Teachers—how can I handle this delicately?

[Anonymous]

Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

[Anonymous]

Reach out as the parent. Get daughter a tutor.

[Anonymous]

If she is failing already then she has nothing to lose in terms of retaliation. I would go to the principal and point out the discrepancy. Teach your daughter to stand up for herself by showing her you will do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

Wouldn’t it be more easily corrected now, though? She’s failing now because two big papers, which are marked “turned in” on Google Classroom, are marked “missing—0 points” in the portal. I’m just wondering if she is backlogged on grading due to her illness. I feel awful, but that doesn’t seem fair to the students if that’s the case.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

Wouldn’t it be more easily corrected now, though? She’s failing now because two big papers, which are marked “turned in” on Google Classroom, are marked “missing—0 points” in the portal. I’m just wondering if she is backlogged on grading due to her illness. I feel awful, but that doesn’t seem fair to the students if that’s the case.

How long is the lag between the turned in assignment and now? Was the assignment turned in late to begin with or turned in on time? As a teacher, I do tell students that it may take me a few days, but no longer than a week, to grade late work since I have to work it into my workflow. If the assignment was turned in on time, it would be really odd for it to be marked as missing vs ungraded in the online grade book.

If the lag is more than a week, I would reach out, nicely. You can word it as, "I noticed "X" in Google Classroom and see "Y" in the online gradebook. I just want to clarify if DD did turn the assignment in." I have done this on a couple of occasions myself as a parent. You can bring it the teacher's attention in a way that is not confrontational.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

Wouldn’t it be more easily corrected now, though? She’s failing now because two big papers, which are marked “turned in” on Google Classroom, are marked “missing—0 points” in the portal. I’m just wondering if she is backlogged on grading due to her illness. I feel awful, but that doesn’t seem fair to the students if that’s the case.

How long is the lag between the turned in assignment and now? Was the assignment turned in late to begin with or turned in on time? As a teacher, I do tell students that it may take me a few days, but no longer than a week, to grade late work since I have to work it into my workflow. If the assignment was turned in on time, it would be really odd for it to be marked as missing vs ungraded in the online grade book.

If the lag is more than a week, I would reach out, nicely. You can word it as, "I noticed "X" in Google Classroom and see "Y" in the online gradebook. I just want to clarify if DD did turn the assignment in." I have done this on a couple of occasions myself as a parent. You can bring it the teacher's attention in a way that is not confrontational.

Thanks for your response!

I actually have an update. DD came home and told me she asked her teacher if she could check which assignments she’s actually missing and she told her “You’ll have to figure it out on your own. They are late now.”

They seem to have been due 11/21, but they were turned in when we checked last week. Do you think she will be receptive to me asking?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

Wouldn’t it be more easily corrected now, though? She’s failing now because two big papers, which are marked “turned in” on Google Classroom, are marked “missing—0 points” in the portal. I’m just wondering if she is backlogged on grading due to her illness. I feel awful, but that doesn’t seem fair to the students if that’s the case.

How long is the lag between the turned in assignment and now? Was the assignment turned in late to begin with or turned in on time? As a teacher, I do tell students that it may take me a few days, but no longer than a week, to grade late work since I have to work it into my workflow. If the assignment was turned in on time, it would be really odd for it to be marked as missing vs ungraded in the online grade book.

If the lag is more than a week, I would reach out, nicely. You can word it as, "I noticed "X" in Google Classroom and see "Y" in the online gradebook. I just want to clarify if DD did turn the assignment in." I have done this on a couple of occasions myself as a parent. You can bring it the teacher's attention in a way that is not confrontational.

Thanks for your response!

I actually have an update. DD came home and told me she asked her teacher if she could check which assignments she’s actually missing and she told her “You’ll have to figure it out on your own. They are late now.”

They seem to have been due 11/21, but they were turned in when we checked last week. Do you think she will be receptive to me asking?

I'm the teacher above. She may or may not be receptive, but you should ask and do it in a "I notice this, can you tell me what DD is missing?" I had to do the same thing for my own DD when I saw grades in Schoology that did not line up with the online grade book. In our case, it worked out fine. I knew this particular teacher was likely overwhelmed due to have multiple preps (different classes to teach), so I wanted to broach it in a cordial way. Again, I think there is a way you can make your concerns known in a way that is polite.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

Wouldn’t it be more easily corrected now, though? She’s failing now because two big papers, which are marked “turned in” on Google Classroom, are marked “missing—0 points” in the portal. I’m just wondering if she is backlogged on grading due to her illness. I feel awful, but that doesn’t seem fair to the students if that’s the case.

How long is the lag between the turned in assignment and now? Was the assignment turned in late to begin with or turned in on time? As a teacher, I do tell students that it may take me a few days, but no longer than a week, to grade late work since I have to work it into my workflow. If the assignment was turned in on time, it would be really odd for it to be marked as missing vs ungraded in the online grade book.

If the lag is more than a week, I would reach out, nicely. You can word it as, "I noticed "X" in Google Classroom and see "Y" in the online gradebook. I just want to clarify if DD did turn the assignment in." I have done this on a couple of occasions myself as a parent. You can bring it the teacher's attention in a way that is not confrontational.

Thanks for your response!

I actually have an update. DD came home and told me she asked her teacher if she could check which assignments she’s actually missing and she told her “You’ll have to figure it out on your own. They are late now.”

They seem to have been due 11/21, but they were turned in when we checked last week. Do you think she will be receptive to me asking?

I’m a teacher. Help your daughter compose an email sent from her email address to the teacher. She can copy you. Be direct.

Dear Ms. Teacher,

I checked my assignments and grades and here is what I’m seeing.

10/5 essay marked missing - marked submitted on Schoology on time

11/3 assignment marked missing - shows submitted on Schoology

Please let me know if they are not fully completed and if I need to resubmit.

Thank you,
Jane

[Anonymous]

*Google Classroom, not Schoology.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

Wouldn’t it be more easily corrected now, though? She’s failing now because two big papers, which are marked “turned in” on Google Classroom, are marked “missing—0 points” in the portal. I’m just wondering if she is backlogged on grading due to her illness. I feel awful, but that doesn’t seem fair to the students if that’s the case.

Part of this has to do with the grade management software they use. Our school switched from MyClassroom (where not-yet-graded work) was excluded from the average to Parent Portal, where not-turned-in AND turned-in-but-not-yet-graded work show up as 0s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If she is failing already then she has nothing to lose in terms of retaliation. I would go to the principal and point out the discrepancy. Teach your daughter to stand up for herself by showing her you will do it.

No, don’t go directly to the principal. FFS some of you are complete morons who shouldn’t be parenting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If she is failing already then she has nothing to lose in terms of retaliation. I would go to the principal and point out the discrepancy. Teach your daughter to stand up for herself by showing her you will do it.

No, don’t go directly to the principal. FFS some of you are complete morons who shouldn’t be parenting.

If you haven't tried to work things out with the person, please don't go over their head, especially under these circumstances.

[Anonymous]

The Gift of Normalcy ~ act as you would normally act Op. You don't sound overbearing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having issues with one of my middle schooler’s teachers. I feel horrible because she told us she’s battling cancer and is absent quite a bit. She’s very cold and dismissive, or at least that’s the vibe we got at both orientation and conferences. DD did fine last quarter, but now all of a sudden she is failing the class! I know this sounds biased, but she’s having no problems in any other class, and we’ve never had academic issues in the past. This is way out in left field. I don’t want to blame the teacher, but we witnessed her attitude and DD says she’s afraid to ask her any questions, because she’s “mean”. I did some digging about DD grade, and it seems there is a discrepancy between assignments turned in on Google Classroom, and the teacher grading them. It appears she simply isn’t grading DD assignments.

DD is terrified for me to reach out because she feels she will face retaliation, but is afraid to ask herself about the discrepancy. I don’t know what to do. Her counselor told her she needs to speak to the teacher. I feel like at this point, since she’s now failing, I need to step in as the parent. But to be honest, I’m scared of the teacher too! Help!

Take screen shots. If the grade at the end of the quarter doesn't reflect graded assignments, let the teacher know you have screen shots. If you don't get a response, there is a formal process to appeal the grade.

Wouldn’t it be more easily corrected now, though? She’s failing now because two big papers, which are marked “turned in” on Google Classroom, are marked “missing—0 points” in the portal. I’m just wondering if she is backlogged on grading due to her illness. I feel awful, but that doesn’t seem fair to the students if that’s the case.

How long is the lag between the turned in assignment and now? Was the assignment turned in late to begin with or turned in on time? As a teacher, I do tell students that it may take me a few days, but no longer than a week, to grade late work since I have to work it into my workflow. If the assignment was turned in on time, it would be really odd for it to be marked as missing vs ungraded in the online grade book.

If the lag is more than a week, I would reach out, nicely. You can word it as, "I noticed "X" in Google Classroom and see "Y" in the online gradebook. I just want to clarify if DD did turn the assignment in." I have done this on a couple of occasions myself as a parent. You can bring it the teacher's attention in a way that is not confrontational.

Thanks for your response!

I actually have an update. DD came home and told me she asked her teacher if she could check which assignments she’s actually missing and she told her “You’ll have to figure it out on your own. They are late now.”

They seem to have been due 11/21, but they were turned in when we checked last week. Do you think she will be receptive to me asking?

I’m a teacher. Help your daughter compose an email sent from her email address to the teacher. She can copy you. Be direct.

Dear Ms. Teacher,

I checked my assignments and grades and here is what I’m seeing.

10/5 essay marked missing - marked submitted on Schoology on time

11/3 assignment marked missing - shows submitted on Schoology

Please let me know if they are not fully completed and if I need to resubmit.

Thank you,
Jane

Thank you. We just went over everything with a fine tooth comb and she will be sending something tonight. I hope I don’t have to get involved, but I will definitely talk to the teacher myself before I escalate to the principal.