In the staffrooms of our schools, over tea and marking schemes, teachers are no longer simply talking about curriculum delivery. Increasingly, we are exchanging stories of frustration, helplessness, and disbelief—stories about how, in the course of trying to educate, we are now also having to beg. We are not begging for better pay or more resources, but for parents to simply fulfil their role. We are pleading for basic involvement, support, and trust. And all too often, we are met with silence, resistance, or outright hostility.
There was a time when a teacher’s word carried weight in a child’s life. A call from school would prompt a visit, a sit-down meeting, and a family conference. Today, a teacher who dares to point out indiscipline, laziness, or misconduct is met with defensiveness or denial. Too many parents have become their children’s defence lawyers, not their guides. In the name of “protecting” their children, they are enabling them to spiral into a culture of entitlement and irresponsibility. Teachers are not the enemy. We want your children to succeed. We are on your side. But we cannot fight this battle alone.
It should be shameful that in 2025, teachers are still pleading with parents to pick up their phones when we call. That a child can be sent home for a disciplinary issue, and the parent won’t show up for days. We still need to encourage parents to attend academic clinics, prize-giving days, or parent-teacher meetings. That’s when we say a child is struggling; we are told, “That’s your job.” We assign homework that is never supervised at home. We send report cards that are never opened. We invite parents to discuss a learner’s progress only to be told, “I’m too busy.” But the same parents have time for TikTok, WhatsApp groups, and online complaints about the school.
Here are some of the ways teachers have had to beg parents to be more involved, and each one tells a painful truth. We have begged parents to believe us when we call out poor behaviour. We have begged them to stop rewarding laziness with gadgets and privileges. We have begged them to stop accusing us of picking on their child when we point out persistent misconduct. We have begged them to support discipline instead of undermining it. We have begged them to monitor homework, to sign diaries, to provide textbooks, to instil values at home. We have begged them to stop giving excuses for chronic absenteeism, to show up when their child is caught cheating, to attend disciplinary hearings instead of sending uncles or ignoring the summons altogether.
We have begged them not to do their child’s project work and then brag about it. We have begged them not to call teachers enemies for giving low marks. We have begged them to stop using “mental health” as a convenient umbrella to excuse everything from disrespect to indolence. We have begged them to teach children to greet adults, to listen when spoken to, to apologise when wrong. We have begged them not to insult teachers at home, because their children come to school ready to do the same. We have begged them not to promise “revenge” when their child is punished. We have begged them to see us as partners, not opponents.
READ ALSO:
Africa unites to transform STEM education through innovation and inclusion
We have encountered students who say, “My dad will come beat you up,” and we know from experience that sometimes, he will try. We have met parents who demand that their child be transferred not because they are being mistreated, but because the teacher refused to inflate marks. We have endured parents who offer bribes to overlook suspensions. We have watched students arrive in Form One with no basic manners and wondered what kind of home they come from. We have seen pupils come back to school from holiday with nothing academic to show for it—no revision, no reading, just new shoes and stories from social media. Meanwhile, teachers are being asked why mean scores are not rising.
And yet, through all this, we persist. We plan lessons, mark exams late into the night, design remedial programs, offer counselling, and call homes again and again. We still believe every child has potential. But we are tired of dragging parents along. A child’s education must be a shared effort. Teachers are not miracle workers. We need support at home. We need parents to model respect for learning and authority. We need them to turn off the television, limit the WiFi, and ask, “Have you studied today?” We need them to say “no” when necessary, to hold their children accountable, to teach consequences. We need them to show up.
The danger of raising a generation on unchecked freedom, unearned praise, and the belief that every adult who corrects them is an enemy is a society with no moral compass. Already, we are seeing the consequences: students who threaten teachers, who cheat without remorse, who walk into class with headphones and leave with no assignments done. And when the national exam results are out, the blame always shifts to the teacher.
Let it be known: we are not perfect. There are teachers who fall short, just as there are doctors, police officers, and parents who do. But the majority of us are committed. We want to build a generation that is competent, disciplined, and resilient. We want learners who can take correction, embrace effort, and own their mistakes. But this dream cannot be realised in a vacuum. It starts with parents reclaiming their role as the first teachers.
So the next time a teacher calls, don’t dismiss it. Listen. The next time you’re tempted to excuse your child’s wrongdoing, pause. Ask yourself: what kind of adult am I raising? Education is not a battlefield where parents and teachers fight for control. It is a partnership. And when it works, it changes lives.
Until then, we will keep begging – but we shouldn’t have to.
By Ashford Kimani
Ashford teaches English and Literature in Gatundu North Sub County and serves as Dean of Studies.
You can also follow our social media pages on Twitter: Education News KE and Facebook: Education News Newspaper for timely updates.
>>> Click here to stay up-to-date with trending regional stories
>>> Click here to read more informed opinions on the country’s education landscape
