Today I replaced a colleague who had an inspection. Not having classes with those students, I didn't have anything to do with them than talk. At a certain point, one of the boys began telling me that I don't look like a teacher. Intrigued, I asked him to explain himself. He said that I don't look decent enough. You can't imagine my feelings and immediately I looked at my clothes asking myself, why I am not decent. Not seeing anything than a pair of high-heeled shoes, jeans and a leather jacket over a pink shirt, I was wondering what was wrong...why I wasn't decent. As to get a clue about what he considered decent, I asked him to tell me what he considers decent. He said that decent means " beautifully". I asked him why he doesn't consider my clothes beautiful, explaining that he should really look in a dictionary for the explanation of the word "decent". I pointed to the fact that he should use words he doesn't know the meaning of with care, or else he can be offensive towards others. I explained to him a bit what this means as not to make the same mistake with others and then asked him for details about the clothes he expected a teacher to wear. He started telling me that I should wear a suit with a nice shirt. I showed him my shirt and told him I was wearing one. A...But no, the colour was not right. It was pink, while it should have been white and with a blazer. Wow, it sounded like an uniform. I told him to try that when he'll become a teacher- he'll see that after two weeks he'll finish wearing his wardrobe.
I found this situation very weird, not only because it was the second day since the beginning of school when I was wearing jeans (usually wearing skirts or classical pants), but more because of the person demanding me this "decent" attire. He was wearing pair of jeans intentionally torn in various parts and worn with the waist line lowered at half of his buttocks (the view of the dark blue boxer shorts being a plus) and a T-shirt with a barely-hidden sexual innuendo in English.
Oh, how great it is to be a teacher when we have these perfect students to teach us how to dress...That brings to my mind a email message sent by one of our colleagues who was pointing out exactly to our ingrate position we are in now. The students have only right ( they have the right to do anything and say anything, even swear us, without any consequences which would scare them the least) while we are told we have only obligations. We must be the perfect teachers, being blamed for everything. We are the ones sanctioned when a student throws a fit in the middle of class, without a particular reason, we are to blame when they are too lazy to wake us and come to school, we are to blame when they get bored and start listening to manele on their very expensive cells, etc. They are allowed to raise their voices at us, slam the door behind them when leaving the class feeling offended by a bad grade received: are allowed to have as many examinations as they want during the summer holidays as to pass the class they have not studied for an entire year... And many others. No wonder they don't respect us. They told me several times that they wouldn't do my job for my "shitty" pay check and dealing with all the " nuts". A lot of them come to school because they get bored at home and they consider classes an entertainment. All of us has had that type of student that purposely tries to find out which buttons he/ she must push as to get you to lose your temper only as to have something amusing to laugh at. It's like you are a circus monkey, present there for their entertainment. I find myself congratulating myself for my stoical smile while letting them do their number and promisig myself the delayed revenge at the end of the class when I will be rid of them (of course if I won't have the happiness of finding them in a another desk while repeating the year).
Talking about great theatrical numbers in class. Today a part of students, in an all boys graduating class, started humming and then singing to me and their classmates the lyrics of a manele song they were listening on their headphones. As usual, trying not to get mad and offer them a reason to amuse themselves on my behalf, I reminded them of the school policy which forbids them to use cells in school (with the clear threat of expelling them, which they are perfectly aware that nobody will enforce). They very innocently pulled out their headphones while asking me if I don't like that song. Grinning I reminded them that they have something else to do during class and that I was just teaching something. Patiently I continued my teaching to be again interrupted by one of them who started singing the tune as he remembered, with a funny twist. Having the whole class bursting into laughter, I couldn't take it any more. I turned towards the catalogue and asked the very funny comedians to tell me something them the lesson I was teaching. Of course, they had no idea about it. They had writtten everything, knowing that I was checking their notebooks and grading them for not doing at least that. Finally, the 2 mark convinced them them and the class that in spite of my big smile and kind tone I was deadly serious. I think I behaved like a saint in front of these twenty years old bullies, known throughout the school for their physical and behavoural "muscles". I remember last year when I had my first classes with them, they tried everything to push my buttons and I did the same until I hit the right ones which make them hurt and fall back. Now, it's easier and other collegues come to me asking what methods I use to make them be so silent and orderly in my classes while theirs are the worst. My best advice is to be patient, find the clowns of the class and their weak points and attack them. If you conquer the leaders, the class will be yours. They must have something you can work with. Some of them respond well if you take them as allies and involve them in teaching or establishing the order in class. Some respond to bad grading or the contrary encouraging grading. For some you have to appeal to their raising - pointing out that they don't want to offend a nice lady like me. With some you have to talk with their parents, because they are the only ones they listed to (more often because they enforce discipline the hard way, which you can't do). And so on... Psychology and a lot of patience will help you overcome all obstacles and maybe you'll make it in this very "rewarding" job. To do this you need to define very clearly why you are doing this and hold on to that, or else you are in danger of losing your mind, which happens more often than you think.
After many years of teaching, I definitely know why I'm do this- I like it. I am a bit sado-masochistic. I tried other things and I got bored, I missed the challenge and the thrill of a new day when anything can happen from a bloody fight, a pregnant girl's faint to a funeral masquerade. I am usually the most happy person, smiling at their unruly behaviour an then bursting into laughter a their surprised faces while punishing them with the lowest grade possible for not paying attention. Unfortunately most classes know me already well enough and now are too obedient. Some days I feel like torturing them and they don't give me any reason. it happened to me to raise my voice a bit towards a chatting student and to have another tell me that he knows that I am not really mad. So if you are a bit sado-masochist you should try this position. It can give you the thrills you need (not in the sexual manner, of course) in the psychological sense.
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