I thought when I wrote this post on insufficient parenting, I had, for the most part, covered my bases.  And then you have those moments that will let you know just how wrong you are.

Insufficient parenting has gone to another level.

It’s a normal day at work. Students are being students.  Teachers are being teachers.  The day has gone by relatively smoothly, and I’m in my room prepping and reviewing materials for my class, which starts in about 20 minutes.

Out of nowhere, I hear what sounds like the gym erupting in cheers after someone made the game-winning shot. I brush this off, thinking that a class got a little too excited.  But the noise continues.  And gets louder.  Finally, I get up and rush down the hall to the cafeteria, to find it buzzing with energy and excitement.

Outside the cafeteria on the sidewalk, I see a young lady surrounded by her peers.  They appear to be calming her down.  I see another young lady being escorted to the office by a teacher.  And I see a parent of the first young lady, who seemed to arrive really fast for something that just happened to pop off.

I go in the cafeteria and start calming kids down; making sure they are quiet and in their seats.  Then I ask other teachers what happened.  And then I learn of the ULTIMATE case of insufficient parenting.

This ALMOST altercation, loud ruckus, disturbing my work time…was caused by a parent.

A PARENT came to the school, cornered a young lady so that her daughter and her daughter’s friends could fuss her out.

Really?  Sigh.  I can’t make this up.  But you’re a GROWN woman.  Why in the WORLD are you SO involved with your child’s drama that you are coming to school to instigate a fight?

Let me be clear: I am in full support of parental involvement in the life of their child.  I encourage it.  I believe and know from experience that it makes a difference.  HOWEVER, that DOES NOT mean that you should be at your child’s school as a GROWN WOMAN instigating fights with teenagers.  I’m sorry for the confusion.  When you do that, you’ve crossed the line into the realm of insufficient parenting.

So yes.  Just to be clear: being involved in your kid’s life is good.  Helping your kids instigate fights with others is insufficient parenting.

That is all.