Dealing with a difficult teacher
Here are some tips on how to deal with a difficult teacher:
* Set aside some time to sit down and talk. You can discuss your child, but it may be best to try to resolve your own differences first.
* Do not be confrontational when you go to see your child’s teacher. Remember that they’re not the enemy; they are a vital component to your child’s educational success.
* Try to remember that communication is important. You can set aside your differences or difficulties for the benefit of the child in question.
* Use reflective listening. Allow them to say what they need to and then rephrase it back to them. Ask them if you understood correctly. Be sure to thank them for their input into your child’s life and for being willing to talk with you and solve the problems you may have.
* Offer to help in some way. It may be that your difficulty with your child’s teacher was just due to getting off on the wrong foot. Ask them if there’s anything you can do to help them – volunteer to make copies one afternoon a month or offer to call other parents if there is something important that needs to be passed along – this may go a long way to repairing your relationship.
Try to be patient with your child’s teacher. If there is direct animosity toward you or your child, there is a chain of command at the school. Go to the principal of the school to make a complaint but remember that you’re not to attack the teacher, just their actions. If nothing else seems to work, your child should only have that teacher for one year. They, and you, can make the best of a bad situation and look forward to having a new teacher the following year.
