How to Deal with Your Child Being Kicked Out of School

The British have increased their media and news coverage regarding misbehaving children in school in recent days. The topic usually ends with a solution that centers around removing troublemakers from the traditional classroom setting.

This time the discussion was little bit different though. The new twist is that the notion that parents should stay home and watch their children once the kids have been kicked out of school for misbehaving.

It does annoy me, this kind of nonsense! At least this time there is some talk of keeping open (and maybe even building more) special schools.

The child has been removed from the regular classroom which shows that they are having difficult time working in with the normal student setting. Then the solution must comprise discovering an educational setting where students can be successful, right?

This makes you to guess what you can do as a parent if you child has been sent home from school due to their behavior. Thinking about this in detail is my forte. Especially since I have had to deal with the similar issues with my oldest child.

1. You have not failed as a parent. Don't waste time having a pity party for yourself. Perhaps your parenting skills could use some improvement, but that is the case for just about everyone. Try to be a better parent by actively seeking out information through books and materials on raising kids.

2. Do not blame it all on your child's school. Your school does care for your child and maybe the mishandled education of your child is due to issues beyond their boundaries like not having enough resources or inadequate teacher training.

3. Seek out assistance from the local education authority (LEA). They should be able to provide an alternative learning situation for your child. You need to be persistent when you contact them, but avoid being rude. You can ask your politicians and newspapers to help you get the ball rolling if you need to.

4. DO be prepared to consider alternative placements, such as special schools or even residential placements. Better to deal with it now, than to have your child growing up with the bad behaviors!

5. Seek out help to see if your child may have a learning disability, ADHD or Asperger's syndrome. These can cause disruptions in the classroom. There is an enviroment in which children who suffer from these conditions can thrive. It is a matter of finding that environment.

6. DO NOT try to pretend that your child is an angel and everyone is wrong about his behavior. Much better to agree there is a problem and be seen to be doing your very best to get it sorted out - but for that you need help from the LEA.

Well, that's just a few quick thoughts about it.

Hope that is of some help to you, if you are struggling with this at home. And, if you are an educator, please don't be one of the ones that keeps trotting out that nonsense about excluding children as being the solution! It helps no one, and solves no problems.