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r.
Joined: 06 May 2006
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 Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 4:05 am Post subject: Kids don't do their HW and it's my fault!!!??? |
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Another lovely f-ing Monday. My boss starts out the day by yelling at me through translation in front of all of the other teachers (all Koreans). Why? Because some kids in my classes got bad test grades because they didn't do their simple homework assignment. He then proceeded to blame me for them not doing their HW, even though I give them the HW assignment as clearly as possible and it is the same thing every week. BUT IT'S MY FAULT! He didn't want me to give them their tests back if they got a bad grade on it (because the parents have to look at the test to sign it), even though the easiest way to get them to do their HW (and improve their test scores) would be for their parents to get on their case. It's all my fault. I should follow the kids home and make sure they do their homework and then tuck them into bed. Does anyone want to trade bosses? Mine seems to just be trying to make me miserable in a job that I was having fun with and used to enjoy.
Rant over. |
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Qinella
Joined: 25 Feb 2005
Location: the crib
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 5:04 am Post subject: |
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Classic case of bullhockey you got on your hands, there.
Seeing that homework gets done is the job of the parents, and no one else.
It's a hagwon, right? Hagwon directors kiss so much ass to the students' parents. It's unbelievable. There are so many parents who think their kids are perfect because of it. They learn to blame the teachers if there's a problem with their kids because, as far as they know, everything has always been fine and dandy up until that point. |
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ChuckECheese
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 5:25 am Post subject: |
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Yes. It is your responsibility to ensure that your students are doing their homework, especially, if you are working at a public school.
Isn't there some kind of recourse that you can take for those students not doing their homework in your school? Ask your boss for it. If not, you should develop one.
In my last public school job, I had the same problem, but I developed a way to cover my ass from wrath of my principal.
I made up a little note for offending students' parents stating that "Tony" is consistantly failing to do his homework or failing mini-exams by not studying hard enough and need some enforcement/encouragement from home to do his homework. When little "Tony" fails to hand in his home work or fails the tests, I would simply give him one of these notes to him to get it signed by his parents and their contact phone numbers. After the third offense and letters, I would present the issue to the supervisor/principal to handle it. Then it's outta your shoulders. They can't say jack!
The key is explain this process to your students before you actually implement it so that they are clear on the consequences of not studying or not doing their homework. And just watch how little "Tonys" turn in their home work and do well on the tests.
I hope this helped. |
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xCustomx
Joined: 06 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 7:56 am Post subject: |
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| My situation is even worse. I warn the kids, I yell at a lot of the same ones every single day to do their HW. If they don't do it, they stay for 90 minutes after their class ends. Same thing goes with their quizzes. Anything below an 80 results in them staying after class. The problem is the same kids have to stay almost every day. After a while, my bloss blames me, and wants me to develop a way for them to do it. I can't FORCE them to do it, but she wants me to try and emplore more psychological reasoning to them. They hate staying, I hate getting angry at them, and yet im blamed? whatever.... |
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ChuckECheese
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 3:45 pm Post subject: |
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| xCustomx wrote: |
| My situation is even worse. I warn the kids, I yell at a lot of the same ones every single day to do their HW. If they don't do it, they stay for 90 minutes after their class ends. Same thing goes with their quizzes. Anything below an 80 results in them staying after class. The problem is the same kids have to stay almost every day. After a while, my bloss blames me, and wants me to develop a way for them to do it. I can't FORCE them to do it, but she wants me to try and emplore more psychological reasoning to them. They hate staying, I hate getting angry at them, and yet im blamed? whatever.... |
Your problem here is that you're not getting those students' parents involved in it by letting them know that their kids aren't doing their homework. Sending a letter or note via the students and get it signed with their contact number. |
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Smee
Joined: 24 Dec 2004
Location: Jeollanam-do
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 3:55 pm Post subject: |
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I got to the point last year that I just said "homework is optional," since I was the one who had to grade all of their writing assignments. I had no time to mark essays and drafts and outlines each week. I explained to them how often they'd be writing TOEFL essays in the future, and how they ought to practice and get the formula down now, but that if they didn't want my help, that's fine. There was no dropoff, and kids still did it.
We also had a sign sheet for other homework. Kids would write their assignments on this sheet every day. They would finish their homework and their parents would have to check for completion and sign a simple sheet. Try to get your director behind something like this. Of course, lots of them are just pricks who don't care one way the other about student performance. |
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TheUrbanMyth
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Location: Retired
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 4:29 pm Post subject: |
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| ChuckECheese wrote: |
Yes. It is your responsibility to ensure that your students are doing their homework, especially, if you are working at a public school.
Isn't there some kind of recourse that you can take for those students not doing their homework in your school? Ask your boss for it. If not, you should develop one.
In my last public school job, I had the same problem, but I developed a way to cover my ass from wrath of my principal.
I made up a little note for offending students' parents stating that "Tony" is consistantly failing to do his homework or failing mini-exams by not studying hard enough and need some enforcement/encouragement from home to do his homework. When little "Tony" fails to hand in his home work or fails the tests, I would simply give him one of these notes to him to get it signed by his parents and their contact phone numbers. After the third offense and letters, I would present the issue to the supervisor/principal to handle it. Then it's outta your shoulders. They can't say jack!
The key is explain this process to your students before you actually implement it so that they are clear on the consequences of not studying or not doing their homework. And just watch how little "Tonys" turn in their home work and do well on the tests.
I hope this helped. |
Did you have to assign homework?
I never assign homework as I feel the students have enough pressure. And no one has said anything...indeed I re-signed a couple of months ago.
But I think your solution would only work at a public school, and not at a hakwon. |
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xCustomx
Joined: 06 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 4:31 pm Post subject: |
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| ChuckECheese wrote: |
| xCustomx wrote: |
| My situation is even worse. I warn the kids, I yell at a lot of the same ones every single day to do their HW. If they don't do it, they stay for 90 minutes after their class ends. Same thing goes with their quizzes. Anything below an 80 results in them staying after class. The problem is the same kids have to stay almost every day. After a while, my bloss blames me, and wants me to develop a way for them to do it. I can't FORCE them to do it, but she wants me to try and emplore more psychological reasoning to them. They hate staying, I hate getting angry at them, and yet im blamed? whatever.... |
Your problem here is that you're not getting those students' parents involved in it by letting them know that their kids aren't doing their homework. Sending a letter or note via the students and get it signed with their contact number. |
The kids are required to call their parents and tell them why they are staying after class for the one to two hours. I get tired of the same kids not studying, not doing homework, me getting angry at them...I write monthly report cards and give them grades for their homework. Their parents know, but I get the feeling a lot of them don't care |
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Hater Depot
Joined: 29 Mar 2005
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 4:36 pm Post subject: |
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Ok, your boss is full of shit. True enough.
Easy solution -- check if they did their homework, and send home the checksheet every month. Tuck it into an envelope with the monthly bill.
Oh, and Min-su didn't do his homework last night? That's great, he can do it right now while all his friends have to sit bored stupid while you slo-o-o-o-wly shuffle the Uno cards! |
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xCustomx
Joined: 06 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 4:48 pm Post subject: |
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| Hater Depot wrote: |
Ok, your boss is full of *beep*. True enough.
Easy solution -- check if they did their homework, and send home the checksheet every month. Tuck it into an envelope with the monthly bill.
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I already do that. Their report cards are very detailed, and include the type of homework they had and their score, as well as vocab quizzes, dictation quizzes, reading quizzes. The only stupid part is that I feel I waste my time on the report cards, because they at least 30-40 sentences long, and im sure a lot of the parents don't understand them. |
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OiGirl
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Location: Hoke-y-gun
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 7:45 pm Post subject: |
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Do the students feel like they can successfully do their homework?
Do the students feel like their homework is useful? |
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xCustomx
Joined: 06 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 7:50 pm Post subject: |
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I think most of them just don't care, or offer up excuses like 'i had to go on a trip over the weekend, my home ahjumah came home so i had to spend time with her, i was too tired, i lost my homework sheet, i was sick so i didnt have to do it, i forgot my homework at home, my mom told me i didnt have to do it" - I've heard just about everything.
In each class I have students who never complain about the amount of work, and no matter how much I give, I can always expect them to finish it. And there are others who don't do anything. I feel like just giving up on them. If they don't wanna do it, they'll fall behind and I'll spend more time focusing on the kids actually interested in learning |
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ChuckECheese
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 8:37 pm Post subject: |
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| TheUrbanMyth wrote: |
| ChuckECheese wrote: |
Yes. It is your responsibility to ensure that your students are doing their homework, especially, if you are working at a public school.
Isn't there some kind of recourse that you can take for those students not doing their homework in your school? Ask your boss for it. If not, you should develop one.
In my last public school job, I had the same problem, but I developed a way to cover my ass from wrath of my principal.
I made up a little note for offending students' parents stating that "Tony" is consistantly failing to do his homework or failing mini-exams by not studying hard enough and need some enforcement/encouragement from home to do his homework. When little "Tony" fails to hand in his home work or fails the tests, I would simply give him one of these notes to him to get it signed by his parents and their contact phone numbers. After the third offense and letters, I would present the issue to the supervisor/principal to handle it. Then it's outta your shoulders. They can't say jack!
The key is explain this process to your students before you actually implement it so that they are clear on the consequences of not studying or not doing their homework. And just watch how little "Tonys" turn in their home work and do well on the tests.
I hope this helped. |
Did you have to assign homework?
I never assign homework as I feel the students have enough pressure. And no one has said anything...indeed I re-signed a couple of months ago.
But I think your solution would only work at a public school, and not at a hakwon. |
Yep, I do assign homework at my hagwon currently (mostly essays which I get extra pay for grading and correcting them, otherwise, I wouldn't do it), but I don't care whether they do it or not here as opposed to the public schools. |
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khyber
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Compunction Junction
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| Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 10:07 pm Post subject: |
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boss sounds like a GIT.
you should convince the boss to get the parents to sign the HOMEWORK, not the tests (or...."AND the tests). |
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Alias77
Joined: 28 Aug 2006
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| Posted: Tue Sep 26, 2006 3:46 am Post subject: |
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| ChuckECheese wrote: |
Your problem here is that you're not getting those students' parents involved in it by letting them know that their kids aren't doing their homework. Sending a letter or note via the students and get it signed with their contact number. |
I think your method is a sound approach - but how do you make this fly over a language barrier? Do you speak Korean? It just struck me, as I read this, that I would be intimidated to address the parents unless I knew they spoke English. |
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