About Me

My photo
Yilan, Taiwan
I just returned back to the States after 11 years in Taiwan with my daughter. Taiwan is an excellent base for us explore Asia, while living in relative (gun free) safety, while benefiting from a cheap and efficient national health care system. The people are amazing too. I have Taiwanese friendships that are 20 years old and I'm always making new ones! My coworker here in CO is from Taiwan.

Monday, April 25, 2016

Tiger Mom and Out Come the Claws

Singapore 2014, Boat Quay
Maybe because its Monday and I didn't sleep enough last night, but I am with little patience regarding this music teacher and the school's response. In the school's defense they did have a meeting with the teacher, but that only seemed to intensify her verbal abuse of my kid the following weeks. Its just utter frustration.

Last Thursday this teacher said to the class, "What do we do with little liars who tell their mom lies?" The class responded "Beat them up." And the teacher suggested, "I'm going to cut out her tongue!" The week before that, this teacher again incited the kids, "Class we have  a little tattle-tell who tattled to her Mom and the principal" and then she threatened to, "Take this kid to court and sue" all because my daughter is telling me whats really going on. I asked my child, "Doesn't the kids know she's talking about you?" She answered, "They're too scared of her mom!"

 Most Taiwanese students just put up with it, in fact the staff and other parents have told me, "That's her personality" or  "She has a reputation" and even, " She used to be worse, she's actually better now." None of that is stopping her from picking on my kid for telling me, which is what most abusers of children do, "If you tell your mom I'm going to..."

This week is week 4 and if the school isn't doing anything about it, then it looks like I will have to. I told my kid's homeroom teacher this morning that be prepared, I am showing up during that music class. If they can't schedule a meeting, then I'll just have to do something. Unfortunately I am upset and emotional at this point, which isn't going to help, but I think waiting 4 weeks to meet with the principal (who is busy running for some educational office at the moment) or even meet with this teacher is far too long. I think I have been up to this point quite long-suffering, and of course my child more so.

Its even more tragic when the details of what transpired 4 weeks ago come to the light. I'll have to save my energy for retelling that for the next post. My powerlessness just makes me want to cry, but if I do I'll never stop so its just easier to yield it to my inner puissant jungle pussy. Its going to get freaky.

1 comment:

Kathy (杜 言 艷) said...

Update: Eventually, my child was exempt from taking her class (thankfully.) My Taiwanese coworker's daughter was also bullied by this same music teacher last year and because of their parents' complaints (and I hope others), this teacher is no longer working at this elementary school. It is with little solace or gratification that she is gone. I wish it could have been sooner.