The parents who think of school as babysitting are showing how much of a child they themselves are acting. It’s annoying because that poor child is likely going to have a whole host of other issues with that poor attitude. It’s apparent that they had something that necessitated talking to the parents so I know they are likely on the wrong path now.

The best thing you can do as an educator is try to convey to the child the importance of what you are doing, and see if you can connect to them in a different way. Some of the best teachers I had were able to get to some students in different non-traditional ways and t was effective for them.