As teachers, our priority is for students to learn everything we have to teach them. This includes math, language arts, science, social studies, proper behavior, etc. The list goes on and on. Add to that the extra pressure of statewide testing and blame being laid on teachers and even rational human beings get sucked into school being the end all, be all.
However, we need to understand that a good education is not top priority for a lot of families. Especially families in high poverty schools, such as mine. Imagine this: a parent comes in for a parent teacher conference to discuss why their child is struggling with reading. You express that their child needs to be reading every night for a minimum of 30 minutes. The parent responds by crying for a myriad of reasons: they are raising the child alone and have two (three) jobs to keep them afloat, they are homeless living in a car, their spouse is abusive and the police often visit their home, there is violence in the neighborhood (the only place they can afford to live), the other parent is in prison, an older sibling is in a gang....
We, as teachers, have no idea what is going on in these homes unless we reach out! You have to know your parents if you want to educate their children. Meet them halfway. What can you do at school with their child to take something off their plate? Think outside the box. Talk to a social worker or counselor. Do something. Be there. It's your job.
Case in point: this is one of my previous student's poetry and priority in her life:
