differences of opinion
October 3, 2005
I am getting more and more concerned about the competency of Jack’s teacher. Do any of you out there know who I should talk to first? Do I go to the teacher first? The principal? Is there an ombudsman-type position at the grade-school level? And how do I approach this without damaging Jack in the process? She strikes me as petty and small-minded already, so I’m sure anything I try to bring down on her is going to come back to Jack doubly.
i have always found it useful to speak with the teacher, and eventually learned to do so early and often. usually i discover that things are not as they seem.
I am getting nowhere with this woman. She’s still insisting that 36 isn’t always a square number and that it DOES matter whether its 9×4 or 4×9. She and I are clearly not communicating well. Hopefully the boys’ dad will be able to find some more common ground with her, as I am not having much luck.
Principal is a safe bet… if the teacher is not communicating with you, then going higher up and voicing your concerns would be better. in the end the child’s well being should be priority number one: if all fails how about a different school? Whatever happens at this point could have long term effects, so consider..
From your last comment, it sounds like you’re doing what you can - which unfortunately isn’t much. I’ve found that it is nearly impossible to induce some teachers to be more flexible or creative if they’re “by the book” sticklers. My 3rd grade son’s Tourette’s syndrome & OCD can make his behavior challenging, and this really highlights how well a given teacher can think for themself, absorb new ideas, etc.
We’ve had fantastic teachers, one that was dumber than a box of rocks, and mediocre ones (see my blog for a recent book review concerning some really bad teachers). I would talk to the principal about your concerns, but not expect much to change. Still, it is good that the principal knows this particular teacher’s weakness in some detail - it can help in assigning future students, perhaps be a factor in promotion, selection of teachers for different school jobs, etc.
On the flip side - if you get an exceptional teacher for your son - I encourage you to let them know how much you appreciate them, and write the principal & the district superintendant a letter of commendation (for their “permanent file”) stating how well they did, and why. I would only write a letter complaining about a teacher if they were malicious or horribly incompetant.