Bad_school_parent 💙📚🤦🏻

Sometimes I ‘like’ that it has been said. A ‘like’ doesn’t always signify that I agree with the sentiment expressed.

Strands #752 “Intermission mission” 🔵🔵💡🔵 💡🔵🔵🟡 🔵🔵

Connections Puzzle #1018 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟪🟪🟩🟪 🟩🟩🟪🟩 🟩🟩🟪🟩 🟩🟪🟩🟪

Wordle 1,740 4/6 ⬜🟨🟨⬜🟨 ⬜🟩🟨🟩🟨 🟨🟩⬜🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

@ick_real No one is obligated. You aren’t obligated to pay, similarly they aren’t obligated to drive you. If you skip paying, you can’t complain if they skip offering you a lift.

If a coworker has a car and lives near my house, and drives me to work every day, am I obligated to chip in for gas?

Strands #751 “Get over it ... or get through it” 🔵💡🔵🔵 🟡🔵💡🔵 🔵

Wordle 1,739 4/6 ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩🟩⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

@ick_real You are as obligated as they are….you may chose not to contribute, they may chose to travel alone.

@MrARobbins @adamboxer1 What’s wrong with doing a BTEC? Why does it need a sob story?

@adamboxer1 If you tell a sob story that explains why you have loads of kids doing btec they like it 🤷‍♂️

This is not a sentence I can get my head around

@SecretBusMgr @Rory_Gribbell I think you have twice as many parents than there are. You’ve assumed two parents for every kid, but haven’t considered the prevalence of siblings. If you assume every kid is one of two siblings, there would be circa 8M parents.

The Law of Large Numbers Doesn’t Save This Survey There’s a common argument being thrown around to justify the YouGov/Ofsted survey: “Well, 1,090 parents is a statistically valid sample. Trust the data. The Law of Large Numbers (LLN) has got this.” But let’s be very clear: it hasn’t. The LLN tells us that as the sample size increases, the sample mean will tend to get closer to the true population mean — but only under specific conditions. Critically, LLN does not apply meaningfully to small, unrepresentative, or biased samples — especially when dealing with complex, context-heavy topics like school accountability, trust in regulators, and the far-reaching consequences of Ofsted grading. Let’s break down why this survey doesn’t meet the bar. 1. LLN requires the sample to be genuinely representative. A sample of 1,090 might sound reasonable on the surface. But in reality: The survey was taken from YouGov’s online panel — people who have voluntarily opted in to take surveys, often incentivised by points or rewards. This isn’t a random or balanced cross-section of parents — it’s a group skewed toward the opinionated, not necessarily the informed. Critically, 49% of respondents said they knew little or nothing about Ofsted. Let that sink in. Almost half of the respondents were either uninformed or completely unfamiliar with the very body they were being asked to judge. In any serious policymaking process, that would immediately call the validity of the feedback into question. Then, there’s no meaningful breakdown of how these parents were selected — no clear weighting for: * Geographic region (urban, rural, coastal, inner-city) * Socioeconomic background * Educational experience * SEND or pupil premium involvement Yet these factors fundamentally shape how parents experience the school system — and Ofsted itself. A flat sample of 1,090 cannot reflect the diversity of England’s 16 million parents or 30,000 schools. 2. The survey confuses design preference with support for the system. Let’s not pretend this was an open consultation on what parents really want. Respondents were: * First shown an example of the new Ofsted report card, * Then asked whether they preferred it to the old one. This is classic framing bias. If you show someone a sleeker, more colourful version of a product and then ask, "Do you prefer this to the old one?", of course they’ll say yes. That’s not endorsement of the system — it’s a comment on aesthetics. When parents say the new card is “clearer” or “more visual,” that doesn’t mean they support single-word judgments, ranking systems, or Ofsted’s overall role. It just means they liked the design they were shown first. There was no space to explore alternatives — no narrative report-only model, no formative feedback framework, no community-driven accountability ideas. Just old vs new, in a tightly defined binary. That’s not public consultation. It’s user testing dressed up as consensus. 3. LLN doesn't make a small sample valid for high-stakes policy. Statistical reliability on simple consumer questions — like “Do you prefer Coke or Pepsi?” — is one thing. But we're not talking about soft drinks. We're talking about: * School accountability * Public trust in national regulators * Teacher workload and wellbeing * Parental decision-making * School funding, recruitment, and reputation These are complex, high-impact policy areas that demand: * Contextual understanding * Informed judgment And most importantly, deliberate, inclusive dialogue Yet here, 49% of the sample admitted to not understanding the subject. And still, their feedback is being used to justify sweeping structural change on a report card developed on the status quo. 4. Statistical confidence ≠ democratic legitimacy. Yes, you can make an argument that a sample of 1,090 gives you a +/- 3% margin of error. But that’s not the point. A policy affecting: * 8.2 million pupils, * 16 million parents, * and over 30,000 schools …requires far more than mathematical precision. It demands broad engagement, genuine public conversation, and sector-wide consultation on all stakeholders, including parents of all key phases. This wasn’t that. This was a marketing test — limited in scope, skewed in execution, and now being leveraged as a mandate for reform. 5. There are deeper questions we’re not even asking. This survey assumes the purpose of Ofsted is to provide consumer-style information to parents — as if choosing a school is like browsing Amazon reviews. But that’s a narrow framing. We could (and arguably should) ask parents: * Should Ofsted’s role be sector oversight, not defacto consumer reporting? * Do grades help or hinder improvement? * What is the impact on staff morale, curriculum narrowing, and risk aversion? * How does this system affect teacher recruitment and retention, especially in struggling areas? * What are the economic ripple effects — on local house prices, school admissions, and resource allocation? None of this fits inside a 10-minute online systemic bias survey. But it’s central to understanding the true cost — and value — of Ofsted’s system. In short: The LLN doesn't justify a small or unrepresentative sample. It’s a theoretical principle from probability — not a blank cheque to push top-down policy change based on a micro-slice of the population. This isn’t convergence on truth. It’s appears to be the amplification of a skew, packaged as legitimacy to drive a already decided upon policy change.

No - this is not about manufacturing consent. “They only surveyed 1090 parents, how can that possibly be representative…!” Can I suggest this Wikipedia page on the law of large numbers: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_la…

Connections Puzzle #1016 🟨🟨🟩🟨 🟦🟨🟨🟨 🟪🟦🟪🟩 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟩🟪🟪🟩too hard

@Amelia558rs Jacks, they came in a strange silky white drawstring bag.

No way you know what this is, unless you're rocking some serious vintage memories.

In @costacoffee a motorway services. Order drink with oat milk - is that an allergy or a preference? - sorry? - is that an allergy or a preference? - sorry? You need my medical information to allow me to buy a drink? - it’s because of our sanitation….. ….not sure that helps.

My daughter is interested in getting into smoking cigarettes (for weight loss) does anybody have any recommendations for beginner cigarettes that won’t make her cough too much? She hasn’t been taking to the Marlboro Reds. She’s 11

Strands #750 “In pieces” 🔵🔵🔵🔵 🟡🔵🔵

Wordle 1,738 3/6 ⬜🟨🟨⬜🟨 🟨🟨⬜🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Connections Puzzle #1015 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟪🟨🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟨🟨🟨🟪 🟨🟨🟨🟪 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟪🟪🟪🟪

Strands #749 “Trademarked no more” 🔵💡🔵💡 🔵💡🔵🟡 🔵

Wordle 1,737 4/6 ⬛⬛🟨⬛⬛ 🟨⬛🟨🟩⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Good morning everyone, I've got a big favour to ask. I’ve been contacted by a mum of an autistic girl asking for help. As a family they are having a pretty tough week. Their dog has sadly had major eye surgery resulting in the loss of them both. On top of this she has lost her little bear who is her best friend and comfort. Mum has tried everything to find a replacement bear, but can’t find this particularly one ‘Abbie’ anywhere. You can buy other bears of this type online. Could I please kindly ask if anyone knows where mum can find another bear, The bears name is Abbie and is a Snuggle Friends Hunter price bear, can I kindly ask that you retweet so that we can hopefully find a new bear for this little girl.

@suchfun57 @ScottishSuffra1 RE = religious education, RI = religious instruction Is that what you meant?

@ScottishSuffra1 It's RE, not RI...world of difference. 🙄 Read the curriculum laid down by law before ya go all Rab C at the school gate.

My grandson came home yesterday and told his mum that they had a lesson on muslims, and their religion in school that day. Today, my family decided that as Christians, catholics, and with Jewish relatives as well as women's rights activists aplenty within our family, this was not appropriate, needed, or wanted. Monday, the head teacher will have a complaint she never imagined, she will never forget and will never wish repeated.