Hello July!
An awful lot happens in July: the academic year ends, the summer holiday starts, and this year we have a general election too!
Prize Draw winner! 🎟️
Big news – we have the lucky teacher who won £500 to splurge on a Summer Holiday Day Out ☀️🗺️.
Are you the winner? To check, open your Teacher Tapp app and select prize draw. The winning code to look for is 👇👇👇
Are you the lucky winner? If so – get in touch by emailing hello@teachertapp.co.uk. (Full terms and conditions here).
I’m sorry I’m late, a seagull ate my bus pass…
We all know dogs are to blame for missing homework, but did you know seagulls are culpable for pupil tardiness?
This week we asked you about unusual reasons you’ve heard for student lateness. Almost 2,000 of you responded and, reader, I don’t know what is going on but…
Seagulls were mentioned specifically EIGHTEEN times?! 🐦
Greggs was also namechecked FOUR times (and the wait for sausage rolls, specifically, twice) 🧑🍳.
Best excuses given to primary school teachers:
“The pupil couldn’t leave the house until all toys had been hugged because the toys have anxiety.”
“Nan was meant to drop them off but she went to the wrong school.”
“Put blue food dye on a waffle instead of syrup and mum was trying to wash it off from her face and hands before bringing her in!“
Best excuses including animals:
Excuses included being distracted by squirrels, dead bats, cute cats and “looking at cows that weren’t there” 😵💫.
Teachers in rural schools contended with pupils having to deliver various baby animals, “catching guinea fowls in a net” and “putting chickens back“.
And we have to mention the pupil who told the teacher his “hamster was stuck in the chimney…again“.
The most strange excuses:
“Got confused and had been sat in the wrong lesson for 40 mins!”
“Got locked in a cemetery so was late to school.”
“My eyebrow colour wasn’t correct.”
“I was stuck on top of a wardrobe (genuine, drama student preparing a prop and someone took the step ladder).”
“The ceiling in the boys toilets collapsed due to the weight of the vapes hidden inside the ceiling tiles so they had to go to a different toilet.“
Did these make you chuckle? Think you have one better? Let us know either in the app or over socials – or maybe you have a tall tale from when you’ve been late yourself! Let us know! 💬
Cyber attacks
From the frivolous to the serious…
Cyber attacks sound like they belong in science fiction 🤖, but they’re something schools everywhere are having to worry about.
Such attacks typically involve an outsider accessing a school’s computer system stealing personal data, and demanding a ransom for its return. Other types of attacks include blocking internet access, accessing HR files, and even ‘infecting’ systems with viruses.
As schools become more reliant on tech systems, the more vulnerable they become to attacks. But how common are they?
This academic year, one in ten secondary schools have experienced a cyber attack, with slightly lower numbers in primary (6%).
It also seems that private schools are more likely to be the target of cyber attacks (11% private primaries and 14% private secondaries).
If you’ve been the target of an attack, how did your school handle the fallout? And is it hard to get pupils (or staff!) to follow cyber security rules? Let us know on socials or through the app… 💭💬
Pride celebrations 🏳️🌈
June was Pride month 🌈 and each year we ask about what’s happening in your school to mark it.
This year, just over half of secondaries held Pride-related activities for their pupils, and around one in ten of primaries incorporated it into their school day ❤️💛💚💙💜.
37% of secondaries mentioned Pride in tutor time or PSHE lessons and 31% held an assembly to explain why Pride month takes place. A smaller number held non-school uniform days (9%) and an even smaller number took part in community events (5%).
In primary schools just under one in ten schools held Pride assemblies and 7% mentioned it in PSHE lessons. A very small number held non-uniform days and community events (2% and 1%).
But are this year’s Pride celebrations any bigger or more wide-spread than previous years? It doesn’t seem so.
Between 2018 and 2022, there was an upward trajectory in the number of secondary schools holding Pride assemblies (9% to 34%). Since then growth has stalled, and this year the number of teachers saying they held Pride assemblies has fallen for the second year in a row (31% down from 33%).
Each year we also ask questions about the experiences of LGBT+ students and saw a worrying trend.
Compared to last year:
– Fewer teachers are hearing pupils offering support to LGBT friends (34%, DOWN from 50% last year).
– More teachers reported hearing pupils making derogatory comments about another pupil’s sexuality or gender identification (45%, UP from 40% last year).
That teachers are seeing more abuse among pupils is a concern, however more of you are at least feeling confident in supporting your LGBT pupils than last year. (80% vs 76% last year). Compared to 2018, it’s an increase of ten percentage points – which is positive news.
Does this mirror trends in your school? Have you noticed a change in attitudes this year? Let us know your experiences by getting in touch through the app, or over socials. You can email hello@teachertapp.co.uk and let us know what you think 🤔.
Gift giving season!
It’s not just big guys in red suits who hand out gifts… It’s the end of the school year, and teachers all over are pricing up and sorting out something-specials for their classes.
You told us:
🎁 45% of primary teachers ARE giving whole class gifts.
🚫 79% of secondary teachers are NOT giving gifts to their classes.
And the most popular gift recommended BY teachers to give TO teachers is…💌 a handmade thank you card!
Have you already started the gift giving? Let us know your top tips and favourite gifts on the socials or via the app 💬.
Top events
This week’s top event is our own School Surveys’ event Using the Power of Staff Surveys to Cultivate Thriving School Communities – but this takes place today at 4pm! If you’ve missed out be sure to check back for future events.
Every single day we’re adding events so be sure to check the app to see all the new events on offer.
Ups and Downs
On the rise 📈
Faith in teacher assessment – We asked who you thought was the fairest person to mark a student’s exams. More of you chose the student’s own teacher this time compared to December 2021 (25%, up from 19%).
Heading down 📉
Boozy gifts for teachers – Alcohol is becoming a less popular recommendation for end-of-term teacher gifts. Only 12% of you suggested it, down from 18% in 2022.
Daily Reads
Our most read daily read this week was a primary special blog: Phonics isn’t working.
If you would like to read the rest you can find them here 👇
