Teach Your Children

Today was my second day as a teacher and, while I'm not ready to throw in the towel and proclaim I made a mistake, I would say the honeymoon is over (if it ever really started).

Those who follow this blog know I made a big life change. I left New Jersey, moved to Las Vegas, and went through a program to get a teaching license. I had visions of teaching literature to the creme de la creme of high school students, discussing The Great Gatsby and Hamlet. Instead, things being what they are, I'm teaching 6th grade in a very poor district, where the kids are lucky if they get passing grade (and they can't get below fifty percent).

I accepted my fate and decided I was going to teach these kids the best that I could, and if I could at least reach a few I would be satisfied. After two days, though, I feel like I've been in a war zone, and I'm happy just to get through the day.

I try to remember my days as a sixth grader. My teacher was Mr. McLaughlin, who was pretty strict. We had him for all subjects, though, and I have three groups of kids for two periods each day. I think there are some fundamental differences between my sixth grade days, which were 1972-73, and today. First of all, kids are much more sophisticated. Maybe it's the Internet, maybe it's social media, maybe it's just the general breakdown of society, but these whippersnappers are canny, like velociraptors in on the kill. Secondly, there is absolutely no corporal punishment allowed today. Back in my day, the principal had a paddle he dubbed "The Board of Education," which had holes drilled in it for more speed. Mr. McLaughlin used to grab a kid by the skin under his chin. He only did that to me once, when I lost my math book.

So how do you exert discipline now? Yelling has some effect, but not much. These kids are like a room full of squirrels, always talking, always getting out of there seats. I think the key is that you have to establish rules and then back them up with punishment if they're broken. One of the rules I established, which was met with dismay, was that they could not listen to headphones in computer lab unless they had finished all assignments. This is, to most people, perfectly reasonable--headphone use is a privilege, and finishing assignments is basic to being a student. I had one tussle with a young lady today about it, who labeled me "mean and unfair." When I mentioned this to other teachers, they congratulated me. I eventually had to send his girl to the dean's office, because she resisted directions at all turns. I don't relish seeing her tomorrow. But if she thinks I'm mean now, she ain't seen nothing yet.

Tomorrow, as part of a unit on argument and debate, I'm going to show them Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. In my fantasy, they will listen with rapt attention, and some may be moved to tears. The reality is that they will find any excuse not to watch, to sneak looks at their phones, to talk to their neighbors, and to create general mayhem. All I can hope for is that the kids who want to learn will get something out of it. This is now my lot in life. Hopefully I will not be driven to drink.