Bending over backwards until the back breaks

The thought of a back breaking is bad enough and it is tragic when it is self-inflicted to accommodate somebody!

We live in an extremely sensitive world where we have to be careful about what we say - it is beyond politically correct and it is a new age of cancel culture. People of colour and parents with children with special needs continue to fight their personal and collective battles against a world that has often overlooked them or marginalized them. I understand. I am teaching the history of Canada now, and I am learning about the treatment of First Nations people in the last 150+ years.

Advocacy of minorities becomes an essential means to win some battles.

Right now, I would love to advocate on behalf of the 10 students I have in my class with IEPs (Individual Education Plans); however, I am simply trying to do my best for all of them given my lack of experience with special education. The last 2 days, I had an opportunity to speak with 8 of the 10 parents, with children with special needs, who signed up for parent-teacher interviews. 7 out of 8 were thankful to have a teacher who cares and were willing to work with me to support their children.

Then, there is the one parent who hates me and this is not an exaggeration - I had another teacher attend this particular meeting with me and he agreed with me.

This is the parent who gives me major anxiety. She has written several emails to all the prominent people on the school board as well as to me (while CCing all the prominent people on the school board plus advocacy groups and the Human Rights Commission) about my incompetence. Out of a class of 26 students with various needs that I am trying desperately to meet, somehow I am failing this parent’s child consistently.

The child attends class regularly, approaches me for help and engages in class discussions.

I believe that the child’s mental health and wellbeing are being taken care of - we are in the middle of a pandemic; trapped in our homes for a very long time. Virtual School was created out of nothing to accommodate students who need to be home for many different reasons. There were delays and there was a teacher shortage. Some of us stepped up to fill the gaps. Some of us are putting in hours every single day including weekends to ensure students get the maximum out of this setup.

And yet, this one parent is not even a bit understanding of the situation we are all in. At this point in time, I am trying to save my spirit from being broken. The teacher who was on the call with me told me not to take it personally and it is only 6 more months and this would all end!