To already roll eyes at the whingy school threads..

[Ditsyprint40]

Working in a school, and being totally inundated with both serious and trivial things..

MoreCoffee I think the example above about a teacher humiliating a child about a stained shirt and her mothers 'lies' about being able to clean it is a good example of lack of respect for clients.

You are paid by the state to educate my children.

That includes liaising with me in a professional manner regarding their education as necessary and appropriate.

I am totally on the teachers side. I did three years volunteering in a reception class in a primary school and it was such hard work.

I have met many parents over the years (oldest is 18, youngest is nearly 11) who would make any teachers heart sink at them approaching them. From the aggressive parents (who eventually have to be barred from the playground for attacking other parents) to the 'special snowflake' parents who want to literally helicopter over their child until they leave Secondary and can't accept that the teacher doesn't have time to give them a full run down of their child's day. No the teacher can't tell you what lunch they had or how many times they've been to the toilet or anything mundane like that.

Some of the faffing by parents is awful. A parent at DDs last school actually removed her child from school after he was asked to be a lunchtime buddy for the year 2s. Wasn't forced into it, just asked if he'd like to volunteer. He went home, moaned to his mum and she kicked off.

This is the type of bollocks that teachers need to deal with. It must be fucking soul destroying.

You are paid by the state to educate my children

What a dreadfully patronising way to think of teachers.

Children are legally required to be educated be it by teachers or at home.

So that means that parents need to make sure they uphold their side of this legal requirement. So have some respect.

Believeitornot, Absolutely. There are some seriously pompous and self-aggrandising posters on this thread who think that teachers are at their beck and call. FFS

... and some really nice-sounding parents too. :)

You are paid by the state to educate my children

Some parents do seem to forget they have any responsibility though when it comes to their children and expect the teachers and school staff to do loads more than expected - and to do FAR more than merely educate.

Education seems to be only one part of the school staff's role nowadays.

What bugs me about this sort of thread is the implication that teachers are the only people who have to deal with the more demanding/dozy end of the great British public.

I don't think that's implied anywhere on this thread but no matter: you've been able to offload a bit of generalised anti-teacher spite and that's what these threads are really about.

Yes, we are all people and should maintain some respect for each other especially around the children who are the powerless 'clients' here.

Some teachers are complaining about successive govts interference.
I have no doubt that they are correct to complain.

But to complain about entitled parents or any parent who complains is labelled that parent whilst simultaneously rubbishing parents (sometimes for things which are clearly difficult such as the 1 hour pickup for a sick child)

• when did the teaching profession itself become so entitled???

You'd not behave that way in the private sector and get away with it.

That includes liaising with me in a professional manner regarding their education as necessary and appropriate.

Of course I would, as long as I deemed it necessary and appropriate and it was education related. Make an appointment and I will see you, what makes you think I wouldn't? This would be during my lunchtime, though, because at other times I will be in my classroom. But I'm happy to sacrifice my lunch if it's something important.

But to complain about entitled parents or any parent who complains is labelled that parent

Some parents who do complain about certain things are 'that parent'. And some are perfectly entitled to complain.

Think this is bad - you should eavesdrop in the staffroom when parents aren't around. This is tame

Believeitornot

Your JOB is to educate children.

I choose not to HE so I utilise my children's state education provision.

What is patronising about that?

I don't expect you to do anything other than educate them.
But I do expect you to do that.
I appreciate your ability to do that is curtailed by Govt cuts and interference.

But I don't want you wasting time checking their lunchboxes / shirts for stains etc
Or patronising ME by calling me 'that parent' if I want you to check their reading level, sort out persistent bullying, etc

Just TEACH them.

Cashew - thanks, found your post really helpful. I'd have assumed that trying to speak to the teacher at the end of the day is the last thing they want - ten other parents might be doing the same thing and the teacher might have a pile of marking/their own child to collect etc.
At work I'd rather have emails I can check at a more convenient time rather than my clients turning up at my desk badgering me. Its hard to know what's best.

Ach, any job where you're dealing with the public needs a bit of space for a good old whinge. I don't begrudge the posters who are teachers venting a bit on here. At least we parents might pick up some tips on how not to annoy the teacher! Doesn't mean the teachers don't enjoy their jobs (not sure anyone would teach who doesn't love teaching tbh).

But several pages age a poster called marmalady said she 'puts all the challenging and lively pupils on one table'. Please don't. I was labelled 'special needs' in the 80s and put with all the other children they considered problematic in any way. We were a group of kids with pretty diverse needs (some educational, some behavioural) but being shoved onto 'the naughty table' and viewed as problematic really, really didn't help meet those needs. Tbh I'm not liking a lot of the comments on this thread (from parents) to the tune of 'don't sit my kid with the difficult kid' - pretty poor attitude towards the child who might well have additional needs or other issues. Real life = dealing with difficult people sometimes. (Disclaimer: this is on the basis the child in question is safe. I was put next to a frankly terrifying boy in my chemistry class who used to grab my books and tear them up, a few weeks later he was jailed for attacking someone with a bread knife...). But this wasn't the teachers fault: evidently the decision had been made this child could be integrated into mainstream education and I'd suggest this wasn't the right decision.

Really good post, Monkeymama

Ego Yy, I know this is tame. I live in a small village and I am well aware of at least some of what is said in the staffroom and it is massively unprofessional.

MoreCoffee what about if I deem it appropriate and necessary?

I am not going to ask you to give up your lunch break to chat about minor things any more than I would ask a nurse to bandage my finger on her lunch or a bus driver to take me to work on the 57, when he was on lunch.

But yes, I will ask you to do something about persistent bullying, or to explain to me how you are supporting my Dyslexic child, IF you haven't contacted me outwith that time.

Is there NO contact time outwith class time that isn't your lunchtime though?

I live in a small village and I am well aware of at least some of what is said in the staffroom and it is massively unprofessional

Unprofessional? I suspect a lot of professions offload when they can 'get away with it'. It's a way of dealing with stress and pressure. Hell, I bet even MNHQ offload about some of the posters and threads on here with a

As long as they treat the children and parents involved professionally - which I am sure most teachers aim to do - then off loading is fine.

But yes, I will ask you to do something about persistent bullying, or to explain to me how you are supporting my Dyslexic child

Perfectly reasonable expectations. There are some schools and teachers who are crap at dealing with such stuff.

Offloading that goes around a village is NOT fine :O

How about the OT report left lying on a child's desk in a classroom during a 'meet the teacher evening last week'? would that child's parents be happy that all the other parents / kids in the class are potentially now aware of his SEN?

Schools and teachers are NOT perfect. Nor are parents.
Nor are they all 'that parent' or 'that teacher'.

A little respect all round helps.
I want you to educate my children and deal with me respectfully.
In turn, I will deal with you respectfully.
Any 'offloading' I feel I will not say in front of my children or in front of you.
It's not hard.

But that doesn't seem to be a standard worth trying for, if the 'offloading' on here is anything to go by.

But yes, I will ask you to do something about persistent bullying, or to explain to me how you are supporting my Dyslexic child

Then I'd be happy to see you. I wouldn't if it was about a lost jumper. :)

Is there NO contact time outwith class time that isn't your lunchtime though?

Not in small primaries, I'm retired now and just do bits of supply for local schools. I was always happy to see parents at lunchtime. It would rarely take the whole hour and I could eat my sandwiches any time.

if the 'offloading' on here is anything to go by

This is an anonymous forum.

What a bunch of arse holes you all are! Get a new job if you hate it so much

This arsehole does it unpaid. The alternative new job is I sit on my arse and mnet all day, and admire concise and intelligent posts like MrsSeckers

MoreCoffee
I wouldn't ask you about a lost jumper.
My ds is Dyslexic and one of the issues is permanently 'lost' jumpers/ water bottles / lunchboxes/ homework. He goes to High School this year and it will be a real problem for him. It's not the Teacher's job, it is my job to remind him and his challenge to remember stuff. Part of his SEN is that he has short term memory issues across the board so he WILL forget. It has come up, with his teacher and me in meetings, but in an 'we eye roll about it together' kind of way.
She will remind him if she has time /energy, he will continue to try, I will continue to remind him at home etc., He will continue to leave stuff most days. But, we all work together on it and I appreciate her efforts and she appreciates my 'back up' if he has a typical lazy moment which is not SEN related and she chews him out about it. This is how it should work, I think?

Ego Yy anonymous. not like my village examples at all, I agree.

But why do employees of the Council feel they can speak that way about their clients, even anonymously, on the UK's largest parenting site? Would it not be better on specific teacher forums, so parents were less aware of how they really feel?

I GET the moaning about the 'JOB'.
I GET the moaning about 'the great British public' . My H drives a bus and he has some right characters on, and can face physical abuse on a daily basis (spit kits anyone, Police unwilling to come out when your bus is being 'bricked' from a bridge on a notorious estate?)

But there seems to be, from some posters, a sneery patronising disdain for the families of the clients and therefore the clients themselves (as it hardly helps a child if there is not good relations between school and home).

My children (both Dyslexic) are at a Primary with NO support for learning staff. 30+ kids in class. No TA's. No home school link worker.
They are therefore struggling.
Their teachers are not responsible for this lack of provision.
That is down to Council / Govt.
But, as their parent, I will go in and ask for support for them.
I don't expect to be labelled 'that parent' for doing so.
Or told I 'don't understand' about School and sent on my way.

I personally think the Govt and Ofsted interference is just making it a million times harder for a parent to be an advocate for their child and support their school

It's a pretty damn stupid idea to offload about how. awful parents are on a forum of, y'know, parents.

Never had a single complaint about DS's teachers. But then again I can't imagine them ever posting on a thread like this, they're too professonal.