Home Tutor dilemma

[Tez]

Some of you may be aware that I have fought a long hard battle with my LEA to get my son some home tuition whilst he's off school. I've eventually succeeded in getting 6 hours per week, which is really all that he can cope with at the moment.

 

The tuition is split between two teachers neither of whom have any experience of ASD or anxiety. The one tutor has been great and has taken advice from me on learning styles, difficulties and things to look out for etc. She has on three occasions spotted my son going into shutdowns and taken appropriate action.

 

The other teacher is a real problem and will not listen or adapt her approach and it is causing A to be ill. I have spoken to her but she just carries on in her own way. I spoke to her the week before last about a problem A was having with studying Romeo and Juliet. I had listened to her teaching him and she constantly talked about the inevitability of Romeo and Juliet's deaths and how there was no way that the antagonism, teasing and tormenting between the two families would ever end except with tragedy. She also stressed that they no longer knew what the animosity was about, that it was just human nature to be like this. A has been severely bullied at school and the tormenting and fighting with no real purpose or reason reminded him of his own position and made him start worrying about how evil the world is. He spent 3 hours after the lesson in a real state and all night awake worrying.

 

When she came the next day I mentioned to her the problems that A had experienced and said that he'd been really ill. She shrugged and carried on in the same vein. A was again ill.

 

Since then half term has passed so A has had a chance to recover. Today I again listened in whilst she was teaching him Geography. She asked him to tell her the main features of a destructive wave. A told her what he thought but she insisted that he'd forgotten one feature and said that he always forgets their frequency and he'd have to try a bit harder. A said that you couldn't talk about the frequency of a wave and that he didn't realise that he was meant to generalise his answer to waves. This didn't go down well. The whole lesson (only 3/4 of an hour) continued in a similar vein. Again A spent the next 3 hours lying down unable to cope.

 

I really don't know what to do. He is well enough to have these lessons and he does want to learn and keep up with his work but he can't cope with this teacher.

 

I know that the EP report for his statement does say that he requires "Specialised one to one teaching and that he does not learn anything auditorily and that significant use of visual and kinsetic teaching should be made", neither of which this teacher thinks are appropriate. I have to be careful though of quoting the EP report because it has not yet been officially shown to me.

 

Any advice on how to proceed would be appreciated.

Edited November 1, 2005 by Tez

[nvapid]

reiterate this story to her direct line manager in writing/email (leaving out the EP report until you officvially get it) Ask for his/her help in explaining your sons needs to her. This is the first and vital step in building a case against her if you eventually need to ask to have her replaced. Plus - she may well listen to her boss if she has no respect for parents.

[Tez]

Thanks nvapid,

 

I had thought of that but I had a disagreement with her direct boss about the home tuition in the first place since she refused to supply any saying there was no legal obligation on an LEA to provide any tuition for a child off school sick. It eventually culminated in a complaint to the DfES so I don't think I'll find any support there.

 

The other option is to go to the LEA's Inclusion and Access team for help but as A is not yet statemented they use that as an excuse not to help.

 

My husband says to just show her the door since A's welfare is paramount, his education can come later, and to write another letter of complaint but I think that's a bit drastic (although not out of the question) and was hoping that someone would come up with a suggestion I've overlooked.

Edited November 1, 2005 by Tez

[oracle]

Our experience of home tuition was also a nightmare. The tutor spent her very first visit telling David how she had not yet encountered a child whom she had not been able to return to school. Now saying this to a child who had just had a complete breakdown was not a very good idea. It turns out that she was an Art teacher and was no more able to help David with his studies than we were - infact we were more able. On her second visit she started to question David about his anxieties and what made him feel so awful about school. He ran up stairs out of her way fell over his bed and broke his arm - she did not return - by my request.

 

Carole

[Tez]

Carole,

 

It never ceases to amaze me how inappropriately seemingly intelligent people behave. I would have thought that if you were teaching children in their homes who were signed off school sick you would at least have a little compassion, but apparently not.

 

I know that A can never return to any school environment again, but I was hoping that with a statement we could get the LEA to take the responsibility for funding and managing his education at home. A does want to achieve academically and to take his GCSEs otherwise I would just deregister him, but this current government have cleverly reorganised the exam system to make it very difficult for children to access the full exam system from home education without considerable expense. Even then, the current vogue for the inclusion of coursework and modular exams still makes it very difficult for them to take their qualifications at 16 and 18 the same as their peers.

 

Having said this A has also had what in the past would have been considered a nervous breakdown and I will not allow anyone to push him towards it again and definitely not under my roof. I know the incidents I have reported seem insignificant and petty but they are only part of a bigger picture and I know that her approach and her attitude are harming my son, so I know that she either needs to adapt her approach or she goes.

Edited November 1, 2005 by Tez

[Canopus]

I was on home tuition for 2 terms in Y8. The work I was set was the same as what the school covered during Y8 and most of it was too easy and trivial for me. I had GCSE textbooks and could do most of the Y10 and Y11 work. My tutor thought that I was lazy, restless, and uncommitted. I explained that the work was too easy and I wanted more advanced material but she told me that she had to teach what the school set and not what I wanted to do. Several times I showed her solutions to exercises and questions from GCSE textbooks in the attempt that I would be allocated more advanced work but nothing changed because she knew I would be attending a special needs school in the near future so would be in their hands. She wasn't very happy about my interest in computers and that I regularly did my homework on the computer. ICT wasn't a timetabled subject at school back then and nobody in my year at my former school had any ICT lessons.

 

My experience of state supplied home tutors is that they are automatons that are forced to teach exactly what is taught in the school for the year group the kid is in. They also seem to have little understanding of SEN. My tutor thought that the special needs school I was destined for would magically correct me even though she had no idea what it was like.

[Tez]

Canopus,

 

A feels the same way. The work he is doing for Maths is actually easier than he'd be doing at school because he's supposed to be doing higher level GCSE and the teacher says it's not her specialism and she can only cope with intermediate. Not a lot of good to A.

 

They are also saying that he should lower his expectations and do lower level GCSEs instead of the highers he entered for, not because he's not up to learning at that standard, but because they haven't got the specialised teachers needed to teach to that standard.

 

They are refusing to give A the schemes of work so that he could teach himself, something he's quite capable of doing and the school won't even tell me what exam boards he's entered with or the options that they have chosen from the syllabus since they don't think it would be appropriate or helpful.

Edited November 1, 2005 by Tez

[Canopus]

A does want to achieve academically and to take his GCSEs otherwise I would just deregister him, but this current government have cleverly reorganised the exam system to make it very difficult for children to access the full exam system from home education without considerable expense. Even then, the current vogue for the inclusion of coursework and modular exams still makes it very difficult for them to take their qualifications at 16 and 18 the same as their peers.

 

That's completely untrue. It is quite easy to take exams outside of the school system even if coursework is involved and it isn't all that expensive. If anything, it is easier to take exams outside of the school system today than it was 15 years ago and thousands of kids and adults up and down the country do it every year. The government hasn't reorganised the exam system to make things difficult.

 

Check out http://www.asd-forum.org.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=4168 for more info on alternatives to using school to get qualifications.

 

It is best to check out the home ed community for more info on taking exams in specific subjects and issues relating to coursework. They are likely to reveal a lot more than I know.

[Tez]

Hi Canopus,

 

I know in theory it's supposed to be possible but the courses on offer for GCSEs where the course work is marked are very expensive. My son is taking 12 GCSEs at an average cost of �300 per subject this would cost us �3600 money which we just haven't got and this is without the cost of the exam entries. I do belong to a number of home ed communities and most home ed children opt to take just a few exams per year. It is also very difficult to access the full range of GCSEs outside of the system, most are courses that can at a squeeze be accomodated without too much coursework. A is quite capable of teaching himself but we aren't yet capable of getting the work marked at a reasonable cost. Add to that the fact that if I deregister him when he reaches 16 I will lose my child benefit for him and tax allowances even if I am still home educating him and the cost really starts to mount up.

 

I agree that post GCSe and A level it is very much easier to take exams outside the system, I completed my own degree through the Open University but it is not easy in our locality to access GCSE qualifications outside the system.

 

I am quite happy to maintain a minimal contact with the education system to allow his coursework to be marked and to give us convenient access to exam centres in an environment that A could cope with.

Edited November 1, 2005 by Tez

[Canopus]

It only costs around �30 per subject to enter onself in for a GCSE as a private candidate plus a possible administration charge between �5 and �30 per subject. This is regardless of what age the candidate is. It does NOT cost around �300 per subject no matter what you have read or were told.

 

Coursework is marked by examiners for private candidates and not by the exam centre. There is no extra cost in marking coursework for most exams as it is included in the entry charge. Exam boards list which subjects can be taken by private candidates and most subjects offered by state schools can be taken.

 

The total cost of 12 GCSEs will therefore be between �360 and �720 and not �3600 as you make it out to be. There is also the cost of textbooks, tutor's fees, and equipment on top of that.

 

There is no real requirement to do 12 GCSEs (or any at all) so you son will not be disadvantaged in later life by just taking 4 or 5 of them providing he has maths and English.

[Tez]

Thanks Canopus,

 

I did not know that course work could be marked by examiners so will look into that. Better still I'm still looking around for linear exams with no course work which can be sat locally. I'm not quite sure how the coursework element would work though because I understand that it has to be independently verified as being the candidate's own work and I can't see how this can be done without some outside invigilation, certainly some of the ICT work he is doing the assessed course work has had to be suspended because the exam board stipulate that it requires 8 hours of independent invigilation to ensure that no help or support has been received.

 

I accept your comment that there is no need to get 12 GCSEs but A wants to and he is quite capable of getting them all with good grades and without the pressures of school doesnot find it stressful to study so I don't see why he should lower his sights just because the government are failing him. Should he ever feel that he wants to go to a traditional university the more points he gets from his GCSEs the greater his chances of getting the course and the place that he wants.

 

I think things are still very much up in the air. Regardless of costs I donot really see why I should pay for my 14 year olds education when both my husband and I have paid into the tax system which is supposed to fund it. The government's mantras of every child matters and child centred education are little more than empty words but I'm not yet prepared to give up the fight for what I see as my child's right - an appropriate education funded by the state. I also think that pursuing his educational needs and trying to help teach him at the same time diverts me from being just his mother and being there for him.

 

If anyone does have any ideas on how I can get A's home tutor to teach him appropriately taking into account his complex needs and unusual learning style or how I can persuade the LEA to supply a more suitable tutor I would be very grateful.

Edited November 1, 2005 by Tez

[Kathryn]

Hi Tez,

 

My sympathies - the tutor sounds like a right old bat! We had similar problems with our home tutor not having the expertise to cope with L's increasingly autistic behaviour - she was mostly non verbal and also upset by the lessons at times- although the tutor was a lovely sensitive lady who did at least listen to my recommendations and to her credit tried all sorts of creative ways to engage L.

 

On the H and H feedback form I complained that there had been no involvement of the autism advisory service in supporting and advising the tutor, even though one of the team told me that the advisory service did extend to supporting pupils being taught at home.

 

You should expect appropriate support for your son: after all, if a visually impaired child was laid up in hospital say, with a leg in plaster, they would expect to recieve tuition appropriate to their disability, wouldn't they? So contacting the autism advisory team for your area might help, they might give you a sympathetic hearing and be able to provide someone who can explain the issues to the tutor, as long as she is willing to understand. If not, it may be better to ditch her and ask for somebody else. As you say you don't want to expose your son to futher trauma - it defeats the object of home tuition.

 

On the subject of losing child benefit - all is not lost if your son does not stay at school. If a child is over 16 they can claim income support and possibly incapacity benefit in their own right, if they are not in full time education - (defined as over 20 hours a week I think). We are currently dealing with this situation and negotiating the benefits minefield!

 

I hope you manage to sort this situation out soon - it must be really stressful.

[Helen]

They are refusing to give A the schemes of work so that he could teach himself, something he's quite capable of doing and the school won't even tell me what exam boards he's entered with or the options that they have chosen from the syllabus since they don't think it would be appropriate or helpful.

Tez, how about phoning the DRC to find out if this is discrimination? I can't think of anything else to suggest to you as I don't have any experience of what you speak of.

 

I'm sorry to hear that A is having more problems

[Canopus]

Should he ever feel that he wants to go to a traditional university the more points he gets from his GCSEs the greater his chances of getting the course and the place that he wants.

 

Admission to universities is based on A Level grades, not GCSE grades. There is no requirement to have a single GCSE to enter university although some evidence of English language is required in addition to A Levels. This is usually achieved via an English GCSE although other qualifications exist as well. There is also no official requirement to have a GCSE to do an A Level.

 

I think things are still very much up in the air. Regardless of costs I donot really see why I should pay for my 14 year olds education when both my husband and I have paid into the tax system which is supposed to fund it.

 

I think in a way this is selfish pride. The attitude "I pay my taxes - therefore I expect A1 service" sadly doesn't get anywhere in this world and never has done. The government will never bend over backwards to provide on a plate the needs of an individual.

 

Most kids who get the best GCSE and A Level grades from state schools have had some sort of outside involvement such as private tutors, textbooks, or software.

 

Most people who have succeeded in life have got off their backside and done something for themself rather than expected the government to provide for them.

 

The government's mantras of every child matters and child centred education are little more than empty words but I'm not yet prepared to give up the fight for what I see as my child's right - an appropriate education funded by the state. I also think that pursuing his educational needs and trying to help teach him at the same time diverts me from being just his mother and being there for him.

 

The truth is, the state will provide a child with an education. Not necessarily the best education or the education that is most suited to their needs or future ambitions, but an education. It has always been this way and probably always will be.

 

If anyone does have any ideas on how I can get A's home tutor to teach him appropriately taking into account his complex needs and unusual learning style or how I can persuade the LEA to supply a more suitable tutor I would be very grateful.

 

You could always ask for another tutor but don't expect miracles if you get a new tutor.