entitlement mentality disenchants teacher
Sinead, 29, is a teacher at an exclusive girls' school and is planning on moving back into the local school system because of her disenchantment at the undeserved sense of entitlement that upwardly mobile families imbue into their very ordinary daughters.
"Let's face it," sighs Sinead, "these girls are just spoilt brats and they're going to grow up to be bullies and sadists because they just don't have what it takes to be the leading social lights that their parents expect them to become."
"I come from a lower middle-class family and grew up with no airs and graces," explains Sinead. "My parents just told us to do the best we could and treat other people as we wanted to be treated ourselves - and it was a good grounding for life."
"I wanted to be a teacher and worked hard to achieve my dream," says Sinead. "My parents never pushed me, but by the same token they never deterred me."
"I just didn't grow up with the sense of entitlement that the girls I teach have," says Sinead. "I earned my stripes and if I had failed to achieve my dream then I wouldn't have become bitterly disappointed."
"These girls believe that the best jobs, the best husbands and fame and fortune generally are theirs by entitlement," sighs Sinead, "and because of this unrealistic view of themselves they believe that they just don't have to put themselves out at all. It's all going to fall into their laps - just like that!"
"The school that employs me is making matters worse by supporting the unrealistic expectations of these girls," says Sinead. "It's all very well to give girls a high opinion of themselves, but self-esteem has nothing to do with entitlement."
"Amazingly, very few of the girls come from privileged families," says Sinead. "They're mainly from very ordinary families with parents who work two or three jobs in order to pay the fees."
"I don't know why these parents believe they can turn a sow's ear into a silk purse," laughs Sinead, "but that's the sort of magical thinking they display and far from setting their girls up for a good life they are setting them up for bitter disappointment."
"If the girls treat their parents like they treat us, the teachers, then I can't believe how awful their family lives must be," sighs Sinead. "I can go home at night, put my feet up and be thankful to be away from the little monsters, but the parents of these girls must undoubtedly have to reap the consequences of raising such spoilt brats."
"None of the girls in my class clean their rooms, do their own washing or ironing, or help out at home," says Sinead. "Their whole lives are devoted to conspicuous consumption and self-admiration - and these are the stupid and destructive values that their parents have instilled into them."
"When I ask my girls to help in the classroom - put away books, water the plants or pick up the rubbish they've dropped - they turn their noses up!"
"That's your job, that's what you're paid for, they tell me," laughs Sinead. "They actually consider themselves to be superior to me - and while I accept that these tasks may constitute my job, what I'm paid for, I also believe that a teacher's job is not only to teach academic subjects but also to teach life values including co-operation - and a little bit of humility doesn't go astray either!"
"Because of their wildly undeserved sense of entitlement," explains Sinead, "these girls have no respect whatsoever for anyone who tries to teach them otherwise. They believe they can do whatever they like, when they like."
"For instance, the cell-phone phenomenon in my school has gone beyond a joke," says Sinead. "The girls sit there text messaging each other when they are supposed to be paying attention to what I'm teaching them."
"When I confiscated their cell-phones they threatened to get me sacked," sighs Sinead, "and, unfortunately, that's exactly what they can do."
"I'm not so naive that I don't know that spoilt brats exist in the local schools," says Sinead, "but at least at teacher's job in those schools is more rewarding in terms of results because you can actually inspire the kids to become decent people with decent values."
"Let's face it," sighs Sinead, "these girls are just spoilt brats and they're going to grow up to be bullies and sadists because they just don't have what it takes to be the leading social lights that their parents expect them to become."
"I come from a lower middle-class family and grew up with no airs and graces," explains Sinead. "My parents just told us to do the best we could and treat other people as we wanted to be treated ourselves - and it was a good grounding for life."
"I wanted to be a teacher and worked hard to achieve my dream," says Sinead. "My parents never pushed me, but by the same token they never deterred me."
"I just didn't grow up with the sense of entitlement that the girls I teach have," says Sinead. "I earned my stripes and if I had failed to achieve my dream then I wouldn't have become bitterly disappointed."
"These girls believe that the best jobs, the best husbands and fame and fortune generally are theirs by entitlement," sighs Sinead, "and because of this unrealistic view of themselves they believe that they just don't have to put themselves out at all. It's all going to fall into their laps - just like that!"
"The school that employs me is making matters worse by supporting the unrealistic expectations of these girls," says Sinead. "It's all very well to give girls a high opinion of themselves, but self-esteem has nothing to do with entitlement."
"Amazingly, very few of the girls come from privileged families," says Sinead. "They're mainly from very ordinary families with parents who work two or three jobs in order to pay the fees."
"I don't know why these parents believe they can turn a sow's ear into a silk purse," laughs Sinead, "but that's the sort of magical thinking they display and far from setting their girls up for a good life they are setting them up for bitter disappointment."
"If the girls treat their parents like they treat us, the teachers, then I can't believe how awful their family lives must be," sighs Sinead. "I can go home at night, put my feet up and be thankful to be away from the little monsters, but the parents of these girls must undoubtedly have to reap the consequences of raising such spoilt brats."
"None of the girls in my class clean their rooms, do their own washing or ironing, or help out at home," says Sinead. "Their whole lives are devoted to conspicuous consumption and self-admiration - and these are the stupid and destructive values that their parents have instilled into them."
"When I ask my girls to help in the classroom - put away books, water the plants or pick up the rubbish they've dropped - they turn their noses up!"
"That's your job, that's what you're paid for, they tell me," laughs Sinead. "They actually consider themselves to be superior to me - and while I accept that these tasks may constitute my job, what I'm paid for, I also believe that a teacher's job is not only to teach academic subjects but also to teach life values including co-operation - and a little bit of humility doesn't go astray either!"
"Because of their wildly undeserved sense of entitlement," explains Sinead, "these girls have no respect whatsoever for anyone who tries to teach them otherwise. They believe they can do whatever they like, when they like."
"For instance, the cell-phone phenomenon in my school has gone beyond a joke," says Sinead. "The girls sit there text messaging each other when they are supposed to be paying attention to what I'm teaching them."
"When I confiscated their cell-phones they threatened to get me sacked," sighs Sinead, "and, unfortunately, that's exactly what they can do."
"I'm not so naive that I don't know that spoilt brats exist in the local schools," says Sinead, "but at least at teacher's job in those schools is more rewarding in terms of results because you can actually inspire the kids to become decent people with decent values."
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