For months, Houston residents Diana and Oscar Mijares heard about behavior problems their daughter Megan was having in school -- problems she wasn't having at home. The concerned parents bought a tape recorder and hid it in the girl's 'High School Musical' backpack. Turns out, 4-year-old Megan isn't the problem ... it's her teacher, who was recorded saying things like "I'm going to be mean to you" and "Y'all are just stupid kids." Not surprisingly, the Mijares -- and other Houston-area parents -- are outraged, and are demanding that the teacher be dismissed.
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 54)
31. My kid has to wear uniforms. But if the kids are good on Fridays they get to wear jeans. It is causing a problem between the "good" kids and the "bad" kids. I AM talking about any little thing preceived as bad. I feel this is public humiliation. I believe in consequences just not public ones.
Posted at 3:13PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Peggy Emery
32. Deerfield has a 3rd grade teacher that would make her look like a Saint. Son got a tick in his hair(happens in Mich) at recess, when he asked her for help she replied "it wasent her problem go sit down". He sat with it burrowing in his scalp for 3 hours. Her class motto/mantra "its not my problem". She was told to write apology. And it said, sorry you think I didnt handle the situation correctly.
Posted at 3:13PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Gina Mossburg
33. My friend has had an ongoing problem with her son and only one of his teachers. All others report him as polite and a good student. This one has written him up on every occasion and his mom has emails and letters from fellow teachers and aides stating this teacher has singled out her son. While the principle has done what they can by moving him to another room for that subject, my friend was told this teacher had a contract for the year and they were just too short to let her go right now. Bad employees should be fired, especially when it's so heavily documented. In this, these are 4-year olds! I don't care how stressed the teacher may be, this behavior is not acceptable and parents need to make noise.
Posted at 3:13PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Cheryl
34. Over protective parents = dumb kids
Stupid parents = stupid kids
But - in our society you cant call anyone stupid - because that would hurt thier feelings. So sad - cause its usually the stupid people who whine the most. So yeah - the kids are probably stupid.
Posted at 3:13PM on Feb 28th 2008 by your kid is dumb
35. Since when is the word "stupid" a bad word? It means
"without knowledge" and from what I've seen in schools and classes today, it definitely fits children. By the way, I know too many parents who erroneously believe their children are angels. They aren't, and neither are their parents. This teacher has a style more in line with a drill sargent, but if it works, use it. Just because the children are unhappy doesn't impress me. Whether or not they're learning impresses me more. No, I'm not a teacher, just an observant grandmother.
Posted at 3:13PM on Feb 28th 2008 by S M Robinson
36. yeah I know you all love me for this.But OMG there's a teacher out there that puts a kid in there place that's right let's discipline the teacher and raise the kids to run the schools as they do now so we can send more delinquents out in the worldLet the teachers take back the schools use discipline like they once could ans starihgthen these kids out.I have to worry about my kid failing a class because he can't speak spanish ,but he can go out there without any discpline.Give it a break and shame on the parents because they're going to start a backlash of all parents doing this.
Posted at 3:14PM on Feb 28th 2008 by J.C.
37. Yes i believe that parents should be hard on kids, but not at this age. I mean at the age of 4, kids are just inconent, believing everything ppl tell them. My parents hit me when i was a kid, but not at this age, 4 is just to little. I was just yelled at a little when i did something wrong, which helps. p.s. beating your kids helps them grown into a better person. Trust me...
Posted at 3:15PM on Feb 28th 2008 by toby
38. The teacher was not fired so there is still "due process." In this case there has to be an investigation. However, in the case of impressionable children we have to look beyond the letter of the law and protect the interests of the children. Even if the evidence obtained does not follow the laws of admissable evidence. We still have to have the children in mind. If there is a hint at child abuse we have to be quick to act. Let the teacher not loose her job, just let her teach High School in a location where the students are older, bigger, and able to stand up for themselves. The Union will fight for her to keep her job. THat is what they get paid for. As a parent, this person should not be around kids, period.
Posted at 3:16PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Jeff Glanstein
39. True story, short version: Friend, Greta's son was superintelligent but hated homework. He was in all gifted classes throughout school. He would only do homework on even days. Still, had the highest grades on tests in the school. The school harangued Greta to make Sam (not his name) do homework. He was a nice kid but would NOT budge. They fought over it every night since third grade. In high school, after NUMEROUS conferences through the years, Greta went nuts. "Keep me out of this. He's kind and funny at home, sweet and good. I will not be your scapegoat another day, tormenting him and the rest of us. YOU FIGURE IT OUT!" Kid graduated valedictorian, got a big ride scholarship to Ivy League school, graduated #1. Little bureaucrats.
Posted at 3:16PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Emmaline
40. Sooo quick to judge!!!!! Why are teachers expected to adhere to some higher than normal standard level of behavior than other professions. Has any one of you spent a day, week or month or let alone a career with someone elses ferrel, undisciplined spoiled brats. I would like to record or even better video tape some of the situations I have been put in but I am not allowed because of your childrens civil liberties being violated. While I can't say I support anything less than professional behavior, there are very few if any that I have come across in my teaching that don't go above and beyond their call of duty for your children. Sometimes teachers do have emotional blow outs and say inappropriate things but we are human and imperfect. Every time you make a mistake at work do you have parents wanting to remove you from your job. . Too many parents have too much to say and incourage unruly behavior by not supporting teachers. Grow a thicker skin America we are losing ground fast and will continue if we keep allowing such petty b/s to enter the publi arena
Posted at 3:17PM on Feb 28th 2008 by #1 teacher
41. I let my daughter listen to this and she said almost all her teachers in elementary school talked like that.
It is also against school rules to have a tape recorder in school. She told me a couple of parents did that and the only thing that happened was that the kids got in trouble for having tape players in school. I hope this will correct the problem in schools all across our nation.
Posted at 3:18PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Dorothy
42. Instead of buying a digital recorder, how about buying some condoms? That way we won't have to listen to your moaning and groaning about how poorly the state is raising your kids.
Posted at 3:18PM on Feb 28th 2008 by One5thOfWhiskey
43. This actually made me want to cry. 47 years ago, I was placed in a first grade class in " T.R.", NJ. We had moved there from Virginia. The teacher was horrible. In the south, we were told to say, "yes ma'am, no ma'am" out of respect. Well, when this witch said to me, "Oh, so you are the new girl." I replied, "Yes, ma'm." To which she grabbed me by the shoulders, shook the daylights out of me and said, "Don't you dare get smart with me!" It went downhill from there. I saw kids hit, screamed at, ridiculed. To this day, I can remember my miserable days in her class as though it was yesterday. I was afraid to tell my parents ( that's the way it was back then ) so I'm sure teachers got away with a LOT back then. God bless those parents for being smart enough to tape the verbal abuse. I just hope they don't get sued for entrapment.
Posted at 3:18PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Michele
44. I, too, saw this story on GMA yesterday morning. While I do not condone the teacher calling any child 'stupid', I can perfectly understand her position. This child had been suspended before all this happened, she has a behavioral problem. More than likely her parents are the new generatioin that thinks the teachers and our school systems should raise their lil darlings. I hnave 3 kids, 24, 19, and 15 and I've been in all their schools from the beginning, I've seen how kids behave or should I say misbehave in school, it's horrible!!! Parents need to raise their kids and teach them manners, and how to behave properly in school and out in public. They need to stop thinking that it's our school systems and teachers job to do that. Parents nowadays are lazy and think their kids are all little darlings. And people wonder what's going wrong with this country today, start by looking in the mirror, the person you see is the one who needs to be teaching these kids how to behave and also that going to school is a privilege!!!
Posted at 3:20PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Brenda
45. MY name is NOT Gina Mossburg and my email address is NOT gmossburg@aol.com.
Posted at 3:20PM on Feb 28th 2008 by Gina Mossburg