Impatient Parents

Case Analysis
 
Summary:
            An upset mother comes to the high school because she believes her daughter is being
bullied by a male student in her Geometry class. The mother is wanting to immediately speak to
the principal and get the issued resolved, but the principal is out of the building at another
meeting. The secretary found the assistant principal and she was able speak with the mother
about the problem. The mother is adamant that she does not have much time because she is on
her way to work. She tells the assistant principal who she thinks is doing this to her daughter and
that she wants the issue resolved immediately and gets up to leave. The assistant principal
promises her that she will follow up with her as soon as possible.
Issues to Resolve:

 Why the boys who were laughing and making fun of the girl.
 Discovering if there is any link between the boy and the phone number that is calling the
girl.
 Meeting with the Geometry teacher and having him explain what he sees taking place in
class.
 How long has this behavior been going on.
Stakeholders Involved:

 Parents
 Administration
 Students
 Teacher
Laws or Court Rulings:
In the case of Davis Vs. Monroe County Board of Education, it was decided that a public school
may be liable for the harassment going on if it meets certain requirements. In this scenario, if this
boy has in fact been calling, texting and bothering this girl at school and it’s a continuous
problem, this could fall under this ruling.
In the Illinois Bullying Prevention Law, it discusses what school districts and schools should do
to education the faculty, families and students in their schools of what constitutes as bullying and
each school should have and maintain a policy handbook on bullying.
District Policies:
Bullying, cyber-bullying, hazing, and retaliation of students and employees are against federal
law, state law, and District policy, and are not tolerated by the District or its schools.
It is the intent of the District to respond to school-related incidents by implementing prevention
efforts where victims can be identified and assessed, and perpetrators educated, in order to create
safer schools that provide a positive learning environment.
Solutions:
 Impatient Parents
 Hold a meeting with the boys and their parents to discuss unacceptable behavior that has
taken place at school and contacting the student on her phone. Have them complete an
online course on teasing, bullying, and harassment and the effects that can have on a
person.
 Meet with the girl and her parents and discuss the protocols that the school is taking to
ensure that she has a safe learning environment.
 Meet with the geometry teacher to review classroom management and classroom and
school policy. Discuss the importance of communicating with parents as soon as time
permits. Remind him that he can always come to administration if a problem occurs.
Action Steps:

1. A meeting will be held with parents where consequences will begiven.

2. The boys will be suspended from school for 2 days while he completes this course on
acceptable and safe school behavior.
3. The mother of the girl will be immediately contacted to update her on the protocols and
to ensure the safety of her daughter during school.
4. A meeting with the teacher will be held to address the problems that occurred during
class and solutions to fix that from happening in the future.
Potential Moral and Legal Consequences:
The boys could not be responsible for the phone calls and texts which would make families upset
for them being accused and investigated for that. The mother of the girl may not like how things
were handled and take things to the district. The girl may not have been honest about what took
place in class and the teacher could get upset for being reprimanded for poorly managing his
classroom.
 
Rationale
As educators and professionals, it is our duty to ensure the safety and learning for each one of
our students. Along with that, we must also maintain good relationships with their families and
allow for open lines of communication. When parents come to us with concerns or frustrations, it
is our job to investigate those things and try to solve those problems in ways that is best for all
parties involved. Although it can be difficult to handle parents when they are upset or angry with
things going on in school, we need to take their concerns seriously and address them properly
and as quickly as possible. Investigations may need to be made to get to the bottom of the issues
going on and we must maintain contact with the parents and ensure them that the problem is
being taken care of.
Students need to know that there are consequences, good and bad, for their actions. Especially at
the secondary level when students have a fuller understanding of how behavior and actions can
alter the safety and learning of their peers, they need to understand, that is not a right of theirs.
Students must work towards becoming honest and good citizens of their communities, and many
of those skills are learned in school. Students need to learn to take responsibility for their actions
and accept the positive and negative consequences that follow suit.
 Impatient Parents
Teachers must make sure that their classrooms are a safe place for learning, and behavior
expectations are the same and upheld by all students. Our teachers also need to know that we are
on their side and we want to help them and support them in any way that we can. We need to all
do our part as a team in working together with all stakeholders to handle situations in a safe and
professional manor.