Just when I thought I might try teaching in another country, as someone recently suggested to me, as a way to escape some of the flakiness that is turning my soul into a boiling mass of sticky rage that I am apparently transferring to all those around me, I came across this article from an Australian newspaper about a situation where a student claims her school is to blame for her not getting into the university of her choice. I guess I won't be attempting to move to Australia for a teaching job.
Where does the responsibility lie if a student does not do well in high school?
Here's the story:
Of her time at Geelong Grammar, she said: ''I didn't ever feel I was getting the support I needed to really excel.''
Ms Ashton-Weir boarded at the school in 2008 and 2009 but finished her secondary studies at a TAFE college in Sydney. She is in the first year of a double degree in arts and sciences at the University of Sydney.
Her mother, Elizabeth Weir, is also suing the school for lost income and other expenses.She said she gave up her chocolate fortune cookie business - which she had expected to make $450,000 over three years - because her daughter moved from Geelong to live with her in New South Wales.
She is also seeking compensation for $39,000 in rent paid when they moved to another house in Sydney.Earlier this week, Ms Weir said the school had known her daughter was gifted and had scored highly in an intelligence test, but struggled in maths.
Fabulously, being discriminated against in mathematics did not prevent this snowflake from advertising herself as a maths tutor on http://www.tutorfinder.com.au/. Tragically, her profile, which was public until earlier this evening, has now been taken down. Let this be a lesson to me to get a goddam screenshot.
ReplyDeleteI think the words "chocolate fortune cookie business" probably sum up the thought process here nicely.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that Mom thinks making pointless confections would have brought in half a mil in three years. This says a lot about where daughter gets her sense of entitlement.
Because hey, nothing says 'license to print money in a down economy' like fortune cookies - can't you just see the scene from the Graduate:
Mr. McGuire: I just want to say three words to you. Just three words.
Benjamin: Yes, sir.
Mr. McGuire: Are you listening?
Benjamin: Yes, I am.
Mr. McGuire: Chocolate Fortune Cookies.
Benjamin: Exactly how do you mean?
Because hey, nothing says 'license to print money in a down economy' like fortune cookies
ReplyDeleteThe story is from Australia, and as far as I can tell, the economy there is actually doing pretty well. Doesn't mean that her fortune cookie business was going to bring in half a million bucks, but Australia does not seem to be suffering from the same economic problems as the United States at the moment.