Shattered Sun

And no, that’s not a compliment in this instance! The band teacher at the middle school Sam goes to is rapidly getting on my “if you weren’t a teacher, I’d kick your butt for talking to my kid like that” list. Seriously. The semester is finally almost over and yet Sam still has no instrument at home. He has yet to play a note. I wouldn’t mind if he was obviously having issues, but he’s not. I mean, his grades are showing at A or B all term. He’s got nothing but good reviews from the teacher. But when he’s in the classroom he’s not getting the help. Forgive me, but as a former Band Nerd, I remember my instructors being overly attentive but not jerks. The most recent incident follows (as relayed to me by Sam, so keep an open mind):

Teacher: Okay, Sam, place your fingers in the right positions to prove you know where they go.
Sam: (fumbles because of this or that and doesn’t quite get it right)
Teacher: Forget it, just pack up your instrument
Sam: But I was trying! The instrument is heavy!
Teacher: Just pack up. (moves onto next child, repeats first statement) Good work, Student B, your fingers are perfect! (to Sam says) Well, at least she can get it right!

Is it just me, or is that wildly inappropriate for a teacher to say to a student? How is that encouraging? And if he really sucks so bad at band (this is his second instrument), why continue torturing him and why not let the parents know what’s going on? Worse, I told Sam (after listening to similar scenerios play out like this) that he could quit band. He has to move onto another art form, but I’m allowing him to stop. The teacher won’t let him stop. I just don’t understand. Does this teacher have a wish to ruin my child’s self-esteem? Is there really a point to this?

I placed a call into Sam’s counselor. I want answers and I’m tired of this. I don’t think any child should come home in tears because he just can’t get it “good enough” for one particular teacher. That’s just not right.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 27th, 2006 at 5:58 pm and is filed under Two Terrors. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.