Vent: Complete and total lack of respect towards teachers on here

[chickencoop31320]

I was home schooled as a kid. My mother WAS NOT QUALIFIED to be my teacher, in fact she pretty much left me hanging when I was 16. She said "if you want to get your G.E.D. I'll buy the books and you can do it."
Okay, great, now I'm teaching myself?

I should point out that my mother was a schizophrenic and a control freak to boot. She even admitted the main reason she began home schooling my siblings and I was so she could control where we were every minute and who we came in contact with. This isn't the "normal" reason to home school as far as I know.

I also want to add that this past year I was a substitute teacher for a local school. I have to say that the amount of disrespect and the "I don't give a poo attitude" I saw from students was CRAZY! I went home to my family and told my kids "if you EVER treat another human being the way those kids act, you'll regret it!"
IMHO Teachers do the best they can with what they have and try to make a difference when they can.

 

[gabrielle1976]

I want to home school my son and it has nothing do with teachers. I have had really good teatchers and really bad ones , and of course normal every day run of the mill teatchers. Could some teachers put more effort into there jobs .. yup. Are some in desprate need of early retirment ... yup. But mostly teachers do a good job , the best they can do they love our kids and they try there hardest, and its not easy , schools are under funded so they dont have enough money , people raise there kids today with absalutly no respect for anyone , a teacher even looks at jr wrong and if the parent can find the time to care they go off all over the teacher , Yeah that helps everything. You go sit in a room full of people your sapose to teach something to that dont want to be there and have no respect for you for years at a time see how well you do ..
As for cops , I have found most people have problems with cops becuase 1 its almost ingrained into us these days , it goes back to everyone thinking about them selves and there RIGHTS first and 2 half the time there breaking the law and they get caught you hear about how the cop did this and the cop did that , the DA was in with the cop and the judge is corrupt... Yeah right YOU BROKE THE LAW AND YOU GOT CAUGHT... get over it its no ones fualt but your own .
I like teachers and I like cops , most of them put in huge amounts of effort to keep us safe , teach us and guid us. Im glad both are around . They get up everyday and face people that hate them , critsize them and disrepect them... WHY so that those same people can have a better life.

 

[OrpingtonManor]

WoW, I am also a teacher. (People think I have lost my marbles because I left a career as a nurse to be a music teacher. But it was a fantastic choice.) I also home-schooled my youngest son for a time. I can speak to the need for both educational settings.

I think most teachers are doing a great job. I agree with you about how many students come to school without having had a meal or a bath, let alone the tools they need for a productive day in class. Some parents send their children well-prepared. Some were never prepared for school themselves, and have no idea of what they need to do. We have to teach all of these students with equal love and humor.

My own son was well-prepared for school, but, in fairness, we didn't spend enough time with him at home once he entered the public schools. He started falling through the cracks, failing everything, getting depressed, and leaving us thoroughly frustrated. With his input, we finally decided to home-school him. It was my way of taking him out of an environment where he could "fail." There was only "success," or we did the lesson again in a different way, a hundred times if necessary. I didn't blame the school or the teachers. I understood my role in his failure, and I was determined to bring him to a happy, successful place. (He leaves for a university this fall.)

I'm sorry people have been playing the blame game. Summer is here. What rejuvenates you? Do it.

Don't read the home-schooling threads. (I don't know if the lastest teacher-bashing was on one of these. I'm not looking to upset the home-schoolers by that assumption. I just want to support the OP.)

 

[briteday]

My DH is a high school auto shop teacher and previously made much more money as a certified auto mechanic. But who is going to mentor those students with talent? So he went back to school and got his teaching degree.

Once in a blue moon he gets a student with talent or the ability to learn a skill. Most years he has 35 - 40 students per class, 5-7 classes per day (depending on the budget). That adds up to 175 - 275 kids per day, every day. Think about your own kids. Would you be able to handle 175 of them every day? Know their needs, likes, dislikes, talents, abilities, weaknesses, strengths? Do you know your own children?

Most of his classes have more special ed kids than a special ed teacher is allowed to have in a class at any one time. But since auto is an elective there are no rules. Counselors think that if the students can't do well with academic subjects then they must be good with their hands. Ever try to read a shop manual for a computer in a car? And most of the special ed kids are behavior problem children that parents choose not to deal with. The parents have figured out that there are accommodations for students with disabilities, including grading policies and graduation requirements. And there are plenty of child psychologists willing to chalk up a score on some list of symptoms to verify a diagnosis qualifying for special ed. Yes, these behavior problems are allowed into a classroon that has two hydraulic lifts (lifts cars 10 feet off the ground), cutting and grinding machinery, and loads of power tools. Now, figure out how to just keep these kids from hurting themselves or others, let alone get any real teaching done.

I looked at the list for Aspergers (a mild form of autism) and my gifted daughter meets the diagnosis. ??? (now don't bash me for the "organically" disabled children, I realize that there are plenty of children that DO need accommodations)

My only rant is for those parents who feel that it is up to the schools to educate their children. No, those children are YOURS. It is up to YOU to educate them. Some of that involves starting early reading and math skills before starting kindergarten. Studies indicate that a child needs 3000 hours of exposure to the written word to be successful in kindergarten. Do you point out signs and labels? Do you read to your children? Do you count things out loud? For those who have children in school do you ensure that your children get at least 9-11 hours of sleep each night, eat healthy meals including breakfast, pack a healthy lunch, check their homework, keep in touch with teachers more than two required conferences per year, bathe them and provide clean clothes, and keep them physically active? If not, then you are sending children that are not capable of absorbing everything that school has to offer.

We found that most children in our area (fairly middle class, even upper-middle class) are not prepared for school most days. Our daughter was wasting away the hours in school just doodling or doing something to fill her days, and still getting all A's. After a few years we decided to homeschool her. She moved swiftly through the material always working above grade level. Whe enrolled in community college at 15 and entered the local university full time at 16 years old. And we have several other friends who have done the same with their children.

So at the very least, out of respect for the low paid teachers who are with your children more waking hours than you are, prepare your kids each and every day for school. Take the time. You took the time to create them (that was fun, huh?). Now take the time to raise them (not always so fun...). My DH shows up at school an hour before his first class and stays for a minimum of two hours after his last class. He answers all of the parent emails, phone calls, personal visits...many of them in the evenings. He does his best to accommodate you and your student no matter how many hours it takes or what time you can come to talk to him aobut your student. Now can't you just do a little bit with your own children to prepare them to learn? Time, that's all it takes.

 

[OrpingtonManor]

Quote:

 

[Boyd]

In may countries, teachers and doctors are the highest regarded professionals out there. Here in America, with our government subsidized schools and Universities the doctors are paid what they are worth. Teachers Aren't.. I wish the teachers were graded and payed what they were worth. I think 100,000/Year to somebody who shapes and molds the minds of our youth is almost not even enough, doctors start much higher..... So teachers should be somewhere up there IMHO.

I do not believe that teaching should be a subsidized position subject to budgeting and government funding. It is a responsibility of every parent to let their children get the best education they can, be it at home, or at school. If our tax dollars that went directly to schools of our choice I think we would be back in par with the other countries that excel in their efforts at education.

My $.02

 

[klf73]

I didn't read the whole thread(and I apologize) but I think this is like most things. You will hear more about bad experiences than non-eventful or good ones, just the way people are. I had a horrible teacher for two of my kids this year (out of 4 kids). One was lazy and the other wasn't her fault, there was a personality conflict(my son has severe anxiety and ADHD and she didn't know/have the experience to deal with him). The others were wonderful. I think because so much time is spent dealing with issues with the educators some people get a bit frustrated, more so than someone they had to deal with at a store. I have met my fair share of stupid people, and yes some were teachers. One tried telling my husband he used the word segregated wrong, he spouted off the definition and she was dumbfounded. He is highly educated and was looked down upon because he was a soldier. Unlike most people though, dh makes a point to go to the principal, or administration to praise the teachers that do a wonderful job. We dish it out both ways and would expect the same. I think the problem is not the disrespect, completely, but the fact people complain a heck of a lot more than they praise because they EXPECT the teachers to do more than they are required and are mad when things don't go their way. I think when something good happens they should be just as ready to say something, but they don't. I dont' think anything was directed to the OP in a disrepectful way and you shouldn't take the rantings personal. There are bad teachers out there, just like any profession, but there are the good ones and there are even some people that appreciate them

 

[jbowen9]

Well i have read and the read again all these rants about good and bad teachers now this is JMO I believe most problems in the school system today is the way we hold the students accountable for their actions we need more displine in the school system. Now when i went to school you got out of line you got your tail busted but now today if you was to do that oh lord the sky would be falling because so many people dont believe in that. So now when students get into trouble what do they get detention which is no big deal to kids these days. Bring the control back to the teachers and allow displine in the school system

 

[PotterWatch]

Quote:
Exactly what I was saying!

 

[ChickensInTheNorthWoods]

My issue wasn't with the teachers it was the entire school system in my area. Sorry if you were offended by my comment.