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    Pupils’ enjoyment of school suffers ‘substantial decline’ in Year 7, study finds
    United Kingdom

    Pupils’ enjoyment of school suffers ‘substantial decline’ in Year 7, study finds

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    9 Comments

    1. ZroFckGvn on

      No surprised. Suspect it’s always been that way. Going from primary school to high school is a daunting experience.

    2. True-Abalone-3380 on

      That’s about the time they have to start actual learning things and putting some effort in. It’s also the time those who want to learn about the world can really open up and thrive.

    3. Various_Leek_1772 on

      well duh. they go from being the biggest and oldest in primary to the youngest and smallest in secondary. they now have multiple new teachers, news classrooms and new social dynamics to contend with and more homework, expectations and hormones to deal with.

      schools know this. year 7&8 are for settling the kids into secondary. year 9 preps them for GCSE subjects and year 10-11 is for GCSEs. once they have done those, kids feel better in sixth form because they have accomplished something major and they are bigger and their hormones settle somewhat.

      but the social pressure from all around in year 7 is huge and would weigh on anyone.

    4. Simple_Joys on

      The marketisation of secondary school selection probably doesn’t help.
      Long gone are the days when everybody in a local catchment area went to the local primary school, and then basically the entirety of the academic year moved from that primary school into the local secondary school together.

      Now, through the wisdom of league tables and parents who think they know best, an enormous number of kids are moved away from all their mates and shoved into an entirely different community where they’re asked to build an entire new network of friends from scratch. Often for such meaningful reasons as ‘because the school we’re sending our kid to got a _slightly_ better Ofsted report than the local comprehensive’ or ‘because 77% of school leavers at the new school got passes in all their GCSEs, compared to only 74% at the local comprehensive’.

    7. Ethroptur1 on

      We need to consider to what extend the school environment is impacting wellbeing, and to what extend this is symptomatic of the regular angst of puberty,

    8. MediocreSocialite on

      Primary school: (Application focus)
      Teachers care about children understanding what they are taught.

      Secondary school: (Grade focus)
      Teachers are forced to make sure children are able to pass regardless if the students actually understand or can apply what’s being taught.

    9. Shas_Erra on

      * Being suddenly moved into a class that may or may not include people you know.

      * Constant comparison to other children at different stages of development (being pre-pubescent and forced to shower with someone who hit manhood like a brick wall, does *wonders* for self confidence /s).

      * Sudden increase in discipline.

      * No access to mental health support or guidance.

      * Constant pressure to decide right there and then what you want to do for the rest of your life (joke’s on you: the economy is fucked so unless you’re very, very lucky, you’re stuck on the bottom rung for life).

      * Being constantly reminded that you’ll spend the next five years of your life either taking exams or preparing to take exams.

      Secondary school was hell.