Parent-Teacher meetings?

Question

Houston Texas is passing a law that will charge a parent $500 and 30 days in jail if they miss a parent teacher meeting.I know that alot of parents really dont care about their kids and dont want to be bothered going to school to see how their kid/kids are doing in school.The $500 will be used in classes for supplies.Do you think this law to be is good?

Answer 1

Yeah, and how does this respect the parent who missed the meeting to work a four-hour shift at their second job, flipping burgers for $5.00 an hour to put food on the table and pay the rent?

Answer 2

This is just some politician making a stupid law that cannot really be enforced. Then, he can tell everyone that he cares about getting parents involved in education.

If he really cared, he would understand why parents miss these meetings. Some parents miss because they work. Others miss because of transportation issues. Some miss because they do not care.

In my experience (9 years as an inner city school teacher), there are few parents who miss because they do not care. The majority of the time, it is another issue. Schools, and teachers, need to be flexible when it comes to issues like these.

If the the parents of one of my students were fined $500, that would impose a huge hardship on the family. I would never, never report a parent not showing up.

Answer 3

I think that's a terrible law. There are a lot of parents that want to be there, but have to work. I have personal experience with a teacher that is completely unwilling to try and work around my husband's schedule so that he can be at the conferences. Instead, because she's unwilling to meet in the morning or during lunch, my husband never gets to be there and has to rely on my memory to let him know what's going on.

What would be worse? The parent missing work and possibly losing their job, going to jail and missing MORE of their kids life, or cutting the parents some slack? I think much of the country has forgotten that the parents are in charge, not the schools. The schools need to stop trying to dictate to the parents. If my school system every pulls crap like that, I will pull my kids out and homeschool them.

Answer 4

I don't think the parents will pay. Some might, but others can't. This new law will lead to more problems than solutions if you ask me. There's no doubt we need more parental involvement, but you can't get in touch with the real problem parents. Their phones are always disconnected and they give the wrong address. How will they even set an appointment? If they send a letter home or by mail, delinquent parents can claim they never got it. They will never get the law to stick. Who will enforce the new law? The police are already stretched far too thin as it is.

Answer 5

It's interesting that you have brought this question up. We had a discussion in class and somehow, it came around parents who don't come to meet the teachers at school. We all though "Bah! Those are just uninvolved parents who don't care about their kids."

Actually, what the lecturer told us is that many of those parents who don't come often have a reason, a very valid one at that. Work. They simply couldn't get some time off from work to come a meet the teacher because they were paid on an hourly rate. And we have to understand that many of them often have more than one job of this kind to make ends meet and provide food, shelter and the other basic necessities for their families.

So in this light, I don't think that this law is good. If anything, it is horrible and totally unrealistic.

Answer 6

I like the idea of parents being encouraged and motivated to go to parent-teacher meetings. When I was teaching and student teaching, very few parents showed up for them, esp. as the children got older, and I think that is awful! I remember one particularly bad year as a student teacher, there were only 2 or 3 parents that showed up (that was in a 5th grade; I was in lower grades my other years)!

I do think holding jail over parents' heads is a terrible idea, and that part of it I would think probably wouldn't and shouldn't be enforced. In the state I live in, I was a legal assistant, and they did not jail people for not paying fines and/or restitution, except in cases where parents had not paid their monthly child support.

I do think the $500 is a nice idea. As it is now, teachers usually have to pay for a lot of school supplies, so if unmotivated parents have to pay for some of their childrens' supplies that sounds good. Although I would think a lot of parents would probably show up for the conferences or have some kind of written excuse if they have to start paying large fines!

Answer 7

NO. Know i undserstand that parents should be at those meetings, but most of them who miss usually do so because they have to work. That is way too much of a fine and what good would it do the child if a parent is in jail? maybe make the parent volunteer at the school or maybe offer times that parents can do

Answer 8

Some parents have to work 12 to 16 hours a day to support family and PAY THE TAXES THAT SUPPORT THE SCHOOLS! That does NOT mean that they don't care about their kids. That law, if it passes, is totally unfair...and another example of losing rights in this country

Answer 9

It sounds like it puts the teacher in a difficult position. She'll know it might be harmful to a child if their parent goes to prison. Just because a parent shows up and avoids the fine/prison it doesn't mean they'll care about their kids education. Sad but true. The teacher will be forced to "turn in" parents who are no shows and the teacher might be targeted for retribution by the parents or students.

Answer 10

The law is not passed, it was brought up and has a long way to go.

Its a poor law and should never be allowed to pass for a hundred or so reasons. On the other side of it, people who aren't willing to take the time to raise their kids and participate should keep their pants on.