Monday, February 12, 2007

Monday Music Mayhem

It's been a bit crazy around here the past couple of weeks, but things should slow down a little bit this week.

Last Monday, as I was setting up for my handbell class, a student came in and told me that she was going to the guidance counselor. This sounds relatively benign, but it opened the biggest can of worms!

I let her go to the guidance counselor, but I wasn't happy. I spoke with the director of music and told her that I had a student who went to the guidance counselor. The director was NOT happy. She told me that next time a student asks to go to the counselor during class that they can go, but they will have to take a demerit. UGH! It seems that the counselor has a nasty habit of allowing the kids to hang out in her office during music. She thinks music and art are fluff. That makes for an abrasive relationship between the Fine Arts Dept. and hers...

I emailed the parents of this child to ask for help. I explained the situation and basically told them that I understood that kids needed to the the counselor sometimes, but since I only have their kid for 2 classes a week and since I really didn't want to give demerits, was there another time this kid could see the counselor. You would have thought that I was asking them to eat poison or something!! The email I got back was scathing! It was copied to my Director and the headmaster and everything. Then I got email from the other people - I have no idea who some of them were. Good Gracious! The only person I didn't hear from was my Director. I'm thinking that this is a good thing - if it's not, I might not have a job this afternoon...

So what do you think? Is music fluff? Is there a place in a well-rounded education for music?

4 comments:

Clearlykels said...

They have a guidance counsellor there now. Geez-- all that has changed since I was there-- you know 7 years ago:-)

Crazy MomCat said...

I think music is SO important. Music and art are my son's favorite classes actually! It's been proven that music helps develop math skills as well. Unfortunately, there are some parent who will just puff up any time they feel their child is criticised (even though you weren't doing that). There are other parents who are anti-teacher/anti-school who are looking for a reason to complain.

I think you did the most professional/direct thing considering the situation. You tried to let them know what might happen the next time and were trying to help their child out. Sorry it came to what it did. Hang in there!

Jane said...

Music is definitely NOT fluff. I think the Arts are very important to our children's education. Why on EARTH should a kid get demerits for going to the guidance counselor? I could understand explaining to the child that they need to go to the counselor during a free period or study hall or something but...demerits??

Unknown said...

I think it's important, but I know people who don't think so, namely my husband. I think you did the right thing, I think more parents should back up the teachers at school. I always do.