Parents, what are your thoughts?

Question

Should virtual teachers be on the call after school hours? I’m having trouble with a students parent and I’d like to see things from their point of view. Our school is doing virtual teaching where students are in constant contact with me from 8-3:30. I teach them lessons through webex (similar to zoom) and give them assignments to complete. I always show students exactly what to do before expecting them to complete an assignment though and answer any questions... the issue is I have one parent who doesn’t think her child should have to attend the live sessions. (That’s another big issue we are dealing with)
Instead she just wants to complete the assignments on their own time. They keep getting confused  and then sending me emails wanting help after the school day is over and on the weekends. Would you expect your child’s teacher to help in this scenario? I feel like it’s a lot to ask considering they are purposely missing class where i specifically explain the directions.
Update: The mother is not working. She’s a stay at home mom. She has told me numerous times she doesn’t believe her child should have to attend class.

Accepted Answer

Hell no. Teachers deserve to have their own private time off of work, just like everyone else does.

Answer

No. Teachers don’t even get paid enough as it is!!!!

Answer

No, we should not. We have contracted hours. We need to separate their work life from their family life. Any work done outside of contracted hours we don’t get paid for so asking us to be on call after hours is extremely inappropriate.

Answer

No, it's the same thing as asking for help after hours if they were attending school in person. If they want to make an appointment to have extra 1 on 1 help after school that is one thing. You shouldn't be expected to be available 24/7, school hours are set for a reason so the parent should make sure their child attends school and asks for help during the allotted time.

Answer

No, that is after my contract hours which ends at 4 pm. I don’t get paid for that. If that parent stays at home and wants her child to do virtual learning, then her child needs to attend the virtual class sessions. Yes I and other teachers post video lectures for students to refer back to later for help on assignments or in case something comes up and they are unable to attend, but just blatantly refusing to attend sessions is not how it works. Sorry, I’m not gonna spend my Saturday or Sunday teaching a lesson over again because little Johnny decides to play Minecraft instead of attending virtual class which the parent CHOSE to do in the first place! Also, I don’t understand why parents are getting mad and taking this out on us teachers either. We don’t make these decisions or decide the requirements for your child to attend virtual learning, the district does, so take it up with them.

Answer

Nope, your work day is done at 3:30, to expect you to be their personal tutor when they won’t attend class is unreasonable. If it were an occasional thing for a working parent it wouldn’t be a big deal for me, but for a SAHM, not a chance.

Answer

If she is paying you as a tutor for after hours!

Answer

This is the problem tho. Our distract gave us an option to do distance learning but they put so many restrictions/guidelines on it that it makes it almost impossible for working parents. You have to be logged on by the time a normal school day starts and you have to have an adult there sitting next to the child the whole time in case they need help. Tell me how a working parent who can’t work from home and has no one who can sit with the child can do that. And this may be the case with the parent you are referring to. The schools needs to find a better option because what they have in place doesn’t work for everyone.

Answer

Teacher here! I understand that not all parents can work with our 8:30-3:30 contract. As a teacher, I want all my kids to be successful and join my meetings. However, I’m not putting in extra hours. I’d be willing to move my 6 hour day one or two times a week to a later start time to help accommodate for those families. By, we should have to work out of our hours per day. It would only be if a teacher felt kind enough to do that!

Answer

In this situation no.
I could see maybe if mom wasn't home with him to get him to class... or they had computer or internet issues. But if they're able to get him logged in and just refusing to do so, thus missing the explanation of how to do the assignments... they're in no way entitled to your free time or extra help.

Parents, what are your thoughts?

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