Parents and teachers blast 'anti-social' messaging groups

Conflict

Drama and conflict have also escalated in parent-teacher WeChat groups in recent months, sparking arguments about whether the groups do more harm than good to these relationships

According to one post that went viral on social media in October, a math teacher at a primary school in Jinggangshan, Jiangxi province, used a parent-teacher WeChat group to shame parents who forgot to check and sign their children's homework, asking: "Is it because you can't do second-grade math calculations? Or did you earn millions last night?"

Screenshots showed the message continuing with the words, "You can't even supervise your own child, who will be as pathetic as you are."

The incident quickly sparked anger toward the teacher and prompted the headmaster of the school, who confirmed that the incident occurred, to apologize to the parents involved.

In another screenshot that went viral, a man surnamed Li in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, was told by a teacher that some parents had complained in the class WeChat group about him driving a sports car to school. The teacher said it would lead to unhealthy comparisons in class that were not conducive to friendships among students.

Many parents backed the teacher, and suggested Li use a different vehicle to take his son to school.

"If it's just dropping the kid at school, can't you just use another, regular car?" asked one parent. "You are not short of money, after all."

Li refused to back down. He said he had worked hard for his money and would give his son only the very best.

"If (seeing others) riding in a sports car hurts their feelings, your children are too sensitive," he wrote. "Besides, why should I buy another car just to serve your needs?"

However, he was quickly removed from the chat group and his final message-"What's wrong with you people?"-was bounced back to him without having been read.

Many teachers are less than happy about the chat groups, too, because they feel obliged to be at parents' beck and call 24 hours a day, especially as the app provides members with the ability to respond immediately.

Wang Yan, a primary school teacher in Changsha, Hunan province, said she spends a huge amount of time dealing with constant message notifications.

"Parents think they can reach me whenever they want, and they send messages on the groups whenever they feel like it," she said.

"Sometimes they get angry if I reply to their messages later, and call me 'incompetent' or 'irresponsible' in the group. I have begun to develop a phobia of mobile phones. I understand those teachers who kick parents out of groups. Being a teacher is not an easy job, and the groups just make our work harder."