Last night I went to my teenager’s Parent Teacher meeting. Started crying my eyes out after the first teacher, a particularly hatchet faced French women who teaches SVT (Sciences de la vie et de la terre). She made it clear that my child was an utter disappointment. I struggled to hold in the tears for the next session.
Most parents are Francophile. French mothers are thin, chic and wear velvet-covered hairbands. They wear a lot of navy and are still tanned from various holidays. The men wear pink shirts and carry expensive looking satchels that look suspiciously like handbags. Other English mums don’t come, having the choice to send in their French husbands.
I’m on my own as usual. I scan the hallways for the next teacher. We have appointments at 15 minute intervals.
Then came a long evening with a selection of teachers saying that my teenager is lazy, arrogant, rude, doesn’t work, doesn’t listen, is overly physical with boys in school etc.
Some of this criticism was in French.
“Elle ne travaille pas.”
“Elle ne participe pas”.
Worse, considering all the years and money I have spent in ensuring she gets a bilingual education:
“Elle ne parle pas le francais”.
The real low point came when her male music teacher, almost sobbing, said that boys were ‘bluetoothing’ nude photographs of themselves to her mobile phone. In class. Great.
Everybody else seems to have perfect kids.
Anonymous
February 1, 2008 at 10:26 amDon't take it too much to heart…last year my daughter (13years old) was terrible at college. Didn't work, was hanging out with 2 horrible boys who were eventually expelled. I was always called to school for one thing or another. Last night I went to her parents evening and one teacher said "Hello, we never see you any more" i replied that I didn't need to come anymore except for parent meetings. She is now getting good grades and is rarely told off at school and does her homework. It's such a releif and she is happier to. She was really bolshy at the time. Hope it goes like that with your daughter!!
marmite lover
February 1, 2008 at 12:06 pmMe too. Thanks for light at end of tunnel!