Stupid Award

[Veronica]

My school is getting a traveling trophy for having the highest percentage of attendance this year.

I am so thrilled that I have had so many of students in school snuffling, sneezing and coughing all over each other. I'm sure I didn't get this cold that I have had since Tuesday from any of them.

I think instead of a trophy we should get a supply of kleenex. I've gone through 4 boxes myself this week.

V.

[Starfish]

snuffling, sneezing and coughing all over each other.

I used to tell folks I supervised, if you think you are going to get brownie points by showing up sick, hacking and coughing and sneezing all over the office, guess again. One sick person out can be a hassle, but if they take out the whole group, it is really a hassle.

[maillotpois]

Wow. That is a stupid award!

[Veronica]

I would have loved to call in sick Wed. & Thursday.

Wed. we had our Walk Through the Revolution program, which the class had been prepping for six weeks. I was not leaving that to a sub to handle that. And frankly, I really didn't want to miss it. They had worked so hard on their plays and character presentations.

Thursday was the day before vacation started. Taking a sick day the day before vacation is seriously frowned upon, plus it can be really hard to get a sub.

I just wish parents would keep their kids home if they are sneezing or coughing repeatedly.

V.

[OakLeaf]

I've been reading how workplace productivity is dragged down by what they call "presenteeism," and bosses are trying to impress on their employees to stay home when they're sick.

If only schools would get that idea (and if only there were a good alternative for parents whose kids have colds, etc.).

[Trek420]

I just wish parents would keep their kids home if they are sneezing or coughing repeatedly.

V.

Well, if their parents work where I work it's not a normal job. We don't have sick days. Instead If I call in sick I'm paid, if I do it enough (a formula that varies wildly and is kept in a tower gaurded by elves) I'm fired.

Recently I called in sick, took the day which happened to be a Friday ... then came back. I find now I'm wildly considered daft by my coworkers not because I ride but because I did not take 3 days off. It's the same black mark on your attendance according to the formula in the tower to take 3 days off as 1 day and I'd be paid for all 3 so why not get better and take a mini vacation?

But I truly was not sick the other days. It's not that I'm devoted to my employer or work, it's a karma thing. If I needed the time I'd take it, I didn't.

If we had sick days then people like me who are (knock on wood) generally healthy could save those up and yes, use it for vacation or to get work done or whatever.

Instead we waste so much time first off as people trying to figure out how to "get over" on this system. And we have triple absentees of a simple "you have sick days, they accrue, use them, if you don't they carry over" system.

Congrats on your award V.

[Veronica]

Teachers are not nurses, babysitters or day care providers.

If you have not been in a classroom with 33 kids in it, you need to go see one. Don't go to an old school built in the 50s or 60s. Go to a new fangled one, built in the 90s or later. Classrooms have gotten smaller over the years. The kids are crammed in and have no space. One kid sneezes and poof everyone is infected. We are not allowed to have hot water in faucets available to the children. They might burn themselves. Plus there aren't enough faucets for the six kids to use when one kid in their table group sneezes. Oh and it's a really good use of academic time to have 6 kids wash their hands every time one of them sneezes.

Hand sanitizer you say... who's going to provide it? I can't buy replacement copies of one of our core lit books because there is a freeze on spending. Thank you very much guvinator.

If your job doesn't allow you to take sick time to spend with your sick kids, maybe you should not have had children in the first place. Their health is not the teacher's responsibility.

Every day that I am out sick is a day of academics lost. I know this because of the chaos I find when I return from being sick and from watching the absolutely disrespectful way kids treat substitute teachers. I am not talking about just a little extra whispering here, but flat out rudeness. Maybe it's just the school I'm in, but we have some extremely disrespectful kids and parents. It is also not only the teacher's job to teach children to have respect for others. Parents need to have a part in that too.


Must go hack up a lung...

V.

[Crankin]

I agree, V. I always cringe when kids and teachers get awards for perfect attendance. Everyone gets sick!

[SandyLS]

My Grand daughter's high school did the trophy idea one better (well, worse, I guess). If the kids missed under a certain number of days they did not have to take final exams! Talk about a reason to spread germs around!

[sarahlou]

I just have to chime in here having been a substitute teacher every day for two years (thank god it is over). I was sick at least one week out of every month if not more. I had kids come in with globs of green from their nose to their chin and much, much worse. When the teacher was out sick I usually got what they had soon after (it is hard to sanitize a teacher's desk).

As for the rude kids and their rude parents, they're everywhere. I had the principal call me in to his office after he had a complaint about me from a parent- apparently asking their "highly gifted" third grader (who couldn't/wouldn't shut up all day) to "zip their lips" was offensive. I thought I was being rather reserved as I really wanted to tell this child to "shut the *(&^%$# up". And then there are the teachers who don't leave lesson plans and expect the day to go smoothly... Ahhh, I don't miss it one bit!

Feel better soon.

[Lifesgreat]

Years ago, a family member responded to a newspaper article commending a student's perfect attendence for elementary/jr high/high school. My family member's published letter to the editor stated while attending school is admirable, to achieve perfect attendance for so many years surely meant the student attended school while ill, and it was selfish and unkind to expose classmates and faculty to illness to win an award.

It didn't go over too well with the awardee's family. . .

[uforgot]

I agree about not coming to school sick, but then you have the flip side. The student who stays home at the least sign of discomfort, real or imagined. These kids miss at least 1 day a week and it's really a lot of fun gathering up their homework (that chances are they aren't going to do at home anyway) and then grading their assignments that are late. We also have kids missing because they are babysitting (excuse me, but this is the PARENT'S responsibility), hair appointments, hunting, etc. I had a student (with an attendance problem) miss because the whole family went with his grandmother when she had her colonoscopy. We have gone to not even regarding absences as excused or unexcused because as the administration says "We are not going to penalize the kids that tell the truth". Our district has implemented an attendance policy on the number of days a student can miss in order to cut down on absenteeism. We also have a policy that if you have a fever or the nurse deems you sick, you have to go home. You don't get a choice. I have sent kids to the nurse that I don't think should be around others, and they are sent home, but if the parents can't be reached, they spend the day with the nurse.

Oh, my, thanks for letting me get this off my chest! I realize I drifted a bit from the original "don't go to work sick" remarks.

Edit: Oh, by the way, I'm one of those kids who got perfect attendance many times in school. No, I didn't go sick, it just so happens that I have had a total of about 3 colds in my life, and the flu once. This year for the flu. When my doctor wanted to know why I didn't get a flu shot at 53, I remarked, "Why should I, I've never had the flu before!". She replied "Oh, yeah, good point".

[Veronica]

What's a school nurse?

We have a district nurse. The only time I've seen her on campus is when she came to teach us how to give insulin injections to our kids with diabetes.

V.

[Velobambina]

I agree w/you, V.

One of my former higher ups has cancer and his immune system is suppressed. He has to avoid people who insist on coming into work sick.

[Geonz]

When I worked in a school where I knew I was leaving at the end of the year, my co-workers were very surprised that I didn't "take all my sick days," but surprised in a positive way. It was a somewhat dangerous school and teachers were either their putting in time or were there with a missionary spirit. Since I was leaving, the positive ones were impressed that I valued what we were doing enough to keep doing it.
I did take some personal days - like that court appearance 'cause if you forgot to put your county sticker on your car and they pulled you over, if you showed up in court with proof that you'd paid it you didn't have to pay the fine. Of course, I didn't tell my students that's why I had to go to court - being on the other side of the law was a good thing in their eyes...