Parents

Every year, along with the mountains of paperwork, administration and curriculum that we have to face, another "problem" that all teachers have to overcome is... parents. Please let me explain, that for the most part, I have wonderful parents in my class, who really care about their children and their education. But it seems like every year, in every class, I have a handful of parents who could care less about what is happening to their children in my classroom.

Let me say this: I AM NOT A BABYSITTER!!!!! I AM A TEACHER! I AM AN EDUCATOR!
I have a job to do. My job is to teach YOUR child, to become successful IN SCHOOL. It is not my responsibility or duty to teach YOUR child how to behave when they are away from your clutches. School is NOT a daycare to send your child from the hours of 8 to 4, so that you can have free time. My job is in a classroom, where everyone should have the opportunity to learn without distractions from YOUR child. I am so sick of students who come to school and do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!! Only for me to get a call from you to ask, "What are you going to do to help my child?" I'll do my job, when you do yours.

Secondly, when I do call you for assistance with your child, DO NOT say, "I know. He treats me the same way at home." THAT'S YOUR PROBLEM! You need to gain control of your child and have a "come to Jesus meeting" with him or her. If I EVER treated MY teachers the way that some of my students disrespectfully treat me, my daddy would have my butt! And though, many children these days come from single parent homes, it is not an excuse for ANY child to treat an adult disrespectfully. If you are a single mother, God Bless You! But I have several mothers who are parenting their child by themselves. But did you catch the verb there? It's PARENTING. Try it sometime. It's hard, I know. But it's your job, duty and responsiblity to ensure that children are treating their teachers, and other adults, with the same respect that they have for you. If they give you no respect, DON'T EXPECT ME TO ATTEMPT TO GAIN RESULTS IN MY CLASSROOM, THAT YOU DO NOT DEMAND IN YOUR HOME!

Lastly, when I contact you with a problem, or give you some suggestions on how to make your child more successful, I AM NOT LYING!!! Children play adults against each other. Whether it be mom against dad or teacher against parents, all children try to "get out" of trouble by making excuses why they could not or would not complete a task. I am not "out to get" your child, I am here to help. I am not trying to "fail him/her", because my job depends on their achievements. If you feel I "just don't like him/her", then get your child out of my class! My whole career is based on the fact that I LOVE CHILDREN, ALL CHILDREN! The only person that I "don't like" in our relationship, IS YOU!!!

SO GET OFF MY BACK! I AM DOING THE BEST THAT I CAN WITH THE WHATEVER YOU SEND TO ME, AND I AM NOT A MIRACLE WORKER!

Thank you for listening. I will now get off of my soapbox because I have test papers to grade. Yes, just like you, my job never ends either.