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Strollerderby
They Say: Teachers Can Pre-Hate Your Kid
Turns out teachers really do pre-judge your kids based on reputation alone. So your little hellion is in for a hell of a year.
You’re packing up the moving van right now, aren’t you?
The news that your kids have already screwed themselves out of a fair shake (or maybe it’s their bratty older sibling . . . or was it your school days?) comes out of Britain, where researchers say teachers have a hard time seeing children as “good” when their reputation precedes them.
The kids who will have the hardest time, they say, are those whose bad behavior seems indicative of their home environment. Bad seed anyone?
I can’t help but wonder if teachers’ instant judgment of those kids is based on the knowledge that a “bad” home life means the teacher won’t get support from the parents during the school year. The biggest gripe I hear from teacher friends are the parents who either stick up for their kids at all costs (even when the little brat is at fault) or the parents who haven’t a clue. In those cases, it’s the parents who make the teacher’s life miserable, not the kid.
I always found the bias worked more than one way. I was the over-achieving smarty pants, which every teacher expected my younger brother to live up to (he’s smart too – but in different ways). On the other hand, the childhood pranks of elder relatives engendered no endearment from certain older teachers in my small town.
Do you feel like your child’s teacher made up their mind about your kid before classes even started?
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[...] The school district is investigating, and district officials told a Syracuse newspaper this isn’t an offense they support. Maybe the teacher pre-judged the kid for his shirt? [...]
Red Sox Fan Forces 9-Year-Old to Flip Yankees Shirt | Strollerderby commented on Oct 02 09 at 11:28 amjenny tries too hard commented on Sep 30 09 at 7:19 pmThis just in—teachers are human beings!
Lisa commented on Oct 01 09 at 1:29 amHave you considered the child’s reputation precedes them because they also behave badly in the halls, cafeteria and other places where we supervise kids that aren’t on our class list?
Yep, every year I get a few students who I had to discipline in the hall multiple occasions the year before and yep, I watch them like a hawk.
zaksmom commented on Oct 21 09 at 5:53 pmI was “warned” about certain kids as a tutor- and I did my level best to give those kids every chance to do better. Some weren’t able to get past it, but most were grateful for not being seen as a problem before they walked in the door.
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