AITA for bringing a baby to a class??
A Reddit user recounts an unusual situation where they brought a sleeping baby to their online university class due to a family emergency. During a required presentation, the professor requested that they turn on their camera, revealing the baby in their lap.
The presentation went smoothly, but the professor later marked them down, accusing them of using the baby as a “pity prop” to gain sympathy. Confused and upset, the Redditor asks if they were in the wrong for balancing their responsibilities during an emergency. Invite people to read the original story below.
‘ AITA for bringing a baby to a class??’
hi please let me know because i’m honestly not sure. for context, my university is completely online, I’m male and 20 years old. Okay, last week, a family emergency happened, and it required my aunt and uncle to leave their house at late night. I live close to them, and they have a baby that’s less than a year old.
So, they called my parents to tell them about the emergency, and then called me. They asked if I could come into their house, take care of their baby, until they came back, and I was down with that. I’ve taken care of babies before, so, this wasn’t new to me.
Took my stuff, and drove to their house, stayed with my cousin. Now, by the time my morning class comes about, my aunt and uncle haven’t shown up yet, which was within expected (they told me they’ll be back by one-two PM), and I had my baby cousin in my lap, setting up laptop for my morning class, and my cousin falls asleep, and I’m like OK. I can deal with this. A sleeping baby is the best kind of baby. Do not move them.
Now, here’s the problem. I had a presentation to do, and so my video is off, as I’m preparing to give it, and the professor goes “OP, please turn on your camera.” “Uhh. I have a sleeping baby right now, so… is that okay with you?”. “A sleeping baby?” “Yeah, there was a family emergency, so my cousin’s asleep on me right now, um… I don’t want to say the details in class, but I can email you after class, and supply any proof you need.” “It’s fine, please turn on your camera.”
So I do, and my cousin is asleep, and I give the entire presentation, and I’m really proud of how it went, because I think I did really well, and I answer all questions, and my cousin doesn’t wake up! Like this is the best case scenario.
Well, last night, I got my grade for the powerpoint, along with an email from the professor that says she marked me down because she felt the baby was there as a pity prop, and I was attempting to gain sympathy, and if I hadn’t had the baby, I would’ve gotten higher. So was I the a**hole for showing up with a baby? I didn’t think about the pity aspect.
edit :- sorry for the sporadic replies. i am still a university student balancing my s**t. few clarifications. Yes, I did send her the proof she would’ve required to see there was an emergency. Yes, I will be reporting – and updating. Yes, there are better ways I could’ve done this, but a stressed and sleep deprived student isn’t normally the best source of judgement. The class was a philosophy one.
Take a look at the comments from fellow users:
velvet_wire − No, NTA. you should take that note from the teacher to Academic Affairs. It’s inappropriate and out of line, and your grade shouldn’t be lower because of a professor’s bias. I’ve been in grad school and had peers bring babies INTO the classroom and there’s no penalty. Because you gotta do what you gotta do.
calypso85 − NTA. I would honestly report the professor. It’s incredibly unprofessional and flat out wrong. Your presentation was perfectly fine and we are in uncharted times. They have to be flexible. You had an emergency. If they can’t grade you without the baby being part of the equation they obviously aren’t a capable teacher. Who knows how else they grade based off “pity” rather than what you earn?
dustydingo00594 − NTA in the slightest. She’s a s**tty teacher. You having a baby asleep on you should not affect your grade at all. It’s not like you could’ve helped your family situation at that time. She’s most definitely TA.
blackday44 − Normally I would be against bringing a baby to class because they tend to be disruptive. But in this case, NTA. Baby was sleeping, it was an emergency, and you offered to leave the camera off and told your teacher why. I am curious what kind of black magic you used to keep the baby asleep for the entire presentation? Babies seem to have a 6th sense for interrupting things. 😉
ForgottenOne41 − NTA I’d report them to their superiors. If it is an online course and similar events are common especially this year with more people staying at home. The kid was not disrespectful, and the event was last second for them to stay with you. This teacher is being disrespectful.
StarShred11 − NTA at all and also excuse me?! Your prof made a laughable assumption to me and you would in fact be well within your rights to formally complain about it imo. In any case you should dispute your mark with them and give them the whole story.
lightwoodorchestra − NTA and I would report that to someone at your school. Especially now, everyone needs the flexibility to take care of family at times. I also seriously doubt she would have done that if it was a woman who had the baby on camera.
jaidenlm − NTA. You need to report her.
Samsassatron − NTA, report your professor, that is ridiculous.
msnotsosweet − NTA. Normally I would call anyone bringing a kid to class a total inconsiderate a**hole because there’s always at least a potential for disruption. But this was a zoom class, not a physical one, you didn’t disrupt or disturb the class or others students’ learning in any way at all, and they wouldn’t even have known the baby was there if your webcam hasn’t been on. That professor was just being petty and unprofessional and you should report him/her.
Do you think the professor was right to mark the student down for having a baby in class, or was this an unfair judgment? How would you handle a situation where personal emergencies clash with academic responsibilities? Share your thoughts below!