it’s linked between parents not having enough time and working long hours, bad parenting, children starting school as young as the age of three and this being the most important time of development, class levels are bigger every year too and so much expected of teachers.
    Everyones lives just seem to get busier each year, trying to juggle everything and to get a balance. Living costs going up and pay frozen. Something really needs to change. Where to start though and is it to late?
    This has been on my mind a while now. Thinking about our future and having a family is a big step especially when this is how things seem to be going. Any ideas of how to take steps forward welcome. Thank you.

    #521171

    @lyns wrote:

    I work at a primary school and I feel children’s behaviour is getting worse. I think it’s linked between parents not having enough time and working long hours, bad parenting, children starting school as young as the age of three and this being the most important time of development, class levels are bigger every year too and so much expected of teachers.
    Everyones lives just seem to get busier each year, trying to juggle everything and to get a balance. Living costs going up and pay frozen. Something really needs to change. Where to start though and is it to late?
    This has been on my mind a while now. Thinking about our future and having a family is a big step especially when this is how things seem to be going. Any ideas of how to take steps forward welcome. Thank you.

    Isn’t there a legal ratio of the amount of children per teacher?
    Here in Australia, there is a certain limit of children per teacher.

    I think that parents are depending more and more on teachers and schools to raise, even discipline their children which is unfair. They are educators, not parents.

    #521172

    Thank you for message and quotes very interesting.
    Just had a look at the legal class sizes and it’s about 30 which in most is about what it is.
    It’s classed as us being in a baby boom again so will see what happens.
    Totally agree with what you said about some parents expecting teachers to discipline their children and they haven’t naturally got the time and energy to put this into place themselves.
    I’ve been looking into maternity leave ect for the future, in the uk it doesn’t look very affordable to do, do you know what maternity leave and pay you get where you live?
    Thank you
    Lynsey

    #521173

    @lyns wrote:

    Thank you for message and quotes very interesting.
    Just had a look at the legal class sizes and it’s about 30 which in most is about what it is.
    It’s classed as us being in a baby boom again so will see what happens.
    Totally agree with what you said about some parents expecting teachers to discipline their children and they haven’t naturally got the time and energy to put this into place themselves.
    I’ve been looking into maternity leave ect for the future, in the uk it doesn’t look very affordable to do, do you know what maternity leave and pay you get where you live?
    Thank you
    Lynsey

    Yes Lyns, it’s 18 weeks of paid maternal or parental leave.
    We have options of up to a year of unpaid maternity leave plus a further one year unpaid parental leave option.

    I’m not sure if you have this in the UK….

    We have after hours school care companies for children to engage in activities outside of school hours, within school grounds (usually at the school sports hall).
    The government offers a rebate for parents who utilize this service.

    It is mainly aimed at working parents, so:

    They drop the children off at the school and go off on their merry way.
    The carers will walk the younger children to their classroom when it’s time to start school, then they pick them when school ends to take them to the hall.
    Older children are required to transit to the hall on their own. They have a name call system so no children go missing!
    I think this is both a horrible and genius concept.
    The positive is that parents can still pursue careers while having children
    The negative is that it reduces even more time spent with their children.

    Maybe if the UK implemented something like this, but employed parents prepared to undergo some training, they could be earning a wage without compromising on time/supervision of their children.

    They have a completely qualified head program leader present, so the hypothetical parents in this case wouldn’t require much training, just a working with children certification and perhaps some ongoing training.
    Maybe this situation could be ideal for stay at home mothers?

    The hours are 6am to 9.30am and then from 3pm to 6.30pm.

    It’s a very difficult situation for parents, they need to work to live just like everyone else, but companies demand head count, flexibility and dedication to a job/workplace.
    Employers/companies that preach parents friendly are usually falsely advocating their parental support, at the end of the day, they don’t care if your child is sick or feeling neglected or needs you, they want you there at 8am ready to earn their dollar. It’s all for the brownie points they earn behind the scenes and to win the place of “employer of the year”
    :roll:

    #521174

    Thank you for all the information it’s very interesting to see how it’s done in another country with all the facts and figures. I really appreciate it.
    Working at a primary school in the uk you need to be a member of a union which I am and my union emailed me the other day and these are some of the main bits of information.
    Email from Gmb
    THE STRUGGLE FOR EQUALITY
    Britain dubbed the “Scrooge of Europe” after being rated the worst in Europe on parental pay

    In the UK all pregnant employees are entitled to 26 weeks Ordinary Maternity Leave (OMP) and 26 weeks Additional Maternity Leave.
    Additional Maternity Leave starts immediately after Ordinary Maternity Leave so women are entitled to 52 weeks maternity leave in total
    Mothers in Britain are only entitled to receive up to 90% of their pay for an average of 6 weeks maternity leave with an additional 33 week’s pay at £136 per week – a rate which in real terms has fallen under the current government with workers seeing a depreciation of nearly 20% in the wages.

    This carried on my thoughts of how it’s all inter linked with each other and how each stage effects and leads on to the next stage.

    So clearly both have there positives and negatives would be great to put them all together and have more time and paid maternity leave in a ideal world.
    Yes we have before school and after school clubs connected to a lot of schools that does allow parents to be able to work while their children attend theses. Everybody wants different things and a lot of us women seem to juggle everything I currently think women that juggle everything do amazingly and I don’t know how I will do it in the future. The options of being a child minder or working in a school / after school club are the best options really to earn money and have a family, a balance. Unless things change for the better. Thank you.

    #521175

    Tom

    Bring back hanging. Kids’ll soon start to behave again then, that’s what’s wrong with this country we’re too soft and there’s no discipline or a deterrent that children fear.

    Bring back hanging and hang a few of the hooligans, they’ll soon start behaving.

    #521176

    @tom wrote:

    Bring back hanging. Kids’ll soon start to behave again then, that’s what’s wrong with this country we’re too soft and there’s no discipline or a deterrent that children fear.

    Bring back hanging and hang a few of the hooligans, they’ll soon start behaving.

    Tom :?

    It’s not the children’s fault that their parents are too busy to discipline them with basic communication and pay them some attention.

    It’s very exhausting to repeat communication to little people, but so worth the extra few minutes.

    #521177

    Maybe punishment on a whole isn’t dealt with well. With children I think time and effort from parents can help give them the right start and having the right level of discipline, being stricked enough from the start is important. Being a parent should be treated as a full time job and the goverment should allow for this other wise things are just going to carry on getting worse. Thank you for your messages. Lynsey

    #521178

    ….Something really needs to change. Where to start though and is it to late?

    If it had been possible for ordinary people to change society for the better, we’d have done it years ago. Increasingly, the best cards are held by the rich and powerful in Britain, and the trend of growing inequality is likely to continue as long as life for ordinary people doesn’t get too bad too suddenly.

    #521179

    I see what your saying Bassingbourne55, it is difficult especially for us working class people. We can make small differences by signing petitions we believe in when the opportunity is there. Standing up for what we think is right.
    I know the people who have the say are the people ‘at the top’ and normally where the money is. I can’t help holding on to hope and when people join together that’s when the differences are made. Thank you for your message.
    Lyns

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