The Hired Help

Occasionally we as homeschoolers "hire out some help" in the form of advanced classes (like math or science), art classes, sports, foreign language and so forth.  Either things we don't want to teach, can't teach or have no desire to teach.  Lots of reason why but it really doesn't matter- sometimes we have to seek out others to help us fill in some gaps in our homeschool.

Totally normal.

This is where the kiddo's homeschool program, Edmonds Heights K-12, comes into play.  I rely on them to teach things like Spanish por que habla un poquito y es no muy bueno (well hopefully I said that correctly but probably not), higher level math, ceramics and pottery because we don't have a kiln and science class because I freakin' hate science.

Unfortunately as William has gotten older, I have been less and less impressed with the QUALITY of teaching here and equally disappointed with the Principal.  Case in point- the kiddo's Life Science class this year.

Ugh.

Here we go....

So the teacher is new.  Meh- ok.  I love teachers.  Y'all know I'm constantly praising them and the hard work they do.  I have been nothing but graceful and understanding of this teacher's adjustment to the classroom.

But LEGIT- not everyone is cut out to teach.

This man has NO business inside a classroom.  None at all and sadly, our kids are suffering as a result.

I have reached out numerous times to both this new teacher and the Principal to express my concerns and frustrations.  It all began when the teacher allowed William to be bullied during class time.  Yeah no- FUCK THAT SHIT.  When it became clear that the teacher was not up to the task of keeping this from occurring, I removed the kiddo from that particular class time and asked that he put in a later class time.

Great.

Things were going well until suddenly the teacher REJECTED his monthly progress.  When I asked how this could happen, I was told William had missed 3 out of 10 classes.  Dude- no.  It is not my fault you cannot accurately take attendance, William has missed exactly ZERO classes.  And then he lost all the kiddo's homework.  And then he decided he didn't need to actually grade the fucking homework.  Then the tests- of which he's declared ALL THE KIDS ARE FAILING and yet, he won't allow the students to take home the tests so that their parents can help them.  Combine this with the heavy reliance on YouTube videos, the lack of actual hands on projects and packets of work that do not line up to the actual textbook (OF WHICH HE DOESN'T USE IN CLASS) and I'm just all.....

LORD JESUS- I NEED YOU NOW.

Throughout these trying four months, I have kept in contact with both teacher and Principal.  You guys- the Principal's response was to tell me that it was OK that homework wasn't graded, that homework would be hard, that I was misunderstanding and that I needed to read the syllabus.  He then responded with "I'm not sure what action you want me to take."

Because clearly- my delicate, simple female brain just couldn't compute mmkay...

There has been NO acknowledgement that this teacher is floundering.  Like- LEGIT, Dory could find her way easier than this man. And that's IF the Principal decides to even address my email and respond.  Oh yes- let's just ignore this Mom and hope it will all go away.  How is this acceptable?!?

It is not.

And I've stated as such.  But it seems to fall on deaf ears.  So here's the thing I do believe this poor teacher and Principal have yet to grasp.

I am not your normal Mom.  I do not accept an answer simply because you say so.  I do not tolerate bullshit and excuses and I WILL be heard and respected.  And when that doesn't work- I send in THE MUSCLE aka THE HUSBAND.

The educating of our child is our MOST IMPORTANT JOB and when the hired help is not pulling his weight- he needs to go.  I would no more allow the gardener to piss all over my flowers and call it "watering" than I will an incompetent adult calling himself a "teacher" who has no real business in the classroom.

As of right now- we are at an impasse.  I'm cooling down over our Christmas break but not too worry- I'll be on top of this situation and will update y'all accordingly.

No one puts Baby in a corner.  No one.

We Love Teachers!

Why?

Perhaps the most asked question rivaled only by the "socialization" issue when it comes to homeschooling.  So really- why did we chose to homeschool?

I've talked a bit about it before but the truth is that there's really no one single answer.  We homeschool for many different reasons.  We value our time as a family, flexibility, we believe the educational system is flawed, less homework or none at all, no early wakeups or late nights, we wanted control over the content of our child's education, the ability to shelter our child, more time to spend on things that are of interest, not worrying about conforming or following rules we don't agree with...see- told you there's lot of reasons why.  And that's not even the whole list!

But no where on this list did I mention that we chose to homeschool because we don't like teachers.  Not for one single moment has this ever factored into our decision to homeschool.

You see- we LOVE teachers in this house mmkay....we firmly believe that the majority of teachers are doing the best they can in a difficult situation and continue to plug along day in and day out because they care SO much about our children.  Tell me- who wouldn't love someone that dedicated?

Teachers are the unsung heroes of our world.  They sacrifice, they love, they provide, they heal, they support, they encourage but most importantly- they teach.  In an educational system that has not worked for decades, with parents who now rely on schools to parent their children, under extreme financial hardships and the hideousness that is common core- they teach.

Just because we don't personally send our child out into this system doesn't mean we can't understand and appreciate all that you do.  So teachers- please hear me when I say this to you:

Our decision to homeschool has nothing to do with you.  To the wonderful and dedicated teachers out there we simply say, Thank You.