Posted on 05/29/2008 6:02:52 AM PDT by yankeedame
Parents Sent 5-Year-Old to School With Tape Recorder
By JONANN BRADY
May 27, 2008
Ignorant. Pathetic. Self-absorbed.
Those are some of the harsh names an Indiana kindergarten teacher called one of her students, and the boy's parents captured it all on tape.
Five-year-old Gabriel Ross complained over the school year that his teacher, Kristen Woodward, was being mean to him, said his mother Tabitha McMahan and stepfather J.R. Edwards. Gabriel told them other kids didn't like him because he was "bad and stupid."
When he began acting out at home, they decided to take action and try to find out what was going on in the classroom. So in mid-April, McMahan and Edwards sent Gabriel to school with a tape recorder in the pocket of his cargo pants.
What they heard over four hours of tape shocked them. Woodward can be heard telling Gabriel that he had "tortured and tormented" her and other teachers all year.
"I've been more than nice to you all year long and you've been ignorant, selfish, self-absorbed, the whole thing! I'm done!" Woodward says to Gabriel on the tape.
She continues: "Something needs to be done because you are pathetic! If me saying these words to you hurt, I hope it does because you're hurting everyone else around you."
Gabriel can be heard crying on the tape.
"You think it's bad when you see it on paper, but when you are hearing the way she says it to him. I can't even talk about it," McMahan told ABC affiliate WHAS, breaking into tears.
Edwards said that the worst part of the tape was when Woodward singled Gabriel out in front of the whole class.
"So you guys think, is that somebody you want to be with?" Woodward asks the class.
In unison, the other students reply, "Noooo." "See, your friend doesn't want to be with you. I don't know what else to tell you. So you're not going to have friends because of your actions."
Teacher Suspended
After 13 years of teaching, Woodward has been suspended indefinitely, according to the Indiana State Teachers Association.
The teachers' association is defending Woodward, saying that she "lost her cool" that day and hasn't had a chance to tell her side of the story.
Carol Mooney, a spokeswoman with the Indiana State Teachers Association, told the New Albany News and Tribune newspaper that Woodward is well liked by co-workers, parents and students and that she had trouble with Gabriel all year.
"What do you say to a kid who's rolling around, punching, biting, kicking? What can a teacher do?" Mooney said to the newspaper.
Woodward did not respond to phone messages from ABC News.
The New Albany-Floyd County Consolidated School Corp. issued a statement saying, "Privacy issues and policy prohibit school officials from discussing ongoing investigations of employee misconduct."
Parents Worry About Long-Term Effect
Gabriel's stepfather, J.R. Edwards, told ABCNEWS.com that all the children in the class are given weekly progress reports and have frequent meetings with the teacher. He said Gabriel's reports had both "smiley faces" for good behavior and "frown faces," which indicates the student needs help in a certain area.
Gabriel's reports said he was sometimes "disruptive" and didn't keep his hands to himself.
Two weeks into the school year, Edwards said Woodward talked about setting up a "behavioral plan" for Gabriel, but when he approached Woodward to discuss the plan, she allegedly said, "I don't have time for this."
Edwards also said that Gabriel's behavior at home didn't make them think he was acting up at school.
"He's not perfect, but he's not out of control," Edwards said.
After hearing the tape, Edwards and McMahan pulled Gabriel out of school and are trying to figure out which school to send him to next year.
They are also exploring the possibility of pursuing a civil or criminal action against Woodward and the school district.
But Edwards said they are most concerned about the psychological impact the entire situation has had on Gabriel.
"I hope this doesn't affect him long-term, in his feelings about school or teachers," Edwards said. "We're going to seek some kind of help for him."
What's to tell? It's all on tape........
Great moments in public education
Public schools are very very girl friendly. Normal boy behavior is seen as disruptive.
They teach girls to be boys and boys to be emotional.
Why oh why cannot our country admit public schools are a failure.
I heard the tape this morning, and there is NO "her side of the story." Even if the five-year old child was a problem in the class room, he did not deserve the belittling that this "teacher" gave him REPEATEDLY in front of his classmates.
Fire the hussy and make sure she never works as a teacher again!
Suspended, hell. She needs a life sentence in prison.
She has violated one of the most sacred trusts we have in our society - the nurturing and education of our most innocent citizens. There IS no punishment too great for what she has done.
In some ways this is WORSE than a police officer abusing his power.
God only knows how many other schildren she has attacked in her 13 year career.
I have friends who are teachers. They never said anything like this, but I have heard stories.
The generally all same something to the effect that if the kid is a jerk, the father is probably a jerk too.
The apple does not from the tree far falleth.
I feel bad for the teacher. I bet the kid really doesn’t have any friends - kind of like Al Gore.
A nice, big, strong mom needs to beat the snot out of her.
I posted a story yesterday about a kid in Florida getting voted out of his kindergarten class and I thought this was a followup to it. This is here in Indiana, this woman needs to be humiliated just like she did that little boy. What the hell is going on in our schools lately?????
The father might be a jerk. But this boy is five years old. The teacher really had to torment him like that? That is just cruel. She has no business teaching.
Maybe the kid IS pathetic. ;)
My wife is a teacher and frankly, I don’t know how she doesn’t lose it like this teacher did. lol
I feel nothing but contempt for the teacher. She can go to hell.
“I feel bad for the teacher. I bet the kid really doesn’t have any friends - kind of like Al Gore.”
You forgot the /sarc tag cause you just aint making sense otherwise.
I think 4 hours of losing your cool to a child is way out of line. This woman has a big problem and it’s certainly not the child.
Oh yeah, blame the kid for his teacher behaving like a crazy witch.
I think that about liberals.
I think I would have just taken him to the principal’s office every time and said you pay me to teach. Send him back when he’s ready to learn.
‘Maybe the kid IS pathetic. ;)”
5 year olds are not pathetic. Many public school teachers are though.
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