This post is written by member Christopher Margolin.
Prior to the first bell on the first day of my teaching career, I was given a few words of advice from a veteran colleague:
- Find the biggest, meanest kid in the classroom
- Ask him to stand up
- Embarrass him in whatever way possible.
This was supposed to be the 鈥渕agic bullet,鈥� and at just 22-years-old, I was searching for any way to control my students – because at that time, I thought discipline was about keeping all students in line. Period. So, it sounded like a good idea to me. Here I was fresh off the bar stool, and ready to save the world.
I believe the initial interaction with my first class went like this:
Teacher: 鈥淕ood morning, everyone. Let鈥檚 get this year started. My name is 鈥︹��
Student: 鈥淚鈥檓 gonna go piss.鈥�
Teacher: 鈥淚 haven鈥檛 even said my name yet. You鈥檙e not going anywhere until I鈥檓 done.鈥�
Student: 鈥淚鈥檓 gonna do it either way.鈥�
Teacher: 鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to do exactly what I tell you, and right now, you鈥檙e going to stay in that chair, and be quiet.鈥�
Student: 鈥淲hatever you say.鈥�
The student then proceeded to stand up, walk behind my desk, pull down his zipper, and pee on the floor in the corner of my classroom. The class, a room full of senior Credit Recovery students, burst into hysterics. He finished, zipped up his pants, and walked out of the room. I had no words. The 鈥淢agic Bullet鈥� had failed, my floor was soiled, my mouth left agape, and it took everything I had to hold back the tears building up behind my eyes.
Worst of all, I had lost the class on day one.
Now, fourteen years later, I find myself out of the classroom, and into the district office as a Curriculum Specialist. I鈥檓 responsible for observing and coaching teachers鈥攂oth new and veteran鈥攊n my district, and working with them not only on content and curriculum, but also on how to better engage with their students, and partner with their content in order to plan their classroom experience. While it鈥檚 not the major focus of my position, one of my jobs is to help find that one avenue to make Bobby Bully and Tommy Teacher find something in common that might help them to work together throughout the year, and to make teachers understand that we are far beyond the world where heavy-handed discipline can be used to force anyone to pay attention; most importantly, to help teachers find a way for students to relate to the material enough for them to want to learn rather than simply be a warm body in a seat.
Students deserve to be recognized daily. Even if it鈥檚 a simple threshold greeting, it鈥檚 still an act of recognition for a student who may not receive much elsewhere. If poverty is a leading factor in behavior issues, then we must reach out to those students who are house-insecure, or food-insecure, or clothing-insecure. One must find a way to positively engage with them and reassure them that they are in a safe environment. School should be their sanctuary — their weekday vacation from whatever awaits them at the sound of the final bell.
I鈥檝e told newer teachers to remember what they went through as students. To remember that not every day was a good one, and that in those moments of frustration, the last thing we wanted was to feel picked on by a teacher. I tell them to let all students know that bad days happen, and if it鈥檚 a real doozy, that Joe Student can give a quick signal, and you鈥檒l know to either let them breathe through it, or crouch down next to them and let them know that if they need an ear, you鈥檒l be there. It鈥檚 not rocket science; it鈥檚 compassion, it鈥檚 teaching, and it鈥檚 the understanding that sometimes we have to be real people, and not just the sage on the stage (if you are a 鈥渟age on the stage,鈥� please try to figure out why there鈥檚 so much obvious distance — metaphorical or not — between yourself and your students).
What鈥檚 learned in the classroom should be much more than curriculum; it should be about life, and about finding oneself in the crowd, and choosing the best path, and knowing when to ask questions, or when to just listen. Classroom management works best when students feel like they are a part of the process of learning. In the world of education, there is no 鈥淢agic Bullet,鈥� and to the teacher who thinks otherwise, all you鈥檝e done is shot down a student who probably deals with a few too many bullets — metaphorical or not —聽 of his or her own. Creating a comfortable environment allows for students to build a respect for their teacher, and be willing to share their own thoughts and ideas. You know, like a real class is supposed to work.
Chris Margolin聽is the Vancouver Public Schools鈥� Curriculum Specialist for Secondary English Language Arts, Advanced Placement, College in the High Schools, and Running Start. He spent 12 years as a high school English teacher, working not only with students, but also as a member of the district curriculum design team, developing the district鈥檚 Creative Writing course. He currently resides in Vancouver, Washington with his wife and daughter.聽