Our school has a version of Study Hall where the senior students work silently. They also refrain from eating while using the computers.
In reality what happens is that they whisper to each other until the teacher comes along and asks them to be quiet. And they eat their food until the teacher comes along and asks them to put it away.
They do either of the above with varying amounts of grace, depending on - I believe - how many manners their parents have managed to instil in them, or how big a sense of entitlement they feel.
Today as I supervised Study Hall I had to ask several students to be quiet or find another place to go. Some were then quiet, others then spoke to me without actually looking at me and told me they were going anyway - all good. End result: they go.
Another lass was asked not to eat. So she put her food away- meaning she moved her box of snack biscuits away from herself. Later she opened it again and kept eating. I approached her and attempted to remove the food as she was incapable of following instructions.
She informed me: "I'm not bloody doing anything."
"Pardon?" I queried.
"I'm not bloody doing anything."
In the overall scheme of things this is quite a tame response. I've heard worse from students and witnessed worse. Nevertheless it does make my wonder:
a) Why people have children at all, and
b) Why people become teachers at all.
That's all.
The problem with working with kids who are like that, is that if you attempt to follow through with structure and rules, there's always some *$$hole adult (parent, co-worker...) ready to come in and undo whatever's been set in place. *They* make me more crazy.
ReplyDeleteI wonder those same things sometimes, but I doubt too many people other than fellow teachers would understand!
ReplyDeleteOoooh ! You got me started on one of my pet peeves ! Just this morning TH and I were saying, "Why do people have kids if they can't be bothered to instill basic values in them ?". It is infuriating to see badly behaved kids. Sometimes they misbehave in the presence of their parents while the parents look on indulgently or exasperated but don't do a thing to stop that behaviour. God help you if you lose your patience and intervene or ask the parents to intervene ! "You wouldn't understand...you don't have kids" is the most-used rebuke. Yes, I don't have kids (and it is not 'unfortunate', it is a choice TH and I made), but I am capable of recognising bad behaviour and a lack of values and you are responsible for it. Aaaaarrgghhhh !
ReplyDeleteHa ha, sounds like I touched a nerve there! I think maybe you need to blog about it! There's a new tv series here in Oz, based on the book by Christos Tsiolkas called 'The Slap'. At a barbeque a man slaps someone else's misbehaving child as his parents do nothing.
ReplyDeleteThe book is meant to be very good- not sure about the tv show, I haven't bothered to watch it. It was short listed for the Miles Franklin literary award and some others, won the Premier's Literary Award. All local Aussie awards, I know, but it's probably something you'd enjoy.
NQ- I know. Or sometimes the school doesn't back you up like it should. Not in this case though. A senior teacher if following this up for me.
ReplyDeleteMelanie- ha, looks like it's not just us teachers who can relate to this!