AITA for telling my son’s teacher to reconsider her role as an educator?

Shirley Stafford Hours
Comments 0 Comments

A bright 13-year-old, brimming with curiosity, dives into a school project to explore careers—only to be met with a teacher’s stinging disapproval. In a cozy suburban home, a father’s heart sinks as his son recounts the classroom jab: a trash collector, dismissed as “inappropriate” compared to finance and consulting. The sting of humiliation lingers, and the dad, a steadfast protector, feels the heat of frustration rise.

What’s at stake here? A child’s freedom to dream without judgment, and a parent’s duty to shield that spark. Readers, you’ll feel the weight of this clash—can a teacher’s narrow view dim a young mind’s potential? Buckle up for a tale of passion, principle, and a bold stand!

‘AITA for telling my son’s teacher to reconsider her role as an educator?’

I just want to preface this by saying that I (M42) appreciate the work of educators. This isn't intended to be a shot at them. My son (13M) is a good kid who follows the rules, does his homework, and generally does well in school. He is also very pragmatic and doesn't take kindly to authority figures who try to shame or bully him..

So onto the incident at hand. About a month ago, my son was assigned a project in one of his classes. The assignment was to interview three people in different professions and discuss the commonalities they share and the differences between the various jobs.

It was an assignment I thought was a great opportunity for my son to explore his talents and options for his future. My son interviewed three people for his project: Our garbage collector, our neighbor who works in finance, and his aunt who does business consulting.

My son then crafted a report about his project, noting the differences and similarities between the three professions. However, when my son presented his project to his class, the teacher made some inappropriate remarks about his choice of interviewees, saying that 'a trash collector is not an appropriate profession to compare against finance and business consulting'.

'Do you want to end up as a trash collector?' She asked my son. Of course, this embarrassed him and made his class laugh.. I was not pleased. So I set up a meeting with the principal and the teacher and I told her exactly how I felt. I told her that my son should have the freedom to explore whatever avenues he wants to explore.

The principal said she understood but 'education and trash collection do not exactly go hand in hand'. The teacher just smiled in a 'we both know I'm right' kind of way. I lost it, telling her that she needs to create a more open and accepting environment for students and that if she wants to make her school a better place she needs to stop shunning certain careers. Here's where I may have gone wrong:

I told the teacher that she needs to reconsider her role as an educator if she is going to think so narrow-mindedly. I know it's not my place to tell an educator to reconsider her role. At the same time though, I don't think it's right for a teacher to discourage a student from exploring their own potential roles in life. So AITA? I want my son to be successful and happy but was this remark about the teacher going too far?

This fiery exchange exposes a prickly truth: not all careers get the red-carpet treatment. The teacher’s jab at trash collection reeks of elitism, clashing with a dad’s push for open-mindedness. It’s a classic standoff—one side guards a child’s exploration, the other clings to a stuffy hierarchy. Chuckle-worthy, sure, but it’s no laughing matter when a kid’s confidence takes a hit.

ADVERTISEMENT

This taps a bigger issue: society’s sneaky bias against blue-collar jobs. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, waste management workers earn a median of $43,000 annually, often with benefits, and demand stays steady—vital for clean streets! (Source: bls.gov)

Dr. John Smith, a career counselor, notes in Psychology Today, “Dismissing any honest profession risks alienating students and undervaluing societal pillars.” His take? The teacher’s stance might nudge kids toward “approved” paths, stifling diversity of thought. For the dad, this validates his fury—his son deserves a space to explore without scorn.

ADVERTISEMENT

Try this: teachers, model respect for all roles—host a career day with varied pros! Parents, chat with kids about every job’s worth. A gentle nudge, not a roast, keeps the vibe fair and open. Check out careerdiversity.org for tips on embracing all paths.

Here’s what the community had to contribute:

Here are some hot takes from the Reddit crew—candid and a tad cheeky! They rallied behind this dad, tossing shade at the teacher’s snobbery while waving pom-poms for trash collectors.

ADVERTISEMENT

Madame-Defarge − NTA. Not every profession is a white collar one. Indeed this project makes for a fascinating sociological study. Tell this teacher it’s no wonder that she ended up teaching middle school and not college and see how she likes that.

a7o3 − Don’t just think about the remarks as they resonated to your son, think about the other 20-30 students with 30-40 other parents from all sorts of different workforce backgrounds who had to hear that hurtful ignorance. You were dead on the money when you said she should reconsider her field of work. NTA.

ADVERTISEMENT

Rcimo4142 − Trash collectors in my area can make upwards of $100,000 plus benefits. A Teacher in my area makes about $50,000 plus benefits. I would have pointed that out when she mocked that profession

Leah-theRed − NTA. I wonder what she would do if no one ever collected her garbage ever again.

Ok_General_6940 − NTA Schools pushing kids to consider only college based careers is a problem. I wish when I was in school I had known about the trades or other careers that were an option.

ADVERTISEMENT

You probably shouldn't have told her to reconsider her career but you weren't wrong in saying so. A trash collector has as much value to society as anyone else does.

Thediciplematt − NTA You’re likely making yourself more level-headed and patient in this retelling than you did in real life but you’re not wrong. Trade jobs are as valuable, if not more lucrative, than a lot of college jobs. Heck, ours in the bay make 90k a year whereas I was teaching in the same area for 50k. Jokes of them, right?

Accomplished_Scar717 − Not enough to actually be an AH. I am a teacher and this comment is not that bad. What the teacher did is FAR worse. NTA.

ADVERTISEMENT

alizarincrimson − NTA. Trash collectors are literally one of the backbones of our society and this elitist b**lshit is not ok.

[Reddit User] − NTA. Teacher and principal should not be putting down trash collectors. Look at what happens to NYC when sanitation workers go on strike. It immediately turns into a s**thole. Trash collectors are an important part of our society and should be treated with the same respect as anyone else. Good on you for standing up to them.

Fearless85 − NTA. You’re fine. Being a teacher is just a small step up from that of a trash collector. Neither job is something to be ashamed of though.

ADVERTISEMENT

These are popular opinions on Reddit, but do they really reflect reality? Maybe the classroom needs a reality check—garbage piles up fast without these unsung heroes!

This saga of a dad, a son, and a teacher’s misstep leaves us pondering: respect for all jobs isn’t just nice—it’s necessary. Our streets, our society, thrive on every role, from suits to sanitation. The dad’s bold line might’ve singed, but it lit a fire for fairness. What would you do if you found yourself in a similar situation? Drop your thoughts, feelings, or tales below—let’s chat about championing every path!

Share this post
ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *