If you missed your kid's parents' night because you were on a term time holiday, would you expect the teacher to allow another appointment when you return?

[Purpleturtle46]

Just that really. Parents night same week every year and parents informed 2 months in advance.

YABU-yes the teacher should arrange to see you at an alternative time on your return.

YANBU-no, you booked and holiday and missed it so that's on you!

No it isn’t a teachers job to hold several parents evening because parents can’t attend the scheduled meet. That isn’t their job to be at a parents beck and call.

Teachers at both my kids’ schools are amazing. But if I solely went on MN teachers then, bloody hell, you seem the most jobsworthy, woe is me employees out there!

No it isn’t a teachers job to hold several parents evening because parents can’t attend the scheduled meet. That isn’t their job to be at a parents beck and call

see. ‘Be at a parents beck and call’ versus making 10 minutes during work hours to have a chat. Rigid and working to rule

I have to say that it's very heartening to see the vast majority of posters supporting the OP (and the others of us who are also teachers and fed up with the endless chipping away at our time with "can you just" requests).
Big thanks to you.

Couldn’t have said it better myself.

I've attended parents evenings for each of my four kids. Two of them struggled at school and the parents evenings were essential. I would not have dreamed of taking them out of school by choice. The other two always did really well. I could have taken them on holiday in term time with no worries about their education. Because of this I would have been fine to accept missing parents evening. In neither case would I have felt entitled to remove them from school and then expect a special appointment.

I'm a bit bothered about the idea that all separated parents should have two slots though as DH and I have been unable to see some of my children's teachers for one appointment in recent years. One appointment per child on official evening then an extra in special circumstances seems fair.

What do you think teachers work hours are?

They will not being doing it in their work hours that is the point. Their directed time was parents evening. Anything else is falling out of their work hours unless it’s during the school day. Most will accommodate but it will be because they choose to, and it’s the entitlement that makes them resent it.

You're not getting the point.

To you it's 10 minutes.

To the teacher with 6 requests it's an hour. Almost half of their PPA time in a week spent making calls to parents who didn't come to the arranged meeting time.

So you want OP to stop teaching the other 30 kids in the class, to go and have a chat on the phone to a parent?

Who do you think is going to cover the class whilst the teacher is on the phone?

Posted too soon!
We were honest about our holiday, and I asked the teacher politely if we could book a time for the parents evening but speak on the phone rather than in person for the 10 mins we had booked as we'd not be physically here. She basically said oh no don't be silly, and arranged for me to come in after school on another day instead. I would not have asked her to accommodate a different day but she offered.
I don't think it should be expected, but I don't think there is any harm in asking for something similar. Phone call or video call is possible from holiday destination, if teacher and parent are cool with it!

Hardly. I work 10-12 hour days. I give enough. If you can't be bothered to come to a parents evening when I've scheduled my time to see you then that's your issue. Wouldn't wash with other professionals.

Adding to the pile - NO!!!

Yeah, you're coming across brilliantly yourself...

I hope the teachers at my kids school don’t hate their jobs and the parents as much as you all seem to. It’s actually depressing to read.

So baffling that most people haven’t realised this. It’s like they think their child is the only one in existence.

Also, whilst it might seem like a "quick chat"after school to the parent, who probably likes nothing better than talking about their own child, it's much more onerous for the teacher, who is trying to consolidate a myriad of facts, figures and evidence in their brain, in order to report in a professional and knowledgeable manner

um, so taxing. Chatting to a yr 6 parent for 10 mins. So many facts and figures and evidence to give…..

10 minutes per request.
6 parents ask for this and it's an hour.
We don't teach just your child.

is that a joke? An hour per year. Or twice per year? Try a job in the private sector!

Teachers are just teachers. They should just teach, during teaching hours.
Parents should parent, all of the time, that is what parenting is.
The number of entitled parents expecting teachers to pick up the slack of their failed parenting is horrific.

@Serendipitousnight See my post above - it's not just "a chat" to the teacher. That "chat" involves a mental load.

"Rigid and working to rule?" Get used to it - whilst you have any actual teachers left to teach your child because it's the 'drip, drip' of entitlement such as you're showing that is contributing to the mass exodus from the profession.

@Serendipitousnight you haven’t explained how you would like it to come out if teacher’s working hours?

How is it nasty?

I said they don’t need to disclose something they’re not comfortable with and asked what happens when their child needs a doctors appointment.

Why does that offend you?

So you want OP to stop teaching the other 30 kids in the class, to go and have a chat on the phone to a parent? Who do you think is going to cover the class whilst the teacher is on the phone?

erm no. Do it at 3:30, or 4, or 4:30 or 5…….

Someone who has no idea what teaching is like. When you say work hours who do you think is looking after your class?

Same here

Try 7 nights per year in secondary. So that's 7 hours extra on top of the teaching day and long parents evening days.

Love the holidays too much for a private sector job.

* you haven’t explained how you would like it to come out if teacher’s working hours?*

I’m sorry that doesn’t make sense. What’s the question?