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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that all these threads relating to teachers having 'time off'....

44 replies

Bridezilla3521 · 04/09/2014 08:25

Shows exactly why some children grow up so disrespectful?!

I have seen a lot of people say how unimpressed etc they are with teachers having all this time off and inset days etc, saying they don't deserve holidays and don't do any work. This, in most cases, I bet is spoken in front of their DCs which in turn makes the most of them disrespectful, disruptive etc to teachers at school. And, let's throw it out there, makes their behaviour worse for their future.

The inset day thread is a perfect example of this.

Behaviour breeds behaviour!

I'm not a teacher by the way..

OP posts:
ilovesooty · 04/09/2014 08:28

It's ignorance, pure and simple. Everyone's been to school so feels qualified to teacher bash.
Yeah, and I've been on a plane loads of times so I'm sure the pilot thinks it will be ok if I tell him how to fly me home tonight.

polarpercy · 04/09/2014 08:29

Absolutely ilovesooty, couldn't agree more! I've had a baby but I don't think it qualifies me as a midwife!

flowery · 04/09/2014 08:29

I don't know why everyone doesn't just ignore them tbh.

Writerwannabe83 · 04/09/2014 08:31

What do people expect them to do? Sit in empty classes during the school holidays??

chilephilly · 04/09/2014 08:32

I agree. Since my school was put into SM (and despite all our hard work before and since) parents have become far more shouty, rude and aggressive. There is absolutely no need for it.

polarpercy · 04/09/2014 08:32

But flowery it's as Bridezilla says it's the example it is setting children. Children learn from their parents and by example, there are countless threads where parents talk about the dc repeating something they have said, often much to their embarrassment. How can children respect their teachers if they hear 'I work 9-5', they're only in '9-3 and have 12/13 weeks off....I pay their wages'.

Shockers · 04/09/2014 08:35

I agree!

I'm not a teacher, I'm a TA. I've been in school this week setting the classroom up so we're ready tomorrow. So has the class teacher. Both unpaid for those hours.

Today is an inset day (paid, yippee!), which is good because there's still a lot to do.

The children and parents have no idea about the hours we put in every evening either. I don't mind because, for the most part, our children and parents are hugely supportive of the school. It would rankle if they were critical though.

GoblinLittleOwl · 04/09/2014 08:37

This is exploited and reinforced by successive governments, starting with Blair and his Parent Power and endorsed by Gove with his frequently expressed contempt for all aspects of the teaching profession.
Now happily retired I note all the trivial complaints voiced by parents since schools returned this week; it explains why (some) children are becoming increasingly difficult to motivate and why our academic results are slipping yearly, despite all the time and money dedicated to improving them.

ilovesooty · 04/09/2014 08:39

Flowery if you gave a large part of your working life to a profession you were proud of, and you're still supporting teachers struggling with the sort of crap posted on here, it's difficult to ignore it.
There are parents and pupils with real issues who are entitled to all the support school can offer. Teachers should expect to work hard and do their best.
They can do without a load of aggressive andself ccentred parents and their children who spend a lot of time shouting about their rights while having little regard to their responsibilities. And the entitled attitude with regard to the most trivial of issues is incredibly irritating.

flowery · 04/09/2014 08:39

"But flowery it's as Bridezilla says it's the example it is setting children."

Well true, but with the thread about inset days the OP is spouting rubbish, clearly isn't going to change her mind magically and seems a bit like she's looking for an argument which posters are giving her, and you see similar on other threads.

RobinSparkles · 04/09/2014 08:40

I don't know a single teacher who has a full 6 weeks off during summer holidays. A lot of the time is spent planning or in school sorting out their class room ready for next term.

Obviously on Inset days the teachers don't have a day off as they're still in school.

My sister used to be a primary teacher and, as a teenager, I remember going into school to help her during the holidays.

Many of my neighbours are teachers (mostly secondary) and they've all been going into school throughout the holidays.

TheAwfulDaughter · 04/09/2014 08:42

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

ilovesooty · 04/09/2014 08:46

It's not just a question of the threads on here is it?
Of course people will react defensively if they feel attacked, but the OP has raised the issue of pupils hearing the attitudes of their parents when expressing their contempt for teachers then bringing that attitude to the classroom.
And it happens.

cailindana · 04/09/2014 08:48

YANBU.

In Ireland teaching is a tough but thoroughly enjoyable profession that garners a lot of respect. People still whinge a bit about the holidays (which are longer than they are here by the way - 8 weeks for primary, 13 weeks for secondary) but in a good-natured way. In general (with exceptions of course) parents consider teachers to be trained, skilled people who know what they're doing. They will challenge schools, but in a respectful way. As a teacher I felt challenged and in control, it was such a lovely job.
Here, as a teacher I felt like the lowest of the low, constantly under scrutiny because I couldn't be trusted to do my job properly and criticised at all turns for not being everything to everyone at all times. I was not allowed at all to use my own judgement, ever. Everything was prescribed and required and restricted. And the paperwork! Dear lord the paperwork, endless endless rubbish.

I left teaching and I will never go back, not as long as I live in the UK.

Mintyy · 04/09/2014 08:50

I think there are always some ignorant people who spout off rubbish on subjects they know nothing about.

Ime the vast majority of parents are supportive of teachers, appreciate them and admire them for doing a difficult job.

Completely agree with Flowery.

Original poster
Bridezilla3521 · 04/09/2014 09:03

Flowery - wouldn't it be lovely if we could just ignore others behaviour?! Society would be great wouldn't it!

My issue is that every child learns social skills and learns how to behave from their parents/guardians. If they learn it's ok to disrespect people or have a poor attitude from a young age, when does it end?

OP posts:
Original poster
Bridezilla3521 · 04/09/2014 09:03

Flowery - wouldn't it be lovely if we could just ignore others behaviour?! Society would be great wouldn't it!

My issue is that every child learns social skills and learns how to behave from their parents/guardians. If they learn it's ok to disrespect people or have a poor attitude from a young age, when does it end?

OP posts:
wheresthelight · 04/09/2014 09:18

I am afraid it was behaviour from parents and children that made me walk away from my teaching career before it had really started.

people are ignorant of what's involved and they have no interest in educating themselves as the many ridiculous threads about the strike actions show and the holiday fines for that matter.

ime idiot ignorant parents breed idiot ignorant children. you cannot blame the kids until they are old enough to form their own opinions

Mintyy · 04/09/2014 09:25

Yes, there are some very poorly behaved people in all walks of life, very true. Not sure that teachers particularly bear the brunt more than anyone else who works with the public??

Alisvolatpropiis · 04/09/2014 09:25

Yanbu

Also demonstrates that some poor children have embarrassingly stupid parents.

I don't envy teachers at all, poor sods. Everyone thinks they can do their job because they too once went to school and that is exactly the same as teaching.

Original poster
Bridezilla3521 · 04/09/2014 10:03

Mintyy - I work in an industry where people get tarred with the same brush so I more than understand how it's not just teachers, but t is mainly the teaching profession that gets bought into question by the media etc and a lot of people believe what the media tells them!

OP posts:
CrohnicallyPissedOff · 04/09/2014 10:25

mintyy the thing with teachers is the direct impact it has on their job and the children. Children (should) spend 190 days a year in school for around 6.5 hours per day. That's a huge amount of time, and I would guess the average child spends more time in a year with their teacher than any other adult except their parents/carers. Not to mention that a lot if the time, teachers are directly responsible for the children.

Other jobs that work with the public and get the brunt of badly behaved people include shop workers and doctors' receptionists. How much time do you think the average child spends in the company of either of those two? Never mind in the care of.

I've probably worded that badly, but I hope you get the gist. And no, I'm not a teacher.

HamishBamish · 04/09/2014 10:34

I think some people have no understanding of what actually goes into teaching. They must think that the only work teachers do is to stand up in front of the class and teach. They don't think about the lesson planning, marking, general admin, dealing with behaviour issues, parental concerns (to name just a few) and that's before they have to work with all the changes which seem to be made to the curriculum every term.

I'm not a teacher, but even I can see it's just not a 9-3.30 job.

HamishBamish · 04/09/2014 10:35

To actually answer the OP, no YANBU. The attitude of the children towards their education and teachers is a reflection of what they see and hear at home. If their parents are rude and dismissive of teachers then their children will be too.

stripedtortoise · 04/09/2014 10:41

OP I completely agree with you. Another forum of a very similar name is even worse for this but also brilliant if you fancy having a laugh about it ;)