To feel sorry for this teacher

[limestrawberry]

Teacher sets homework to write a suicide note, based on Macbeth.

Terribly, terribly ill judged and misguided. But surely an apology is enough rather than this making the national press.

Yeh, but vile bitch hideous isn't how I'd describe her. Too far.

Very poor judgement indeed from the teacher.
As it turned out, one student definitely had personal experience of losing someone to suicide, so that's just utterly insensitive - but any of the others could have had the same experience too, and just not spoken up about it.

I can't believe anyone would think this was a good topic - it's beyond "challenging", beyond "imaginative" and into insensitive and really disturbing. There are still entirely too many teen suicides going on, it's just not appropriate!

I don't feel sorry for the teacher, really - the school has taken responsibility and apologised, the teacher will be (hopefully) reprimanded and strongly advised never to do such a thing again.

There's a big difference in discussing suicide objectively, and personalising it by making the children write about it themselves, ffs!

Oh DEFINITELY purple - a grovelling apology is in order. And hopefully like I say a salutary lesson.

But I don't see how the teachers future at this school is tenable now.

Write about it FOR themselves, I mean!

"sadistic streak" "vile bitch"

Can't think where your teen gets her overemotional state from.

The Telegraph article states that ONE parent complained.

Meh.

A further google shows that this is often homework set for teens and there's often a juicy sadface newspaper article from a horrified parent quick to follow.

PurpleDaisies
I just meant that if you keep chasing engagement factor or shock factor I think there's more risk that something goes wrong.

I teach English and I remember in my early career being told that you read edgy books with the 'tough kids'. So you'd get directed to books on crime, violence, gangs etc to 'engage' them in reading.

Suicide seems to be the chosen topic in our area in Upper school so I can see how the teacher thought they might be interested but it was hugely misguided.

I don't think the it is necessarily malicious, but it is such staggeringly bad judgement (at best), that its should be called into question whether this person should remain a teacher.

I remember having to teach a novel called Beast.

It was good but god the language

Made George Milton's "crazy bastards" look positively snowy with innocence.

I would say the latter is fine as it is 'in character' but this isn't what the teacher has done.

I imagine she wanted them to think about why someone might be that desperate. It's bad, though. But I don't know. I've definitely made errors of judgement myself.

Another school set it as homework as part of An Inspector Calls work in 2015.

That school defended its decision. Daily Mirror

Yes, poor judgement, there is a difference between discussing hard and challenging topics, which I think needs to be done, and forcing kids into imagining their own suicide notes which is too emotionally charged

I agree though that there is a tendency to want to approach only safe topics, even at University now we often have to give trigger warnings before class for any topic which may be confronting, depending what topic you teach this can become really a bit much

Criticising Thomas Tallis for its lack of sensitivity, one mother said her daughter had been told to write the note – despite having lost three friends to suicide.

How does someone so young have three friends who've committed suicide? Something odd going on there.

Again, I would say the other school are fine - they are writing in character not themselves.

I did a diary entry as Wat Tyler aged 12, circa 1994. It was awesome. I was planning on getting all the pheasants revolting

Not really alpa, who they call a friend is wide ranging at this age due to social media.

Where does it say what the exact task was?

Because I'd also agree if it was like the second example, that would be pretty much par for the course.

Suicide has become an "in topic" this year, because of 13 appearing on Netflix, and because of the (has anyone decided yet if it's a spoof or not) Blue Whale thing.As Maisy says, I imagine the teacher /school (because I'm guessing more than one class did it, if 60 kids did it, of which one is traumatised- or rather her mother is) the department probably thought it was a way to hook the interest of the kids. And it has, clearly. The TES resource section is full of "packs" and tasks which tbh, IMO, are far more sensitive. You can't not talk about things just because someone might be affected by the issue or be "over emotional". You'd never talk about anything. Seriously.

who they call a friend is wide ranging at this age due to social media.

So it could be someone they don't actually know at all? That's a silly thing to incorporate into a child's life experience as "three friends dead by suicide" if true.

How does someone so young have three friends who've committed suicide? Something odd going on there.

It's a known thing that there can be "epidemics" of suicide where one sparks off another, and so on. The media have guidelines on the reporting of suicides to avoid copycats.

Purple, but surely then it's likely that other children in the school would also have 3 friends dead by suicide?

The odds of this all happening in an extracurricular club are very low.

Alpaca- exactly.

And I have a feeling it is more to do with Enraged Mother than the actual task. 60 kids did it. One parent has complained and had a cordial meeting with the HT.

And a Telegraph article out of it. Sheesh.

It's a wonder she hasn't got a 1000 post thread on here.

I think the 2nd school was fine on their task. They've asked students to write the final journal entry of Eva Smith.
It isn't acting as a suicide note. It could have been the day before. They've got the students to write in character.

If the school's task was lady Macbeth writing to Macbeth just before she takes her life, it's a well intentioned but silly task to set.

I can't think a teacher would get them generically to write a suicide note.

Bit more detail here:

"Headteacher Carolyn Roberts said the exercise will not be repeated again at the school, despite pointing out that an Ofsted officer had praised the exercise in the past.

“A parent contacted us with concerns about a written exercise given to a class during studies of a play by Shakespeare,” Roberts said in a statement today.

“The exercise is a well-known method for getting students to understand this dramatic twist in the play.

“The teacher who set the exercise is very experienced,” she continued.

“We appreciate that the exercise was upsetting to the family and have discussed the subject matter and approach with teaching staff.

“I met with the parent last week and apologised wholeheartedly on behalf of the school and reassured them about the actions that have been taken. The parent accepted the apology in a meeting that was friendly and cordial.”

I don't see an issue with the task, as it's 100% relevant to the plot and clearly a creative writing task.

Maybe they could have provided an alternative assignment for those too sensitive to cope with it.

For the record, I had lost a friend to suicide by 18 and written my own suicide note a number of times.

Agree with maisypops. Without knowing the actual task we can't judge. For all we know the task could be write any diary/letter for Lady M from any key point in the play.