Behaviour For Learning Policy
The Behaviour for Learning Policy is the new system started up by Mr Reeves from September 2009. He spent an entire period explaining to everybody how the new system works. Despite teachers saying it is the best policy ever it's hated by nearly all students that go to BRGS. This policy is often referred to as BFL.
Contents
The Book
With the new system, everybody is required to have a book to track merits and penalties (called a record book, but some teachers instead refer to them as "your book", "merit book", "record card", "<insert colour of book here> book", "penalty book" or "penalty point book" and possibly some others), if this is forgotten, a temporary book (never laminated and always a different colour to that of 'The Book' from the current term)is used just in case 'The Book' is required because if it is, and you don't have it on you, you (are supposed to) get an instant detention (though this is commonly not the case). If you lose your book you go to your Head of Year or your form tutor for a new one, and you get a penalty point. 'The Book' has two halves, the front half is merits, the back half is penalties. Unless you are a goody goody in every lesson, you are more likely to have the book signed in the back half. In the first term it was blue and in the second term it was green and laminated so it didn't fall apart. Then it was a vibrant yellow... whatever next? Well, we found out the answer.... another vivid blue! The books are always laminated without any names on the front and so you are supposed to write your name on, despite the fact it will have rubbed of within a few days.
The New Way Forward
Nowadays, 'vivos' are used instead of merits, as staff saw that pupils did not have much interest in certificates. Vivos are usually meant to be given out in groups of five, but as is found, they are nearly always alone. Vivos are the equivalent of gift vouchers which can be spent in some shops or online. Teachers never mentioned the value of a vivo, but compared with prices are actually quite negligable (saving up from Year 7 to Year 11 wouldn't be enough for some products). The record books are still issued as before, with merits (even though they were replaced) in the front and penalty points in the back. Teachers do not sign vivos in record books but assign them to students online. The vivo reward system does not apply to sixth formers, but neither do penalty points. Those who are in years 7 to 11 do get a card to pay using vivos and an internet account on www.vivomiles.com to keep track of their vivos. Parents can also make an account and follow their child(ren)'s progress.
Ways to get Merit Points/Vivos
- Good work
- 3 good homeworks...which means we will hardly get any merits now.
- Good test score
Commendations
Usually you must gain 5 merits to achieve a commendation, but you must gain 10 merits to achieve a commendation in Year 10 and Year 11.
Ways to get Penalty Points
- Bad uniform.
- Homework not being handed in
- Disruptive behaviour
- Forgetting equipment
- Forgetting exercise books
- Losing 'The Book'
- Anything Mr Reeves doesn't approve of really
The Levels
If you get 5 penalty points you get an after school detention. At 10 you go to 'Level 1.'
Level 1
- Get a detention
- Put on form report which you must achieve 70% "good" level or above to get off.
Get to 15 penalty points and you go to 'Level 2.'
Level 2
- Another detention
- Head of Year report
Get to 20 penalty points and you go to 'Level 3'
Level 3
- Another 2 detentions
- Senior Management Team (Deputy Head) report
- Your parents are called into school to have a talk with your form tutor l
Get to 25 penalty points and you go to 'Level 4'
Level 4
- Another 3 detentions
- Parents come in to speak to Mr Morris
- Excluded for a day
Get to 30 penalty points and you go to 'Level 5'
Level 5
- Longer exclusion
- No detentions!
Get to 35 penalty points and you go to 'Level 6'
Level 6
- Meeting with the headmaster about moving schools
Well Known Penalty Point Givers
Mrs Kennedy
Mrs Kennedy, standing at the bottom of a staircase with a pen, or with her door open, ready to attack.
Mrs Heywood
Mrs Heywood, giving out points for the 'fun of it'. She can spot wrong earrings from a mile away.
Mr Reeves
Mr Reeves, it is his system, surely he will be enforcing it, can be known to spot bad uniform quickly so pupils quickly sort their uniform when going past him!
Well Know Merit Point Givers
Miss Strict-land
Miss Strickland used to give out merits for simply getting full marks on spelling tests or for completing a 'satisfactory' piece of homework. But now, you're lucky if you can get a merit for a 3 A* homeworks.
She once gave a merit each to 3 pupils in the then 7G for putting a spider out of the window,one being for opening the window.
Stupid Penalty (And Occasionally Merit) Points
Teachers just give penalties for no reason... some stupid entries into books have been...
- "Screaming Like A Banshee" (Mohammed Kouta, Sam Kittson-Platt, Uzair Hussain)
- "Short Skirt And Hand gesture" (Rebecca Finley)
- "Closing door" (Milton Ashworth, Mohammed Kouta)
- "Taking other pupils clothes off (in pink pen)" (Milton Ashworth, Mohammed Kouta and Lewis Wood)
Once somebody got a merit for 'Silly Behaviour' because when the teacher asked for 'The Book', the person gave her the book but then asked for the inside cover, and accidentally gave her the merit bit and she signed it! This happened numerous times in the first few weeks of this new system.
Rewards
If you make the entire term with no penalty points (very few do) then you will get the afternoon off while you do some form of fun activity. In the autumn term of the year 09 and 08 people got to go bowling and laser quest for free!
Since then the treats for having no penalty points have got worse and worse. What next?
