Teachers Are Bullied

Parents love to blame teachers for their failings, and by extension the failings of their children.

Some parents love to play the race card, as if it wasn't enough that teachers had to field accusations of racism from the students.

No, teachers are not racist. If they did not like working with certain students, they probably would not be working with young people at all; despite the variety of communities from which students stream, kids are kids, young adults and who they are, no matter what their color, creed, or community.

Teachers are bullied by students who will not take responsibility for their own actions. It's not necessarily their fault, though. Most school districts have made it a nearly open policy to support the child or the parent in the event of a conflict in the classroom.

Teachers have to put up with a lot more from rude students and uncommitted parents in part because school districts are terrified of lawsuits; parents have become vocal, depending on the court system to mete out justice as they see fit for their kids. The needs of the other students, those who want to learn, are neglected, as long as the schools pacify the families that have made the most noise.

Teachers are bullied by administrators who no longer treat their faculty like professionals (an aberrant outcome in part because of unionization). School site administrators care about one thing: not the education of the students, nor necessarily the well being of the students, teachers, and the community; they care about raising and maintaining test scores. If that means moving teachers around, not heeding their requests, pressuring them to stay after for longer hours, then they administrators pull all stops. Rather than deal with problems current and endemic to young people, the site authorities concentrate on ensuring that the test scores improve, thereby allowing principals and site supervisors to keep their jobs for one more year.

Teachers are bullied because they have less control over the classroom and the curriculum. They must endure chronic set backs and difficulties, even taking the blame for the obvious failures of students and parents who refuse to raise their children..

Teachers who go on stress leave is becoming the norm, not the aberration, one which dominates the school campus with temporary and substitute teachers more intent on getting by for one day, rather than guiding students to greater success.

Rather than investing in anti-bullying for the students, who will speak up for the teachers? The unions protect the interests of unions, not faculty, so teachers must stop expecting a feckless, parochial association to protect them.