Teachers seem to always be in the wrong.

I make a LOT of parent contact home. Good stuff, bad stuff, lots of reminders about homework and projects- it’s just who I am. I’m transparent. I want everyone to be on the same page about what’s happening.

This year, I’ve had a parent tell me I’m annoying for sending these messages. She asked me to stop contacting her. Her child has special needs. And she wants no contact from me about how her child is doing in class. She wants no updates, no reminders, nothing.

Today I had a parent tell me I’m starting drama by messaging home and she is going to contact the school because of it. I went through every single contact I’ve had with them- literally just grade updates and project reminders. But that’s starting drama. ???

Today I was also bombarded with emails from parents telling me they had no idea their kids had a 100 point project due. Every single one of these parents had received reminders from me. I have a paper trail.

A kid today told me it was my fault she didn’t do her project because she’s been absent and she didn’t know we were doing a project. Again, I have Paper trail- 2 text reminders home, 2 emails to the kid, a learning platform announcement, and more.

I don’t know where I am going with this except I feel an intense sense of doom about whatever kind of future their parents are building for them. Their biggest role models are showing them nothing matters and they have no personal responsibility for anything of their own.

I cannot imagine thinking that regular parent contact is a bad thing, yet a bizarrely large number of parents seem to think I’m the devil for wanting everyone to be updated.

Oh well. I’ve been teaching for 10 years and I don’t see any way forward – only down.