political correctness gone mad!!

[dunderheed]

Political Correctness gone mad!!



Heard on Radio Scotland news the other night there that a school (in Lothian I think) has changed the way it labels it Primary 1 classes..

Previously the 2 Primary 1 classes were called Primary 1a & Primary 1b...as it is in the vast majority of schools in the country. The kids were allocated their class in alphabetical order so the first 32 go into P1a & the last lot into P1b.


BUT a group of parents have complained that their children think they are being made out to be not as clever as the others because....they have been put into the P1b class!!!!!

The classes have been renamed P1p & P1r .... because the teachers names start with p & r...

[Geo]

I don't see any harm in the change.

[dunderheed]

"BUT a group of parents have complained that their children think they are being made out to be not as clever as the others because....they have been put into the P1b class!!!!!"

when i was that age i wouldn't have known any different , what i think is that the parents think their kids are being classed as less inteliegent(sp?) because they are in p1b

[Geo]

Possibly, however...

In some schools alphabetical listing of classes does/did indicate different levels of ability so I don't see any harm in this change if some pupils felt threatened by it. Perhaps they were being bullied over it by older pupils.

[DrSzin]

The classes have been renamed P1p & P1r .... because the teachers names start with p & r...My kids' school used to do this. But not any more - the new heidie changed the names to P1A, P1B, etc. I prefer the latter, if only because it's simpler, and the labels don't change when they get a new teacher. But it's such a trivial issue that it's hardly worth making a fuss about.

[landmarker]

I think this is one instance where I agree with the change. It makes sense surely and explains the different categorisations. This could have been avoided with a little thought. A & B , when used in an educational sense suggests differing standards of attainment. Sorry, but it's true.
l/m

[JAWS]

Sounds to me like it's a group of parents suffering ego-problems because, "Somebody might think your child's better than my child. Oh how degraded I feel!"
I'll bet they were the sort who went around as kids boasting, "My dad's bigger than your dad and he can beat your dad up standing on one leg with his arm behind his back!"

Ditch the pigeon-holes and solve the problem altogether. Who invented this P1, P2, P92 nonsense, is it really necessary in small local schools?
My lads went to Primary School and then Junior School and was in Mr., Mrs., Miss, So-and-so's Class and that was it.

Are the people who Organise and Run Education so mindless that if everything isn't reduced to simple numbers and letters which are the same everywhere that they become totally confused?