Well, the honeymoon is over. I had my first "bad" day at AHHS and it was a doozy. I have two girls who continually skip my class so that they can go to lunch with the older kids. I left my 3 students doing their work with another teacher so that I could go and search for them. I came up with nothing and went down to the office to have them paged. My principal came down and was angry WITH ME that they were skipping. Now, I do understand that I could have called home on them sooner, but I forget by the end of the day. I was "spoken to" about not calling their home much sooner. To say that I was upset would have been an understatement!
I cannot make these girls come to class. I don't see them in the hallways before 4th hour to persuade them into the classroom. I take attendance on the computer every hour and we have an attendance secretary. At what point does attendance become the problem of the teacher? I am perplexed and angry that my teaching students is no longer sufficient. I am tired of having to wear different hats because students refuse to come to school or class. Each parent has access to the Attendance and Grade book from a computer. So, I am curious. What are your expectations of a teacher if your child were missing a lot of classes? (Mind you, the girls had poor grades and attendance during the last 3 years.) Do you think that you would already know?
Because of this situation, I called four other students with high absence rates. Left messages on 2 answering machines...no kids in school today. I spoke with one mom whose daughter had 19 absences. She wasn't shocked and thought her daughter only had 10 or 11. Really? Only 10 or 11 - ummmmm, that's two weeks of school. The other boy had left our school two weeks ago. Maybe it's me?
About Me
- chris k
- I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend. I teach high school students during the day and enjoy our hectic life during the rest of the time! I love to laugh and have good times with family and friends.
6 comments:
I TOTALLY understand your frustration. Last year I had a student who failed my class. The grades are all on-line so the mom could get them ANYTIME she wanted. Plus, I require students with a D or an F on all tests to get their parent's signature on the test. AND, this girl was absent all the time from school and I repeatedly offered to tutor her for free. BUT, when she failed the class, it was MY fault (according to the mom) because I didn't call her soon enough. I did call, by the way, but not soon enough. It didn't matter that the parent signed a ton of tests AND A FAILING PROGRESS REPORT! SOOOOOO ANNOYING! And then there are those parents who are irritated when you do call. How are you supposed to know what parents care and what ones don't? I tell ya, there is A LOT more that goes into teaching than teaching!
Okay, I had to tell you that I understand your frustration. I only wish that I could actually just concentrate on teaching. Now, that would be a luxury!
Funny thing...my word verification is cheat! That just goes very well with school complaints, doesn't it? :)
I could never do what you do. I don't have the patience. I feel like we (Casey and I) are overly annoying to the teachers sometimes, but I guess they know we care, right?????????
Hang in there!! It sounds less about you and more about them. Really you have one of the best and worst jobs.
Wow thanks for the encouragement ladies. I just can't wait to get into the classroom. LOL
We don't get to be very involved with Jacob and school. However, we have talked with his teacher(s), and have report cards and attendance records sent to us. He usually has a high number of tardies and absents each year. I put the blame mostly on his mom, since he's only 10 and it's her responsibility to get him there. Of course she plays the 'I'm a single mom' card. I think parents need to take more responsibility, and be involved. I believe teachers are there to TEACH, not babysit.
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