To be disgusted with a conversation on a professional website

[wanttobeateacha]

I came across it last night when looking for advice.

People calling children with special needs unpleasant names. Arguing and bickering. It's really put me off

Do I need to just toughen up?

I think moaning is fine but when you're personall attacking children it crosses a line.

Actually, I don’t think people do need to vent or moan. It is counterproductive and can actually encourage some people expressing rather unpleasant attitudes, if supported by others, to feel vindicated.

Stamping out prejudice starts with never voicing or giving a platform to prejudiced viewpoints.

I have seen some terrible, disablist, posts on TES concerning children with additional needs. There is no excuse really. No matter how tough teaching is there is no excuse for disablism.

Teacher's sites are renowned for this. YANBU.

There are no excuses for saying awful things about disabled kids ever. I can't believe people are trying to minimise it blaming stress (many people are stressed but they don't go on social media slagging off people) or claiming they're not genuine teachers.

OP, teachers are humans not saints. You'll get a real mix like in any community. What you read online though is inexcusable,

There are SO many trolls on the TES website, I’ve had loads of responses from people who clearly weren’t teaching or support staff - it’s just somewhere to have a go about children who they think should be hit/parented better/put in residential care/shifted out of mainstream school

Totally full of twats

Is there any way you can report the posts on that site?

YANBU and why am I not surprised to see people popping up and making excuses? We all have a whinge about our pupils/clients/services users/whoever but if you are using derogatory language, that is not venting but being disablist and unprofessional. There’s a difference between ”Sam’s mum phoned again today to complain that he’s lost his jumper, is that the sixth time this term. As if we spend all day looking after her child’s clothes!” and ”James bit me again, little shit. I don’t care if he has autism and I grabbed him unexpectedly, he should know better.” Not knowing what was said, only you can decide which category these comments come into.

a. It may not have been a teacher/ TA
b. There are bad teachers/ TAs just like in any large profession

Sunny the second comment you quoted sounds like a troll to me. All forums are trolled.

"It just took me by surprise as I suppose I had it in my head teachers are nice people."

Really? You must have been very lucky when you were a child if you never encountered a nasty teacher. There are deeply unpleasant people in all professions. Have all the doctors and nurses you've ever met been nice too? You've only got to listen to comedians who used to be teachers to know how some of them behave and make fun of pupils. Romesh Ranganathan and Greg Davies come to mind.

i had it in my head teachers were nice people That's where you went wrong.

As the mum of an ASD child, I am well aware of how horrible teachers can be. Among the more memorable shit comments I've had are: 'His miserable face ruins my otherwise smiley, joyful class.' (DS serious, introverted and very very aware this teacher disliked him, which made class a nightmare for him that year) and 'Oh I hear in the staffroom that I'm the lucky one. I got your non ASD son to teach this year, not the other one. He's a joy.' Thank you and fuck off. Both my sons are lovely. Why would you think I'd take that as a compliment?

I had it in my head teachers are nice people.

They are human, some are nice, some aren’t. But don’t assume they’re all bad because of a few comments on one website.

Yes some teachers are not nice. But just as MN not everyone is truthful about who they are, not everyone is truthful on TES either. Always take anonymous comments on an internet forum with a pinch of salt.

But don’t assume they’re all bad because of a few comments on one website.

The thing is, it really is not good enough for disablism to exist amongst the teaching profession. Professional standards and inspections should be stopping these attitudes being present. It really is a sad state of affairs that people are comfortable enough to voice them. It doesn’t really matter they aren’t all bad when some clearly are, very. To an an unacceptable level. Does the fact that a lot of men are not abusive make male violence more acceptable? No.

I had it in my head teachers are nice people.

That was your mistake then!

The thing is, it really is not good enough for disablism to exist amongst the teaching profession. Professional standards and inspections should be stopping these attitudes being present. It really is a sad state of affairs that people are comfortable enough to voice them. It doesn’t really matter they aren’t all bad when some clearly are, very. To an an unacceptable level. Does the fact that a lot of men are not abusive make male violence more acceptable? No.

Yes. ^ this ^

Trolls are all over the internet, you’ve no idea if what you read was written by a teacher or some hairy handed Weirdo, some people get a kick out of that kind of stuff.

Saying you thought teachers were nice why? They are human and you get nice ones but of course there will be a few mean ones too.

Trolls are all over the internet, you’ve no idea if what you read was written by a teacher or some hairy handed Weirdo, some people get a kick out of that kind of stuff.

I’ve seen it happen too often in real life for them all to be trolls. Disablism is rife.

Not all teachers are nice, just like not all fat people are jolly.

I was told by a man that autism was caused by the parents, and he knew I had a child with autism. The man in question was a teacher at a special needs school (not attended by my son thankfully)

I suppose it could be a troll but then the forum should ban them really shouldn't they?

"It was just upsetting to read."

I'm not sure that teaching is for you.

You may well be shocked as to what's said in the staff rooms and offices of the best schools.

Good teachers look to get the best from all children. Some even relish working with difficult or dislikable children.

I think in a similar way to Drs and Firemen (my siblings), we often joke about things that may sound awful but those 'derogatory comments' which may be unacceptable on MN don't for a second mean that those teachers and teams aren't fretting and planning and worrying and making sure that that child isn't left behind.

I've been in education for approaching 4 decades. There've been 2 children I genuinely didn't care about.
@SuccessStory

"Let me guess, was the name calling about dc with ADHD? A lot of people reserve their bile for them"

Doubting a diagnosis and working your arse off to ensure the child gets the maximum benefit from their education aren't the same thing. We're especially good reminding ourselves that children and parents aren't the same people. I remember a sign in a staffroom I worked in a long time ago. Something like "don't blame the child for the parents. The poor fucking children have to put up with them for longer than we do."

It is not the place of the teacher to doubt the diagnosis. That is for medical professionals.

Of course you can report posts on TES.

I take it you haven't been in a staff room then?

On my first ever teaching placement I was absolutely horrified at the way other teachers spoke about children. I vowed then and there I would never, ever speak about a child in that way and I never have.

Some teachers are absolutely vile, just like in any walk of life. It still disgusts me and it happens in most schools, unfortunately.