When Teachers Fail to Make the Mark

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

29 Apr 2011 11:59 PM

You know you're in trouble when your child's teacher behaves worse than your child.

Whereas most parents realize that neither the public nor the private school system is 100 percent sound, I think it's reasonable to expect that a child should not be subject to violence or ridicule within the confines of a classroom.

Obviously, this has not been the case in the past. The news is filled with stories of teachers who duct tape their students' mouths shut in class to stop them from talking, educators who push kids against walls when they don't do as they are told and youngsters who get whacked by rulers as a form of punishment.

Personally, if a teacher dared to lay a hand on my child, heads would roll, but that's just me, and yes, I know two wrongs don't make a right and we shouldn't render evil for evil, yada, yada, yada.

But what if the teacher uses a different tactic to punish a student; one that doesn't involve physical violence? Should the infliction of emotional pain in the classroom be overlooked?

The question was raised recently when a female teacher in Tennessee demanded that students sitting around a kid she deemed "messy," oink at him to show him what life in a pigsty feels like.

According to news reports, Debbie Hayes egged on a class of kindergarteners when she got "fed up" with the child's sloppy ways. A witness told authorities that she saw Hayes force kids in her class to surround a particular child and "oink" at him because he was messy.

Hayes then reportedly told the youngster: "Your area looks like a pig sty. Oink. Oink."

Fortunately, the teacher who observed Hayes' actions notified the school principal, who went public saying that what the kindergarten teacher did was indefensible.

According to the Knoxville News Sentinel, Hayes, who has been teaching for nearly 40 years, ultimately admitted that the incident was inappropriate. She went on to say that she "didn't realize that the kids were taunting the boy."

Maybe she should go back to school to learn the meaning of "taunting," instead of teaching kindergarteners.

In the end Hayes got off with a reprimand and a one-day suspension from school.

Seems a bit light to me? Do you feel as though Hayes should have been fired, or at the very least, forced into early retirement?

Related Articles:

Recess Mom

Requesting a New Teacher

Trusting Your Child's Teacher

Back-to-School: Moms vs. Dads

Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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