So yesterday i had a crash with a teacher. I dont know him and he doesnt know me either, then i ask myself why be disrespectfull with a person you dont even know, even if im a student im 23 years old human being with rights and deserve to be treated with respect!
So it started like this.I missed a practicum because of my panic attacks, we are working with dangerous chemicals so i thought it wasnt a good idea to go and some teachers said this too. I took a pill that usually calms me down so i wouldnt miss the other classes and i did go to them, that was a big achievement for me eventhough i missed that one practicum.
When you miss one praticum class there is a chance in the end of the semester to do it again but i didnt want to wait until then so i looked in the schoolagenda and find out when there is the same practicum. My sister did this too one time and adivice me to do it too and not waste time.Thats when i found this ‘teacher’ . I asked my sister if he knew him and she told me bad stories about him. I didnt make any judgements since i dont know him, after some days of thinking, i decided to try and email him to ask if i can participate in his class. Okay, so far so good he sent me an email telling me that its ok for me to come as long as i make sure to have a good preparation for the praticum which i already did. Then a few hours later he sent me another email. The bomp dropped!
He told me he read some things about me and he read why i wasnt present in the first class of anohter teacher. I didnt wrote panic attack because i knew every teacher would be able to read it and didnt want everyone to know. This is when i remember that the teachers said when you have a migraine its better not to come, so i wrote this instead. He then send me a disrespectfull email saying something like this (its in dutch so im going to try to translate): This class is about nitrovitrol and not about aspirene so i better look for another date. at first i thought this was a joke since he already told me that i can come to his class. So i nicely send him another email asking him what he meant. Then he explain to me that he meant that his practicum will not take away my headache (aspirine). I told him that i had this migraine last week and if i still had it i wouldnt be looking for another class and that this joke isnt right for a teacher to do. He said i may not like this but thats the fact; its not an aspirine practicum and wished me good luck with trying to look for another class.
This is when i though its too much. This is not a good reason to not let a student in your class; becuause its not an aspirine practicum? I was confused since he told be yes first, and now he comes with this. You are a teacher and this is your job. Even if you dont want me in your class for whatever personal reason there are better ways to say this, i would understand if hed done so and let it be. I have another chance to do this class, just wanted to do it earlier since i have the option to do so. I treated you with respect why dont treat me this way back. I asked many student about him, they told me they have already talk to teachers to talk with him because his always screaming and being disrespectull. We are not 10 year olds we are adults trying to make something with our lifes and the fact that you did it already doesnt mean you are more than us. Usually im the shy and quiet one, so he might found this out and thought i wouldnt do anything about this. But this is going to far. Im paying to get classes and if you dont want to then you shouldnt be paid. If you cant deal with students then why be a teacher?? If you dont have manners and respect to deal with people then why be a teacher?? I told him i would never be in his class if this is how he treats students and that im going to bring his behaviour forward. Im going to use all his disrespectfull emails and go forward with them. How can you deny a student in your class because of this and in this matter? People like this shouldnt be working as a teacher.
This sounds weird… How about talking to another teacher, one you trust and who knows about your condition, and explain things? Maybe all three of you could meet and talk things over? It”s often easy to read things into e-mails, and he can of course have misunderstood you, or he might have had a bad day?
Good luck!
Best wishes, marie