When is it legitimate to ask for a change in classroom teacher?

[Anonymous]

My DS is in elementary school. He has been assigned to a classroom teacher that will not be a good fit. I have had two older kids go through elementary school and while they have had not so great teachers, I never once dreamed of requesting a classroom change. But this time I just want to get my kid the hell out of this classroom. Had anyone successfully been able to switch their elementary schooler’s class assignment before the year begins? And if so what were the circumstances? Thank you

[Anonymous]

Bullying is a good reason.
Does your child have special needs or anxiety? I know a parent who has a child with anxiety and LDs who was able to get her switched due to some disruptive kids in the old class. I think the mother argued that her child would not be able to learn. I'm not sure it worked out for her because the other class turned out worse that year though.

[Anonymous]

I've seen kids get moved due to extreme teacher mismatch but I think that teacher was known to be difficult and the child had their challenges too.

[Anonymous]

Did you do the placement for last spring? I always do and its always worked out.

[Anonymous]

Can you make it a positive thing, so instead of opting out of one teacher, you are opting for a different one? That worked for us when we requested a different ELA teacher for our 7th grader.

[Anonymous]

This would not fly in MCPS. "I don't like this teacher for my child" would get you ignored. The only thing that might work is if there is something in an IEP that you could tie it to, and even then I think they'd make the kid stick it out until they became convinced the move was necessary.

[Anonymous]

As someone who’s worked in schools, such requests are virtually never entertained. It is so impossible to balance class size, gender balance, academic abilities balance, distributing kids with special needs, separating kids with explosive conflicts, and managing schedules for things like specials, pull-outs, and medical needs. Also, schools know that some homeroom teachers are often highly sought after and some don’t give families warm fuzzies. Unless the less warm/fun/supportive teacher does something fireable, we’ve got to keep them on and give them students. While you may have what you believe to be “good reasons” for thinking this isn’t a good fit, there are many other parents worried about fit who would also lobby for class changes. If schools took all of those requests, it would be a weeks-long process to sort out, and it would be difficult-to-impossible to develop fair criteria for who gets a class switch.

Accept the assignment and work on what you can control. If your child needs accommodations, schedule a beginning-of-year conference with the teacher and and admin. If there are social issues, get the school counselor’s help before things get challenging. This is also a good opportunity for you and your child to learn resilience and positivity when things don’t go perfectly.