Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Prompt 5
The last time I visited my school, I actually had a conversation with my teacher about how hard it is to be a teacher in a low-income area because of the things that they have to deal with as far as parents go. She told me that one of her autistic students comes to school with a dirty diaper a lot, does not get enough attention at home, and a lot of the times has bruises on his face. She called DCYF on his mother and they said there was really nothing they could do about it. This is something that would definitely be a challenge, being a teacher, when it comes to parents. Also, some parents do not even look at the papers being sent home, so if the teacher needs them to send something (extra clothes, a sign form, etc.), she will most likely not get it and will have to call the parents. This would also be a challenge because that is extra time out of the teacher's break that needs to be taken to call a parent. In order to demonstrate respect for the concerns or contributions of parents, I would listen to every single thing that they suggest or comment about and see what can be done about it. I would also have available time for parents to make appointments to talk after school sometimes. This is probably the best way to communicate with parents as opposed to the phone.
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I had a similar conversation with the reading coach at my elementry school.Even though it will be a hard situation to teach in, there will be challenges at points, and I might not get paid very much, this is what I want to do. I want to be able to help students who are in situations like that, and to hopefully make an impact on them and maybe even their families.
ReplyDeleteAppointments can be handy, but they are not always the optimal solution. When dealing with a low-income area, often times the language barrier can be overlooked. Parents may not be ignoring requests from teachers, it may just be a problem of illiteracy, or not knowing English. A student can translate or send a message to a parent, but they are not always the most reliable method of communication. Students can often forget or misinterpret something, and the meaning becomes lost to the parent, who is used to ignoring something he or she does not understand. Sometimes sending an e-mail, if possible, is a better solution, because it can easily be translated into a different language, with no cost.
ReplyDeleteWow, that is so sad. It's so unfortunate that situations like that do occur. Luckily, I havent had a similar situation to that, but im almost positive that I will in the near future, especially tutoring in these low-income areas. I agree 100% with Kayla in that I want to help this children and make a difference in their lives. I want to be someone they can look up to, especially since they probably dont have a good role model in their home life, teachers are always great at that.
ReplyDeleteI think that is a great idea with making time for the parents. It is very important to have a relationship and communicate with the student's parents. It is very hard in low-income situations because there are some parents that do not care, but there are still a lot who do care and it might be hard but a teacher should do their best to reach out to all parents and you have some good ideas in doing that.
ReplyDeleteI work at a preschool and I had a similar situation, only this student have Cerebral Palsy and need braces, physical therapy and so on. it was obvious that she was being neglected and not cared for properly. The school called DCYF, they immediately came out to question us and investigate, and there is only so much they can do without notifying the parent. It may not be that DCYF can't do anything about it, but if there is nothing to support the claims, there really is no way to accuse someone. I completely agree that as teachers, MOST of us just want to make a difference, better a child's life and future and give them someone to appreciate, themselves. With low-income families, its much easier to have a paper form or letter sent home already in the language they speak. Russ' idea was great, but only if they can afford a computer, the internet to if they have access to a library to use their computers. I think before we get into the profession we have to realize that its not a 7-3 or 9-3 job everyday, its our lives, we take a lot of it home with us and you will see that a break is rarely taken. We have to accept that things have to be done after hours and at our own expense. It's hard to think this way, but don't always assume the forms and documentations or what have you are being neglected, it may be a sad honest truth that they just can't or don't know how to understand or respond.
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