A NEW TUTORIAL system at a Caistor school has been received with mixed feelings by students.
Caistor Yarborough School has begun using Vertical Tutor Groups (VTG), in which four or five students from each of the five school years join together a
s a single group.
The school has set up four houses, all associated with the historical ages of Caistor - Roman, Norman, Saxon and Viking – and all students in the school are grouped into those houses.
Previously, students of the same age and year group would meet for the 20 minute period at the beginning of the day for registration and school announcements.
However, many of the students have been opposed to the new system, which started in June.
One, who preferred not to be named, said: “I think it is pointless to make this change if it is only for 20 minutes every morning.
“I don’t think that will make much of a difference in our relationships between different age groups.”
Leaving their friends has been the biggest issue for most students, and those who felt the strongest were given the opportunity to visit another school in the area that had been using VTG for 10 years.
However, on returning from the visit, they were mainly enthusiastic and keen to try the new groups and presented their findings to their fellow students.
Mrs Jenny Rodgers, deputy head teacher at Caistor Yarborough School, believes using this system will cut down bullying by breaking down the barriers between age groups.
“I believe this will give more responsibility to older students and bring new experiences to the pupils of Caistor Yarborough School,” she said.
“Students travel home on buses of mixed age; why not also mix at school?”
In addition, the school has appointed Year 11 students to act as co-ordinators for newly arrived Year 7 pupils, focusing on making members of the new school intake feel comfortable and familiar with their new school.
She said the problems have mainly been with getting the message about the advantages of using VTG to all year groups, and the school is trying to make the new system more enjoyable by holding regular quizzes and competitions in the new houses.
