Protect teachers from high-handed parents

Teachers’ complaints are endless. “When I once again instructed a student to bring a material for our class, other students blamed it on his bad habits. Then, they complained about the school violence they suffered from the student. One hour after I returned to the teachers’ room, I was sued for child abuse. The student’s parents said they would forgive me if I apologized.” Another teacher said, “A parent of a student asked me to give a morning call to his daughter so she can attend the online class [during the Covid-19 pandemic] on time. After I refused it, the parent called the education office.”

Such complaints can be easily heard in the teachers’ rally in Seoul and on their social media sites. Over 1,600 messages were posted on an internet forum, like a venue for teachers’ MeToo movement. Such alarming episodes suggest that the pervasion of teacher harassment was triggered by parents’ distorted affection for their children. The depression and rage of teachers are exploding following the death of an elementary school teacher from parents’ pressure.

Parent’s arrogant behavior led to the rapid shutdowns of pediatric hospitals in Korea. As they express anger at doctors even for minor dissatisfactions, post their disgruntlements on social media, and file complaints with related authorities, an increasing number of doctors are changing their specialty or closing their pediatric clinics, not to mention a sharp reduction in applicants for pediatrics among medical students.

In the school community, a growing number of teachers apply for early retirement, citing the hardship they must suffer from the parents of their students. That’s a sad offshoot of parents’ twisted sense of rights and their critical lack of common sense to the extent of hampering the normal function of a community. We urgently need societal reflection and introspection.

Teachers are unhappy with parents’ abuse of accusations beyond the level of mental harassment. A teacher’s praise of a student translates into discrimination against others, and scolding is seen as inflicting psychological pain. If a teacher reprimands a student, parents accuse the teacher of child abuse to the police. To prove their innocence, teachers must go through a criminal procedure for several months.

The government and the People Power Party plan to revise the law on the advancement of the status of primary, middle and high school teachers. Under the revision, a teacher’s legitimate instruction cannot be regarded as an infringement on students’ rights unless it is critically flawed. It is a desirable direction. Our teachers have been defenseless against parents’ domineering attitude. We hope the majority Democratic Party cooperates in passing the revision.