Student Teaching: Am I Supposed to be THIS miserable?

"Personality disorder"? Blow to the head? Pshaw!

Your morning mentor has a substance abuse problem. When she leaves without saying where she's going, then comes back in a different mood? When she's screaming and irrational sometimes, way out of proportion to what's going on? When she forgets what she said the day before? All classic symptoms. She's on something.

eta: And it would be totally evil to rat her out and have the school give her a drug test, or search her desk for a flask, or fingerprint the Scotchguard in the janitor's closet. Totally evil. Mmm hmmm.
 
I wouldn't know. As far as I've been told, she's a straight-laced Christian, and I can detect no odd scents, changes in pupil size, or other physiological changes in her demeanor, aside from a tendency to be passive one moment and aggressive the next. No, I'm not accusing her of any passive-aggressive pop psych. I'm simply telling it how I see it. Jekyll and Hyde, and a more obvious example, there never was.

Her dad just died; she's grieving. If it weren't happening already, I'd attribute it to that. I don't know why she's like this, I just know I want away from her.
 
slingblade said:
I wouldn't know. As far as I've been told, she's a straight-laced Christian, and I can detect no odd scents, changes in pupil size, or other physiological changes in her demeanor, aside from a tendency to be passive one moment and aggressive the next. No, I'm not accusing her of any passive-aggressive pop psych. I'm simply telling it how I see it. Jekyll and Hyde, and a more obvious example, there never was.

Her dad just died; she's grieving. If it weren't happening already, I'd attribute it to that. I don't know why she's like this, I just know I want away from her.
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What she needs to be placed on suspension. She's going off on you, I'd hate to be the kid she goes off on unnecessarily. She's obviously insane, and I'd press with the lawyer because right now your school and this school you're teaching at are trying to hush this up. You get a lawyer and you'll at least be covered there. This is all so much ********.
 
I got an email from my supervisor, in which he says, among other things:

"You have your guard up and tend to overreact to criticism and
feel attacked, listen understand and adjust. your job is to listen to their criticisms and identify specifically what you need to do to make things right."

I wonder does he know or care that "listening to criticsms" involves being screamed at and threatened with dismissal?

Or does he know that he's operating under a fallacy? Could it be possible that the reason I have my guard up is because I am being attacked?

I'm going to lose this, folks. I smell it in the wind. I can't even find an attorney who thinks this is a legal matter. I'm so screwed.
 
slingblade said:
I got an email from my supervisor, in which he says, among other things:

"You have your guard up and tend to overreact to criticism and
feel attacked, listen understand and adjust. your job is to listen to their criticisms and identify specifically what you need to do to make things right."

I wonder does he know or care that "listening to criticsms" involves being screamed at and threatened with dismissal?

Or does he know that he's operating under a fallacy? Could it be possible that the reason I have my guard up is because I am being attacked?

I'm going to lose this, folks. I smell it in the wind. I can't even find an attorney who thinks this is a legal matter. I'm so screwed.
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I think he's being political and covering his own butt. This isn't about criticism. You need to make it abundantly clear that you were screamed at and threatened. Keep saying that over and over again until they understand what's going on.
 
I agree with Delphi. Also, make it clear it was abusive.

Get a pocket recorder and record everything this person says to you. I am sure the screaming will happen again. Get it on tape.
 
I'm not supposed to have to work with her anymore, once break is over. I have a pocket recorder I just bought used from a friend who has left town. I don't know how to operate it, though I know it does record. I can find a picture of it online, but cannot find any information about it.

Does anyone know what kind of attorney I should contact? Is this a civil matter, tort law, what?
 
slingblade said:
I'm not supposed to have to work with her anymore, once break is over. I have a pocket recorder I just bought used from a friend who has left town. I don't know how to operate it, though I know it does record. I can find a picture of it online, but cannot find any information about it.

Does anyone know what kind of attorney I should contact? Is this a civil matter, tort law, what?
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Send me the model/make and a pic and I will get you the instructions.

As for attorneys, I have no idea what specific specialty you would look for. I wonder if you could contact the union and ask? Or are you not teacher union member yet?
 
slingblade said:
I got an email from my supervisor, in which he says, among other things:

"You have your guard up and tend to overreact to criticism and
feel attacked, listen understand and adjust. your job is to listen to their criticisms and identify specifically what you need to do to make things right."

I wonder does he know or care that "listening to criticsms" involves being screamed at and threatened with dismissal?

Or does he know that he's operating under a fallacy? Could it be possible that the reason I have my guard up is because I am being attacked?

I'm going to lose this, folks. I smell it in the wind. I can't even find an attorney who thinks this is a legal matter. I'm so screwed.
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You haven't even begun to fight. Right now I'd still keep searching for a lawyer and maybe try any of those who deal with labor disputes. Despite the fact you're not a licensed teacher yet, you were threatened by a mentor that you were going to fail a class because of her mood swings. Explain to the lawyer about this mentor's behavior and then when you find one, have them deal with your college's instructor and the school itself. Right now it seems like both those institutions want to save their asses by sacrificing yours, and now it's definitely the time to fight.

Don't lose hope, you did nothing wrong. And by getting appropriate legal representation we can do this. Look at it this way: they have more to lose than you if it comes out that both the school and the college partcipated and screwed students out of tuition and time by forcing them into this. They're going to lie to you in order to prevent themselves from getting reamed rightfully for this whole horrible experience. Don't lose heart, you are definitely not in the wrong.
 
At what point does one consider involving the press? I know it's not now, I know, but when is it?
 
slingblade said:
At what point does one consider involving the press? I know it's not now, I know, but when is it?
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At the point when you have decided that no resolution behind closed doors is possible, typically just before or just after you and the lawyer have filed the lawsuit papers.

If you go to the press, you're basically guaranteeing that no school in the area -- and possibly in the world -- will take you. So you would be hoping to put pressure on the school district and college to give you enough money in an out-of-court settlement that you can successfully choose another career.
 
slingblade said:
At what point does one consider involving the press? I know it's not now, I know, but when is it?
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Last resort. Don't count on them to do anything. Unless there's a burning car or sex involved, they're not going to care.

Keep repeating that you're wiling to do the work, that you're good in tough situations, and that whatever it takes to get your degree, you'll do. Repeat that what was expected of you was constantly changing.

Repeat all until you find someone who will listen.
 
I would agree with what's been posted so far. Document, document, document.

If it makes you feel any better, I'm doing the same thing myself. I have an attorney, but he's pushing for as much evidence as he can get his hands on. I'm working on it.

She may be a straightlaced Christian, but your MM is also abusive. That needs to be documented, and you need as much corroborating evidence as you can get. Talk to other teachers. I'm willing to bet there's someone with an axe to grind, who knows damned well she's out of line.
 
They'll get rid of me because I cried. They'll say I'm unstable and unfit.
You watch. I'll keep documenting, though. I have to fight.
 
I don't know, and don't know if such laws would apply to me. I'm not an employee. I'm a student intern. If I can find a lawyer to speak to, or can get hold of the teacher's union on Monday, I'll try to find out.
 
Do NOT let the railroad you, Sling. You do not deserve this. There's something very, very wrong here.

As to your MM's remarks, my son, Chris, noted that if you can get the VP's recommend, you might not need the MM's. And, he said, he's glad to see you're fighting back. I'll second that.
 
I'm trying to fight. I have 10 pages of documentation so far, single-spaced.

I am going to call some of my professors outside the education department and have them write character references for me about my work-ethic and the high quality of my work.

I'm still planning on seeking a lawyer, but I still don't know who to contact. If anyone has a friend who is an attorney, I'd appreciate hearing any advice they can give on the matter.

Thanks folks. Thanks tons, Roadtoad.
Without you, I'd be all alone in this.
 
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