Do parents thank you after residentials?

[DoctorLawn]

I've been thinking about this, since returning from a residential last Friday.

Three parents thanked me.

I'm not expecting all out gratitude, but I was quite taken aback by our return in general. They all stood in the path to the main school entrance, two parents and a childminder helped us get the luggage off the coach while the rest watched, and nobody moved aside without being asked.

It's a very upper middle class school - wondering if that means the parents are much more 'entitled' feeling than others?

Yep, fucking weird, and incredibly petulant and rude.

Coolas I have been the teacher on school (and Brownie and Guide) trips far more often than my dd has been away on one. I KNOW how much time and effort has gone into each one, I KNOW how much I have gone out of their way to help out each and every child on those trips. I just don't care about getting thanks from the parents. It is far more valuable to me as a teacher to be thanked by the pupils, which I am, by the vast majority of children that I take away. So because I, and the colleagues I go away with, don't care one way or the other whether a parent has thanked us, I assume other teachers feel much the same way. I just don't see why it's worth making a big deal over, from either party.

I always say quick thanks to teacher, and DS would say thank you too

Especially as they are fab keeping an eye on him with his migraines, and I feel they really care.

Quiet shy DS even gave the HoY a hug.

But we are a soppy family

After dd year 6 residential I took marks and Spencer cakes in the tubs in for them to share in the staff room. I have been away with brownies and it is hard work

Nice, to see lots of understanding teachers about But I suppose the truth is sometimes quite hurtful. I could have been less honest and said how awfull where are their manners? But in all honesty I can see where a parent might find thanks, in certain circumstances, difficult, to say the least.

Telling me how rude and weird it is, does not help matters, I'm afraid.

clam

"n the 'outreach' style of education you can see how it happens..that and having to plan for other activities to provide an alternative."

No, I can't see how it happens, actually. But that's because I generally think teachers have the best interests of the children at heart. Call me an old fashioned optimist if you like................

And I speak as someone who in retrospect probably shouldn't have insisted that ds went on his year 6 residential. But who is incredibly grateful to the teachers who helped, cuddled and jollied him through it. They would have had a much easier time without him!

Hak you've been fortunate and I hope, you don't come across any teachers that don't have the children's best interests at heart.

capsium, I understand where you are coming from. I have a number of friends who felt pressured into sending their dcs on residentials in primary, because it wasn't presented to the pupils as an optional activity. I'm sure in the majority of primary schools it is completely optional, but in some schools the pupils (and parents) feel a lot of pressure to go even if they aren't completely happy about it. And if the trip hasn't been as successful as it could have been, then it would be hard not to feel resentful of the people who persuaded you to send your dc against your better judgement.

"Hak you've been fortunate and I hope, you don't come across any teachers that don't have the children's best interests at heart."

There are a lot of dark insinuations going on on this thread. Is anyone prepared to come out into the open?

Thanks, it's reassuring to see there is some understanding within the teaching profession Dragonette. With just a few more, who will stand by what they say, things could get better.

Hak I don't believe in outing myself or others.

Sometimes we do things we "aren't completely happy with" And it's a good thing. Will somebody explain what the insinuations being made mean?

If you can't back up an accusation, you shouldn't make it, surely?

"But why is a thank you from the child not as valuable as a thank you from the parents, clam?"

Where on earth did I say that? I think it should be from both.

That's fine Coolas. I'm perfectly happy with people having a different perspective from me. I'm just offering the perspective that a number of teachers genuinely aren't bothered about being thanked by parents. I don't think it's rude not to bother, it's a nice thing to do, but it's not rude to omit it.

Hak quite simply some teachers are (much) better at their jobs, care more, have more integrity and are more professional than others, IME, which has an impact on how thankful you feel towards them, as a parent.

Hak the nature of MN is that most people like to remain anonymous. It would be wrong of me to give to many details, because it would not just affect my own privacy, but that of others too.

So I might give vague examples by way of explanation for how I feel...

Look, just to get this straight, this thread wasn't started by any teachers complaining about not being thanked for organising and running residential trips. It was an idle question, asked by someone in passing.

In the course of the thread, however, a number of posters have stated quite strongly that they don't see why they should thank the staff, and in response to those views a few teachers (and many lovely parents) have put their tuppence in.

My own view isn't even to do with school trips particularly. It's more an incredulity that the common courtesy of thanking others, which doesn't take much, after all, is deemed to be somehow irrelevant and unnecessary these days by some people. Fortunately, I don't think that that's the majority view.