Reply to Teacher workdays/school planning are ridiculous!

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]What I struggle to understand is the number of parents on this board who routinely imply (or even outright declare) that teachers are somehow less deserving of respect than other professionals.

I cannot imagine teaching children that any profession—surgeon, sanitation worker, nurse, architect, attorney, grocery clerk, EMT, detective, engineer, teacher, pharmacy tech, salesperson, librarian, soldier, president, athletic trainer, mechanic, mail carrier, and so on—is inherently more or less worthy of respect and/or dignity. A functioning, well-oiled society depends on the talents and contributions of all of us. [i]Every[/i] role matters and [i]every[/i] person fulfilling those roles deserves respect.

It is genuinely baffling to see parents here react with hostility and hatred when teachers simply assert that they too deserve to be treated with respect. It is mind-boggling to watch people compare teachers’ responsibilities to their own as though the goal is to prove superiority rather than to understand the complexity of a profession they cannot understand. It is disheartening to see teachers denigrated so casually while other professions are praised, as though respect is a finite resource.

Additionally,  the idea that education is a “part‑time job” is not just inaccurate; it’s willfully ignorant.

If we want children to grow into adults who value community, collaboration, and shared responsibility, we should model that by recognizing the worth/value of every profession. We must stop modeling vitriol and denigration of any person who contributes to society, regardless of what their role may be. Not one single profession or person is more worthy or important than any other.

Just think:

-- Your child dreams of being a police officer, but he/she constantly hears you talk about how awful and violent police officers are. How would that make your child feel about the disrespect you will show them if they choose to enter that profession?

-- Your child dreams of being an attorney,  but he/she constantly hears you talk about how dishonest and conniving attorneys are. How would that make your child feel about the disrespect you will show them if they choose to enter that profession?

-- Your child dreams of being an electrician,  but he/she constantly hears you talk about how uneducated electricians are. How would that make your child feel about the disrespect you will show them if they choose to enter that profession?

-- Your child dreams of being a doctor,  but he/she constantly hears you talk about how cold and selfish doctors are. How would that make your child feel about the disrespect you will show them if they choose to enter that profession?

-- Your child dreams of being a teacher,  but he/she constantly hears you talk about how whiny and entitled teachers are. How would that make your child feel about the disrespect you will show them if they choose to enter that profession?

So many parents on this board need to grow up and leave their "mean girl" mentality in the past. Be an adult and be a better role model for your kids; they deserve better.[/quote]

When the majority of these roles think of “respect and dignity” they are not asking for it at anyones expense.

If a sanitation worker said we need to miss nine collections every year to train, it’s not likely people would support that. It’s not a lack of respect to say we need hospitals staffed on Christmas. When people say the number of days of school missed for training and planning is too high and it is not a good use of taxpayer resources , that is similarly not disrespectful.[/quote]

It is disrespectful because you’re not listening to the teachers who say they need the days. You’re discrediting their professional opinions and needs. [/quote]

Disagreeing is not the same as not listening. I understand wanting more days to plan/train/catch up. I disagree it is the public interest to close school more often. That is not a disrespectful position.

There are ways to do teacher training days without closing school more often, like putting them on federal holidays as is done for indigenous peoples day. That is rarely perceived by teachers as a more “respectful” suggestion.[/quote]

I’m a teacher. I’ll happily give up every federal holiday if it means I can get some paid work time to do work. Is it the right option? No, probably not. We deserve holidays just like workers in other professions. But would I accept it? Yes. Absolutely. I am so absurdly overloaded that I’ll take anything at this point to get my head above water.

But I have to disagree with you regarding the “listening” comment. I am rarely listened to on this site. People often disagree with me about my lived experiences, believing their assumptions about my working conditions are more accurate than my reality. If I try to explain something calmly and clearly, I’m told to stop whining. That’s what we mean by not listening, and that’s the most common way teachers are treated here.

[/quote]

Ok, if not Federal Holidays you feel you deserve what about some of the religious holidays? Surely you agree that the number of teachers observing both Eid and Rosh Hashanah is likely very limited?

Every day school is closed, the families of the children schools are intended to serve spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on childcare. Children go unsupervised. Children go without meals. Believing that the public is better served by limiting the number of days off doesn’t mean people don’t listen. It means they believe some things take higher priority in the public good than your experience. If you can only feel “listened to” when people agree with you, yes, you will struggle here.[/quote]

Wait you are telling teachers they are being entitled by saying they need more planning time while complaining that parents should
Have free childcare paid by taxpayers on federal and school holidays? That parents are each paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for camps and you think that should be covered by the state taxes?

Get a grip![/quote]

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