Moroba: “Once a student crosses the threshold of your room, he is in your kingdom. As such, he either treats you with the respect your position warrants or he enters someone else’s kingdom - like that of the head of year’s - in the company of his parents to discuss his lack of respect for authority. A classroom is a teacher’s space that gradually becomes a shared one as relationships and mutual respect are formed.”

biology_sparkly: “This certainly shouldn’t be accepted. Parents agree to the code of the school by sending their children there. Showing lack of respect to any member of the school - whether staff or student - breaks that code.”

SHOULD I GET A TATTOO?

Liquidforce: “Are you serious? Have you even been in a school before? I don’t think you should have one done in an obvious place. It will cause all sorts of problems when getting a job. And teaching will change you!”

MooCow: “Tell them you are from New Zealand and it’s part of your culture.

They can’t discriminate then. Several tutors at our college have them and I think the kids give them more respect because they have more street cred.”

Gorgybaby: “I wouldn’t, although I know teachers who have small ones (on a shoulder, for example, or on ankle). Can’t you just wear a ridiculous amount of slap, like me?”

Idontlikemondays: “I had my first tattoo three months ago. It’s right at the bottom of my back and, as I tend not to wear crop tops and hipsters to school, nobody knows. I wouldn’t consider one on my arms, purely because I don’t want to be condemned to a working life of sleeves... ” These comments are the personal opinions of individual contributors