To think it’s about time @MNHQ stepped up and did something about the teacher bashing.

[SachaStark]

This evening has been AWFUL here on the AIBU board.

@MNHQ, at what point do you actually plan to intervene and do something about the sheer number of teacher bashing threads, and individual posts? Should we expect any kind of moderation?

Or, is this in fact, “all in the spirit of Mumsnet”? Because at the moment, you’re making it look a darn sight like you agree by proxy.

Why shouldn't teachers who are parents use MN?

I don't think anyone thinks this. But as I've said, you can't use a parenting forum and then be surprised when education and teaching is talked about disproportionately to most other things. And yes often it will be negatively and probably not nice to see and read which I agree is not on but it's no different to the way lots of other things are discussed on here.

I would bet my house that posters who happen to be teachers have joined in with other generalisations on other subjects/threads before now and just not realised they are doing the exact same thing.

It's everywhere.

I mentioned upthread, I think teachers are probably quite enjoying many aspects of this new way of working primarily from home.... so why not admit it?

Have I got this right? You want me, a teacher, to say that I am enjoying something I am really not enjoying so that you, a parent, can be proven right?!

You can think what you like. We don’t have to ‘admit it’ if it isn’t the case.

@ThrowItInTheBin that's the bit that always makes me laugh the full blown details of what we do all day long.

From what I've seen teachers are giving as good as they get and parents have a right to question publicly funded education provision.

It's depressing. It's really sad to see so many of these threads when we should really be doing the best for our children together as parents and teachers. I think there are many parents who appreciate teachers. But those who spew out vile against teachers are so damaging to this lovely place, making the place teacher vs parents unnecessarily.

Complainer: Teachers do nothing all day.

Teacher: We really don't.

Complainer: Course you do. You're not doing this, this and this, so what ARE you doing?

Teacher: Well, actually we do this.

Complainer: Oh, listen to the teachers, going on and on about what they do all day. Why do they think they're so special?

I'm afraid your profession is far from perfect, I don't class "all" teachers as saints

Every profession and occupation will have some slackers and some who are incompetent, and some who are outstanding skilled and some who are incredibly committed and regularly go above and beyond in what they do. But I've never seen the sort of opprobrium that teachers have had on here recently directed at any other occupation or profession.

Some people seem to have forgotten that teachers are people, with feelings, and that most of them are struggling to keep things as normal as possible in very trying times.

I think the problem is that on some schools are on the face of it doing a bad job. Others are doing it really well. The patchiness of the provision does not help and understandably makes parents with poor provision question what their children's teachers are doing.

My nephew for example is in year 4. He was sent home originally with a pile of worksheets and an instruction to work through them and to read for 20 minutes a day. Later a message from school advised them to use Oak Acadamy and BBC lessons. That has literally been all they've had from school in 8 weeks. It COULD be that the staff are frantically running round phoning children at higher risk, supervising key workers children, delivering lunch .. but those are all things DB and SIL dont see because it has no impact on them. You cant blame.them therefore if they wonder if their sons teachers have spent the whole of lockdown drinking gin!! His brother on the other hand in year 7 is getting plenty of video lessons and is able to contact teachers with problems.

Our DS is in year 3 at a different school. The provision has been superb. Still less tha what they'd do at school but in the circumstances a great job. I'm not sure his teachers have had time to pour the gin let alone drink it.

Can you therefore blame some parents for being unhappy and coming here to ask for advise or to vent their anxieties about their child's education or lack of it, especiallywhen they know other schoolsseem to be doing it well?

But I've never seen the sort of opprobrium that teachers have had on here recently directed at any other occupation or profession

See I just don't think this is true. I've seen multiple professions dragged on MN. And tbh on those threads I've never seen anyone defend them as much either.

You're right that teachers are disproportionately bashed compared to other professionals but that's because of who the majority of MN users are... Parents.

I don't believe it's because people don't bash other professions, they do and have done I've had it myself about my own profession on here and you certainly don't get pages of biscuits, flowers and defending from others either.

I think some teachers are enjoying this actually. Lot's of my colleagues are prepared to admit this. It won't be for everyone but they're not having to deal with all the behaviour issues for a start and whilst they are working it's not in a high pressure environment, there are no lesson observations, no data, no commute and they're home for lunch in the garden with their DCs. Those who are in school are doing odd days rather than a full week and there's no pressure on outcomes. They're enjoying being able to give proper attention to the most vulnerable for a change.

That's not to say they aren't ready and willing to go back at an appropriate time but it's disingenuous to prerend there's no upside to the current situation.

I've seen as much aggression by teachers as about teachers on here of late and I don't think exempting any one profession from criticism is acceptable. This is primarily a forum for parents, education is currently a huge focus, there is major disagreement on the best way forward... to expect there not to be a lot of discussion and emotion on here is at best naive.

I wonder how many teachers on here who do support reopening schools as mooted by the government would feel safe to say so right now?

Why can’t you go to work? I a nurse and working, see colleagues and clients. Key workers in supermarkets, care homes, post men. Why are you so different?
I think your salaries should be stopped!!

Comments like this are why I've just handed in my notice. I haven't actually stopped working, but I'm not going to carry on in a career where this is what people think.

Most people on MN will have direct experience with Teachers and education professionals. Only a handful will have experience with other professions.

As I've said, if you went on a forum about law, there would be a disproportionate amount of lawyer bashing I imagine.

Hello everyone - and thanks for your comments.

We completely accept that teachers will be unhappy with many of the threads about education at the moment - but we also must consider that many parents are struggling with how things are right now and will naturally want to discuss their fears with others. You don’t have to delve too far into social media to see the challenges a lot of parents are having with home learning and non-teachers will not always be aware of the myriad of challenges teachers also face right now. So long as a thread isn’t breaking our Talk Guidelines, we have to let it continue but we’re on alert to spot trouble-makers - and we'll always delete posts which are crossing the line.

Over the years, the teachers of Mumsnet have provided invaluable advice to their fellow MNers and we know that is very much appreciated by many of our users and MNHQ - even if it doesn’t feel that way at the moment.

Have teachers questioned why there are so many negative comments? There is clearly something going wrong here. Some teachers are washing their hands of seemingly not doing anything and asking anyone with an issue to go to the SLT. Why? Surely you should be questioning this too?

My DS school is private and there would be uproar if no work was done by teachers bar a few links and a couple of worksheets. However my nieces have exactly that. My SIL wrote to the school and was told that this was all they could do due to sickness and teachers having to look after their own families.

My DS works in a supermarket, I beg to differ that people don’t get close to them! People hard of hearing, older people who keep forgetting to social distance and kids who run around. Not forgetting the people who think this is all an over reaction and they will carry on as normal.

His supermarket has had to put up signs saying Kindness Rules as when people get annoyed they tend to forget all the normal rules.

It'll never change. It's always happened on MN and during this crisis its daily.

I've learnt to hide most threads but every so often can drawn in.

And no, no other profession in MN gets so much negativities and if teachers respond they are jumped on hugely for daring to defend their position.

But as everyone was once at school themselves it means they are all experts of what schools are like now.

And because their own individual school night not be doing xyz then rather than speaking to that school direct they simply attack all schools and teachers online instead.

And no, no other profession in MN gets so much negativities and if teachers respond they are jumped on hugely for daring to defend their position

But I don't believe this is because teachers are just disproportionately hated by society compared to all other professions. Surely it's because most of us on this forum have direct experience with education/teaching due to the fact we have children in schools.

When someone posts a thread about their house purchase there are always tonnes of people jumping in to say how shit and slow and all the rest of it, conveyancers are.

I'd say at least 95% of MN have experience with schools and teachers because of their children, compared to a much lower percentage who will have experience with a lawyer, police officer etc.

Therefore it's no real surprise, especially now, that education is the profession that is mainly discussed here.

I was speaking to a firefighter recently. They have had so little to do, they're main call outs were RTAs, which decreased during lockdown.

Literally no work whilst they're on a shift, so should they not be paid or have their money reduced............ thought not!

On MN I've seen "the teacher keeps ringing", you get cries of that's invading your personal space, I don't like taking calls, they always ring at the wrong time, I think they're judging me, I think they're trying to catch me out, I'm suffering anxiety and my home should be safe so why should I answer the phone.

You then get, they never call, they don't care, they don't want to help, I'm anxious and I need a daily contact with the school.

THEY JUST CAN'T WIN!

Would I go into the teaching profession ..... No!

I don't understand why teachers keep saying if you're unhappy with lack of work contact the school. Why?

Because you might have missed it or been missed of a key mail shot etc.

Like the parent who wrote negative comments about lack of work on our schools public social media, tagging local media.

But it wasn't true. Other parents quickly pointed this out. As a school we responded and directed the parent to the various home learning options he had.
Interestingly his 7y daughter has already navigated tenge home learning as was engaging with it.

Hence the reluctance to simply believe there are masses of schools out there doing nothing, according to some MNetters.

That doesn't quite follow though ToodleTweedle.

100% of MN users have experience of GPs, shops workers, dentists and other occupations.

Yet I've never opened up MN to see thread after thread accusing these occupational groups of being work-shy layabouts.

Mumsnet is made up of journalists, government bots, foreign bots, trolls, activists and rabble-rousers all mixing in with ordinary posters. It's not unique: some SM sites are worse.

A school near me came in last week to see a huge "Thank You" banner hung from the gates.
This is actually what many ordinary people are feeling towards teachers at the moment:

I am quite sceptical about the worried parents starting a thread on AIBU, I know what's it's like. I would start the thread on education board if I really needed honest advice, not on AIBU.

I don't really understand why it's surprising that teaching and education is the subject that is the most widely discussed, negatively or positively (rightly or wrongly), on a forum for parents.

ToodleTweedle
But Fripp, generalisations are everywhere on MN.

Yes they are, but when you defend yourself you are not accused of whinging, or being lazy, in the wrong job or the absolute killer comeback 'I hope that you don't teach my kids'.

Teacher bashing has always been part of MN, but recently it has gone beyond that.

And even when we put the counterpoints in place it just keeps coming.

I would like to go back to school and teach, but given the facts and given what other countries have done, classes of 30+ with no social distancing is fucking stupid especially when you consider that the R number has gone up in every country that has sent schools back.

And don't even get me started on the situation with public transport.

I’m going to suggest that the teacher bashing threads cause greater footfall. I don’t see why mumsnet would therefore want to get rid of them.