My daughter learned a valuable lesson today: no good deed goes unpunished.
Her good deed was to accept a long-term substitute teacher position (subbing for someone who is out on maternity leave). Long hours. Low pay. All the respect given substitutes by elementary school kids. Scrambling at the last minute to teach things you weren’t quite adequately prepared to teach (her degree, which she earned in December, is in early childhood education (pre-K through 3rd grade) and she’s teaching 4th grade).
Her reward? A parent who began by distorting the truth. Then moved on to adding some out right lies. All at high volume with nasty remarks about her character and integrity. And some empty threats about how my daughter ‘will never work in this school system again’. The parent then called the principal and repeated the whole thing. Then, to top off the whole escapade, phone calls were made to other parents encouraging them to contact the principal.
My daughter’s sin? She had the entire class hold their hands over their mouths as they walked to the lunch room to remind them to be quiet as they moved through the halls. Their own hand over their own mouth. Horrors! The shame and humiliation of it all.
And, the class – again it was the entire class, not just a few children – were made to write ‘I will not talk in class’ ten times for being too loud during their math lessons. Oh, the humanity! The poor dears will be scarred for life. 10 whole sentences.
My wife was outraged. How dare someone treat her child like that. I was much more philosophical. Our child is a 24 year old professional. She has chosen a profession that engenders little respect. Part of the price she pays for maintaining her professionalism – her calling – is the venom of obnoxious parents. It may have been the first time she’s been unfairly reamed out by an over-the-top parent, but it’s not likely to be the last.
To the above mentioned obnoxious parent, I would like to point out three things:
1. Asking a class full of loud and unruly 4th graders to hold their hands over their mouths as a cue to remind themselves to be quiet is not “public humiliation”. Nor can I see anyway it is unacceptable.
2. What you did was unacceptable: distorted thinking, lying, gossip, slander, and (attempted) intimidation. But I think when all is said and done – and when the parents you called find out from the principal what really occurred – you will find you’ve only embarrassed and humiliated yourself. (And probably your child, but that’s another story.)
3. And if you ever want to address your own issues and personal demons, call me. My rates are reasonable and I’m covered by most insurance companies.
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hehehe I especially liked point 3.
I’ll never understand when people make big todo’s about nothing.
I hope your daughter wasn’t too discouraged.
Boy, we’ve sure come a long way from my day when I was taken into the back room and introduced to the “board of education.” And I didn’t dare tell my parents thinking that they would call to gripe about the teacher. I knew better. I’d just get more of what I’d already gotten at school.
I’m afraid that the parent isn’t the only one who will need your services, but there will probably be a child who never learns to cope with life waiting for you in about ten years. I guess that’s job security.
Dang! I just read my comment again and realized that I’ve become one of those people who talks about “when I was a kid.” Good grief!
Paul: Its okay to talk about “when I was a kid”. It’s when even those stories seem random and have no point that we need to worry.
Reasons I’m not a teacher or a public servant…
As the teacher talking to the parent I would have held my hand over my mouth “What are you doing?” the outraged parent would say. “Keeping my self from telling you off because you are a real jacka**!”