Who is to blame when children miss school? Former teacher tells GMB the classroom isn’t the best place for everyone to learn, as mum claims they can’t meet all educational needs at home
Data shows that more than one in five children in England are regularly missing school, showing that school attendance is similar to before the pandemic.
According to the children’s commissioner, one of the reasons for this is that students are truant, want to go to school too much or have other educational needs that are easier to meet at home.
According to the Department for Education (DfE), 22.3 percent of pupils in England were persistently absent last school year. Persistent absenteeism occurs when students miss 10 percent of their annual school days (approximately one day every two weeks).
Danielle, a former teacher, says it’s crucial to realize that not all learning environments are right for all students. Meanwhile, Lucy says that ‘parents’ top priority should be to teach children’.
Writer and speaker Danielle Facey (pictured, left) appeared on GMB this morning to talk about the number of children missing school with blogger Lucy Baker (pictured, right)
The government is stepping up a campaign to reduce the number of students who regularly miss school.
According to presenter Richard Madeley: ‘SIf your child regularly misses school, they will likely fall behind the curriculum when they return to the classroom. The classmates who attended the previous few classes will be ahead of them and could not catch up.
Danielle replied: ‘Yes, that’s true, but I think it’s really ignorant to suggest that the traditional classroom environment, which in many cases is 30-something, is the best for every child.
“As a former teacher, I know that many of the children I have taught do not thrive in a traditional classroom environment.”
She continued, “I would argue that not every child in school should learn French grammar. I’ve taught children who could barely string a grammatical sentence together.
“And I taught them the plot twists of 12 Night, when really my energy and efforts could have been much better focused in other ways.
“But it was limited by the curriculum. I think we need to make education more personal.
But as Lucy noted, “I think the conversation here is about kids not going to school.
Presenter Susanna Reid (photo, left) wanted to know the two women’s opinions on the situation
“And I think that’s the problem. You know, they’re all fine when they’re in school, and the curriculum is one thing, but it’s these kids who aren’t going to school.
‘It’s a huge problem.
“And I think, from my perspective, I would have worked with my daughter’s school. She had some problems with her school run last year, and I don’t think it was entirely my responsibility to get her back.
‘I really had to work with the school for that.’
Former teacher Danielle reminded viewers that not all children learn the same way and that school is not the best way to learn for everyone.
“And it’s about working with the school and getting children back to school, because the numbers are still high.”
They added that the impact of the Covid pandemic, with children being home-schooled, was likely to have played a major role in many children not wanting to return to school.
But the responsibility for getting students back to school should rest entirely with parents.
Blogger Lucy (pictured) admits she has struggled to get her daughter to school, and help is essential for parents
Lucy didn’t feel that way, admitting that her daughter “had a few problems last year when she went to school, and I don’t think it was entirely my responsibility to get her back and I really had to work with the school to make that happen.” let it happen.
‘And it’s about working with the school and getting children back in, because the numbers are still high.’
Speaking about the launch of ‘attendance hubs’ across the country to try to get more children into school, Education Secretary Gillian Keegan previously said: ‘The benefits of our success in raising education standards can only be seen if all children attend go to school.
“Tackling attendance is my first priority. We want all our children to have the best start in life, because we know that going to school is crucial to a child’s well-being, development and achievement, and also influences future career success.
“I am hugely grateful to all our brilliant teachers, heads and everyone who has worked with us to achieve the progress we have already made, with 380,000 children consistently absent.”