New Jersey Nesties
Dear Community,
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Re: Any teachers here - disciplinary actions for tenured teachers?
The Journey of Me
Vacation, 2011
I assume you're referring to the incident you posted about earlier?
It really depends on so many things. I would assume she would need to be found to have neglected/abused the child in some ways, and I don't think neglect is a far stretch here.
She could be suspended, or fired, or even lose her certification. She could also end up with a slap on the wrist and a "note" in her permanent file.
Honestly, it depends on the district's view of her. If she's someone they love, they'll fight for her. If they aren't a fan, they'll use this as an excuse. It also depends on how public this incident is and how the community reacts.
*always remembering Annaleigh Lucy*
I must have missed the first post! What happened?
Depending on how comfortable you and your family is with making the incident known, I would be telling everyone and writing letters left and right.
I was telling MH about the hypothetical situation you posted about the other day and was getting very worked up over it. MH, who is, thankfully, very level-headed, said he wouldn't shut up about it until the teacher was sufficiently disciplined (read: fired).
Ugh...the situation frustrates, angers, and disgusts me. I'm so sorry. I am so mad for you!
Found the original post.
No child that young should EVER be denied the right to use the bathroom. That being said, the teacher will most likely be written up officially. I'm not sure what you are looking to be done. Do you want her suspended? fired? And while I do agree that something should be done, I'm not sure what will be done. If the administration has done nothing to reprimand the teacher, I'd go further up the chain and bring it to the attention of the Board at the next board meeting.
I am not a teacher but I agree with this. I have not been able to stop thinking about this, horrific.
Ugh it's awful but tenure charges are pretty hard to come by.
She could be "written up" and/or receive a letter. After a certain amount of time she could lose an increment (raise).
I have never known anyone to actually have this happen to. Its tough.
It depends on the district, but it's very much what Lauren said- how does the district feel about her? I think you have a strong case of negligence. How did the principal react? If you weren't happy with the reaction of the principal you can certainly go higher.
Honestly, I hate to admit this, but it is very hard to fire a tenured teacher bc typically it goes to court and that costs $$. I am a teacher that is for tenure reform bc I know I do my job and do it well, but as the law is now... it's not easy.
If this is the first incident, probably just something official in the file. If this has happened before and there has been an action plan, then there could be a suspension.
I would meet with the principal, if I got no satisfaction. I would go to the Super and eventually the Board.
It's hard to know. Maybe things have changed since my brother (now 25) was in first grade, maybe not. But they had major issues with his first grade teacher. More than one student asked to go to the bathroom multiple times before going in their pants, she told my mom my brother was "hopeless" (at age 6!). My mom knew a ton of parents in the district (he was her third and she had been highly involved in the PTO and school community for 5 years by then) and everyone who had this teacher had horrible complaints about her. When she called the school and met with the principal and superintendent they feined surprise, said she was a "really popular teacher" and they had "never had a complaint" (my mother's best friend had put in two separate formal complaints two years before, so she *knew* this was not the case). In the end she was slapped on the wrist and retired a few years ago with a full pension, which angered many of us who knew how bad she was.
I hope your (or your friend's if this story wasn't your own) complaints get taken seriously, but sometimes things are brushed under the rug unfortunately.
You may not be able to get the teacher fired, but you sure can make her life miserable for a while. Be loud and make sure you are heard. If you get nowhere, find a lawyer.
It is very difficult for a teacher to get fired unless they do something illegal. Districts will do things to try to force a teacher to resign, like switch their assignments, but unless the teacher is close to retirement age, this rarely works. In my years teaching, I never knew of a tenured teacher having any sort of reprimand besides getting a negative letter placed in her file. This can affect movement on the salary guide. The parent might find a bit of relief by having the child removed from the classroom and placed into another room. I've seen that happen in the district where I taught, but never in the district where my kids go to school.
It is just sick that a teacher could deny the bathroom to a first grader. I NEVER denied the bathroom to any of my students, unless they asked to go more than once in a class period. If they did ask to go more than once, I sent them to the nurse so that she could make sure that the child was not sick. Terrible situation!!!!!!!!
and this is why tenure and the teachers union fails us all.
my heart still breaks for this child. i would definately be interested in hearing how they are doing.
sorry, i am not a teacher, but just wanted to echo some of the other posts, in that i would rest until something was done.
I went back and read the OP. Horrible! I can understand the teacher asking to wait a minute but telling no multiple times....horrible.
As previous posters have said, most likely she would get written up.
You also mentioned the teacher is overwhelmed. I would hope that her poor classroom management skills are documented when she is evaulated so a corrective action plan is put in place for her. If there is a plan in place and she isn't working the plan, I believe that helps build a case for firing her.
There's a lot more behind the tenure structure and the role of the union than meets the eye. The people are not being failed by either system. I'm too tired for a more informative post now, but please get some background information before you go rallying against the teacher's union. As a teacher, I am wholeheartedly in favor of reforming the tenure system. But I do understand the necessity of tenure protection when every year, a teacher essentially has (in addition to principals and other administrators) multiple "bosses" in the form of parents in their class. You are not failed. I hope OP finds some sort of corrective justice so that statements like this do not take one teacher's situation and make it the battle cry for eliminating tenure completely.
My two angels
Amen! My mom taught second grade for 35 years. She was a wonderful, caring and compassionate teacher. She was often requested by first grade parents. I wish I could say the same for her administrators. One in particular was very swayed by public opinion. When my mom told a parent that the child needed to be evaluated, all #ell broke out and the parent went on a witch hunt. Thankfully there was union and school board push back. That incident was 30 years ago and I can still remember the stress and anguish it caused.
I had some really bad teachers growing up, but I would never want tenure totally taken away. Working as a teacher is much different than the work most of us do and that protection is needed.
I agree 200%.
You can really make the teacher miserable, I promise. Raise holy hell, go to Principal, then Superintendent, then Board of Ed. Tell them you will be going to the next Board of Ed meeting. Bring lots of friends who are equally as disgusted. Speak up, don't back down. Tell them you will go to the local newspaper. Then do it.
The teacher could be reprimanded, could lose their "increment," which means no raise, no step up on the seniority ladder. This is a pretty big blow. Finally, she will be watched like a hawk and this will annoy the hell out of her.
Good luck!
This! I am a teacher, and let me tell you that the union has protected me from some very unfair treatment in the past.
A verbal reprimand
A letter in the teacher's file
Denial of raise/salary increment
Formal charges toward dismissal
As this is a personnel matter it will not discusses in in public session if you go directly before the Board of Ed. in open session.
If it is it be discussed by the Board of Ed at all, the teacher must by law be notified and be allowed (with or without representation) to attend the session.