Teachers

I've recently found out something new! Form teachers, from Elementary school, through to end of Junior High schools here, visit the houses of all the kids every year.

Most classes can be around 40 kids. That's 40 home visits. Each one lasts about 15 minutes so, including travel time, that's an extra 40-ish hours of a teachers time.

Once upon a time, apparantly, there were lots of poor kids, so it was necessary to check out their houses but this.... and now.... the mind boggles. I feel extreme sympathy for the teachers here.

In the UK, there are (or were in my day anyway) annual parent-teacher meetings IN THE SCHOOL. If a kid has a problem, the teacher will call in the parent for an extra meeting. If there is a hint or a worry that the kid might have a problem at home, maybe a social worker, or an educational psychologist, or some other specialist would maybe go and visit.

I just cannot imagine teachers giving up 40+ hours of their time to do this in the UK. It's an utter waste of time and resources, in my opinion.