A parent's gotta vent sometimes...

[peapod1980]

I will not tolerate a teacher, belittling, my child, and I expect him to respect them and treat them with kindness. Nuff said.

kd, that is absolutely heartbreaking. I don't even know how else to categorize it.
What you're saying has a lot to do with why I made the teacher be accountable for her actions. I wanted to remind her that my son doesn't stand alone; he exists as part of a group of people who care about him and will stand up for him.

 

[Beach Runner]

Feel free to skip this if a) you're not a parent or b) you don't want to hear me rant and rave.

How can a student complete the homework assigned while s/he was out unless the assignments are posted online? The onus shouldn't be on the student to call around and find a classmate to convey what s/he missed; the onus should be on the teacher to post assignments online (using software like WebCT which doesn't require the teacher to be a computer expert). And if the homework is based on new material that the student missed while absent, the teacher should provide his/her notes and daily syllabus online to that the student can attempt to catch up.

One of the college courses I teach has multiple sections and professors. We are required by the department to not allow test makeups or accept late homework for any reason, including hospitalization or a death in the immediate family. I object to this as being inhumane, but I'm stuck with it. I post all of my notes, my daily syllabus, and homework/test solutions (after the due date, of course) online so that my students have access to all of this in case they are absent.

Just as an aside, I really regret helping my daughter fight her battles when she was in elementary/middle/high school. She never learned to fend for herself, so now that she's in college, she has trouble with this. And because of the Privacy Act, professors won't speak to parents of students 18 and over. If I had it to do over again, I would have let her fight her own battles so that she would have been better prepared to take care of these issues herself in college. I've talked to several friends about this recently. We've decided that by spoiling our children and making things easier for them while they lived at home, we've done them a disservice for when they get to college.

Now if we could only have 9 lives like Miss Kitty - we might actually perfect parenthood!

 

[peapod1980]

Just as an aside, I really regret helping my daughter fight her battles when she was in elementary/middle/high school. She never learned to fend for herself, so now that she's in college, she has trouble with this. And because of the Privacy Act, professors won't speak to parents of students 18 and over. If I had it to do over again, I would have let her fight her own battles so that she would have been better prepared to take care of these issues herself in college.

I agree this is very important. In general, I am a hands-off parent unless absolutely necessary. Usually, my technique is to hear my kids out and offer suggestions for them handling issues themselves. My son is a 7th-grader, and this is the most involved I've ever been in any school situation!

 

[Beach Runner]

I agree this is very important. In general, I am a hands-off parent unless absolutely necessary. Usually, my technique is to hear my kids out and offer suggestions for them handling issues themselves. My son is a 7th-grader, and this is the most involved I've ever been in any school situation!

I hear ya. It's a tough call knowing when to step in and when not to.

 

[iwishiwasthere]

I have always been a believer of making the child survive the situation...until that is, my youngest had a chemistry teacher from H#**. My girl kept telling me stories, and I had a hard time believing they were true because the stories were almost inconvceivable. One night a parent of a child in her class told me she thought it was awful the way the B#$^* was treating my child...so I investigated throughly. It seems this teacher had a LONG history of treating students unfairly. So I documented everything she did ( date and action) and took it to the principal who glossed over the problem. So I went futher to the superintendent, and he took me very seriously. Things changed somewhat but sorry teachers are just that...sorry.

This being said, if you have a problem, write down exactly what happens and the date....make a list, then use it as ammunition. very effective and productive. Never forget you are your child's best advocate, and the child needs to know you believe his plight and will protect him.....just like you would from any other predator.

 

[Jdarg]

I think this is exactly what likely happens with a policy like this. I would let my daughter stay out another day to catch up. Then the school would lose the $ for an extra day - doesn't make sense!

Fortunately, the policy at her school is that assignments are due the 2nd day after coming back from an illness.

Yes, but you have a policy and know what it is! It sounds like this teacher is making it up as she goes along. I think #1 Pea has been had. Go get'em Mama Pea!

 

[peapod1980]

Yes, but you have a policy and know what it is! It sounds like this teacher is making it up as she goes along. I think #1 Pea has been had. Go get'em Mama Pea!

Exactly. When I spoke to the principal today, even he kept (like the teacher) reiterating the fact that the junior high's policy is to have the work turned in the day of returning to school. I reminded him that it isn't published anywhere. It seems so contradictory to stress something is done a certain way and expect people to abide by an unpublished "rule"! Huh?

 

[Teresa]

Peapod, I have to admit that I have let my children at one time or another stay home that extra day to get caught up, I know many of you may disagree , but my kids are so freaked out if "everything" is not done before they reaturn to school. Good Luck, sounds like you have a battle to fight!!! ;-)

I'm not believing this thread. what is going on in the schools with this kind of policy? My child is only pre-school so I haven't experienced homework assignments and absence policy, but any kid should have a reasonable period of time to receive & complete assignments, if these assignments are indeed important in meeting their educational goals. :roll:

 

[Beach Runner]

Exactly. When I spoke to the principal today, even he kept (like the teacher) reiterating the fact that the junior high's policy is to have the work turned in the day of returning to school. I reminded him that it isn't published anywhere. It seems so contradictory to stress something is done a certain way and expect people to abide by an unpublished "rule"! Huh?

Go for it, girl!

 

[audie]

i have no input from a parent's point of view, but i know as a kid, i would get my assignments the day i went back to school and they were due the next day. see, i hated and despised school, so i made sure to miss all my allotted sick days per semester. hard to believe i haven't had a sick day at work for over 5 years isn't it ?