How Teachers Can Deal With Angry, Emotional Parents, And Their Complaints

One of the reasons I decided to write a book dedicated to helping teachers work with angry, emotional and even abusive parents was that the existing advice tended to be a little bit superficial, and relied a lot on "common sense", rather than sound psychological principles on anger and effective communication.

While it's fine to suggest to school staff that they not "take insults personally", that's not useful unless one can explain exactly HOW not to take what are clearly personal attacks in a personal way. We're all human beings despite the roles we play, and it's natural to take these things personally. I wanted to write a book that went beyond that common sense approach, and actually teaches educators to deal with these tough situations by helping them learn WHAT to say, and WHEN to say it.

While a lot of the common advice on the topic can be superficial, much of it has kernals of truth and nuggets of gold, so I've created this page, where you'll find some of the best handpicked resources available free of charge to help you deal with those angry parents. Because it's important, for the welfare of each student in your class or school.

 

Top : Handling Complaints From Parents :

Since teachers can't fully succeed in helping students without the help and involvement of parents, it's important to learn to work, not only with the "easy" parents, but with the difficult ones, since it's often the case that the students who need the most help have parents who tend to be emotional

Handling Complaints From Parent: Tips, Advice, And Wise Thoughts : Handling Complaints From Parents

A Teacher's Guide to Generation X Parents - by SUSAN GREGORY THOMAS
Not long ago, administrators at a small private school in New York City were reorganizing two mixed-grade elementary classrooms. Looking at the third grade, they determined that one girl was particularly well suited to switch from one class to the other: She was adaptable and genial and loved working with teachers and friends. The administrators called the girl's mother, assuming she would be flattered. Wrong. The mother was distraught: Her daughter had started at the school only last year! She would be leaving friends in the other classroom! She had enrolled her daughter in private school for its stability and intimacy -- not for disruption! The administrators didn't understand what had been happening at home! The mother, in tears, needed to have a conference -- now. Educators were stunned. Who was this mother? That would be me, and here's why: I am a Generation X parent, a member of a demographic that has been making teachers' and school administrators' jobs a pain in the butt for more than a decade. (Views So Far 353 )

Dealing With Aggressive Parents For Teachers - by Randi Myers
Nice, longish article on how to deal with aggressive parents, citing a sports coach having to deal with an angry mob of parents. Includes some good links. (Views So Far 299 )

Handling Parent Complaints -- The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly - by Max W. Fischer
From an experienced teacher sharing tips about three different types of situations where parents complain, and how to handle them. (Views So Far 284 )

How To Handle An Angry Parent (For Teachers) - by MICHAEL LINSIN
It can be a nerve-racking experience. Without warning, a parent appears in front of you. He (or she) is angry and wants answers. Right now. Maybe he's upset about a student picking on his son. Maybe he's mad about how you handled his daughter's recent misbehavior. Maybe it's a homework issue, a test grade, or a misunderstanding about something you said to your class. Whatever the reason, when confronted by an angry parent, your response should be the same. Follow the seven steps below and you'll be able to quickly calm angry parents, give them the answers their looking for, and turn them into lifelong fans. (Views So Far 377 )

Managing complaints from parents - Ministry of Education - by NZ Ministry of Education
Formal document for the Ministry of Education in New Zealand that explains their process for handling parental complaints. Some good tips here, on the process, generally. (Views So Far 326 )

NEA - How Can You Deal With Angry Parents? - by NEA
Dad and Mom, eyes wild, barge into your room screaming, "How dare you give Ashley an F?!" Ashley smirks. The class cheers. The principal walks in. OK, that's probably not going to happen. But furious parents can do a lot of damage, whether or not there's any basis for their anger. So in case Dad and Mom ever do show up mad, here are some ideas on how to cope, and maybe even turn the encounter into an opportunity for everybody--parents, kid, and you--to do better. (Views So Far 371 )

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