The number of young people being suspended & expelled from school is increasing. Why is this happening? Our new report ‘Pinball Kids: preventing school exclusions’ finds a ‘perfect storm’ of factors: [Thread]
#PinballKids #edutwitter thersa.org/discover/publi…
Rising poverty. From not having access to books or computers to study at home to being told off for not having the right clothes or equipment at school, the impact of poverty can lead to discipline issues.
Curriculum changes:
- Less access to vocational qualifications, which have a 62% lower rate of permanent exclusions.
- Less coursework options at GCSE.
- Less art & drama: subjects that can help give students a sense of achievement & stress relief.
More children are being diagnosed with mental health problems or special educational needs, or being referred to a social worker – all groups with higher rates of exclusion from school. (17% of children with a diagnosed mental health problem are excluded.)
Funding cuts:
- real terms budgets cuts mean schools are cutting back, for example reducing number of teaching assistants.
- council ‘high needs’ budgets under pressure
- NHS spending on child mental health services a postcode lottery
Pressure on school’s ‘Progress 8’ scores can lead to increased exclusions. Our research showed exclusions are being used to increase exam scores, with a spike in exclusions just before the cut-off point for students to count towards a school’s performance: thersa.org/discover/publi…
Less co-operation between schools due to fragmentation of the education system, with a variety of school types who are less likely to work together to help find young people a fresh start.
Rise in ‘zero tolerance’ or ‘no excuses’ approach to discipline, where repeated small behaviours can trigger detentions & exclusions. For example - one student we spoke saw not sitting still & being distracted in class lead to automatic 3-day suspensions.
How can we challenge the ‘perfect storm’? We think the key is helping young people build personal relationships with teachers & other school staff. Find out more in our Pinball Kids report. thersa.org/discover/publi…
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