This has been a very exhausting week and I am so happy to see it wrapped up. If someone told me on Saturday what my work week would be like, I may have taken an exten
ded holiday. Living in Cairo is not for the faint of heart. Its dense population has created horrific traffic challenges, short tempers, and a mindless disregard for others. I faced the aforementioned as an educator this week. The mother of one of my students came to school and interrupted my first class to tell me that she had informed her son that should any student hit him, then he should hit him back, with force. I explained to this mother that we had a "Hands Off" policy at school and are trying to teach our students to use words not fists when facing a problem. She said "No, this is wrong, and it doesn't work." She felt that each child has the right to defend himself and that our school policy should be changed. After realizing that I would never be able to convince her otherwise, I asked her to please speak to my principal about the matter. On one hand, I do understand the complex reasons behind her feelings and I can appreciate her logic. Even armed with an understanding of the complexities of our culture, I still felt let down that she didn't trust the school enough to support our endeavors to create change within our school community. That was just the first day of the week, things deteriorated even further. Our fourth and fifth grade class were scheduled to go on a field trip. The day arrived, the kids were outside ready to board the bus, and from out of the blue two of the fourth grade parents showed up and would not allow the bus to leave with the kids on it. Their sons were in in-school suspension and were not allowed to go on the field trip. Both sets of these parents created a scene in the middle of our street, in front of our school, used inappropriate language, took the keys from the bus driver and refused to give it back until their children were allowed to board the bus. Cars were backed up on the street and began blowing their horns and drivers started yelling. Our school director arrived to take care of the situation and the bus finally left for the trip. It seems that several threats were used by the parents to persuade our director to let the boys attend the field trip, and thankfully, our director held firm to her position. After several other issues cropped up during the week, our school secretary decided to play quron and burn bohur in the early morning to rid our school of the evil elements. Even though this is a nice thing we do as a part of our culture, it didn't seem to work. My week ended with a parent and her two sons in the principals office confirming what we knew to be a family living in a very difficult and trying family situation. Each person in that meetings was brought to tears and I ached for this family. I left immediately after school with a very heavy heart. I reflected on the week on my way home. How can we as educators try to instil in our students respect for others, respect for self, community awareness and philanthropy, and small acts of kindness when our parents are not modeling approprate behavior nor supporting our efforts... or if providing support, then only superficially? Where did we go wrong as educators in communicating school policy? Have we lost the parents trust in our school and its judgement when it comes to school policy and enforcement? Could it be that we live in a city where just getting out the door of your home is a struggle, to move your car out of a parking space on the street or garage costs you money, a city where we don't have space to move, a city where Peter robs Paul, then Paul robs Peter back, just to stay afloat? A city where nobody trusts or beleives in the other? I am not sure....but it is depressing. I hope that the upcoming week is going to start on a high note.
ded holiday. Living in Cairo is not for the faint of heart. Its dense population has created horrific traffic challenges, short tempers, and a mindless disregard for others. I faced the aforementioned as an educator this week. The mother of one of my students came to school and interrupted my first class to tell me that she had informed her son that should any student hit him, then he should hit him back, with force. I explained to this mother that we had a "Hands Off" policy at school and are trying to teach our students to use words not fists when facing a problem. She said "No, this is wrong, and it doesn't work." She felt that each child has the right to defend himself and that our school policy should be changed. After realizing that I would never be able to convince her otherwise, I asked her to please speak to my principal about the matter. On one hand, I do understand the complex reasons behind her feelings and I can appreciate her logic. Even armed with an understanding of the complexities of our culture, I still felt let down that she didn't trust the school enough to support our endeavors to create change within our school community. That was just the first day of the week, things deteriorated even further. Our fourth and fifth grade class were scheduled to go on a field trip. The day arrived, the kids were outside ready to board the bus, and from out of the blue two of the fourth grade parents showed up and would not allow the bus to leave with the kids on it. Their sons were in in-school suspension and were not allowed to go on the field trip. Both sets of these parents created a scene in the middle of our street, in front of our school, used inappropriate language, took the keys from the bus driver and refused to give it back until their children were allowed to board the bus. Cars were backed up on the street and began blowing their horns and drivers started yelling. Our school director arrived to take care of the situation and the bus finally left for the trip. It seems that several threats were used by the parents to persuade our director to let the boys attend the field trip, and thankfully, our director held firm to her position. After several other issues cropped up during the week, our school secretary decided to play quron and burn bohur in the early morning to rid our school of the evil elements. Even though this is a nice thing we do as a part of our culture, it didn't seem to work. My week ended with a parent and her two sons in the principals office confirming what we knew to be a family living in a very difficult and trying family situation. Each person in that meetings was brought to tears and I ached for this family. I left immediately after school with a very heavy heart. I reflected on the week on my way home. How can we as educators try to instil in our students respect for others, respect for self, community awareness and philanthropy, and small acts of kindness when our parents are not modeling approprate behavior nor supporting our efforts... or if providing support, then only superficially? Where did we go wrong as educators in communicating school policy? Have we lost the parents trust in our school and its judgement when it comes to school policy and enforcement? Could it be that we live in a city where just getting out the door of your home is a struggle, to move your car out of a parking space on the street or garage costs you money, a city where we don't have space to move, a city where Peter robs Paul, then Paul robs Peter back, just to stay afloat? A city where nobody trusts or beleives in the other? I am not sure....but it is depressing. I hope that the upcoming week is going to start on a high note.
Until next time,
A Woman of Egypt
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