The eternal struggle. I was reading a few days ago about a school where they tried to ban yoga type pants, and the students coordinated and hundreds wore their yoga pants. Couldn't send that many kids home, apparently.
There are all sorts of actions that a united group of school children could do without the school being able to send them home. Nevertheless, if the children refuse to follow the rules, the teachers cannot be expected to teach them. Thankfully for the teachers, normally it isn't every single child insisting on breaking all the rules at once.
Not sure what was so important about leggings. Most schools where I live have school uniform, which helps to avoid this sort of issue. If people wear different clothing under those circumstances it either means: there's something wrong with the uniform (in which case there is a case for changing that for everyone - or for select circumstances), they want to wear something more stylish (in which case they are showing off and being selfish towards those who can't afford stylish clothes), they are rebelling (in which case that probably isn't the only way they'll rebel and they may be hard to teach if that sort of thing isn't dealt with).
I don't know how schools handle things when they let children wear whatever they want with a few arbitrary guidelines. I can imagine students competing with casual clothes being a bit of a distraction.
they want to wear something more stylish (in which case they are showing off and being selfish towards those who can't afford stylish clothes),
How shallow. Your analysis, not them, for the record.
they are rebelling (in which case that probably isn't the only way they'll rebel and they may be hard to teach if that sort of thing isn't dealt with).
.... you don't know any students, or teachers, do you.
I don't know how schools handle things when they let children wear whatever they want with a few arbitrary guidelines.
By acting like educators, not poorly trained prison guards?
I can imagine students competing with casual clothes being a bit of a distraction.
Extremely unlikely, and also easily dealt with, as anyone who's dealt with schools or students could tell you.
Since Authority will never stop or concede, I see three possible outcomes: The student submits to Authority, The student voluntarily transfers out, the student is expelled.
I don't know why you'd have a problem with school uniforms. It means that there's no competing to wear the best clothes. Children in school clothes are simply representing their school. The focus is therefore on education, not on fashion.
You say that is "uncivilised". I have no idea what you mean.
The treatment of school as an environment of conformity, echoing military, prison, or minimum wage employment, suggesting that it is a place of obligation and not education, is fundamentally Doing It Wrong. In my opinion.
Four: The student appeals to a larger "A"uthority, whether that is a principal who overrules an overreaching teacher or a superintendent who overrules an overreaching principal, or wider society (media, politicians, twitter campaigns, etc) to shame an overreaching school system into behaving. Which happens regularly.
I had to make enough decisions and was made fun of for many reasons. I was so glad to have to not make decisions about clothes and have another thing where my choices would be used to mock me.
There can at times be a fundamental disconnect on the school uniform issue between those of us that grew up in countries where they're normal and broadly accepted, and those that grew up in countries where they're a bit weird and normally only applied, if at all, at expensive private schools—the US, as a specific, can't have uniforms at state schools for First Amendment issues, no idea about Canada.
To some, being able to wear what you want to school is a fundamental freedom to issue. To others, not having to choose clothes and be subject to fasion based bullying, etc is a fundamental freedom from issue.
There's evidence that uniforms assist attainment of lower socio-economic group children if all children wear them. But if the uniform rules are stupid or badly enforced then that gain is destroyed. The evidence, however, isn't conclusive.
In many schools, unfortunately, uniform/guidelines for dress aren't enforced properly, and are frequently used against female students in a horrifically sexist manner, with attitudes most consider outdated towards the female body and the "distraction" it entails.
More often than not, when a female student is called out because of, as in this example, leggings, it's because some idiotic prude thinks she's wearing "sexy provocative" clothing deliberately instead of simply wearing something comfortable.
My school went through this 20 years ago when I was there in the 6th form (no uniforms in 6th form, just guidelines), that it's still an ongoing argument is something I find mind boggling, WTF is wrong with leggings FFS?
One thing I know very well is that school children are keen to tease each other about any little thing and, as someone who was never terribly fashion conscious, I personally found it helpful not to have to worry about what to wear. Sure, I recognised it was an impingement on my freedom, but then again I was a child. My freedom was impinged all over the place. That's how you raise children: by giving them clear safe guidelines for what they can expect and what is expected of them. If you just let them do whatever they wanted and gave them no kind of secure expectations, that would be neglectful.
It seems to me that the fuss over leggings comes partly from teachers not having any idea what the school wants the kids to wear. I think it may well come from unclear guidelines, rather than overly draconian ones. After all, I cannot imagine a group of male and female teachers coming together in a meeting and setting out in their rules "no leggings" without someone questioning it (though that's possibly rather overly charitable of me). There's probably some more vague description like "modest" which the teacher has to awkwardly interpret.
Of course, my suggestion was that if the guidelines were even more restrictive, such fusses would not occur. Either the school allows all girls to wear leggings and the teacher can happily ignore them, or the school denies any girl to wear leggings (because it's not part of the uniform) and the girl will know full well that it is not a piece of clothing she should be wearing in the first place. (And if a whole bunch of girls feel differently, they can always suggest a change in the uniform.) But clearly the very idea of a uniform touched a nerve and I guess I'm only confused by that because I'm in an area where uniforms are simply the norm.
Of course, I'm sure in this school there is still the possibility that the girl could change the guidelines on what they are or are not allowed to wear. I don't think the school is terribly likely to see her little note as anything other than bad behaviour though. Rather than writing snarky messages on disciplinary notes, she might be better off asking her mum, dad or legal guardian to talk to the school about it. If even the parents are saying "this is ludicrous", schools are much more likely to take the issue seriously.
Rather than writing snarky messages on disciplinary notes, she might be better off asking her mum, dad or legal guardian to talk to the school about it.
Did you miss the "must be completed before you leave" part on that insipid form?
Did you miss the "must be completed before you leave" part on that insipid form?
No, but I'm not sure it is relevant. Clearly if they produce a disciplinary form like that, they'll want it filled in. Writing "this must be filled in" on the form seems rather unnecessary. The school admin could write whatever requirements they wanted on the form and "because the teacher is standing over me and telling me to" would still be the reason why it was actually completed.
Basically I'm disinclined to blame the teacher, since in my experience this sort of thing tends to be the fault of the school's management team. I don't think most teachers want to make a fuss over clothing requirements. They do it, because they are badgered to do so.
Well, she had to write something on the form before she left.
So she could write something it's plausible she thinks is truthful (what you call "snarky") on the form before she went to talk to her legal guardian, or she could lie on the form (but not be "snarky") before she went to talk to her legal guardian.
Either way, the only way she could talk to her legal guardian before writing on the form is by kicking up such an ever-loving fuss that the school contacted her guardian on her behalf, and her guardian came down, and she talked to them in person.
The relevance is pointing out that you are suggesting she might have been better off causing that disruption than filling out the form in a truthful fashion.
This is frankly a bit at odds with your suggestion that it's important the school environment be less disruptive. Unless you are saying "it's good that the school environment not have opportunities to be disrupted, but in this case it's also good for students--i.e., it will cause them to be better off--to cause disruption instead of filling out a paper form."
Since you seem to be running with a bit of an either/or assumption, here, I am also going to note that there is nothing which makes filling out the form an action which is mutually exclusive with talking to her guardian about it.
(Unless you are working on the assumption that sixteen-year-olds practically always operate by the truism "Wow, I wrote about something I thought was dumb and unfair, so obviously I can't ever talk to anyone about it!")
After all, I cannot imagine a group of male and female teachers coming together in a meeting and setting out in their rules "no leggings" without someone questioning it (though that's possibly rather overly charitable of me).
Just to point out that whether or not someone questions it is not relevant to whether or not it is actually a rule which teachers are then acquired to abide by:
(I mean, I can't imagine a school having a uniform in this day and age without someone questioning it, but that doesn't mean I'm oblivious to the fact that some schools actually have uniforms.)
I think the difference of opinion we have here is that you think what she wrote is simply "the truth", whereas I think it was intentionally disrespectful to a member of staff who was simply following the rules.
Clearly you can get an education without wearing leggings. The suggestion in those comments that the teacher is enforcing the school policy (as required by the school managers) because she doesn't care about the student's education is unfair, rude and intentionally hurtful. There were more diplomatic ways to write 'the truth' than that.
In any case, I think what she wrote on the piece of paper is unimportant. I cannot imagine that anyone really cares about what is written on the paper, except perhaps to use it as evidence of the child's poor attitude (which is why I think what she wrote was a mistake).
It would make more sense to appeal to the teachers' better nature and encourage them to recognise the need for a change in the rules. But what she wrote on the note is unlikely to be so important as what her parents say on the subject. The snarky comment can ONLY hinder any positive progress.
Every school near me has a uniform. The schools I went to growing up had uniforms. I don't really understand why it should be considered a big deal. It's just one less thing to get teased about...
Worrying about what your students are wearing, (and it's usually females, so it's sexist too) is a waste of time. Uniforms invoke conformity, and if that's your main lesson you can stick it where the sun don't shine.
Rebellious students and the rebellions they've started are more important than your straight rows of identical students marching to the state approved music.
In my thinking we need to encourage imaginative students to be different, they are the lifeblood of our society and our future. I'd discuss other cultures and the danger of conformity, but then I'd be invoking Godwin's Law.
You say uniforms invoke conformity. Well yeah, I guess. But only conformity of appearance.
Education should not be about appearance. So a uniform takes that out of the equation. It's also about a common identity.
A teacher is told that students shouldn't wear leggings and the student writes a snarky comment because they aren't getting their way. And you call it a rebellion? It's ludicrous. Teachers have better things to do with their time. Complaining about crummy school rules is not a rebellion. The school, the teachers in particular, are there to HELP the students, not to be antagonising figures. Why would you want to lose sight of that?
Students in uniform are wearing the name of the school where they were taught their skills and where they are encouraged to develop their imaginations. Their uniform represents a group identity with their fellow students and any differences between those students outside of the school grounds mean nothing inside the school. People from all walks of life are at the school to learn together.
If you want to compare wearing a school uniform to Nazism, then go ahead. I can only presume you are holding back from that because secretly you already know how daft you would sound.
The school I went to as a child had uniforms, too. This has in no way made it difficult for me to understand why some people consider it a big deal (although it did enable me to notice that it was still perfectly possible to get teased about appearance, even appearance of the uniform).
That said, you've established that your imagination doesn't extend to "schools might have a rule against leggings", your understanding doesn't extend to "why some people might think the question of wearing uniforms matters", and your critical responses imply and "non-disruptive environments are great so it's better for a student to disrupt them in order to contact her parents instead of completing a form" (and "a sixteen-year-old can either fill out a form or complain about an unfair regulation").
(Plus I checked and you were the person assuming "obviously an incredibly qualified 24/7 personal assistant to and criminal co-conspirator with a billionaire in the modern era is poor because Downton Abbey".)
As a result, I really think it's not productive to engage with you anymore! Feel free to have the last word, good day.
(Plus I checked and you were the person assuming "obviously an incredibly qualified 24/7 personal assistant to and criminal co-conspirator with a billionaire in the modern era is poor because Downton Abbey".)
I think you may have me confused with someone else.
Well, no, not really, they didn't. But I'm a bad example for any case; at best, I'm an anecdote. But anecdotally, I was taught some rules. I was also taught to question stupid rules. I was given opportunities to discuss stupid rules, respectfully. And I learned, not by accident, I suppose, to subvert stupid rules.
I think it's kind of odd that you both assume that the teacher is making a decision as to what's meant by an unclear policy and that she's simply following the rules. If the rules are vague, and she's imposing her own judgment as to what they mean, then she's not really just following them, it seems to me.
Of course, the problem is that we don't know the teacher, or the dress code policy. The teacher could be a wonderful educator who has no choice but to enforce a zero tolerance "no leggings" directive handed down from the administrators. Or she could be a petty dictator more interested in imposing her own interpretation of the rules upon her students than she is in teaching them. Most likely, she's somewhere between the two extremes.
If she's closer to the first, then yes, the student's comment was unfair, rude, and intentionally hurtful. If she's closer to the second, the student's comment was simply accurate. Why give the teacher the benefit of the doubt, while denying the same to the student?
Why give the teacher the benefit of the doubt, while denying the same to the student?
I wasn't aware that I was being unfair to the student. The student definitely wrote a rude and hurtful message. The question is whether the teacher deserved it or not.
If the rules clearly state that the student shouldn't wear leggings then the teacher is only doing their job by enforcing those rules. If the teacher has had to interpret unclear rules then the teacher has been put in an awkward position, so I'd say the students' reaction was still unfair.
Imagining that the teacher chose that profession especially so they could spend their time enforcing petty clothing rules sounds like a bizarre fantasy scenario. As calm and confident as teachers might often seem, they have a lot of work to do. They don't give themselves extra work for fun, y'know? Do you like paperwork in your job? This form the student filled out is a piece of paperwork which the teacher has to process.
I've had great teachers and I've had clock-punchers and I've had tyrants. Just because you can't imagine a teacher going out of her way to be petty doesn't mean it doesn't happen. Lucky you that you've never seen it, I guess. *shrug*
[Edit] I should add that, no, I don't believe anybody chooses to be a teacher so they can make kids dress how they want them to dress. But there are plenty of people who choose to become teachers who turn out to not really be suited for the job, and quickly lose interest in actually teaching. My brother had an English teacher in high school who did nothing but hand out sheets with word puzzles on them, all year long. Solving them was their homework. Assigning them books to read would have been less work for him than grading those hand-outs day in and day out, and would have benefitted the kids more, yet he chose to stick with his bizarre word-puzzle curriculum.
I was not taught any critical thinking skills by my parents, but learned them from friends and books and the internet. You can bet that they're lessons I've been passing on to my nieces and to my students. Rules should have good reasons behind them and I make sure to point out when they don't, even if we have to follow them because of circumstance. I don't want these kids growing up with the idea that you only have to be a good person who treats others well and respects the better end of social mores/contracts when someone's watching. Authoritative parenting, yo. Empathy and situational awareness are pretty great.
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(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-06 06:21 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-06 11:06 pm (UTC)Not sure what was so important about leggings. Most schools where I live have school uniform, which helps to avoid this sort of issue. If people wear different clothing under those circumstances it either means: there's something wrong with the uniform (in which case there is a case for changing that for everyone - or for select circumstances), they want to wear something more stylish (in which case they are showing off and being selfish towards those who can't afford stylish clothes), they are rebelling (in which case that probably isn't the only way they'll rebel and they may be hard to teach if that sort of thing isn't dealt with).
I don't know how schools handle things when they let children wear whatever they want with a few arbitrary guidelines. I can imagine students competing with casual clothes being a bit of a distraction.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-06 11:57 pm (UTC)How uncivilised.
they want to wear something more stylish (in which case they are showing off and being selfish towards those who can't afford stylish clothes),
How shallow. Your analysis, not them, for the record.
they are rebelling (in which case that probably isn't the only way they'll rebel and they may be hard to teach if that sort of thing isn't dealt with).
.... you don't know any students, or teachers, do you.
I don't know how schools handle things when they let children wear whatever they want with a few arbitrary guidelines.
By acting like educators, not poorly trained prison guards?
I can imagine students competing with casual clothes being a bit of a distraction.
Extremely unlikely, and also easily dealt with, as anyone who's dealt with schools or students could tell you.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 12:11 am (UTC)The student submits to Authority,
The student voluntarily transfers out,
the student is expelled.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 12:24 am (UTC)I don't know why you'd have a problem with school uniforms. It means that there's no competing to wear the best clothes. Children in school clothes are simply representing their school. The focus is therefore on education, not on fashion.
You say that is "uncivilised". I have no idea what you mean.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 01:10 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 01:14 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 01:20 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 01:23 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 01:32 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 02:12 am (UTC)What's your point?
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 04:54 am (UTC)To some, being able to wear what you want to school is a fundamental freedom to issue. To others, not having to choose clothes and be subject to fasion based bullying, etc is a fundamental freedom from issue.
There's evidence that uniforms assist attainment of lower socio-economic group children if all children wear them. But if the uniform rules are stupid or badly enforced then that gain is destroyed. The evidence, however, isn't conclusive.
In many schools, unfortunately, uniform/guidelines for dress aren't enforced properly, and are frequently used against female students in a horrifically sexist manner, with attitudes most consider outdated towards the female body and the "distraction" it entails.
More often than not, when a female student is called out because of, as in this example, leggings, it's because some idiotic prude thinks she's wearing "sexy provocative" clothing deliberately instead of simply wearing something comfortable.
My school went through this 20 years ago when I was there in the 6th form (no uniforms in 6th form, just guidelines), that it's still an ongoing argument is something I find mind boggling, WTF is wrong with leggings FFS?
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 09:48 am (UTC)One thing I know very well is that school children are keen to tease each other about any little thing and, as someone who was never terribly fashion conscious, I personally found it helpful not to have to worry about what to wear. Sure, I recognised it was an impingement on my freedom, but then again I was a child. My freedom was impinged all over the place. That's how you raise children: by giving them clear safe guidelines for what they can expect and what is expected of them. If you just let them do whatever they wanted and gave them no kind of secure expectations, that would be neglectful.
It seems to me that the fuss over leggings comes partly from teachers not having any idea what the school wants the kids to wear. I think it may well come from unclear guidelines, rather than overly draconian ones. After all, I cannot imagine a group of male and female teachers coming together in a meeting and setting out in their rules "no leggings" without someone questioning it (though that's possibly rather overly charitable of me). There's probably some more vague description like "modest" which the teacher has to awkwardly interpret.
Of course, my suggestion was that if the guidelines were even more restrictive, such fusses would not occur. Either the school allows all girls to wear leggings and the teacher can happily ignore them, or the school denies any girl to wear leggings (because it's not part of the uniform) and the girl will know full well that it is not a piece of clothing she should be wearing in the first place. (And if a whole bunch of girls feel differently, they can always suggest a change in the uniform.) But clearly the very idea of a uniform touched a nerve and I guess I'm only confused by that because I'm in an area where uniforms are simply the norm.
Of course, I'm sure in this school there is still the possibility that the girl could change the guidelines on what they are or are not allowed to wear. I don't think the school is terribly likely to see her little note as anything other than bad behaviour though. Rather than writing snarky messages on disciplinary notes, she might be better off asking her mum, dad or legal guardian to talk to the school about it. If even the parents are saying "this is ludicrous", schools are much more likely to take the issue seriously.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 03:27 pm (UTC)Did you miss the "must be completed before you leave" part on that insipid form?
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 04:13 pm (UTC)No, but I'm not sure it is relevant. Clearly if they produce a disciplinary form like that, they'll want it filled in. Writing "this must be filled in" on the form seems rather unnecessary. The school admin could write whatever requirements they wanted on the form and "because the teacher is standing over me and telling me to" would still be the reason why it was actually completed.
Basically I'm disinclined to blame the teacher, since in my experience this sort of thing tends to be the fault of the school's management team. I don't think most teachers want to make a fuss over clothing requirements. They do it, because they are badgered to do so.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 04:27 pm (UTC)So she could write something it's plausible she thinks is truthful (what you call "snarky") on the form before she went to talk to her legal guardian, or she could lie on the form (but not be "snarky") before she went to talk to her legal guardian.
Either way, the only way she could talk to her legal guardian before writing on the form is by kicking up such an ever-loving fuss that the school contacted her guardian on her behalf, and her guardian came down, and she talked to them in person.
The relevance is pointing out that you are suggesting she might have been better off causing that disruption than filling out the form in a truthful fashion.
This is frankly a bit at odds with your suggestion that it's important the school environment be less disruptive. Unless you are saying "it's good that the school environment not have opportunities to be disrupted, but in this case it's also good for students--i.e., it will cause them to be better off--to cause disruption instead of filling out a paper form."
Since you seem to be running with a bit of an either/or assumption, here, I am also going to note that there is nothing which makes filling out the form an action which is mutually exclusive with talking to her guardian about it.
(Unless you are working on the assumption that sixteen-year-olds practically always operate by the truism "Wow, I wrote about something I thought was dumb and unfair, so obviously I can't ever talk to anyone about it!")
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 04:37 pm (UTC)Just to point out that whether or not someone questions it is not relevant to whether or not it is actually a rule which teachers are then acquired to abide by:
http://life.nationalpost.com/2014/04/16/girls-leggings-banned-at-some-u-s-schools-while-others-wonder-how-far-a-dress-code-should-go/
(I mean, I can't imagine a school having a uniform in this day and age without someone questioning it, but that doesn't mean I'm oblivious to the fact that some schools actually have uniforms.)
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 04:45 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 07:56 pm (UTC)Clearly you can get an education without wearing leggings. The suggestion in those comments that the teacher is enforcing the school policy (as required by the school managers) because she doesn't care about the student's education is unfair, rude and intentionally hurtful. There were more diplomatic ways to write 'the truth' than that.
In any case, I think what she wrote on the piece of paper is unimportant. I cannot imagine that anyone really cares about what is written on the paper, except perhaps to use it as evidence of the child's poor attitude (which is why I think what she wrote was a mistake).
It would make more sense to appeal to the teachers' better nature and encourage them to recognise the need for a change in the rules. But what she wrote on the note is unlikely to be so important as what her parents say on the subject. The snarky comment can ONLY hinder any positive progress.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-07 08:00 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 01:54 pm (UTC)Rebellious students and the rebellions they've started are more important than your straight rows of identical students marching to the state approved music.
In my thinking we need to encourage imaginative students to be different, they are the lifeblood of our society and our future. I'd discuss other cultures and the danger of conformity, but then I'd be invoking Godwin's Law.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 03:51 pm (UTC)Education should not be about appearance. So a uniform takes that out of the equation. It's also about a common identity.
A teacher is told that students shouldn't wear leggings and the student writes a snarky comment because they aren't getting their way. And you call it a rebellion? It's ludicrous. Teachers have better things to do with their time. Complaining about crummy school rules is not a rebellion. The school, the teachers in particular, are there to HELP the students, not to be antagonising figures. Why would you want to lose sight of that?
Students in uniform are wearing the name of the school where they were taught their skills and where they are encouraged to develop their imaginations. Their uniform represents a group identity with their fellow students and any differences between those students outside of the school grounds mean nothing inside the school. People from all walks of life are at the school to learn together.
If you want to compare wearing a school uniform to Nazism, then go ahead. I can only presume you are holding back from that because secretly you already know how daft you would sound.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 04:20 pm (UTC)That said, you've established that your imagination doesn't extend to "schools might have a rule against leggings", your understanding doesn't extend to "why some people might think the question of wearing uniforms matters", and your critical responses imply and "non-disruptive environments are great so it's better for a student to disrupt them in order to contact her parents instead of completing a form" (and "a sixteen-year-old can either fill out a form or complain about an unfair regulation").
(Plus I checked and you were the person assuming "obviously an incredibly qualified 24/7 personal assistant to and criminal co-conspirator with a billionaire in the modern era is poor because Downton Abbey".)
As a result, I really think it's not productive to engage with you anymore! Feel free to have the last word, good day.
*plonk*
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 04:23 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 04:38 pm (UTC)I think you may have me confused with someone else.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 04:41 pm (UTC)One way or another, a loving family involves rules.
A neglectful parent has no rules because they have no expectations.
That's not to say there aren't sometimes stupid rules, particularly from school bureaucracies.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 04:45 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 04:58 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-08 05:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-09 03:59 am (UTC)That said, I think I was ruder to you than you deserve, and for that I apologize.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-09 04:00 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-09 11:54 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-09 04:47 pm (UTC)Of course, the problem is that we don't know the teacher, or the dress code policy. The teacher could be a wonderful educator who has no choice but to enforce a zero tolerance "no leggings" directive handed down from the administrators. Or she could be a petty dictator more interested in imposing her own interpretation of the rules upon her students than she is in teaching them. Most likely, she's somewhere between the two extremes.
If she's closer to the first, then yes, the student's comment was unfair, rude, and intentionally hurtful. If she's closer to the second, the student's comment was simply accurate. Why give the teacher the benefit of the doubt, while denying the same to the student?
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-09 09:22 pm (UTC)I wasn't aware that I was being unfair to the student. The student definitely wrote a rude and hurtful message. The question is whether the teacher deserved it or not.
If the rules clearly state that the student shouldn't wear leggings then the teacher is only doing their job by enforcing those rules. If the teacher has had to interpret unclear rules then the teacher has been put in an awkward position, so I'd say the students' reaction was still unfair.
Imagining that the teacher chose that profession especially so they could spend their time enforcing petty clothing rules sounds like a bizarre fantasy scenario. As calm and confident as teachers might often seem, they have a lot of work to do. They don't give themselves extra work for fun, y'know? Do you like paperwork in your job? This form the student filled out is a piece of paperwork which the teacher has to process.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-10 01:24 am (UTC)[Edit] I should add that, no, I don't believe anybody chooses to be a teacher so they can make kids dress how they want them to dress. But there are plenty of people who choose to become teachers who turn out to not really be suited for the job, and quickly lose interest in actually teaching. My brother had an English teacher in high school who did nothing but hand out sheets with word puzzles on them, all year long. Solving them was their homework. Assigning them books to read would have been less work for him than grading those hand-outs day in and day out, and would have benefitted the kids more, yet he chose to stick with his bizarre word-puzzle curriculum.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-10 10:57 pm (UTC)#teachersnark
(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-10 11:07 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-06-11 06:40 am (UTC)