The questions to ask on the days when schools open up

IT’S that time of year when some of you with a child in Year 6 will be considering the next step into secondary education.

Even if you have your mind made up and have chosen your child’s school already, it’s still worth attending your local school open evenings.

If nothing else, the observations you make will ratify your decision and give you peace of mind, safe in the knowledge that you have made the right decision.

However, the comparisons you make may also highlight shortcomings in your school of choice.

In short – go along to your local open evenings or open days.

The evening is likely to be divided into two parts: your tour and the headteacher’s talk.

The tour Most often schools will provide student guides to show you around, although you can of course choose not to go on a guided tour and explore the school yourself.

However, resist the urge to be independent at first – you can do this later in the evening.

It is always worth joining a tour initially as you and your child will pick up a lot from the guides.

It’s also worth trying to go on a tour with a younger guide in Year 7 or 8.

They will be more forthcoming with information and set your own child’s mind to rest (hopefully!), when they hear about the experiences they had when starting at the school.

Questions to ask your guide Find out as much as you can about the school from your guide.

Here is a selection of questions you might ask your guide and, if possible, any other students you meet on the way round.

The more students you ask, the clearer the picture you will begin to develop.

Some questions may be obvious, but do ask them as they will encourage the guide to talk and divulge more information:

What are your favourite and least favourite subjects? Why?

When was the last time your books were marked in (pick a subject)? Remember – teachers may not mark a book every week, but you want to know there is regular marking.

Describe what you think a good teacher is – do you have many teachers like this in the school?

Do you know what you have to do to reach the next level? (You would hope pupils know what they have to do to improve.)

What do you do after school? Are there many clubs?

Where do you go if you are upset or worried about something?

Is there anywhere in the school you avoid at break or lunch times?

Are you happy with the way the school deals with any misbehaviour?

How does your opinion get heard?

What to look for on the tour During the tour you should be taken to all the subject areas.

If not, then ask to be taken there.

It is important to visit all the subjects as this will give your child a chance to see how different and exciting secondary school is.

It will be daunting for your child, but hopefully your guide and other students will explain how you quickly become used to the size.

Prompt them to do this if they don’t. It is normal for subjects to have student helpers and it can be telling if they don’t.

Ask them why they don’t have helpers, there may be a good reason.

Do encourage your child to talk to these helpers and if the opportunity arises, ask them some of the questions above. There should also be exercise books out for you to look at. If so, look at the marking. Are the books marked regularly? Does the marking tell the student next steps and/or what they need to do to improve further? Talk to the teachers, it’s good to find out what morale is like. Are they genuinely positive about the school? As you walk around look at the condition of the wall displays; the toilets(!); the equipment departments use; the library or learning resource centre and classrooms.

Is there graffiti on walls? There is no excuse for this.

Graffiti does happen in schools, but if it is removed straight away the issue will be minimal as the students realise that the school as a whole takes pride in its appearance.

The headteacher’s talk Normally at some point in the evening (once or several times) the head teacher will give a talk.

During the talk, make a mental note of the following to help you decide if the ethos is right for you:

Does the head use a lot of jargon that alienates you or others around you? The head ought to use vocabulary that everyone understands;

The head ought to recognise the wide range of talents and abilities the students in his or her school has rather than just focusing on the ones that are measured by the Government (eg GCSE results);

Does the head recognise that there are areas for improvement and outlines what they are doing about it?

Are there children used as part of the talk to describe the school?

If so is it totally rehearsed or is there an allowance for spontaneity? If students are given the opportunity to talk freely about the school and answer questions then it shows that the school is confident in what it does;

What is your overall impression? Formal or informal? Warm and friendly or cold and distant? Genuine, or a well-rehearsed political speech?

Before you leave Make sure you have picked up a copy of the school prospectus and any other literature the school makes available.

And finally... you’ll have your own views on the school your child should go to, but don’t forget to consider your child’s views.

They’ll have their own instinct as to the school they’d like to go to and they’ll be attending the school for at least the next five years.

It’s an opportunity for them to take part in, what is likely to be the first time in their lives, a major decision affecting them.