when and why did parents become so intrusive.

Fuinseog

I could be wrong here but somehow I recall the nineties as a time when parents worked with schools and accepted and respected decisions made by the school. Why did this change?


Do you think it is a good idea that parents are so involved in many cases that drop by whenever they please and demand an audience with a teacher?

Why do teachers accept being verbally abused by parents?

people seem to think that we are our whining is only pay related, but for me working in a safe environment where I can get on with my job is much more important.

These days it appears that everyone is an expert on education and pushy parents dictate how subjects should be taught. The principal very often does not want the grief and panders to what parents want, which in my view is wrong.

The dept of Ed states how Irish should be taught but I have found in a number of schools that when you follow the guidelines you run into trouble. A lot of parents want the bare minimum of Irish to be taught and tend to complain if the subject is being taught with too much enthusiasm, although they will phrase it differently. Perhaps this is result of their own traumatic experience learning the language.

What I cannot understand is why a principal in such a case does not stand up to them and simply say the curriculum is being followed and politely tell them to sling their hook.

boogle

Teachers nowadays are not as well respected as they were a generation or two ago. I suppose it all just stems from that.

cucbuc

I think its just a symptom of the way in which parents have become increasingly more involved in every aspect of their kids lives in the last 10 years. People are anxious to ensure their kids get the best chance in education, which is understandable, but has really gone OTT with some parents I think.

blogga

Authority used to be deferred to and look where that got us (RC church, Banks, FF) Kids are gone to the other extreme: they are the new sacred cows. It's time for the wheel to turn.

byhookorbycrook

I would never see a parent without an appt, but welcome input from them-mostly...

implausible

I don't think intrusive is quite the word (as it implies secrecy), but certainly parents are more involved, assertive, demanding and sometimes aggressive.

There's a few aspects to this:

Openness, transparency and accountability in today's society. Everything is open to scrutiny - you can request your hospital notes, exam students can see their scripts and Freedom of Information has meant that a lot of previously unavailable information is now at hand.

Children are now listened to. My own experience of school was that the teacher was right and you never b*tched about one at home. Now, credence is given to all claims.

The majority of the population is secondary-educated and as third level becomes the norm for their offspring, parents are more familiar with and less intimidated by teachers.

Finally, we live in a consumer society; parents as consumers expect to be right and have no problem complaining if they perceive the "product" to be faulty.

Definitely the last one and that is that some people have no manners.;)

Phew, that turned into an essay - I really must get out more....

Fizzical

Since principals stopped working on behalf of their staff.

who what when

Personally i think it all comes from that the fact that bad teachers are un-accountable and un-sackable. As such many parents believe they must make the teachers accountable to them. Its wrong no doubt , but theres going to have to be a fundamental change in the education system before anything will change.

Fuinseog

byhookorbycrook wrote: »

I would never see a parent without an appt, but welcome input from them-mostly...

unfortunately that depends on the culture and standards of the school. In some places parents have the habit of just walking into school whenever they feel like it and the principal and staff entertain it.

Fuinseog

cucbuc wrote: »

I think its just a symptom of the way in which parents have become increasingly more involved in every aspect of their kids lives in the last 10 years. People are anxious to ensure their kids get the best chance in education, which is understandable, but has really gone OTT with some parents I think.

I notice some parents demand a high standard in the subject, yet bitch if too much homework is given.
Helicopter parents have become too involved in their kids' lives, which is not good for the kid in question.

evolving_doors

I think the op may have a problem with the contact procedure..
If a Parent rings the school or appears at school looking for teacher the secretary should take their details and pass them on to the teacher. This may not be so easy in a small primary school though, but an appointment should still be made if it's going to be a heated debate infront of others.

Listen to everything they have to say alright but you shouldn't have to justify your teaching methods.. you've done the HDip and the principal has placed their faith in you to teach the course (and the teaching council recognises your qualifications/professionalism!!), if they have a problem with this they should take it up with the principal.

At the end of the day though the constitution recognises that parents are the primary educators of their children but let the principal have the final say.

Fuinseog

Armelodie wrote: »

I think the op may have a problem with the contact procedure..
If a Parent rings the school or appears at school looking for teacher the secretary should take their details and pass them on to the teacher. This may not be so easy in a small primary school though, but an appointment should still be made if it's going to be a heated debate infront of others.

Listen to everything they have to say alright but you shouldn't have to justify your teaching methods.. you've done the HDip and the principal has placed their faith in you to teach the course (and the teaching council recognises your qualifications/professionalism!!), if they have a problem with this they should take it up with the principal.

At the end of the day though the constitution recognises that parents are the primary educators of their children but let the principal have the final say.

the problem is that the principal acquiesces to whatever demands the parents have and very often the more abusive they are the more they are entertained. sometimes I wonder who is running the school. It seems to me that the kids control their parents and the parents control the principal.

byhookorbycrook

Fuinseóg,it's a pity that your principal is not supportive. We are lucky to have a principal who is fair and will give all parties a hearing,but supportive of the staff. if however a staff member is incorrect, I'd not expect a principal to back them to the hilt.

Education is supposed to be a partnership,no one partner holding more sway than another. Sometimes parents can be blinded by reading too much into a situation or allowing themselves to hear only one aspect of a story. I'd suggest that any teacher who feels intimidated by a parent ask another member of staff to sit in on the meeting to take notes and that all persons at the meeting then sign the notes at the end of the meeting.Amazing how that focuses everyone present and makes for a more helpful outcome.

evolving_doors

byhookorbycrook wrote: »

I'd suggest that any teacher who feels intimidated by a parent ask another member of staff to sit in on the meeting to take notes and that all persons at the meeting then sign the notes at the end of the meeting.Amazing how that focuses everyone present and makes for a more helpful outcome.

Definitely a good idea, been there and done that. Was surprised at how much I learned from the other teacher in such a short space of time.

Fuinseog

Armelodie wrote: »

Definitely a good idea, been there and done that. Was surprised at how much I learned from the other teacher in such a short space of time.

it is a good idea, but unfortunately can not be universally applied.

I had a pupil tell me to f off once and when I brought him to the vice principal he told him to f off as well. I was gobsmacked and the pupil was only sent home for the afternoon.
The mother was in the next day and even more aggressive than the son. What shocked me most was that senior staff entertained it all.

now, if I were on the phone to bank or other business and became abusive they would hang up immediately and refuse to deal with me, but teachers put up with verbal abuse from pupils and parents and that is wrong.

evolving_doors

Fuinseog wrote: »

it is a good idea, but unfortunately can not be universally applied.

I had a pupil tell me to f off once and when I brought him to the vice principal he told him to f off as well. I was gobsmacked and the pupil was only sent home for the afternoon.
The mother was in the next day and even more aggressive than the son. What shocked me most was that senior staff entertained it all.
.

True, it can't be universally applied but in this case the OP is talking mainly about "pushy parents dictat[ing] how subjects should be taught" so I don't think it's a discipline matter on the part of the student and I would bet the parent is not the aggressive type, esp. if they're trying to put forward a case as to how the OP should teach their subject.