I am very fortunate to be both a teacher and a parent. I think that having my own children have opened my eyes greatly to how and why the parents of my students respond the way that they do under certain circumstances.
One major thing that parents struggle with when it comes to teachers and the classroom is fairness. Most parents are very quick to question, observe, and compare how other children are treated.
While I am a big believer in being fair and giving each child their share, it is near impossible to treat all students the same.
This is just as Kori pointed out with our own children at home. Each child is an individual with different feelings and actions.
If coming into a classroom as a casual observer it may very well appear that a teacher is neglecting or mistreating one child and babying or showing favoritism to another. However, this is likely not the case at all. Not all children can be handled in the same manner.
For example, one child may break out into tears at the slightest raise of the teacher’s voice while another child is hardly impacted by a yell or a scream. I, myself, change my form of discipline and disposition depending on how I know that the child responds in certain situations.
Teachers are sure to keep their eyes closer on known and repeated trouble makers and be more lenient on those who have never caused any problems. I do not feel that this is showing favoritism or picking on a student. I think of it more as some children have earned more responsibility due to good behavior and other students have lost responsibility due to bad or inappropriate behavior.
In an ideal setting and in an ideal world everyone would be equal. However, we know that that is not the case. I think when it comes to treating someone (students/children) fairly, what is fair is what is best for that particular child not what was best for someone else.
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