My dd's Honor's Chemistry teacher informs their 4th block class that they have their friends to thank for their homework assignment. Apparently the 1st block classes had been too loud when doing their group work. So she assigned them 30 problems, then 3rd block was too loud also, so she added 30 more problems, so 3rd block had 60 problems for homework. 4th block had one group in the class that was being too loud according to the teacher, so she added 20 more problems - meaning that my dd's class had 80 chem problems for the night! To me, it doesn't seem right to punish other classes when they weren't misbehaving - I think she was just having a bad day! :banghead:
I don't like the whole punish the mass for the actions of some mentality. Like when everyone stays in from recess or has quiet lunch because some are not behaving. Perhaps the teacher needs to examine her classroom management or teaching capabilities if most of her classes are being so disruptive.
Fair? No. Understandable? Yes. It's an old tactic used by drill seargents and gym teachers. The idea is that the ones who were punished because of what John Smith did will approach John Smith and relay their displeasure at having to do extra because of him. Causing John to rethink his actions. That's the theory, at any rate. In reality, John Smith will (at the very least) get a book to the back of the head (if he's lucky). It's a policy that breeds violence as the condemned take out their anger and frustration on the instigator(s) usually far beyond what would be appropriate.
WOW. I hate it for your DD Bandmom. My DD is a freshman this year and is taking honors classes also and they have enough on them already it seems without adding so much more.
But for the most part - they don't even know who's in those other classes! Anywho - she'll survive........:neutral:
Seems like a pretty big incentive for them to be quiet and respectful next time. If I was a teacher with problems in every one of my blocks you're darn right I'd resort to something like this. Otherwise, the kids are going to walk all over him/her every time.
I can understand punishing the classes that had problems - but not in an accumulative manner. I think the students/class causing problems should be accountable for their actions - why should my child's class be punished for the other class' bad behavior?
I got 5 words for you... Seven Billion Dollar Bail Out. People get punished every day for someone else's bad behavior.
LOL! But that doesn't make it right! Thats what I'm saying 'teach them NOW to be accountable for their own actions' so we don't have this crap happen again. :lol:
I agree that the students who are disruptive are the ones who should get the punishment. I also think that the students who were not should get rewarded. Now, some will say they should not be rewarded for something they should do daily but I think those who are not disruptive are having a hard time learning. So my theory is to reward those who actually want to learn and maybe they will not give up. My teen is way different than I was at her age. She complains about kids talking, laughing, etc. while class is going because she cannot hear the teacher nor can she concentrate. She has walked out of class and gone to the front office to complain, which resulted in the principal going into the classroom and taking control. It's time to stand up for the kids who actually want to learn! When giving advice to my daughter I have a different perspective since I was a kid who did not talk in class (my parents would have killed me) but I did do other things that did not pertain to that class. While I don't understand the disrespect these kids have I do understand not wanting to be in school or that particular class. Good luck, Sherry
Go back and read my original post. She punished the 4th block for all the other blocks also. She added all the others to the last class.
I thought in your original post the above statement meant that there was one group in the 4th block class (your daughter's class) that was being too loud. Maybe I misinterpreted that. I gathered there had been disruption in all of the blocks. And Sherry may be on to something that she should have just kicked out all the disruptive ones and had the principal deal with all of them.
You're correct, her class had a group that the teacher felt was being disruptive (my dd said they really were not that loud...) And I don't have a problem with her class being assigned maybe a few extra homework problems because of that. But I don't agree that they should've taken the brunt of the whole days worth of misbehaving classes and therefore having to do all the other classes assignments in addition to theirs. :banghead:
The more I think about it she should have just kicked out the disruptive ones even if it ended up being half the class and let the principal deal with it. Then maybe the principal would see that it is a real problem in these classes.
Sounds like it is time for a parent/teacher conference request ASAP. Even by phone if necessary to figure out exactly what the problems are, what the expectations from the punishment are, and where your child really fits into it all. Make sure you go in without your parental rose-tinted glasses on in relation to your child, just in case you may hear something that you are not expecting. The punishment sounds not only unfair, but unreasonable. It is not her job to set kids up for failure, but it is part of her job to keep control of her classroom. Personally, I don't care if a teacher does that by sending kids to the office with a request for detention/suspension, but would rather see a teacher put a true effort into engaging the kids and making them excited to learn, and I can't think of any reason why any kid should be bored in a class like Honors Chemistry. Seems like too many times teachers will take the lazy route and just teach a set curriculum that covers the necessary bases for the kids to theoretically pass the EOC, otherwise known as Cover Your Anterior, instead of putting effort into keeping the class exciting, stimulating, and one the kids want to be in. I don't know if that is what this teacher is like or not. My daughter has complained loudly about discipline issues in several of her classes. I think it would be a great thing if they would start reminding some of these disruptive kids that once they are 16, school is definitely a privilege, and if they don't want to be there then they need to leave by way of suspension if not voluntarily (admin needs to grow a backbone). Some of the issues are a direct result of bad parenting, as many of the kids seem to have no respect for their instructors, their classmates, or education in general. Suspending them is not, by the way, setting them up for failure in my opinion. It is a tough love wake-up call, teaching them that their actions have consequences, and maybe the inconvenience of having to find/pay for/find transportation to another school is just what the little delinquent and its family need to find a new appreciation for what they are taking for granted every day. Just my two cents, fwiw.
I agree with you that life is not fair, and that sometimes you do just have to get over it, but my concern in this case, as a parent, would not be so much in the fact that my child was punished for something she didn't do, but that the degree of punishment is enough to be a complete turn-off towards school for a child that is innocent of any wrong-doing, and THAT is every caring parent's nightmare. What a horrible thing to have a child that really wants to learn and be at school become so frustrated with a situation like this that they dread being present in a class as important as honors chemistry? And I would think that having a teacher that is seemingly angry at you when you have done nothing wrong would be more than a little distracting and intimidating for the ones that are good students. How to understand this as a young person? Again, IMO the teacher's job is to teach, to foster a love of learning, and to provide a safe and secure place to learn. I'm not sure she's really hitting any of those. It isn't really about the fairness itself, is it?
