Addressing Suggestion I from Student Feedback

I. Focus on Teachers with the least amount of (legitimate) parent complaints
Point I is interesting because it makes a connection to parents. I actually feel like the students somewhat ignored the fact that parent’s should also have a say regarding their child’s education/teacher/etc.. Yes, as a teacher it is good to avoid complaints from parents. I have heard horror stories about things that teachers have said to students and got away with due to tenure. This doesn’t include those phone calls parents make asking what they can do to bring their child’s grade up. Some complaints aren’t as severe as others. Let’s face it, there are parents out there that believe that their child is god’s gift. They have a hard time accepting that homework was not complete, that projects were not turned in, or that Sally Student was talking in class today. It’s something that all teachers deal with at some point.
To add to what the students said, I think that the parents should be consulted regarding what they think about the teachers their children have. Perhaps they reveal that the teacher does not return their calls or emails. Perhaps the parent feels like there is not enough homework sent home or that there is too much. Maybe their child struggles with the work and the teacher is not available for help before school, at lunch, or after school and does not give alternative tutor names and/or places on campus. If the parent feels that the teacher is not concerned for their childs’ wellbeing, then the administrators should know that. What I would suggest would be some sort of survey sent home to parents. I feel that parents would be more likely to respond if they had problems with a teacher. Also, if they were asked to write, they, unlike the students, would be less likely to ignore the “assignment.” One major factor in this, however, has to do with whether or not the parents (and studenets) feel like their voice means something. If they don’t think their opinion matters, they are less likely to put forth the effort.