Teachers often blame parents for problem students

Sandy Banks

A cellphone video of Santa Monica High School teacher Mark Black restraining… (KTLA )
I figured that teachers wouldn't let me off easy — even though my Saturday column took their side.
I wrote about the recent classroom scuffle between a teacher and student at Santa Monica High, defending
the teacher and listing the forces that make teaching so hard — including spineless administrators and
unruly students.
Still, many of the teachers I heard from last weekend had the same indignant response:
What about the parents? If parents raised their children right, we wouldn't have problems on campus.
Good parenting skills are "indispensable to quality education," insisted Andy Ligeti, a Glendale
Community College history professor and former high school teacher.
"When students become a problem in the classroom, 9 [out of] 10 times, the root of the issue is a lack of
parent support and responsibility for children's educational welfare," Ligeti's email said.

I hear some version of that from teachers whenever I write about any problem involving public schools.
Blame them, not us, they say. Teachers can't work miracles or undo parents' failures.
::
It's not fair to presume that any child who frustrates adults is a product of derelict parenting. Teenagers,
particularly, tend to break rules, challenge authority and test their budding autonomy in unhealthy and
embarrassing ways.
Depending on the child, the teacher and the moment, I may have been lumped in with those "irresponsible
parents" by a teacher or two as my three daughters moved through school. Maybe that's why I'm sensitive
to the claim that parents are almost always to blame for a kid's boneheaded move.
Still, I understand that teachers are frustrated too. They are expected not just to teach, but to tend to the
social needs of children warped by instability, poverty and family dysfunction.
There are indeed bad parents; some are selfish, absent, neglectful or cruel. But others are just
overwhelmed or failed themselves at school. And compounding that is a cultural shift that has reshaped
the relationship between parents and teachers.
Today's parents grew up in an era when challenging the powers that be was an honorable thing. We tend
to bring to child-rearing more pride in self-expression and less respect for authority.
Kids mouth off at school because they are allowed to at home. "Our children are made to believe that they
are above the schools and the teachers," Riverside's Vincent Hoang wrote. "And the parents are made to
believe that the rules apply to everyone else but them."
Some parents behave like schoolyard bullies, belligerently taking their children's side in any dispute:
Junior's being picked on. The teacher's not fair. The classroom rules are stupid.
In some neighborhoods, they threaten lawsuits. In others, they show up on campus, shouting and ready to
brawl. That's contributed, teachers told me, to a climate of fear. School officials back down, parents gloat
and teachers privately fume.
Children take a lesson from that. "These misguided parents believe they are being a good parent by
protecting their child," said Ventura County teacher Charley Bensley. "The result is we are educating a
significant number of students that there are no consequences for their poor behavior."

::
My problem with the "blame the parents" mantra is that it doesn't move us forward. When teachers
believe that poor parenting blocks students from success, I imagine them writing off chunks of children
they have already deemed failures.
It's a societal shame, but the campus might be the only stable space in a struggling student's life.
That's why schools need support teams: counselors, librarians, nurses and classes small enough that no
child gets left behind. That's why what happens in the classroom has such life-changing importance. And
that's why the relationship between student and teacher matters so much.
When teachers care enough to reach out to a problem student's parents, they often see more clearly why
things are going wrong in class.
"The struggle with disruptive students is constant," high school science teacher Fred Lammers wrote. "I
cannot tell you how many parent conferences I have had, via phone or face-to-face, and have had a parent
say to me 'I can't do anything. I don't have any control over him (or her).' "
When discipline problems get a student bounced from Lammers' classroom, the child can't return unless a
parent agrees to a conference. "I want to clarify with the parents the unacceptable behavior of their son or
daughter and receive assurances that this is being dealt with in the home," he said.
Does that stop the problem? Not always. "Some students still will refuse to work and create disruptions,"
he said.
But it does remind the parents that what they say and do at home is important to students' success. In fact,
research shows that the biggest contribution that parents make to lifting academic achievement is by
communicating to their children the value of education.
What better way to do that than by partnering with teachers?
Teachers need to understand and accept the challenges that parents face. And parents need to be aware of
and held accountable for their children's conduct in the classroom.
EDUCATION ESSAY 3 (200 WORDS)
Education is very important tool for the people all over the world to make balance of life and its existence on
the earth. It is the tool which stimulates everyone to go ahead and succeed in life as well as provides ability to
overcome challenges in life. It is the one and only way to acquire knowledge and improve our skills in any
particular field according to the need. It makes us able to create fine balance of our body, mind and spirit.

It trains us whole life and brings lots of opportunities to our way to get better prospects required for the career
growth. Each and every individual need proper education to enhance their own life standards as well as
become a part of the social and economic growth of their own country. Future of the any person or country
depends on the education system strategy followed. Even after lots of awareness programmes about proper
education in our country, there are many villages still left which are not having proper resources and awareness
for education of people living there.

Though condition has improved than earlier and various steps have been taken by the government to improve
the education status in the country. Well being of the society depends on the well being of the people living in
that society. It brings economic and social prosperity all through the country by solving issues and identifying
solutions.
Albert Einstein was a German-born physicist who developed the
general theory of relativity. He is considered one of the most influential
physicists of the 20th century.

Who Was Albert Einstein?

Albert Einstein (March 14, 1879 to April 18, 1955) was a German mathematician and physicist
who developed the special and general theories of relativity. In 1921, he won the Nobel Prize for
physics for his explanation of the photoelectric effect. In the following decade, he immigrated to
the U.S. after being targeted by the Nazis. His work also had a major impact on the development
of atomic energy. In his later years, Einstein focused on unified field theory. With his passion for
inquiry, Einstein is generally considered the most influential physicist of the 20th century.

Albert Einstein’s Inventions and Discoveries

As a physicist, Einstein had many discoveries, but he is perhaps best known

for his theory of relativity and the equation E=MC2, which foreshadowed the
development of atomic power and the atomic bomb.

Family

Albert Einstein grew up in a secular Jewish family. His father, Hermann

Einstein, was a salesman and engineer who, with his brother, founded
Elektrotechnische Fabrik J. Einstein & Cie, a Munich-based company that
manufactured electrical equipment. Albert’s mother, the former Pauline Koch,
ran the family household. Einstein had one sister, Maja, born two years after
him.

Einstein’s Wives and Children

Albert Einstein married Milena Maric on Jan. 6, 1903. While attending school
in Zurich, Einstein met Maric, a Serbian physics student. Einstein continued to
grow closer to Maric, but his parents were strongly against the relationship
due to her ethnic background. Nonetheless, Einstein continued to see her,
with the two developing a correspondence via letters in which he expressed
many of his scientific ideas. Einstein’s father passed away in 1902, and the
couple married thereafter.

When and Where Was Albert Einstein Born?

Albert Einstein was born on March 14, 1879 in Ulm, Württemberg, Germany.

When Did Albert Einstein Die?

Albert Einstein died at the University Medical Center at Princeton early in the
morning on April 18, 1955 at the age of 76. The previous day, while working
on a speech to honor Israel's seventh anniversary, Einstein suffered an
abdominal aortic aneurysm. He was taken to the hospital for treatment but
refused surgery, believing that he had lived his life and was content to accept
his fate. "I want to go when I want," he stated at the time. "It is tasteless to
prolong life artificially. I have done my share, it is time to go. I will do it
elegantly."
Living the Pinoy Spirit: A Manila Travelogue
By
Guest Author
-
28 November 2014
Makati City, Manila, Philippines. Taken by Flickr user Benson Kua.
You say “Long Live!”, here in Manila we shout, “Mabuhay!”.
Want to try the grandest nomadic experience of a lifetime, where you’ll spot a treasury of rich culture
and history, jam-packed with an amazing set of never-before-seen natural wonders and where the happiest
and friendliest creatures on the planet exist? Try and visit Manila.
Capital city of “The Pearl of the Orient Seas,” the Philippines, Manila is one of the culture-richest cities in
southeast Asia. Brought about by the diverse influence of foreign invaders during WWII, which is a
combination of Japanese, American, German, British, and Spanish, the mixture of different traditions
from these countries has been lived up by the Filipinos until today.
At the heart of the city stands the Intramuros, (Latin for “Within the Walls”), which was built by the
Spanish colonial government to protect the city from foreign invaders. Try walking across the streets of
España Boulevard and you’ll find one-of-a-kind architectural designs of different universities in this U-
belt area (U-belt: short for University Belt) and the Rizal Monument where our country’s national hero,
José Rizal, together with the other troops, stand amidst the city. You’ll also find a unique, old way of
transportation here through the kalesa, a horse-drawn carriage, or if you want something a little bit more
unique, try the country’s main mode of public transportation, the jeepney. Even the Manila Bay will offer
you the most romantic scene of sunset just across from the SM Mall of Asia (considered as one of the
largest malls in Asia).
Being the fun lovers that we are, Pinoys (colloquial for Filipinos) love to celebrate festivities. We have
here the Buhusan Festival which aims to reenact the baptism of Jesus by splashing water to whoever
passes you on the street in San Juan City. Blame the Spaniards – we now have here siesta time in which
we relax and enjoy a part of our day maybe doing leisure with merienda (a light meal between lunch and
dinner) or taking a short nap which is mostly during mid-afternoon.
If you love gambling, you’ll enjoy sabong (cockfighting) (*see note below) from which you can put a bet,
which we also learned during the Spanish colonization. Pinoys love to communicate, interact, and express
themselves in any available means, whether it could be through a magnificent painting, a poem, a
Facebook selfie, or through blogs. Having English as the second language here in Manila, it isn’t difficult
for the Pinoys or Manileños here to have their thoughts be recognized or heard globally.
You’ll also love the delicacies here: sisig, pancit, suman, and especially balut, which has been a favorite of
most tourists that visit here.
Even though the population is mostly Christian, about 30% of the residents here are also
Muslims. Ramadan (Muslim’s Holy Sabbath day) is also being recognized and done all throughout the
country. In Manila, Quiapo Church is the known Worship Place which houses the miraculous “Black
Nazarene.”
As a perfect urban abode of rich and poor, there is also enough nightlife to experience until the dawn.
Unique “restobars” are all over place, which will compensate the historic and cultural gala for the day.
Letter

I am so sorry for the way I spoke about you in the interview. My comments were very
insensitive and I know they must have hurt you. I hope you will forgive me and try to
understand how something like this might happen when I open my big mouth. The
trouble is, I tend to speak sarcastically even when my audience might be apt to take me
literally. I hope you will believe what you hear me say instead of what you read. Our
relationship is very valuable to me. I hope you will allow me to make this up to you.