Wednesday 25 June 2008

Private Tutor Problems

We had to stop Matthew's private tutoring last night. The lady who had been teaching him had been absent for a few weeks and I thought she just had a break, but we found out yesterday that she had left abruptly. She was a SENCo and knew exactly how to procede with Matthew and we could see a structured programe was being used with him. However the lady who took over- the person who is running the Kip McGrath franchise, had no idea Matthew even had SEN problems.
My husband dropped him off and went in to let them her know that he hadn't completed the homework because it was too much to ask of him (write a fictional story about anything!), I spent 3 X 20 mins trying to help him, but he just didn't know where to start, and wrote a few unorganized sentences. She said "No! Matthew that should have taken you 10 mins.", my husband went on to explain that this is the very thing he needs help with and he just doesn't get it, with his SEN problems. She replied that he didn't have SEN problems, he is bright and articulate he just couldn't be bothered!! (AKA lazy) .
Needless to say I went to pick him up, put her straight and cancelled his lessons, she had changed her tune after I told her all the support he gets at school and that is why he is there. Her resposne was he will not always get 1:1 and Kip McGrath is a happy medium with 1:5 teaching, my respnose is if he is never taught how to do things he is never going to do it by himself??!!
I know a lady on our estate who is a Dyslexia teacher, so I'm going to try her.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He has obviuosly picked up so much that he appears to have the ability and this is fooling the teachers into thinking that he can but won't. This is the very problem that worries me the most, future teachers in comprehensive schools thinking him able and lazy. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!

1 comment:

Mary said...

Oh No! If we do nothing, we're branded as bad parents. When we try to do as much as we can, our children are branded as lazy or naughty.

Your frustration is understable... we seem to be let down on a fairly regular basis and it's not fair that we have to fight so hard to give our children a chance for a good future.

Get a blow up punch bag, stick a picture of 'her' on it.... and just go for it!

Good luck with the alternative.

xx