Yesterday, many teachers got emails from our district about attending a meeting. The meeting to which the email referred was about Reduction in Force layoffs. One of my close friends received such an email. As she was preparing to leave to attend the meeting, she was accosted by a furious parent.
This parent was upset that her daughter was failing and would not be eligible for cheerleading tryouts next week. The parent's frustration had become explosive fury. She screamed and berated the teacher in the hallway. I assumed it was a teacher dealing with an inappropriate student and didn't get involved. It wasn't until today I realized what had been happening.
What makes this situation so frustrating is that this furious, out of control, violently abusive parent is a teacher in this building. My friend Sally (*not her name) has been telling Cathy* that her daughter isn't doing her homework with each assignment she failed to complete or turn in. Sally and Cathy meet daily to work on curriculum, and Cathy has been well aware of the situation all year. Her viewpoint has been to teach her daughter a lesson about taking responsibility for her own choices and to let her fail if she is refusing to give any effort. Somehow that all changed yesterday when her daughter would not be allowed to even tryout for the cheerleading squad next year due to the failing grades.
Not only was Cathy upset, but she was cruel and ridiculous. She accused Sally of purposely failing her daughter, of not giving her the opportunity to make-up work, of not doing her job. Sally said that the work the student does is ok, but she literally only does about 50% of the work. Her grade is subsequently around a 50%.
What saddens me to no small measure is that Sally is an amazing teacher, a solid Christian and a wonderful woman/friend, but was told yesterday that her contract would not be renewed for next year due to budget cuts. The vindictive, cruel, unprofessional, small-minded teacher will be back in the fall. What is wrong with this picture?
Education is tough enough when people on the outside criticize something they don't understand. Education is tough enough with the federal, state and local and building mandates teachers try to balance, serving too many masters poorly instead of one well. Education is tough enough with students who have a variety issues outside of the educational environment that impede learning. When people who understand how tough it is, understand how thankless a job it is, understand failing students have often put themselves there - when that person rains down fury (undeservingly) on another teacher, it is unforgivable. But it is also unprofessional and immature.
She should have maintained her composure, kept her voice calm and words civil if not polite. She verbally abused a member of our faculty. If this had been "just" a parent, the administration would have taken significant action against that parent, removing them from the situation and possibly from campus at minimum for the moment, if not for good. Just breaks my heart and infuriates me that "Sally" was so horribly treated by someone who should have been on her side and probably would have been if the student hadn't been her daughter.
What I want to know is what message and lesson her daughter got out of that? I am glad Sally isn't going to acquiesce to Cathy's demands to "give" her daughter a passing grade, but wish that the lesson Cathy had been trying to teach her daughter all year, had finally been the rooster coming home to roost. She is a smart girl choosing not to do her work, being allowed to reap those consequences in high school might teach her the lesson she needs to understand how life really works most of the time.
In any case, no one should be treated that way no matter what the disagreement is. Especially as teachers, we should endeavor to be examples to our students and parents of professionalism even in the face of overwhelming difficulties.
This parent was upset that her daughter was failing and would not be eligible for cheerleading tryouts next week. The parent's frustration had become explosive fury. She screamed and berated the teacher in the hallway. I assumed it was a teacher dealing with an inappropriate student and didn't get involved. It wasn't until today I realized what had been happening.
What makes this situation so frustrating is that this furious, out of control, violently abusive parent is a teacher in this building. My friend Sally (*not her name) has been telling Cathy* that her daughter isn't doing her homework with each assignment she failed to complete or turn in. Sally and Cathy meet daily to work on curriculum, and Cathy has been well aware of the situation all year. Her viewpoint has been to teach her daughter a lesson about taking responsibility for her own choices and to let her fail if she is refusing to give any effort. Somehow that all changed yesterday when her daughter would not be allowed to even tryout for the cheerleading squad next year due to the failing grades.
Not only was Cathy upset, but she was cruel and ridiculous. She accused Sally of purposely failing her daughter, of not giving her the opportunity to make-up work, of not doing her job. Sally said that the work the student does is ok, but she literally only does about 50% of the work. Her grade is subsequently around a 50%.
What saddens me to no small measure is that Sally is an amazing teacher, a solid Christian and a wonderful woman/friend, but was told yesterday that her contract would not be renewed for next year due to budget cuts. The vindictive, cruel, unprofessional, small-minded teacher will be back in the fall. What is wrong with this picture?
Education is tough enough when people on the outside criticize something they don't understand. Education is tough enough with the federal, state and local and building mandates teachers try to balance, serving too many masters poorly instead of one well. Education is tough enough with students who have a variety issues outside of the educational environment that impede learning. When people who understand how tough it is, understand how thankless a job it is, understand failing students have often put themselves there - when that person rains down fury (undeservingly) on another teacher, it is unforgivable. But it is also unprofessional and immature.
She should have maintained her composure, kept her voice calm and words civil if not polite. She verbally abused a member of our faculty. If this had been "just" a parent, the administration would have taken significant action against that parent, removing them from the situation and possibly from campus at minimum for the moment, if not for good. Just breaks my heart and infuriates me that "Sally" was so horribly treated by someone who should have been on her side and probably would have been if the student hadn't been her daughter.
What I want to know is what message and lesson her daughter got out of that? I am glad Sally isn't going to acquiesce to Cathy's demands to "give" her daughter a passing grade, but wish that the lesson Cathy had been trying to teach her daughter all year, had finally been the rooster coming home to roost. She is a smart girl choosing not to do her work, being allowed to reap those consequences in high school might teach her the lesson she needs to understand how life really works most of the time.
In any case, no one should be treated that way no matter what the disagreement is. Especially as teachers, we should endeavor to be examples to our students and parents of professionalism even in the face of overwhelming difficulties.
Our RIF meeting was yesterday too. STINKS! Sometimes professionalism dies. Not sure why.
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