Aggro between ds & Yr9 teacher

[irises]

OK, so just got ds's report card for this half term. Got a D2 for physics. I send an email to physics teacher saying we're a bit surprised, he's always been ok at science (average B4), and we've noticed that none of the work in his exercise book has been marked. My email was v v polite & civil, thanked him for alll hard work, asking for input to get ds back on track sort of thing.

Next day (mon), got a vitriolic email from teacher firstly telling me off for emailing him directly (all the other teachers I've contacted (prob 4 times in 2 yrs) have been fine about it.)

Goes on to say that ds hasn't done any of the homework, that he and his mates misbehave in class, etc.

I write back, again v. polite & calm. Apologise for contact him direct, say I'm sorry to hear ds has been misbehaving and that we'll tell him to behave himself, but that 3 out of 4 of the homeworks are in his exercise book (off sick for the other one).

So, yesterday, ds has physics lesson. The teacher asks 2 girls to stand up and tell the class their grades. Both A5. Then asks ds to stand up and announce his grade. D2. Then tells ds that his parents had the audacity to send him an email, that we are liars and that the teacher is now "at war" with ds.

Now I know ds is probably chatting in class and that there is no excuse for that. However, not one piece of class or homework has been marked, and it's all done to a good standard, it's accurate and carefully presented.

My first reaction when I heard this last night was to get in touch with head of year or someone and kick up a stink about the humiliation/lying/general aggressiveness of this teacher, however ds won't let me. He says the teacher will only take it out on him and make things much worse.

I've very reluctantly agreed not to contact the school, but really just needed to get this off my chest.

Sorry it's so long.

I'd go to the head.
Why give out the email address of the teachers if you aren't allowed to email them?
And presumably there are witnesses to what he said to your ds in class.
is there another science class you can ask him to be moved into?
It all sounds appalling.

I think you need to make an appointment with the headteacher, bringing your son's book with you and asking for your son and the teacher to be called to the meeting.
Just point out to your ds that if this teacher is not pulled up, then he could do it to other pupils and would he want other kids to feel the way he's feeling.
Your ds sounds like a fairly mature 13/14 year old and may listen to reason.

Oh and print out the email sent by you and by him.

You HAVE to talk to the head about this, and take it seriously. Telling kids that their parents are liars and he is at war with them (IF he did, and it is a HUGE 'if') is totally unacceptable and the head needs to know. This has to be done whatever your son thinks. He is a child. Tell him you have to do this, you will back him up as long as he is telling the truth, and you will ensure he isn't bullied by the teacher (you may wish to phrase that differently!)

I'd be making an appointment with either the Head of Year or the Head of Science. If the teacher believes the homework wasn't being done then you should have been told that anyway.

Don't just leave it, even if your DS wants you to. It needs to be sorted out. I would request a meeting with a member of the senior management team, the teacher, your son and yourself to discuss this situation. It sounds awful and the teacher seems to be behaving irrationally. Why were you given the teacher's email address if you were not supposed to use it? Print out copies of all emails and bring them to the meeting. Also take a full written statement from your son of everything that has happened from his point of view. Be sure that he is telling you the whole truth though - obviously he did the homeworks if they are in his book, but did he hand them in to be marked? Is there something he is not telling you that explains some of the teacher's reaction?

Thats dreadful. I would speak to DS and tell him that your can't ignore it so you will be going to see the Head.

My DD is struggling too at the moment in year 9. Her behaviour has been dreadful so after the end of a long and boring saga I phoned the year head to ask what was going on to be told that the school had noticed a dramatic change in DD and they were at a loss as to why.(They didn?t think to talk to us about it )
I'm beginning to think it?s a part of being 13

We have always had problems with our strong-willed, attention seeking, DD but the school have previously raved about her being a model pupil, such a lovely girl, must be a pleasure to live with, etc. A least she is now being consistent

oh I meant to say (but got carried away) that DD thinks the "change" is down to her form tutor not liking her and therefore bad mouthing her in the staff room.

Sorry to hear that Mrs Weasley. I guess teachers aren't immune to the emotions/personality clashes that everyone has to cope with in any other working environment.

Hope your dd gets back on track soon.

I'm dithering now about whether maybe I should raise this, even if only at the target setting meeting I have with the form tutor next week. On the other hand, I don't want to make a difficult situation even worse, and given that there are only 3 one hour physics lessons per fortnight and that biology and chemistry are going fine, maybe I should just let this go. The -arsehole- teacher presumably feels like he's won now that he's got it off his chest, so I think what I'll do is print off the email correspondence, with a note of the incident yesterday and just keep it in case there are any further incidents.

I'm trying to think of reasons: Is your ds doing early GCSE in year 9? That can account for the perceived dip in grade. Have there been lots of internal tests that have been poorly done? Otherwise, unfortunately a grade plucked out of the air that reflects ds' behaviour perhaps?

Imo, see the Head with ds' exercise book and copies of the email. Tell them you trust them to sort it out internally but express your deep worry that this will backfire on ds in the classroom, given what has already happened. DS just wants it all to die down. Normally I would say see the HofY or Head of Faculty, but because of the lapse of professional judgement by a member of their staff, the head needs to be made aware.

Physics teachers are in short supply, the good ones are like gold-dust. Dh is a physicist & mathematician and would agree with me that some are odd, but normally just eccentrically so. Nevertheless it does mean that some are employed just because they know something about the subject, not because they can teach well or have great people skills, as so aptly is demonstrated here.

So Heated, would you say that it would be considered to be a lapse of professional judgement to get a kid to announce his grade in class and to criticise his parents for sending an email?

I don't know whether that's just normal.

He's taking a couple of early GCSEs this year, but physics isn't one of them.

Yes, it's a serious professional lapse and the teacher needs to be tackled by the head, because he has very publicly and cruelly used the grade he's given your son to taunt him with it (presumably either to put ds in his place if he was being a bit of a pita, or it may even be totally out of the blue which makes it look more like spite) & to make very inappropriate comments about parents is just not done, ever. Either way, you don't take communication from a parent and manipulate it to belittle a child. That communication should stay private and given the nature of your email, you'd think he'd have the good sense not to say anything!

I think the tack that you have taken,which is to support the school in any way regards your son's behaviour , will be warmly received and will mean your cause for concern will be taken very seriously indeed.

Just to cover your back a little, did ds actually hand in his book to be marked? Silly as it sounds, I have students who don't do this.

That's very interesting, Heated, thanks.

Will mull over further.

Head, head, head! Definitely lapse of professional judgment. Don't let the grass grow!

am shocked at this thread

you must speak to the head

the teacher is bullying your child, and im sure the school, will have a bullying policy, which i cnat imagine allows teachers to bully the pupils

am really very very shocked, the head needs to be informed, and this techer needs a huge amount of teacher training, assuming he is allowed to keep treating children like this.

ok your son has talked in class, but honestly, how many year 9 pupils dont?

Maybe your son could change classes / sets to ensure he doenst have to see this teacher any more?

I agree, go to the Head, this is ridiculous. Things like this can turn a kid off school for life. How unprofessional regardless of what DS did or didn't do, there are ways of handling situations like this, and this isn't one of them.

Year 9s can be a complete PITA, but as we all know, that is true of year 9 each and every year. it's the time they morph from sweet lower school to GCSE students and your lads behaviour is par for the year 9 course, and teachers have strategies in place to deal with it.

This teacher imo has behaved unprofessionally and this needs to be addressed.

You need to contact the form tutor to raise concerns; I would want to know if one of my tutor group was being treated like this, and maybe the HoY. I would also contact the Head of Department and ask for a written response to this, and copy the e-mail/letter to the Head, so everyone is aware of the problem. However, maintain your very reasonable stance on this, as you will get a better response.

Parents can make things very uncomfortable for teachers...I made a flip comment in Tesco in response to a snide comment from one of my students who was with her mum, after school hours, and got reported and hauled over the coals. The consequence was that ignored parents and students in Tesco thereafter apart from the usual hellos and wouldn't stop to chat as I had done in the past.

The Head of Department is the person to contact as they the line manager of the teacher. This is potentially disciplinary issue (for the teacher), so keep copies of everything.

This teacher is definitely odd; quite apart from the unprofessional rant, it is common, though not essential, to raise concerns about a particular subject with the subject teacher first. Many people prefer to go through the line management route, and this is what you need to do.

Sorry to raise this one again.

Update: I didn't and still haven't raised this with anyone, but got as far as keeping a written note of the incident where my ds was made to announce his grade in class.

Last week, the teacher finally marked one piece of homework and gave it a B4, which was fine.

I had an annual target setting meeting with his form tutor on Thurs last week and she gave a glowing report, according to her everyone's happy with ds's work and conduct.

On Tuesday of this week, ds and others were messing about. The teacher switched the lights off to do some sort of experiment, and about 10 of the kids started being silly, play fighting etc. Ds and 5 others got detention yesterday and quite right too. I'd told him to behave himself.

So, in the detention, the teacher told this group of lads the following:

That if 1 of them speaks in class, all 6 of them will get lunchtime detentions till the end of term

That, as above, he'll stick them together on one table and refuse to teach them

That he hopes they fail GCSE physics

That he won't allow any of them to take A level physics

(they all have another detention today, don't know how many he has planned for Tuesday's incident)

Now, fair enough, I can see that this group of lads, ds included, are being a PITA and it sounds as if the teacher is at the end of his tether.

However, would you still think about complaining?

Yes. This teacher's behaviour is utterly beyond the pale.

bump. If any secondary teachers are out there, wd appreciate input, especially if you think I should keep my head down because ds is clearly not an angel in any of this.

No - go to the head NOW - I reported a teacher for what some think was OTT but the Head actually said it was OK and would prefer to know whats going in with staff etc. Your update is even more of a - is teacher planning on leaving the profession soon???????????

irises
Can only give you advice on our situation with ds's biology teacher.
During parent's night in the first year of GCSE he ranted at us about ds in a sarcastic and derogatory manner. Told us we may as well throw our money out of the window as pay for ds to go to the school (independent).
Ds is not and has never been an angel - but he's not the child from hell either!! All other staff were really happy with him and the way he was working. We saw the year tutor to flag up our concerns, but ds had two years of this chap picking on him, marking him down etc. Ds can cope with it, infact he got an A in Biology GCSE, and the only reason he didn't get an A* was because the ISA marks were so low - and funnily enough, they're marked by the same chap!
Ds was persuaded to do AS Biology, and this guy is one of the two teachers taking this subject. He's doing brilliantly with the one, but guess what, the other is still making his life difficult.
So for two years we have tried not to cause waves, but we are now going in to see the Head, because there is no other option. Ds still wants to deal with it himself, but there comes a point where you have to step in.
HTH - and sorry for the ramble!