I have a 7th grade student who drives me, and every other teacher who has him or has had him, crazy. He carries on in class like a teacher isn't even there. If he has a comment, he makes it; his comments are often mean or negative putdowns directed at other students; if he feels like laughing about something, he does it; he is constantly tardy and then drags ass as he gets his backpack off and meanders to his seat; he rarely if ever brings a writing utensil to class; he is failing every class he has - including mine, with a whopping 28%. And if you call him on any of this stuff in class, you will be met with an argument that generally centers on one of two themes: "What? I didn't do anything wrong" or "What are you pickin' on me for? So-and-so is talking too!" He is generally a very disagreeable and nasty human being.
Numerous phone calls home to the parents have done no good whatsoever. Three previous attempts at meeting with the parents have been canceled by one or both of the parents (who I understand do not live under the same roof). And best of all, I have been told by other teachers that they have previously been informed by the parents - especially the mother - that this kid's problems arise from the fact that all of his teachers are a bunch of lying racists.
In fact, I was talking to one of our secretaries at lunch, and she told me that she had been on the phone with the mother verifying that the mother will actually show up to a scheduled Student Study Team (SST) meeting tomorrow, and the mother said she doesn't want to miss this meeting, because she wants to be able to look her son's teachers' faces to see whether or not they are lying. Ooooh, I can't wait to be a part of this SST tomorrow.
In anticipation of tomorrow's meeting, the mother emailed our principal. I don't feel comfortable reprinting the mother's email - her grammatical errors and misspellings are embarrassing enough. Instead of the forwarded email from the mother, I will print what our principal had to say to us teachers who are... privileged... to have this kid in our classroom every day:
Hi Folks,When I read this, I think I literally saw red. After composing myself and taking a deep breath, I then belted out this missive which later garnered such a positive response from my fellow teachers:
I received this email from [the student's mother] and spoke to her as well. She is frustrated that she is not getting the homework information from [her son] on a daily basis. If you read her email below, she is requesting a daily email from you with just a blurb about the day’s homework. Let me know if you pre-post grades. According to her, she is not viewing pre-posted assignments on Power School.
Thanks!
[Your Principal]
With all due respect,So, was I out of line? Oh well, I have tenure.
If [the mother] wants to email me every day, I will be glad to reply to her. Otherwise, she is more than welcome to continue checking PowerSchool, which I updated just this morning, and she can also check [her son's] agenda. My whiteboard agenda gives a weekly rundown of activity, and also lists upcoming homework assignments and tests.
If [the mother] can’t get [her son] to write this stuff down, I simply refuse to take over her parenting duties.
Thank you,
[Mr. Chanman]
Good Day to You, Sir
9 comments:
Out of line? Are you kidding? That was mild! If they throw s--t at you and you agree to catch it, you deserve to get dirty. You are right to stand up and say, "NO!" If we agree to do their jobs for them, they will continue to expect it and up the demands. You have 200 students per day, the parents have one!
mommy person
You are so right! Let's see-I hand out the list of assignments on a calendar, post them on the whiteboard and on the bulletin board and copy them onto the class website. The "students" are supposed to write assignments in their school-supplied planners, and yet I still get messages from mommies who want me to call them with their child's assignments and whether or not they're doing them. These are 8th graders.
You rock!
I bow in your general direction.
I taught for thirty-three years, grades four through eighth. Reading this reminds me why being retired is so wonderful.
By the way, when parents asked me to call them every time their child received a bad grade or didn't return homework, I simply told them to send me a note, and I would call that evening. If I didn't get the note, it would be the child's fault. That way the monkey was off my back. I can count on one hand how many notes I received over the years. Of course that does not include the progress reports and report cards we always sent home.
You're my hero, Chanman.
You refuse to parent someone else's kid? What kind of teacher are you!? :-)
You're blowing off steam here - but I think you should remember that's all you're doing. Everyone will get uppity over the crap in their life and your post is no exception. I can't fault you for being pissed. But being petty and self-righteous as a matter of principle when viewing teaching? Your profession is a huge part of your life - being petty, pissed and righteous isn't a healthy way to live. Get zen baby.
And hell yes, I support parents being parents, not teachers being parents. All the chatter about rewarding high performing schools and punishing low is b.s. Without parental involvement when it comes to kids behaving and having to learn, it's very difficult to teach.
So you agree that parents should be the parents and not the teachers - just like I do; you say that you can't fault me for being pissed; and you bemoan the lack of parental involvement.
Yet after all this agreeing with me, you then go on to say that I am being petty and self-righteous regarding this matter.
Huh?
Post a Comment