SO!!! I work with middle school kids in an inner city setting. I LOVE working with the kids!! Everyday is different and even the tough days are worthwhile in the end. (remind me later that I said that)
This Friday is the end of the 2nd quarter of the year....and report cards are out on February 1st. Due to district scheduling changes (we can talk about that in another post on another day) the kids don't have a "study hall" anymore. Oftentimes the kids don't get their homework done. (what? no way!)
This week two of the teachers I work with decided to have the kids stay after school on Wednesday and make up Tuesday's homework for partial credit. They wanted to give these kids the opportunity to avoid a zero in their average.
I am not sure why I was surprised by the parents' response to the detentions, but yes I will admit that I was a bit surprised.(I am an optimist at heart and always want that happy ending).
Parent:
"Isn't a detention a bit extreme?"
"My child won't be staying for detention (ever) he has to [FILL IN THE BLANK] today after school"
"You teachers give too much homework anyway"
Sigh.......
It wouldn't be so bad if I didn't know that these same parents will be calling in two weeks to complain about Johnny and Susie's report card grades.
"what do you mean Susie is failing your class? why wasn't I notified sooner?"
"Johnny says he did all the work and you lost it"
"It's not my kid's fault, everyone knows the whole district is failing and it's the teachers fault!"
Responsibility??
Ownership??
Expectations??
Success??
Does anyone know what these words mean anymore?
"Perhaps the most valuable result of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it ought to be done, whether you like it or not; it is the first lesson that ought to be learned,
and however early a man's training begins, it is probably the last lesson that he learns thoroughly."
~ Thomas Huxley
I feel your frustration....
ReplyDeleteOne of the reasons I went from teaching KIDS to teaching adults (before I retired from education) was that the adults were NOT reluctant learners AND I also didn't have parental "crap" to deal with (like you mentioned above). I wanted to retire from education with a happy feeling...and working with adults (teaching ESL) was the right decision for me!!! I do feel your frustration....and the "not my kid" stuff has gotten steadily worse and I doubt it will ever go away. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteOh my, that was one of the reasons I decided not to go into teaching. I'm sorry you're having to deal with this. I imagine that it can be overwhelming at times, but those kids will remember the teachers who really cared and tried to help them. Trust me. I still remember my 2 favorite teachers: Mrs. Faverty and Mrs. Murphy.
ReplyDeleteI used to be a teacher, so I do know what it was like. The parents were often very difficult to work with, and thus the problems with their kids.
ReplyDeleteMicki
What are parents thinking. As a parent I am far from perfect but I do make sure they are held accountable for their actions. My kids think I'm the meanest mom ever.
ReplyDelete