Quote:
Originally Posted by Gordon Booth
A thought provoking response, thanks egg&chips. You have made me think again about writing all teachers off as the same.
However, I do think teachers in general have brought this situation on themselves to an extent.
During and after WW2 our fathers were all away in the forces and many of our mothers were working. There were some really wild, uncontrolled kids about.
However- school was a different ballgame! Rules of behaviour applied and you broke them at your peril(although I never saw the terrible bullying listed above). The teachers dressed smartly, you called them 'sir' or 'Mr/Miss' and they called you by your surname. They weren't your friends, they were your teachers!
Now, if you go in a sixth form collage you can't tell the teachers from the students, they're all dress the same(as sloppily?) and on first name terms. How can the teachers expect to be treat with respect- they're just one of the gang. And teenagers are naturally testers of boundaries and won't let someone take over and set rules for their gang unless they recognise them as separate and dominant.
I couldn't do a teachers job now, I'd soon be in court. I don't see how teachers can ever retake control of their schools either.
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You are probably right Gordon. I think some kind of social revolution would be necessary to make meaningful and useful change. I suspect that this is unlikely to happen.
I fully recommend a book written by Peter Pook, possibly Britain's funniest neglected writer called The Teacher's HandPook, in which it is reflected that the single most prominent reason for teachers failing to commend respect is their inappropriate dress code.
On the other hand I also find that respect is a quality that is unlikely to be offered up by individuals who do not recognise it as something which anyone, least of all themselves is actually due.
Sorry to be pessimistic