ladyofthelake

My daughter said to me this weekend, that her social studies teacher had told the whole class that we all say a Pledge of Allegiance to the British flag in British schools.
When my daughter meekly said she didn't think that was true because she'd "been to school in Britain until she was 6," the teacher then said dismissively "oh well I'm sure they say some kind of motto like God save the Queen"
The talk in class has all been about the British doing this, that and the other in history, and my poor girl has taken it all personally.
Naturally I sent a snotty email to her, cc'ed to the priciple.
Anyone else heard stuff like this from teachers who should know better?

BigDavyG

Don't worry, in 20 years time history lessons all over the world will be about the yanks doing this, that and the other.

No offense to any teachers who may post on here, but in my experience 20% are intelligent, the rest couldn't think of what they wanted to do so became teachers in the meantime.

Teach3r

I'm a 29 yr old teacher who taught in Uk for 5 years and here in USA for 1 year. In the UK we can teach any subject but in USA we can only teach the subject which we are qualified in. In Uk, I was head of ICT, taught English ,Maths and PE. Here I can only teach PE. I am sure that is why USA education is so far behind that of UK.

Bob

It's probably because it's the only job going in many areas...either being a teacher, or teachers assistant etc...and how good they are really depends on the subject being taught...it's all rather daft actually...the missus got passed over for American History job because she wasn't certified, even though that was one of her majors at Uni...the person that got the job studied liberal arts and had one credit in history, but was certified and got the job...know another teacher that couldn't get an IT job even though had 10 years experience working with macs, but was offered to be a maths teacher instead for the same reason, had a maths credit, even though the degree was in languages...

It's all very hit and miss...a lot of them are muppets, but again a lot of them don't have a choice because they can't teach what they want because they can't get the books or supplies to cover things...

LeedsGirl

I have a Teacher/Parent Conference this afternoon for my nine year old. Last night hubbie and I asked her what she would like us to discuss with the teacher and I was floored by the stuff that she told us. Apparently, the kids are not allowed to ask the teacher for help unless they have asked three other students to help them first. If the teacher is wearing a hat the kids are not allowed to talk to her at all. Rumour has it the teacher had a breakdown two weeks ago, god knows why but she was out for a week. This is the worst teacher we have ever experienced so it will be pretty interesting to see how she handles herself this afternoon. She also told the kids on Friday that if any parents had complaints about her not to whine to the principal and to come straight to her.

Partystar

I am gobsmacked! This teacher is taking advantage of her pupils & their education will suffer because of it.

LeedsGirl

Yeah well that's exactly how we felt last night. I spoke to several parents this morning and they are all pretty pissed off about her teaching methods and many of them complained, hence the comments from the teacher about parents whining! My girl ended up in tears last night because she feels like she's falling behind and her teacher does nothing. I am still irrate so I need to calm down somewhat before I go into the classroom in an hour.

Partystar

Yeah, good luck with that!!!

jjmb

thats nothing! My daughter is a senior at University doing a biology degree. A few weeks into a particular credit course, the Professor decided he didn't want to teach anymore. So he gave the class a chapter title and told them to go off, research the subject and give a seminar to the rest of the class on the subject. Understandably my daughter was well and truly pissed off, especially as it came just a week after they could drop that class and take on another. On top of that, the day she was present her seminar, he sent in his assistant as he was 'sick', so she had to re-present the following week. As the professor has tenure, there is very little the students can do apparently, other than to complain loudly.

ukemigrant

Be sure to let us know how it goes .

Angry White Pyjamas

A neighbour of ours who is Swedish and used to teach told us how appalled she was the other day when she went in early to collect her daughter from the local school for a docs appointment. Apparently she came upon the teacher shouting and bawling at the kids (6 year olds) who all stood in line and almost attention like a training sergeant in the army would new recruits. When she walked up and asked if that was appropriate for 6 year olds he shrugged his shoulders and said "Probably not. But I didnt think anyone could hear it."

dunroving

Complaining is a good route to go. I would encourage your daughter to do so. I find that students rarely "complain" (I'm talking about going through formal complaint procedures), even when they've been subject to poor teaching practices. I think some reasons are (a) US students tend to be quite complacent as far as "complaining" goes, i.e., it's seen as not the done thing, (b) they are concerned about possible repurcussions, or (c) they think it will make no difference.

Most schools base at least part of pay raises on "merit". Student complaints (especially when backed up by objective evidence), successful grade appeals, etc., can be used by a Dean or Dept Chair to give low pay raises.

Even if your daughter thinks she won't personally benefit from a complaint, I can tell you that most professors really dislike being "brought up" by their supervisor to at least address the complaint.

I am a university professor who cares greatly about teaching and about students. It p*sses me off greatly to see colleagues who are crappy teachers, don't care about students, or see teaching as an inconvenient duty that enables them to do their research. I wish students would complain more.

Roadster280

Ah, but the US four year degree program is the best in the world and nothing else comes close. Or so they would have you believe.

A colleague is taking a nightschool degree. I commend his desire to learn. Syllabus however, is about O level from what I have seen. Absolutely disgraceful that this "qualification" is so highly regarded.

My girlfriend is an elementary school teacher with a Master's degree in English (how I laughed!). The qualifications required are quite high, but the rewards are in the students themselves. Salary is poor to $hite (at least here in GA), and the school district provides almost nothing in the way of classroom supplies. It is ridiculous, and would bring down a UK government. But, she loves her job, and the pupils love her too. Its not something one does for the money anyway. My time a a technical trainer in the mob and in civvy street has been very rewarding too.

AdobePinon

Agreed. She should complain. She should do it both verbally and in writing to help protect her against retalliation. She should also consider complaining directly to the department head and / or dean. And when she fills out the evaluation at the end of term, she should be sure to sign it because some unis/depts toss out unsigned evaluations. It is of course understandable if she's unwilling to do this in the first part of a sequence course.

Lizzi

The education system is mediocre. Teachers pay is no good. Teaching methods are all about filling in blanks & obsessive grading. There is little room for creative flair. Everything is taught against the clock. Education is no longer a journey, it's a finish line.