Reality Check "October Edition"
I write articles for my friends, just about issues concerning everyone, stuff that we all think about. It's called Reality Check and here's the first edition. The November issue will be out tomorrow.
October 2004 issue
R e a l i t y C h e c k
Bullies in the Classroom?
“Teachers have the right to teach us, the right to discipline us and even the right to help us succeed…but do they have the right to put us down?”
You hear about it so often. One of your teachers has it in for you. They try their hardest to make your puny (or not so puny) one hour of class a living hell. Maybe they hold a grudge because you look at them funny, or you write a little messy. Or perhaps you just know that in their evil little minds. They hate you.
But what are the real reasons?
Jenny was in math class, last period, and it was four minutes until the siren. She took the bus and her class was a fair distance from the buses, so that meant a long hard run to try and get herself a seat. It got very competitive. But she had been forced to stand two weeks in a row and even missed the bus once already. Why? Her teacher. You see, her teacher, who will not be named, made the class clean the room from top to bottom after the lesson and would never let anyone go or pack up until it was done. This is what caused Jenny to be late to the bus. Its everyone’s right to speak up isn’t it? Maybe not so. Jenny had an idea. She was a good student, one of the only ones, and she felt she was being treated unfairly. But she isn’t the one to be rude to her teacher, not matter how harsh she may be spoken to at times. She would propose that the students who had worked to their complete maximum would be aloud to begin cleaning five minutes earlier then those who hadn’t. Given that they had completed all set tasks to the teachers discretion. Jenny raised her hand. But what she expected was clearly not handed out.
“Hand down Jenny, you can wait until the siren” Was the teachers reply. Jenny lowered her hand. So, shakily, she began to speak. “Excuse me miss, can I make a suggestion please?” The look from her teacher was enough to choke a kitten.
“I said to wait until the siren Jenny! You can speak to me after”
Obviously her teacher didn’t know about the whole ‘bus rush’.
“I catch the bus miss, so I wont be able to… but I was going to suggest that maybe the-”
“-Jenny!” Her teacher screeched. “Be quiet while we are waiting for the siren! How rude!”
How rude indeed.
A student has a right to speak to her teacher whether it be in class or out. A teacher does not have the right to make a student feel insignificant. Put downs are stressed about in the classroom to stop us from bullying each other. But what about the teacher bullies? If we feel the need to speak out or suggest to our teacher a better means in a safe and responsible manner, shouldn’t it be encouraged? No matter what background you come from a teacher has no right to put you down or make you feel horrible.
But it can sometimes be hard to pin-point. You need to know the difference between bullying and disciplining. So your teacher kept you in because you drew on the desk? That’s discipline. You did something, you get punished. An assignment is due so she gives out extensions to her favorites…but not to you.
That, is a bully.
They won’t beat you up, steal you lunch money or throw food at you.
But sometimes it’s just as bad. We all have the right to learn as well don’t? Not only is it our right, but we pay for it too! So the teachers tell us that our education is the one thing that will get us through life and make us into something. That’s all good and true, as long as they teach us. Some of us have teachers that use different teaching methods to what we’re used to. That’s fine. It can help us develop tolerance. Yet there are teachers that simply don’t teach us at all and choose to be lazy instead with slack methods and rusty ideas of learning.
Jack had been having a lot of trouble in maths for as long as he could remember, so his parents let him get tutoring for six months. It helped because he could retain information better than he ever could. A while later, his classes were changed and he was stuck with a new math teacher at school. He though it was brilliant! This new teacher was so lazy that he could do anything he wanted! But there was one fault…he wasn’t learning anything. His teacher would hand out sheets, expect the class to know how to complete them and then individually go around to those who didn’t understand. But the entire class didn’t know! It would take at least a whole lesson to get around to everyone and if you didn’t get the first time…too bad!
Students have right, teachers have rights. But sometimes we neglect them. Those students who stand up for themselves are shunned by teachers and congratulated by their entire student body. It’s wrong and needs to be changed. Students should have the right to speak freely concerning important issues and help their teachers to help them, without getting put down.
We need to be heard.
R e a l i t y C h e c k
Bullies in the Classroom?
“Teachers have the right to teach us, the right to discipline us and even the right to help us succeed…but do they have the right to put us down?”
You hear about it so often. One of your teachers has it in for you. They try their hardest to make your puny (or not so puny) one hour of class a living hell. Maybe they hold a grudge because you look at them funny, or you write a little messy. Or perhaps you just know that in their evil little minds. They hate you.
But what are the real reasons?
Jenny was in math class, last period, and it was four minutes until the siren. She took the bus and her class was a fair distance from the buses, so that meant a long hard run to try and get herself a seat. It got very competitive. But she had been forced to stand two weeks in a row and even missed the bus once already. Why? Her teacher. You see, her teacher, who will not be named, made the class clean the room from top to bottom after the lesson and would never let anyone go or pack up until it was done. This is what caused Jenny to be late to the bus. Its everyone’s right to speak up isn’t it? Maybe not so. Jenny had an idea. She was a good student, one of the only ones, and she felt she was being treated unfairly. But she isn’t the one to be rude to her teacher, not matter how harsh she may be spoken to at times. She would propose that the students who had worked to their complete maximum would be aloud to begin cleaning five minutes earlier then those who hadn’t. Given that they had completed all set tasks to the teachers discretion. Jenny raised her hand. But what she expected was clearly not handed out.
“Hand down Jenny, you can wait until the siren” Was the teachers reply. Jenny lowered her hand. So, shakily, she began to speak. “Excuse me miss, can I make a suggestion please?” The look from her teacher was enough to choke a kitten.
“I said to wait until the siren Jenny! You can speak to me after”
Obviously her teacher didn’t know about the whole ‘bus rush’.
“I catch the bus miss, so I wont be able to… but I was going to suggest that maybe the-”
“-Jenny!” Her teacher screeched. “Be quiet while we are waiting for the siren! How rude!”
How rude indeed.
A student has a right to speak to her teacher whether it be in class or out. A teacher does not have the right to make a student feel insignificant. Put downs are stressed about in the classroom to stop us from bullying each other. But what about the teacher bullies? If we feel the need to speak out or suggest to our teacher a better means in a safe and responsible manner, shouldn’t it be encouraged? No matter what background you come from a teacher has no right to put you down or make you feel horrible.
But it can sometimes be hard to pin-point. You need to know the difference between bullying and disciplining. So your teacher kept you in because you drew on the desk? That’s discipline. You did something, you get punished. An assignment is due so she gives out extensions to her favorites…but not to you.
That, is a bully.
They won’t beat you up, steal you lunch money or throw food at you.
But sometimes it’s just as bad. We all have the right to learn as well don’t? Not only is it our right, but we pay for it too! So the teachers tell us that our education is the one thing that will get us through life and make us into something. That’s all good and true, as long as they teach us. Some of us have teachers that use different teaching methods to what we’re used to. That’s fine. It can help us develop tolerance. Yet there are teachers that simply don’t teach us at all and choose to be lazy instead with slack methods and rusty ideas of learning.
Jack had been having a lot of trouble in maths for as long as he could remember, so his parents let him get tutoring for six months. It helped because he could retain information better than he ever could. A while later, his classes were changed and he was stuck with a new math teacher at school. He though it was brilliant! This new teacher was so lazy that he could do anything he wanted! But there was one fault…he wasn’t learning anything. His teacher would hand out sheets, expect the class to know how to complete them and then individually go around to those who didn’t understand. But the entire class didn’t know! It would take at least a whole lesson to get around to everyone and if you didn’t get the first time…too bad!
Students have right, teachers have rights. But sometimes we neglect them. Those students who stand up for themselves are shunned by teachers and congratulated by their entire student body. It’s wrong and needs to be changed. Students should have the right to speak freely concerning important issues and help their teachers to help them, without getting put down.
We need to be heard.
posted by ToothPickly at 8:46 PM
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