Educators discuss their approaches to collaborating with highly engaged families and the impact on student autonomy
As mid-year conversations highlight increasingly complicated parent-teacher relationships, educators stress a greater need for empathy.
- “Parent Emailed Me 5 Times Between 1:15 AM And 3 AM … Let me start by saying that I haven’t opened the emails. I won’t do that till just before I return from break. I just see that she emailed me 5 times and the subjects. So woke up this morning to find that a parent has emailed me 5 different times between 1:15 AM And 3 AM. The subjects were:
- Grades
- “Student’s” Grades
- Important: “Student’s” Grades
- Important! Please Help!
- Please Call Me! Very Important! … I don’t know what the parent was thinking emailing me in the wee hours of the morning on Christmas Eve, but they aren’t going to get a response till after the New Year. And call her at 3 AM? I don’t think so. And I am sure as Hell not going to change their child’s grades. Her child got a B+ in Science and I know she is freaking out because if her child gets less than a 95% on an assignment, she has a meltdown.” —Middle School Teacher in the United States
- “Had a parent call the school at 4 PM and leave a message that I was to call her immediately. I would get in between 530 and 6 AM because I left immediately at the end of the day and didn’t bring work home. School started at 715. I called her at 535 AM. She never demanded an immediate call again lol. Wasn’t anything important either.” —HS Teacher in the United States
- “I had a parent email at something like 1:30 am and then literally email from the drop off line 10 minutes after I got to school with a complaint about not having heard back. I was floored.” —Teacher in the United States
- “Not worth it…had a parent do the same to me in 2016 and it ruined my Christmas break. I told myself after that never again.” —Secondary Teacher in the United States
- “Hey home adults, If there’s a teacher in your students’ life who is making a positive impact on their learning, please send them an email, class dojo message, Remind, etc. It’s REALLY hard to keep going right now and a little kindness can go a long way.” —High School English Teacher in Texas
- “I asked my high school students about their favorite elementary school teachers, and for the ones still working in my district, I’m going to send them an email.” —High School Math Teacher in Oregon
- “Please listen to [name redacted] and take a moment to affirm your kid’s teachers. Teaching has gotten so much harder under this administration. If you see a teacher showing up for your kid, show up for them, even in a small way.” —Educator in the United States
- “Parents, If teaching looks easy to you, try teaching your own child while managing their focus, energy, and emotions all day. Now do it with 30 kids. For 180 days.” —Leader in Georgia