Daughter's teacher called her a numpty

[Ottermum23]

Hi all,
We have a lovely little daughter, in year3.
She is a very enthusiastic learner, who always loved school and loves academic challenges.
This year, she had a new teacher, who is not the nicest, but nevertheless, We thought, just give her the benefit of a doubt.
Our girl been contstantly saying, that the teacher shouts, and today, she said, she called her a numpty, as she accidentally started to do her writing on someone else's book.

I find this very frustrating and just would like to hear others opinions.
Thank you.

@user if passion is not a reason to go into teaching why do the teacher training courses at my university specify they are looking for people who display a passion for education and teaching?

I think, I can have an opinion on the system and still have my kids in a state school, it's "only" an online forum

Yes of course you can, I wasn’t for a moment stating otherwise. I have an opinion on both state and private education. I just wondered.

Yes, there is, user, that was rather my point.

My friend, a neuro-psychiatrist and head of hospital department also doubts your veracity given what you're saying User.

You don't, of course, have to explain yourself to anyone, but some of your ideas (on other threads as well as this one) might lead people to think you're a bit of a GF.

There are plenty of conflicting opinions within psychology without even beginning to go into the conflicts between psychology and psychiatry, SudExpress, and different countries/cultures come at these issues from positions that are hard to understand unless one is very knowledgeable about language/culture.

FWIW I have had clients who have been incredibly damaged by psychiatry in one country and who are now fully functioning in another.

But I’m not terribly interested in mapping WW3 of the brain. I am much more interested in people reflecting on the language they use to control others.

I strongly disagree both in terms of memories of my own school days and in terms of what I want for my children.

100% this

the language they use to control others

Seriously? You don’t think it’s more damaging for a child to think their teacher is trying to control them by calling them a numpty than to teach them to accept that they made a daft mistake and that it is no big deal and something to laugh off? I couldn’t even begin to count the number of numptyish things I have done today and it’s only 11.30. But I’m not upset about it because everyone does daft things sometimes and writing in someone else’s book would be one of them.

BlaaBlaaBlaa - if you read the thread, you will gather that I do not have much respect for many of the practices surrounding the teaching profession as it stands.

Teaching is a vitally important role in society. Teachers deserve far better training, pay and conditions in order to help young humans acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to become autonomous, rational adults.

When children do daft things at school, teachers need to ensure the child has fully understood why it was daft, not try to laugh it off by name calling.

I would agree to some extent.... although there are some excellent teacher training programmes out there.

But to say there is no place for passion is incorrect.

I'm a teacher, albeit in higher education, and passion is vital. Every year my students feedback how much they enjoyed being taught by someone who is passionate about the subject. Displaying passion doesn't mean I'm not an excellent teacher or professional.

My old French teacher used to call us 'el Thicko' if we got the answer to a question wrong I don't think I was emotionally scarred by it!

Understand why writing in someone else’s book is daft? No year 3 child needs that explaining (aside of SEN etc) it was a lapse in attention. If you say nothing then a sensitive child thinks it’s a massive deal and internalises it. If you laugh it off with them it’s over.

This clear feedback you want to give would be what? “Isla the book you need to write in is the one that says your name on”. That is patronising and ridiculous.

No reason to believe OP’s daughter is called Isla but I’d like a packet of chocolate digestives please as my prize if she is.

If the teacher laughs it off it is over for the teacher, who has regained control of the child. But you have absolutely no guarantee that the child has taken any understanding away not that the child’s self-concept has not been injured.

To explain is not to patronise. To explain is the essence of teaching.

BlaaBlaaBlaa - passion should be the feeling you have for your subject. “Passion for teaching” is meaningless.

You don’t think explaining to an eight year old that a book with “Alan” written on the front is not for Isla to write in is patronising? I would have been beyond mortified at that age. To think the teacher thinks you aren’t paying attention is fine (and usually true in my case). To think she needed to explain that to me would have really upset me.

You must work with a very specific set of 16-21 year olds. Has education not really worked out for them and that’s why they’re at this mysterious international institution? Is there a reason (non outing) that they are particularly vulnerable because I would have found your approach a lot more damaging than helpful.

@user not isn't. If you have a passion for a subject then research or write about it. A passion for teaching is something else entirely.

There’s nothing particularly remarkable about the 16-21 year olds I work with other than education related frustration.

user1499173618

Psychology is the science of the brain.

No actually Neuroscience is

Blaa - that is precisely where education has gone wrong. The “passion for teaching” focus has shifted emphasis away from secure knowledge to something nebulous and unhelpful.

Passion for teaching” is meaningless

Well.

You can't argue with stupid.

well it’s a total mystery to me. Hopefully the fees are crazy high and the parents are wealthy enough not expect the kids to have to go onto work at some point because I’m your position I’d be really concerned that all this obsession with “control” and talk of educational frustration was setting them up for a massive fall which I’d find difficult to reconcile with myself morally.

We need to move away from “passion for teaching” to “sharing knowledge”.

Or you know, preparation for the world.

Preparation for the world is having a lot of knowledge about it.

@user you really don't get it.
My husband and I both come from the same professional background. We've got identical qualifications ( up to PhD level) and are both very passionate about the subject. I teach this subject because I'm passionate about the subject AND teaching. I love teaching my subject and training people in the profession .
My DH does not teach and has no desire to because he'd rather apply his knowledge and passion in a different way. He could teach, he's very knowledgeable and respected in the field but because he's got no passionate for it he wouldn't be very good.

Passion for teaching does matter.