What do I do when the Principal and Superintendent don't care about a teacher not doing her job?

Question

I have met with both the Principal of the school as well as the Superintendent to discuss that the computer teacher has not taught a thing in class and is constantly giving the students "free time" to play on the internet. They both tell me they will discuss it with the teacher and now it's the end of the year and nothing was ever done. I have also corresponded with the teacher. What is my next step? Who else can I get involved to resolve this matter?

Answer 1

Did you go in and actually observe the class, or are you going on things other people or maybe the students have said? It is possible that the school doesn't place a lot of importance on the computer class, so the teacher doesn't either. The best thing to do is let it go. Is anybody permanently damaged by this? Probably not, and if you keep trying, you will just look like a troublemaker.

Answer 2

I would look up your school districts guidelines for that class; the state standards, if there are any. See if you have a copy of the course outline or curriculum. Identify what was learned and what was missed. Put your concerns in writing with a timeline of your calls, questions, concerns, and what responses you received. Provide a copy of this to the School Board with a copy going to the teacher and the principle. Then send another letter to the State, Department of Education.

If at all possible, discuss your concerns with other parents of children and maybe teh kids themselves in that class. Find out if they have the same concerns then pen another letter and have it signed by all concerned parents. It is best to stand in numbers to get noticed. Chances are the kids will let you know they aren't learning anything because if they have access to a computer class, they may be upset they aren't learning anything about the computers. Hopefully.

If nothing happens, then you may need to take another direction but I would try that.

Hopefully you were able to sit in on a class or two to observe the teaching style. However, I do know, from experience on both sides, that sometimes when the teacher knows they are going to have an observer, that suddenly the class becomes interesting, planned and there is information being taught. Not an easy thing to handle. So, if you can show up unannounced and observe, that is better.

Answer 3

For TX-BOY, you are reported...that attack was completely unnecessary. When you don't know people, or their motivations, you have absolutely no right to do that. And yeah, I'm a teacher also. We aren't perfect, we are people, nobody is perfect. And what MelissaP was saying at the beginning is valid: if you don't personally observe what is happening, how do you know what is going on in the classroom? You can't believe everything your kid says, if you do you are foolish. Kids will lie and make stuff up to make their story better for them. Unless the parent was in the classroom...there is no reason to go to the school board if the principal and teacher were already notified. They should communicate back on the problem and resolution...but you really shouldn't have waited until the end of the school year, because now there is nothing that can be done.

Answer 4

I would suggest that you and your parents go to the principal and discuss this issue. Perhaps the teacher is not realizing that you are wanting a more in-depth lesson. Often times student know more about computers that the teachers/parents do - so, maybe the teacher feels that the other students enjoy the free time. The administration may also feel the same way. I assure you that they do care if a teacher is doing his/her job. In this case they feel he/she is doing okay.

Answer 5

I am a teacher in a public school and have seen parents deal with this situation over and over again. My recommendation is to ask to spend some time in the classroom as a parent helper. This will give you more insight into what's going on in the room. After that, I would ask to meet with the principal and the teacher at the same time to voice your concerns. If you offer to help out, or find some other parents who could participate, the teacher will feel more pressure to offer a valid curriculum. Best of luck!!!

Answer 6

Mind your own business.
Sometimes you don't know all the details that a principal or superintendent deals with especially when dealing with personnel issues that involve state laws.
Just focus your energy on your job.
Sometimes issues are beyond your control but your effort for your assignment is within your control.
Continue to notify the administration about problems you and your class have with the situation because your input could be needed later as documentation for action. It may take some time for documentation to get to the point that action can be taken and be successful.

Answer 7

I understand the difficulty in getting school official and administration to take you seriously. What I have found that helps in situations as this, is to first present the evidence. Hard evidence is most often difficult to dispute. What type of evidence did you possess that proved the teacher neglected to do her job? Secondly, as parents you have the right to request documentation or a copy of the curriculum outline for the computer class. In doing this you will discover if the curriculum aligns with your expectation of a computer course for your child. Finally, do not present yourself as a victim with the teacher, Principal or Superintendent. Seek innovation in your strategy for communicating with everyone. Unfortunately, walls are built when making complaints that are extended all the way to the Superintendents office. In the process parents are often viewed as people complaining for the sake of complaining. Therefore you have to be creative and diligent to present yourself as a concern parent wanting to work with educators in constructing a better educational and technological environment for all students

Answer 8

Go to the actual school board. My schools school board was impossible to get to. They had this thing where you had to make an appointment to meet with them and they would only meet with you if they thought you were worth meeting!!! I never got the meeting after trying for 3 years!!! Don't stop until you get something done about this or else many more children are going to be deprived of a good education!
Oh and that Melissa P. up there is a typical f*cking teacher. Just let it go no one is going to be hurt. Well I'll tell you something Melissa P. you are a sorry b*tch!!! You are the reason that America is going to hell in a hand basket!!! Just because you are a dumb b*tch does not mean you should make all of our children just like you!!!!!

Answer 9

Good luck with this! This is a tricky issue - if you have gone to the principal and the superintendent, I am not sure what else you can do. Keep trying to be positive and offer help to the teacher in a kind and caring manner and continue to express your concerns with the administrators.

Answer 10

Who is the person that can verify that this actually happened? If you are the student reporting the actions of this teacher, as a principal I would not take it very seriously. After all, you may be just trying to get your teacher in trouble. If you are a parent, I would question the teacher, other teachers, other students. If anyone else is claiming this action to be true. I would investigate further. If nobody is claiming the same to be true. There isn't much to be done.