Happy Wednesday, Dear Reader!
Today I am finally starting my blog. I have been threatening, er, promising to do this for awhile now, ever since I thought up the cool title. I share my wisdom with my students daily, and they, more often than not, nod in agreement, their faces lit up in wonderment at my skill in getting to the heart of the matter so precisely.
Which brings me to the problem of: Where to Begin? So Many Choices! I could speak about school schedules, curriculum, school days, school years, testing, students, teachers, teaching philosophy, attitudes, television shows, movies, politics, religion, culture, literature, sports(well, pretty much just football), travel, parenting, well, you get the idea.
I think I shall begin with one of my favorite themes: PASSING PERIOD DOESN'T CUT IT! At my school, we are all under the gun of being in class and ready for the period with no opportunity during the passing period to stop by the bathroom, locker, or, for teachers, the workroom.
Most of my students are where they are supposed to be, when they are supposed to be there, with what they are supposed to bring. In other words, they appear on time and prepared for the day at school, and scurry between classes and such, in order to be on time. Why, then, the punitive attitude towards them that requires me to track their tardies and keep them out of the halls? Don't tell me it's because students will take advantage if you let them. Students are very reasonable as a group. They will get to class on time, or as nearly on time as they are able to in a building this size with only five minutes between classes. There is nowhere nearly enough time to go to their locker, stop by the bathroom or water fountain, and then make it across the building. If students are malingering, find out why. Is the class boring? Do they think it's a waste of time? Are they hyped-up on sugar and caffeine and can't sit still? Just a little more time spent with them should be very informative.
The conventional administrative answer is that they can go to the bathroom during class. That certainly will not do. I need them in class, able to pay attention to the entire lesson, not just the part they are there for between bathroom and water fountain breaks. How I would love it if there were seven or eight minutes between classes, giving me an amount of time that allows me to send my concluding class on its way, set up for the next class, and then meet the students of that class as they enter, and also providing the students with an opportunity to go to the bathroom or whatever and to be ready to begin when class starts. There would be so many fewer distractions! I realize that crowd control is enhanced when all students are out of the halls within five minutes. If there are students with nothing to do, or who are getting into trouble, deal with them. I could see myself offering an after-school detention for repeat offenders. I would read them lots of stories about the value of being on time and prepared. Maybe start with The Ant and the Grasshopper. We could even offer a one-semester class in self-discipline and self-respect. Come on, school rule people, be creative! There are ways to support punctuality and attendance that don't have to treat the rest of us as if we are troublemakers. Would it hurt to at least consider it? I know some very responsible students and teachers who would enjoy a little less pressure; and so, for one, would I.
Check this out if you don't remember the story: Who's Got Game?(hip version) or Walt Disney version
I completely agree with your point. A great deal of time is wasted punishing people who are a few seconds late. Stuff happens. Don't stress over a few seconds or a minute or two. School would feel a lot less like a prison!
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