Friday, August 7, 2009

3 quotes

Here's a quick post that I am going to count as an update.

3 things I have heard from parents in my classroom recently:

1. Parent: (surprised tone when they found out that I have a bachelors degree and am heading back to school for a Masters) "Oh! I didn't realize you were a real teacher!"

Me: (in a thought bubble) well what the H do you think I have been doing with your child for the past year? They didn't learn to read on their own, and you certianly didn't teach them anything...

I just walked away from that one.

2. Parent to another child (not their own): "What school are you going to for kindergarten next year?"

Child: (responds with name of school)

Parent: "Oh. Well I suppose that's a really good public school..."

I had to just walk away from that one too.

3. Parent looking at science book with group of kids: "those bugs are called lice! They live in people's hair and bite their heads!"

Kids: EEEEEEEEEEW!!!!!!

Parent (in a matter of fact tone): "Well, you guys don't ever have to worry about them, because that only happens to poor people."

I actually had to leave the room for that one.

The thing is, its not just one person. These are three different parents of three different ill-behaved and overly-entitled children. I wish I could be shocked and appalled at just one person having an attitude like this, but it is an overwhelming majority of them!

7 comments:

Carolanne said...

That is really frustrating. They don't even realize how condescending they are. How are children supposed to learn compassion, empathy and good manners if their parents don't teach it to them? Oh wait, they'll let you do it for them!

Jess said...

I'm not sure if this post makes me want to cry or scream. People always feel sorry for kids who are raised in low-income homes. I feel more sorry for kids who are raised like that. Pathetic.

leona said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
leona said...

My post was just too unkind ... I had to delete it :) Let me just simply say ... Unbelievable!

Crystal said...

Wow. I don't know what you could say to that. Probably better to leave.

PS I would find a way to give their kid lice. Just for fun.

Course the parent would probably just blame it on the kid going to public school.

Jenny Walsh said...

/gasp

You have better developed control than me. I probably would have done something to intervene, which may not have worked out well.

Hmm, my response. (Oh, you're a real teacher.) Indeed. (and what does it say if they entrusted their child to you and expect private schools to be better than public schools if they don't think you're a real teacher? That doesn't make sense. Are private schools staffed by college drop outs or graduates?)

(good public school) Indeed. It is a really good school. (the word public is bad now? I guess it does look a little like pubic, but an educational elitist should be able to tell the difference, and a grown up should be over the silliness about it anyway)

(lice) Lice live in hair. Do you know any rich people with hair? Lice do, too.

LFP said...

You have way better self control than I do. Not sure I would've been able to walk away from any of those. Of course, I'm not known for my tactfulness. That's why.