The case of a teacher 'asking for support' to buy a laptop: Don't let the child make a mountain out of a molehill

Chuong Duong Primary School, where the incident occurred - Photo: MY DUNG

The incident is not only an internal problem of a school, but also reflects larger challenges in management, awareness, and relationships between teachers, parents and schools in the current education system.

Consequences of misunderstanding the socialization of education

Abuse or misunderstanding of the socialization policy of education can lead to many consequences, creating negative reactions.

First of all, the incident raises questions about the responsibility of the education system in ensuring adequate teaching conditions for teachers. The teacher in the story had to "ask" for support for a laptop because her personal device was lost and the school board did nothing to replace or support it.

This shows a lack of management and provision of facilities for teachers, an important factor in ensuring the quality of teaching. Requesting computers from parents also shows another problem, which is that the school does not have a mechanism or timely support for teachers when they encounter difficulties in their work.

In the context of socialization, calling for support from parents and the community for common work is normal and necessary. However, misunderstanding or abuse of socialization policies can lead to undesirable consequences, considering assets acquired through socialization as one's own property is unacceptable.

Social mobilization aims to mobilize social resources to improve the quality of education, but it does not mean shifting the entire financial burden onto parents under the guise of social mobilization. It is wrong for teachers to call for support from parents without consulting the school. This negatively affects the image of teachers because they do not act within the authority of teachers in their relationship with parents, creating unnecessary frustration.

Each family's contribution may not seem like much to have an extra few million to buy a computer, but when combined with many contributions plus the cost of buying books and school supplies at the beginning of the school year, it becomes a huge amount of money for many families.

Although the teacher claims that the contribution is voluntary, in an educational setting, especially in the context of a parent-teacher conference, "voluntary" is not strictly speaking voluntary but rather "voluntary" by choice. Many parents may feel forced to contribute to avoid affecting their children or their relationship with the teacher.

This creates an unfair environment and can cause division, comparison, and jealousy among families with different economic circumstances. Students themselves may have an unfavorable view of their teachers and lose confidence in the school.

Need strict regulation

The incident of the teacher asking for computer support, although it is just a "bad apple spoiling the barrel", can damage the ethical image of the teaching profession. This action can also create a bad precedent, making other teachers think that asking for contributions from parents is a natural and normal thing, thereby blurring the line between voluntary help and financial pressure.

Schools and the education sector need to be more thorough, clearer and have strict regulations on understanding and implementing socialization policies. Accordingly, socialization does not mean shifting financial responsibility to parents, but rather seeking reasonable coordination between relevant parties to improve learning and teaching conditions.

Schools need to have clear regulations on accepting support from parents, ensuring that all contributions are voluntary within the framework of the law and without pressure. At the same time, schools and higher management agencies are responsible for ensuring the best conditions for teachers to teach.

Part of the fault lies with the teacher, but the school also partly lies with the failure to provide adequate facilities for teachers to be able to carry out their teaching work effectively. When teachers encounter difficulties with equipment or facilities that are not consistent, the school needs to petition the management agency for a quick support mechanism.

The final lesson for teachers is to always remember their important role in maintaining trust, prestige and professionalism in the ever-sensitive relationship with parents and students. Teachers should exercise their authority to the extent that it is appropriate, and should not "dare to think and dare to do" without the opinion of school leaders.

Lessons to be learned

The incident of a teacher "asking for support" to buy a laptop is not only a personal story but also a manifestation of many deep-seated and persistent problems of social abuse in the education system. Learning lessons from this incident is necessary to ensure a transparent, fair and sustainable educational environment in the future, while avoiding many consequences and not letting "a small matter become a big one".

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/vu-co-giao-xin-ho-tro-mua-laptop-dung-de-be-xe-ra-to-2024100208002044.htm