OP, is this about the Swanson 6th grade math teacher who was let go two weeks ago? If yes, she crushed my daughter's spirit too, as well as all of her confidence in math. The fact that APS finally got around to doing something only two weeks before the math SOL was even more infuriating.

Anonymous wrote:I’m a teacher. I can tell you this teacher is not picking on your kid. You aren’t getting the full story. 90% chance your kid’s behavior is the issue. That’s the cold hard truth. Teachers don’t look for 12 year olds to “pick on.”

I’ve actually seen this in action as a student. Teachers are human, and some are petty AF, just like any human. Racism is pretty well documented in the profession, too.

Here is some anecdotal evidence from my time in school:

One ES teacher I had liked to pick on the kid with a learning disorder, who had such a gentle soul, never said a bad word, and eventually went on to a successful career as a minister in one of the more progressive churches. 11-year old me noticed and was troubled.

Another HS teacher, a music teacher of the year many times running, was very cold to those she perceived were in the “out group”, or had a sibling she taught and didn’t like. She was extremely and obviously warm to those she liked, so the difference was quite notable when you’re spending hours a day with this person.

A third HS teacher was downright contemptuous to the uglier girls in his class. He was later fired for screwing one of his prettier students. Says all you need to know.

And all the other stuff about racism, saw it every day in my mixed classes, of which I had relatively few because smart black kids were not getting tracked into AP/IB/advanced anything.

So yeah, these teachers exist. You might even be one of them, PP.

I’m a teacher. I can tell you this teacher is not picking on your kid. You aren’t getting the full story. 90% chance your kid’s behavior is the issue. That’s the cold hard truth. Teachers don’t look for 12 year olds to “pick on.”

Ok, seriously. OP?

Put a hidden camera on him

OP, what’s the outcome???

Anonymous wrote:

Maybe a middle ground is that you tell the counselor you have some concerns but don't be specific and ask the counselor to observe the class or pull a few kids to ask them what's going on in the class.

This is a waste of the counselor's time. Go directly to the teacher with your complaint.

Nope that's not going to work if the teacher is being abusive.

We went this route with the counselor in a similar situation. As soon as she realized what was going on, she reported it, and the teacher was removed.

So, OP…. Any update??

Anonymous wrote:

DP. The recruiting challenges are because of MONEY. People also hate lawyers, techies, and finance bros yet those careers don’t have recruiting challenges either. I support paying teachers way more but it’s completely ridiculous to pretend that many of them aren’t in the profession because they couldn’t find something else.



It's not all about money. It's also about behavioral issues, an increase in non-teaching tasks, and treatment from parents/society.

...as well as poor treatment from admin, students in the upper grades and increased safety concerns. Teachers are getting it from all sides.

Anonymous wrote:

Maybe a middle ground is that you tell the counselor you have some concerns but don't be specific and ask the counselor to observe the class or pull a few kids to ask them what's going on in the class.

This is a waste of the counselor's time. Go directly to the teacher with your complaint.

+1, the counselor will either tell you to go directly to the teacher; or they will talk to the teacher who will say nothing is going on and/or shift the blame to something else.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Public school teachers are very low quality as they are having recruiting challenges don't be afraid to call out this teacher for disciplinary actions and firing

I wonder if sentiments like this are at all related to recruiting challenges?

DP. The recruiting challenges are because of MONEY. People also hate lawyers, techies, and finance bros yet those careers don’t have recruiting challenges either. I support paying teachers way more but it’s completely ridiculous to pretend that many of them aren’t in the profession because they couldn’t find something else.

It's not all about money. It's also about behavioral issues, an increase in non-teaching tasks, and treatment from parents/society.

Maybe a middle ground is that you tell the counselor you have some concerns but don't be specific and ask the counselor to observe the class or pull a few kids to ask them what's going on in the class.

This is a waste of the counselor's time. Go directly to the teacher with your complaint.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Public school teachers are very low quality as they are having recruiting challenges don't be afraid to call out this teacher for disciplinary actions and firing

I wonder if sentiments like this are at all related to recruiting challenges?

DP. The recruiting challenges are because of MONEY. People also hate lawyers, techies, and finance bros yet those careers don’t have recruiting challenges either. I support paying teachers way more but it’s completely ridiculous to pretend that many of them aren’t in the profession because they couldn’t find something else.

Maybe a middle ground is that you tell the counselor you have some concerns but don't be specific and ask the counselor to observe the class or pull a few kids to ask them what's going on in the class.

Considering it’s mid May, I would encourage you to speak to the teacher. Maybe she will highlight a few things that your child hasn’t told you about.

This.