counting down to the bitter end

[thehallway]

today was made of suck. a little less than five weeks left and the asshat is bleeding out of these kids. one of mine is separated for pulling a knife on another kid in school yesterday. and in all the years i've been doing this i can honestly say that i have ever rarely really disliked a kid, but  i've got a couple right now just pushing my buttons with the attitude and disrespect and stupid they're currently celebrating.

add to that the meeting after school once again asking us what we can do, how we can work harder to get these kids who do nothing in class to pass and i'm just over the edge. i don't have a lot right now to spare for them when i'm busting ass trying to get the kids who really try but have problems ready for the end of the year and a killer final.

Comments

[honeyelle]

I have SO much respect for you and the fact that you go to that school day after day after day. Like my own parents. Having lived through high school - especially MY high school - rather recently, there are no bounds to the extent of respect you get from me.

However, that won't help your situation. It sucks that you are accountable for their marks. I had a teacher that said, first day of class, that he's pretty easy going teacher. But unless you turn up and learn what you need to learn, he won't help you pass. He tells you what you need and that's that. He'll help those that are there and want to learn, but won't go out of his way to pass those stupid enough to not want to. Do the work, get the mark. Easy as that.

[thehallway]

thank you so much for the kind words. i am so tired of people (read admin and others) treating us as if we were nothing more than trained monkeys. or less than trained monkeys, since you could just hand trained monkeys a book and tell them to teach and they wouldn't ever try to complain or suggest that perhaps what is wrong with the educational equation as it stands is that no one except teachers are to blame for failure in or of the system.

i love that teacher of yours. my class is similar. i have done everything i can to structure it for student success, but i cannot do student work or learn for students (and they are inextricably bound together); there must be some level of student engagement.

do the work, learn what you need to, and you will be successful. sounds a lot like right to me.

of course i may just be a bitter old bitch, but i did spend my entire lunch period of the phone with a parent about their student who just can't find the time to come in after school to get help with the paper that is due monday. and how that student is just so frustrated with how difficult the assignment is.

a two-page historical narrative with two sources (one of which can be me as personal communication or the textbook) that i assigned two months ago. that the kid has never asked me about and has done nothing on.

gee, i get that he might be frustrated. but i don't think that the assignment is the problem.