I….am an awesome teacher.
Ego and such aside, truly, I have taught my kids above and beyond in many academic endeavors. I taught my daughter how to read (heck, I even built an entire product around the technique I devised), I taught my kids advanced math, I’ve run the academic and creative Camp Ling now for three years during every summer….my gosh, I even have parents asking ME to help either teach or discipline their own children. And at every single back-to-school night, whenever I chat with other parents about kids and their time scheduling, I’m always asked, how do I get my kids to take care of their responsibilities? How can I trust them when I’m not standing over them? How come they listen to me and always fulfill their responsibilities….without whining or stomping off?
In a word, it’s called ‘respect’. I’m the parent, they’re the kids. My job is NOT to be their friends, my job is NOT to make their lives easier…my job is to raise them to the very best of my abilities and show them:
Life’s tough – deal with it!
The fact is, after kids grow up, they’ll always run into people who possess power over them, such as bosses, political in-fighting, etc.etc.etc. And by that time, crying to mommy or daddy would just be an exercise in stupidity, indeed.
This brings me to my rant of the day – kids taking advantage of teachers..and their spineless parents enabling their lousy behavior. I have several dear friends who are teachers and the stories they tell me about how out of control the kids are …. it’s disgusting.
Teaching is a calling. Teachers automatically deserve respect in the classroom…and any student who acts out should be thrown out of class and into detention. But no oh no, what if the parent calls and complains? How dare a teacher, who has probably spent hours in crafting a lesson for kids less worthy than shower mold, actually expect his or her students to listen?
I could never be a teacher nor own a karate school nor handle any group of kids other than my own. Many parents nowadays are scared to be authority figures…and as such, enable their disrespectful brats to run roughshod over their teachers and peers. I probably would go bankrupt within 3 minutes by throwing out any disrespectful kid under my responsibility.
Anyone remember this story from 2002?
Flunking Out of School? Get a Lawyer
Teachers, be wary of whom you fail.
Some parents have slapped lawsuits on teachers, saying their kids deserved better marks and should be allowed to graduate from high school despite their grades.
Arizona English teacher Elizabeth Joice got a letter from a lawyer representing one of the students she failed. The letter asked her to take “whatever action is necessary” for the student to graduate or else the family would sue. Joice said the student plagiarized work, failed a paper and did not attend makeup sessions, among other things. School officials caved and the student was able to retake a test five hours before graduation and receive her diploma …… MORE …..
And don’t forget:
One of the students in Elizabeth Joice’s senior English class at Sunrise Mountain High School in Peoria, Ariz., was flirting with failure. In fact, it was much more than a dalliance — she was flunking. The student, whose name Joice wishes to keep private, had plagiarized a test, skipped classes, failed assignments and even missed a make-up session that might have allowed her to raise her grade. Joice had been sending notices to the girl’s parents since April, warning them about the failing grade; and both the girl and her parents had met with assorted district administrators, counselors and Joice herself. But it was all to no avail: It was almost graduation, the girl had blown too many tests, and she wasn’t going to walk.
Imagine Joice’s surprise then, when on May 22, just one day before senior graduation, she received a letter from a lawyer representing the girl’s family….. MORE ….
Amazingly disgraceful.
Personally, I think the majority of teachers should be worshipped upon the ground they walk. When it turns into an utterly thankless job because of lack of appreciation and respect, you have to ask yourself….if they choose to leave teaching your kids, where exactly will your kids be?
It is to wonder. Parents, do the right thing. Support your teachers. And teach your kids respect.
Barbara
ps – need some parenting resources?
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