People are saying this teacher crossed the line with their 'mean-spirited' punishment for a child with ADHD

What should you do when your child is being treated unfairly at school?

That is a question a parent asked to Reddit’s “Am I the A**hole?” forum when their son was excluded from a school trip in a particularly mean-spirited way.

The parent explained that the school has a system where kids are scored by positive or negative behaviour.

And at the end of the year, there was a field trip to a skating rink for students with enough “good behaviour points”.

They added that their son has ADHD and sometimes struggles to control his energy and behave well.

Unfortunately, the parent said he was around five points off being able to attend the trip, so they did not send a signed permission slip or money for him to go.

So far, so normal.

Next day, the son went to school expecting to have a boring day in the classroom while everyone else went on the skating trip.

Then the parent wrote:

After school I pick him up and ask how his day was and he proceeds to tell me that they took him with them on the field trip. He said he was told to sit at a table on the side of the skating rink and to do a work packet while watching the other kids.

He was upset because he was made to sit and watch everyone else having fun. That is understandable because these kids are 7 years old. Yes he understands consequences for bad behaviour but what adult thinks this is a good consequence?

So not only was the child not allowed to go on the trip, he was also punished again by being forced to watch everyone else…

That doesn’t sound very fair.

The parent attempted to contact the school but got no reply.

The question is – would they be wrong to complain to the school board about the punishment?

Not just because it was cruel but also because the teacher took their child out of school without their permission.

Most people on the thread agreed that the parent was right to be angry.

Although one user, “whateverreddit88”, thought the teacher messed up, but said the parent should give the principal more time before contacting the school board.

They wrote:

If this happened yesterday, I think OP needs to wait. The principal should be allowed to have their weekend off. Wait until Monday and try again.

Even if they don't contact the school board, it seems fair for the parent to be concerned about the school’s actions - if only for the permission slip issue.

HT: Someecards

More: High school teacher praised for 'check-in chart' to help students' mental health