This week my sister-in-law sent me a message to ask my opinion about her son's behavior at school. While I was extremely flattered that she would think of me during her frustrating moment as a parent, I also realized that many people would not value the opinion of teachers in this day and age and therefore a teacher is often the last person people ask advice from about their child's behavior in the classroom.
Although I am not one to call myself an expert, I do feel as though if I saw a student for a given amount of time, I could guess if they are dealing with stuff outside of the classroom. Sometimes I wish parents or guardians realized how much home life issues affect a student in the classroom.
The other day a fellow teacher was talking about the live feed that her doggie day care provides so that she can view her puppies at anytime while at work. We then began to discuss how eye opening it would be to allow parents the same virtual access. Would they be shocked to see their student "wasting time" instead of doing what was asked of them? Or would they be amazed to see how long it takes their child to complete a mundane task? Although I know this would never occur due to privacy laws, it would definitely be eye-opening for some parents.
It is melancholic to reflect on all the of pressures students deal with today. From divorce plaguing many homes, to drugs, alcohol, and isolation, the students of today bring so many new and scary obstacles to my classroom. I just hope I can teach them a concept or two while they are in my room for the year.
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