1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (Guest Blogger: Matt Cone)

February 8, 2016June 4, 2023 ~ Blue Cereal

Last week, Anthony Purcell of Random Teacher Thoughts issued an edu-blogger challenge which he kindly initiated by responding to his own questions. It concludes by asking the respondent to name five people he or she would love to see complete the challenge as well – making this a blogger pyramid scheme of sorts.

One of the folks I named was Matt Cone, who is not actually a blogger, edu- or otherwise. He is, however, a helluva teacher and education consultant, and wildly entertaining for someone so much smarter than me. He doesn’t even Tweeter, so I had to tag him on Facebook just to get his attention.

I’m glad I did, because this was the result.

What has been your ONE biggest struggle this school year?

I’m sure that there will be a lot of responses that deal with issues of students feeling too entitled, lacking “grit,” and being unable or unwilling to work for things these days. These are all very valid observations/complaints.

I, however, have struggled more with convincing them of the larger picture for which they should be working. I teach U.S. history. In years past, I have taught American government. Both of these classes take on a new tone during election years. It is already difficult for students to confront some of the big issues of U.S. history (slavery, the plight of Native American peoples, etc.) without students developing an overpowering sense of cynicism. I still, in light of everything, believe in this country and what it’s supposed to stand for.

That has been hard to sell to students in the current political climate. The pervasive anger, lack of civility, and name calling brought about by the current campaign makes it hard to sell students on the idea that our system, with all of its inherent flaws, is still the best option. And lest we point our fingers in only one direction, this problem originates on both sides of the political aisle and is amplified by the dueling echo chambers of social media. If you don’t agree with one side, you’re a tree-hugging, America hating, Socialist who is simply awaiting the imposition of Sharia law. If you don’t agree with the other side, you’re a Bible-thumping, gun toting, misogynistic racist who simply hates everyone and everything.

As a history teacher, I know that this is not new. The campaigns of the late nineteenth century were as bare-knuckled as they come, and race-baiting fear has been used to win elections for far longer than anyone wants to admit. However, it is getting harder and harder to point to true leaders who are looking for real solutions to America’s problems, and that is making it harder and harder to teach classes whose main goal is to build solid citizens.

TWO accomplishments that I am proud of.

I won’t point to two specific things here, but I will address two ways in which my life as a teacher has changed.

First, I have been a better leader. I was a department chair for twelve years. While I did enjoy being a part of setting the agenda for may department, hiring new people, and providing input on issues with our administration, dealing with budgets and supplies, going to more meetings than I care to count, and being a constant conduit between my colleagues and my administration finally wore me out. One of the biggest things I had to do was be a filter. My administration did not necessarily need to hear every complaint or comment made by my fellow teachers; my fellow teachers, in my opinion, did not need to be privy to every minute detail and every edict handed down from admin. The only to filter some of this out was to absorb it, and that can be mentally and emotionally taxing. At the end of the 2013-2014 school year, I resigned that post.

As odd as it sounds, stepping out of “leadership” was the first step toward being a better leader. Much of the time I spent in meetings is now spent working through the new AP US history curriculum and developing lessons on both content and skills. I have used the redesign as an opportunity to have my team re-evaluate the way we do some things in our classes. Energy that used to be spent managing the budget and monitoring supplies is now spent mentoring new teachers. I am now a lot freer to say what I want, rather than what I’m supposed to, and I have built up enough credibility on my campus that I can still walk into my principal’s office and give my two cents. It was my principal, in fact, that confirmed all of this for me. I told her that I had to learn how to be a leader when not in “leadership.” Her response: “those are the most important leaders to have.”

My second “accomplishment” is not an accomplishment in a traditional sense. I guess it’s really more of an affirmation. I attended the school’s musical this year (a fantastic performance of “Legally Blonde”). During intermission, three former students approached me and told me that they knew I was there because they heard me laugh. I have been told that my laugh is not particularly obnoxious or grating (though that may have been to save my feelings), so I took that as a great compliment. In a dark room with more than five hundred people in it, my students could discern my laugh. There’s only one way that’s possible: they had heard it enough to know that it was me. The fact that laughter is big enough part of my class that this could happen is, to me, a great accomplishment.

THREE things I wish to accomplish before the school year is out:

I had to re-work some of my class resources last year to accommodate the AP US history redesign. I have had to re-re-work some of those resources this year to accommodate the new and improved redesign, as well as a new textbook. I am looking forward to getting that done.

I have set a goal to integrate more web-based tools into my class. Google Classroom has been a nice addition, as has the timeline generating tool, Preceden. I would like to use more web-based tools as we get into review season in (yikes!) a few more weeks.

On a related note, I would like to do more with podcasts. “Freakonomics” and “My History Can Beat Up Your Politics” have great podcasts for social studies. I would like to find more; more importantly, I would like to do more with them than just dump one more thing onto my students’ plates.

FOUR reasons why I remain in education in spite of the tough culture.

1. It’s still fun. I get to work with great kids and, as I said before, we get to laugh a lot.

2. I teach at the school from which I graduated. I have always viewed teaching as a way to give back to the community in which I grew up. Being a part of the community especially important to me as my hometown continues to evolve and as my kids grow up here.

3. I’m not sure what else I would do. This is not a lamentation about not being qualified to do anything else, though having taught in one place for almost twenty years does make me a less attractive candidate in this job market. I simply can’t think of a job that combines my love of learning, my love of kids, and my love for my community into one job that someone will actually pay me to do.

4. I pulled some new teachers into my office last week and pulled an old yellow file folder out of a file cabinet. I told them “This is my ‘warm fuzzy’ file. It has letters and cards from former students in it. You’re good teachers and you’re gonna get a lot of these. Keep them. You never know when you’ll need to pull one out and read it to remind yourself of why you’re here. Also, just know that I keep this file in the bottom drawer here; so if I get hit by a low-flying blimp tomorrow and someone needs to plan my funeral, you’ll know where to go.”

We get a lot of grief from outside. We’re punching bags for politicians, targets for lawyers, and scapegoats for parents. On the inside, however, where it counts, we do sometimes reach the students. As corny as it sounds, it does make the rest of it worthwhile.

FIVE that I hope will answer these. (I guess I’ll link them to this once it’s out there)

Lee Ferguson – A personal and professional mentor and friend. I hope to be like her when I grow up.

John Stewart – He is a great sounding board for ideas. There have been many times that I have sent him an e-mail and said “does this sound too crazy?” John does what I do, but in a completely different set of circumstances.

Matt Tassinari – As with John, he is an APUSH teacher for whom I have a lot of respect and dear a friend who teaches the same class that I teach to a radically different demographic.

Renee Birdsell – A good friend and colleague who is looking at all of this with much younger eyes than mine.

Lance Morse – Lance is a new friend who teaches theatre. I would love to hear what it’s like in the trenches of fine arts education.

RELATED POST: Blue Serials (2/7/16) {contains links to a dozen or so other responses to the challenge.}

The Remaking of Lawrence Public Schools (Guest Blogger – Amy Berard)

January 11, 2016June 4, 2023 ~ Blue Cereal

Amy Berard is a graduate of Lawrence Public Schools, and taught there during the first three years of receivership.She still lives in the community, but now teaches in the nearby district of Lynn.

Berard first made national #edreform waves when she did a guest post for Edushyster titled “I Am Not Tom Brady.” She has since been featured in Education Week, the Washington Post, and on Diane Ravitch’s legendary edu-blog.

Perhaps most importantly, she’s a proud #11FF and a Blue Cereal favorite.

January gym members aren’t the only ones with their eyes on reform.

Since the Commonwealth of Massachusetts took over Lawrence Public Schools in 2012, the district has been under the watchful eye of not only Massachusetts, but also the nation. In 2014, both U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, and AFT President, Randi Weingarten, paid a visit to Lawrence schools. In February of 2015, Time Union reported that Andrew Cuomo is using Lawrence as a model for education reform in New York.

This state receivership is certainly not short on attention or staff. This receivership is steered by a state-appointed receiver, a chief operating officer, a chief of staff, a deputy superintendent, an assistant superintendent, and a special assistant to the superintendent. During the first year of the recievership, more than $6 million was spent on salary increases at central office level. The chief of staff position was listed as having a salary of $115,000 in 2012, substantially more than that of the Lawrence mayor’s chief of staff, whose current salary is a mere $68,000. Despite the fact that these receivership positions are paid with public funds, it is unclear what many salaries of these positions are currently.

Lawrence, MA, is a city 30 miles northwest of Boston. It consists of 7 square miles with a population of approximately 77,000 people. Average household income is roughly $31,000 annually. 63% of students are economically disadvantaged. Over 30% of residents do not have a high school diploma. English is not the primary language of 70.4% of Lawrence students and 31% of students are English Language Learners.

The leadership of Lawrence’s schools and that of its city government share a history of instability, corruption, and public dissatisfaction. In 1998, District Superintendent James Scully was fired due to accusations of misuse of funds. In 2012, one of Scully’s successors – Wilfredo Laboy – was sentenced to jail for embezzlement. In the same year, the city’s mayor – William Lantigua – was under FBI investigation for misuse of public funds, a continuation of almost constant investigations into his behavior since his election in 2008.

There have been 2 recall petitions against the current mayor, Dan Rivera. In fact, every Lawrence mayor for approximately the last 15 years has been the subject of a recall petition.

Since the inception of the Lawrence receivership, one only has to visit the Massachusetts Department of Education website to see the effects the receivership has had on the staff and students.

The Valley Patriot reported, “Riley was hired by Education Commissioner {Mitchell Chester} with no experience in turning around a failing school system. He was given a three and a half year contract, at $198,000 per year with benefits and reimbursements to “turn around” the school district, yet there is no legal definition or policy outlining what specific goals must be met to for the schools to be considered “turned around.”

Prior to Lawrence, Riley had never served as a superintendent. His receivership has been marked by an increase in the hiring of inexperienced administrators and inexperienced teachers – many of whom had previous ties to Riley and came from areas outside of Lawrence and its surrounding Merrimack Valley area. These principals have been given wide autonomy to make decisions for their building and staff, which may be fine for an experienced school leader but potentially disastrous for the many with little or no prior experience in such positions.

The percentage of highly qualified teachers teaching core academic subjects in Lawrence went from 95.4% in 2012 to 87% in 2014. At the state level, that number went from 97.8% in 2012 to 95.4% in 2015. The loss has not been shared equally by all Lawrence schools. Guilmette Middle School, a Level 3 school among the lowest 20% of schools in the state, went from having 96.8% of core academic subjects taught by highly qualified teachers in 2012 to only 55.8% in 2014.

Given Receivership Riley’s past with Teach for America, it is perhaps not surprising that Lawrence teachers are becoming not only less qualified, but less experienced. Lawrence teachers under the age of 26 went from 6% in 2012 to 14% in 2015. The state average for teachers under the age of 26 went from 5% in 2012 to 6% in 2015. At Spark Academy, a Level 4 school among the lowest achieving and least improving schools in the state, 37% of teachers are under the age of 26.

The teacher retention rate in Lawrence Public Schools is indirectly proportionate to each year Receiver Riley is at the helm. For every year Riley has been in charge, the district retains less and less teachers. While the state average retention rate dipped slightly from 90.3% in 2012 to 89.9% in 2014, Lawrence’s teacher retention went from 81.6% in 2012 to 68% in 2014. International High School’s 2014 retention rate was 54%. The Business Management & Finance High School’s rate was 41.7%. The High School Learning Center managed 54.2% and Community Day Arlington a weak 59.1%.

Take a moment to imagine what it would be like for an academically struggling urban child to see an ever-growing sea of unfamiliar faces at their school year after year. Now imagine what it would be like for a child who speaks limited English or a student with a disability. What messages does this send to them?

Often urban students come to school for a sense of stability, structure, and community. With a declining teacher retention rate, Lawrence schools feel less and less like home for many students. A low teacher retention rate prevents teachers from becoming familiar to each other, the curriculum, the students, and the students’ families. Parents are not as likely to participate in school events when they have not developed a relationship with the school community.

The implication is that those most in contact with these students on a daily basis are only there temporarily.

Lawrence has very few teachers living in Lawrence teaching in Lawrence. Ironically, many qualified faculty members who actually live in the community have been let go with no more explanation than that they’re “not a good fit” – a phrase many will recognize as common reformer code for “asking too many questions” or “challenging too many decisions which impact their kids.”

Judging from the annually decreasing retention rate, few teachers seem to be “a good fit” for the new Leadership Cabinet of which Receivership Riley is quite proud. Members are chosen by administrators, leaving non-favored teachers without a means to voice concerns without professional retaliation.

This past summer, the Massachusetts Board of Education held a special meeting with Riley because they received a number of complaints from teachers about the teacher evaluation process being unfair. In some cases, evaluations did not occur at all. Since pay increases at a certain level are tied to performance evaluations, this is particularly problematic.

In 2012, Lawrence was labeled chronically underperforming. In 2015, while Lawrence has seen some growth, it is still labeled chronically underperforming. While some schools are held up as evidence the receivership is working, many others have shown little or no improvement. A few have become worse.

Although initially a three-year plan, the receivership has been extended another three years. Let’s hope those three years bring with them more stability for students and teachers – as well as a strong plan for transitioning back to local control.

You can follow Amy Berard on Twitter at @1amyberard.

Classroom Control, Part I (Historical Guest Blog)

December 24, 2015June 4, 2023 ~ Blue Cereal

Today’s Historical Guest Blog comes to us from Corinne A. Seeds, A.M., Principal of the Training School, Assistant Supervisor of Training, University of California at Los Angeles, with the cooperation of Milo B. Hillegas, Ph.D., LL.D., Professor of Education, Teachers College, Columbia University. I am not aware that either has a blog of their own, and as the material used here was published in 1927-28 (in Volume I of the 12-Volume series, The Class Room Teacher), chances are good both have gone to that great Teachers’ Lounge in the sky to mimeograph with the angels, as it were.

Their advice is nonetheless timeless – or at least amusing – and is shared here in excited anticipation of the upcoming semester.

Classroom Control: Methods of Control

The problem of classroom control is most vital and of outstanding, far-reaching importance. The future welfare of our country depends largely upon the methods of control used upon its future citizens. By these very methods teachers can produce anything from slaves who obey their masters explicitly without thinking, to freemen who make their choices only after careful deliberation and discussion. Thus it is of the utmost importance that teachers should know what types of control are best for the future welfare of a democracy.

“…a conglomerate mass of individuals at all stages…”

Our democracy is composed of a conglomerate mass of individuals at all stages of ethical development, from those who obey the laws made by the group for the welfare of all only when they are forced to do so to those unselfish souls who realize that their highest development and happiness are reached only as they consider all and act according to the best interests of the whole group. Midway between these two extremes we find those who obey only because they have been trained to do so, some who conform because of fear of the disapproval of their fellow men, and still others who act in accord because they long for approbation.

Taking into consideration all of these classes of people with such different attitudes towards control, it would be folly to assume that one method of control, even the ideal, would prove sufficient to promote the best interests of the group. There should be as many types of control as there are attitudes toward it. While it is necessary at times to use the lower forms of control, yet it should be the hope of the democracy that in the dim distant future, through our methods of education, the ideal can be truly reached – “a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

“…the highest control is that which comes from within…”

The problem of control which the classroom teacher must meet is a miniature of the greater problem which confronts the democracy. It is not easy for the teacher to know how to manage Mexican Pedro, whose father digs in the street, Isadore, the son of the Rabbi, Mary Evelyn, whose mother is president of the philosophical society, and forty others who differ more or less in native and acquired characteristics, so that they may live richly and cooperatively together in their school community and grow into better, happier boys and girls. Like the democracy she should be cognizant of the fact that the highest control is that which comes from within as a result of reason, and she should strive toward that as her ideal. But she should not be utterly crushed if at times she has to resort to coercion in order to promote the greatest good for the greatest number.

In order to meet the control problems found in the typical American classrooms, teachers use methods based upon the following general types or combinations of two or more types:

(1) No control, wherein the children all do as they please.

(2) Teacher control, wherein rules are made and enforced by the teacher.

(3) Group control, wherein rules are made and enforced by the group working together for a common purpose.

(4) Unselfish self-control, wherein each person considers the good of the whole.

NO CONTROL – Example:

The teacher is attempting to carry on a class recitation with one group of children while the others are supposed to be studying. Two or three large boys are lying on the floor with their feet propped against the stove. They are reading fiction which does not contribute in any way to their assignment. They later show a lack of knowledge as to the lesson content. Several girls are holding an animated conversation about the ways of securing pictures of the favorite “movie” actresses. The children who are trying to study have to dodge continual volleys of chalk, paper-wads, and even an eraser now and then. A note of unsavory character is passed about among the older children who laugh heartily at its contents.

The room is in an uproar; the recitation is a complete failure; but the teacher smilingly assures the visitor that she believes in “freedom.”

Discussion:

There can be no defense for such lack of control, even when masquerading under cover of the term “freedom.” The teacher might as well not be there at all. The result of no control is always chaos; children are denied the right to feel happiness in real achievement; habits and attitudes are formed during these years in the school room which may tend to make of them, in later life, unreasoning, selfish, and lawless citizens.

Perhaps it might be well to state that true freedom would not allow such an infringement upon the rights and liberties of others. True freedom is something which should be earned and bestowed only upon those who can use it wisely. All teachers should be very careful to distinguish between real freedom and merely allowing children to do as they please. Real freedom leads toward right and true happiness; while allowing children to do as they please leads toward wrong and toward future sorrow.

ABSOLUTE TEACHER CONTROL – Example:

When the class assembles on the first day of school, the teacher firmly informs the children that they are there for business and she is there to see that they attend to this business of learning. In order to accomplish this, certain tasks must be finished each day before they leave school. Anything which interferes with the work of school, such as talking without permission, whispering, giggling, or writing notes to one another will be carefully noted and punished by the teacher.

Ever after the children study the lessons assigned by the teacher, answer her questions, and accept the punishment she doles out for misdemeanors and errors. They usually do no more than they are asked, and frequently they misbehave when the teacher is not looking.

The teacher’s life is one of constant watchfulness. Her profession is not teaching; it is policing. She must be continually alert to catch the law-breakers, fair enough to pronounce just punishment, and persevering enough to see that punishment once pronounced is executed.

Discussion:

Such a method is far preferable to the preceding no-control type and should be used, especially by the inexperienced teacher, until she can determine the type best suited to her class of children. If used by a teacher who is always just and fair, the class achievement is usually good and the children rather happy. If, perchance, the teacher is a benign tyrant, the children will often vote this type of control the best of all, because, like many adults, some children dislike sharing responsibility and making choices.

Under this system the children usually do the right thing, not because they know it is the right or why it is the right, but because they are trained to obey blindly. The great danger her lies in the fact that they may form habits of following blindly, and later may unthinkingly follow unworthy leaders.

No teacher should be content to use this type continually unless she is handling groups, who, because of limited capacities, will always be obliged to “follow a leader.” As soon as possible each group of children should be given a share of the responsibility for its own mental and moral achievement. The teacher should covet the position of guide and advisor rather than one of policeman.

Next: Part Two – “The Ideal Solution,” in which it is revealed that…

“Daise was sobbing too much to talk, but the indignant lad and a dozen others could tell. John had given Daise a branch of Japanese cherry blossoms to bribe her not to report him. Before the investigation was over it developed that eight-year-old Daise had become richer by a box of raisins, two candied cherries, and a chocolate bar – all for not doing her duty.”

(Coming Soon… Maybe)

Baseball: A Ponderous and Elaborate Affair (Historical Guest Blog – Rev. J.T. Crane)

December 22, 2015June 4, 2023 ~ Blue Cereal

Today’s commentary is from the Rev. J.T. Crane, a writer without his own blog, most likely due to the fact that he’s been dead for well over a century. Here he mocks, condemns, and predicts the demise of what we today would call ‘professional baseball’, although his criticisms would apply equally well to any of the decadent sports – football, basketball, curling, etc. (Not hockey, of course – as the true Sport of the Gods, it alone is pure of intention and deed.)

I find this piece amusing in its own twisted little way, but in sharing it I have no intention of actually slandering baseball or any other sport. If you nevertheless feel slighted by the Reverend’s words, don’t take it personally – he was far harsher on the theater, novel-reading, and the ultimate time-waster and brain-killer, chess.

Chapter V: “BASE BALL” (From Popular Amusements by Rev. J.T. Crane, published 1869)

“And the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” Exodus xxxii, 6.

“…in the ancient and honorable way, carelessly, hilariously…”

Base ball may be made a very pleasant amusement, wholly unobjectionable either in regard to health or morals. Many of our readers well remember how it used to be played by the village school-boys. Two of the best players volunteered, or were elected by acclamation, to organize the two “sides.” The leaders tossed up a bat, with a mark on one side of it, to determine the first choice. The winner looked around the circle of boys and made his selection; then the other leader named a boy for his side, and so it went on, by alternate selections, till all were enrolled. The bat was again tossed up, to determine who should be “in” first, and then the play began.

How they knocked the ball, and ran and threw the ball at each other, and fell down in their eagerness to avoid being hit, and laughed and shouted, and grew hot, and red, and finally weary! No crowd of excited spectators were there to applaud special acts of skill, and thus spoil the sport; no “scorer” noted down in his book the number of “runs” or of “fly-catches;” no representative of the public press was there, to prepare an extended and eloquent report, confounding simple readers with his vocabulary of new terms; no body inquired which side was victorious, and all were happy.

And in these later days, if a score of young men or older men would provide a basket of refreshments, and go out into the fields by themselves and play two or three hours, in the ancient and honorable way, carelessly, hilariously, not even noticing who makes the most “runs,” they would all feel the better the next day; and the wit and humor elicited on the occasion would echo in twenty home circles for weeks to come.

“…base ball has become a ponderous and elaborate affair…”

But since it attained the dignity of being our “national game,” base ball has become a ponderous and elaborate affair. Rules as rigid as those which govern the proceedings of the Congress of the United States are fixed, by general councils of men learned in the art, and goodly volumes are published discussing the size, shape, and weight of balls and bats, and determining the proper distances between the bases. Associations are formed, who assume a name, devise a uniform, and have initiation fees and monthly dues.

The formation of the club, the selection of the members, is a very serious business, involving, as it does, the fortunes of the fame of the association in its future contests for championships and newspaper honors. Young men are in demand who are willing to devote their whole time and mental energies to the acquisition of dexterity in throwing a ball or catching it. Professional players are found, who are recruited from that idle, shiftless, and yet ambitious class of mortals who are ready to work with the energy of giants one day in the week at any useless task, provided they have the privilege of lounging about the other six days, boasting of their feats and basking in the admiration of all the little boys in the neighborhood.

These professionals train as carefully as prize-fighters, and are, in fact, the same style of men drawn mild. In some cases they hire themselves to the club for a single exhibition game; in others, they engage for the season. Their pay is ridiculously high, considering the service rendered. We hear of a club that secured one player for a thousand dollars for the season. Another player was induced to change his residence from one city to another, and was set up by his employers in a store, with a stock costing fifteen hundred dollars, by way of securing his valuable aid on great occasions.

When the club is organized, there must be daily practice for the benefit of the novices. This is done often to the neglect of every thing else, to the sore annoyance of parents and employers, and when a good degree of skill is supposed to be gained another club, fifty or five hundred miles away, is invited to meet in friendly contest. The newspapers announce that the Exotics have challenged the Cupids, name the time and the place, and express an ardent hope that the weather will be propitious.

“…a supper, of which wine-bibbing generally forms a prominent feature…”

The eventful day arrives; “play is called,” and the contest proceeds with all spirit and vigor. They pitch, they bat, they run, they pant, they grow red in the face, they perspire, they strain their muscles and rend their garments in superhuman effort… There is no brain power to spare on pleasantries, no surplus breath to waste in laughter. Awkward episodes occur. A head is broken by an erring bat, or a finger by a ball, or two players, running with upturned faces and outstretched hands to catch the same descending ball, rush together with a fearful thump, and fall backward in collapse. Perhaps proceedings are still further diversified by the occurrence of a little fight.

The game in due time ends, and one party or the other is declared victors by so many “runs,” and the winners and the losers adjourn to a hotel and refresh themselves with a supper, of which wine-bibbing generally forms a prominent feature. Speeches, too, are made by the talking members of each club, expressive of the most intense admiration of each other’s prowess, and breathing unutterable friendship.

The reporter, who has been presented with a complimentary ticket for this very purpose, takes notes of what is said and done, and the next morning the newspaper lays before an admiring world the important intelligence that “the pitching of the Cupids was superb, the batting of the Exotics was magnificent, the fielding of Jones and Smith elicited universal applause, the supper was all that an epicure could desire, and the wit and eloquence of Mr. Brown’s speech were equaled only by the beauty and pathos of Mr. Jenkins’ reply.”

While an agitated world is laboring with this startling announcement, the principal performers stay at home and rest, or limp wearily out to the apothecary’s to make investments in pain-killers and strengthening plasters. And this, forsooth, is the great National Game. It has scarce a single feature of real recreation…

“…in due time the novelty of the whole thing will be gone…”

The game itself is not in fault. In its simple forms, pursued in moderation, with right associations, as a recreation, and not as an ambitious show, it can be heartily recommended to young men who need some active outdoor amusement. It may thus be made a very pleasant and not unprofitable thing. In its preposterous form, inflated into a “great national game,” it is very laborious, very expensive in time and money, and not altogether safe for soul or body. It is then not an amusement, but a pretentious and useless display, whose highest reward is the shallow applause of the idle and the vain.

It may be hazardous to one’s reputation for sagacity to predict the downfall of any fashionable thing on the ground that it lacks the basis of good sense; still, I will say that the modern bubble has been blown so big, that it seems to me that it must collapse before long… In due time the novelty of the whole thing will be gone, and then comes the end…

What Misfits Wish Their Teachers Knew (Guest Blogger – Courtney’s Voice)

July 22, 2015June 4, 2023 ~ Blue Cereal ~ 6 Comments

Courtney’s Voice is the online manifestation of a young lady who has wrestled with more in 18 years than many of us do over a lifetime. Rather than hide it away and use the magic of the interwebs to paint a shinier picture of herself and her world, Courtney lays it all out in brutal honestly – right or wrong, hurting or healing, accepted or attacked.
Sometimes it’s rather poetic, and others… painfully blunt. Often it’s both.
While I don’t claim to fully embrace everything Courtney has to say about every issue, I’ve come to rely on her for an unfiltered perspective on things for which teacher school couldn’t possibly prepare us. I love her transparency and willingness to struggle publicly in order to make it a tiny bit easier for other teens or young adults to confront their demons or accept their differences.
And it does.
I asked Courtney if she’d be willing to contribute a guest blog on the subject of “What I wish my teachers knew about me,” primarily from the point of view of the misfit or misunderstood. I’m in no way suggesting teachers consciously neglect ANY of our kids or have some secret malice towards those we don’t quite understand. Honestly, the fact that we connect with as many as we do is something of a miracle, given the generational differences and sheer numbers in front of us every day.
But none of us are omniscient, and none immune to the frustrations or failures associated with carrying responsibility for kids we don’t always ‘get’. This is not a lecture, but a reminder of what we so easily miss if not ever-watchful and ‘tuned in’ to our little darlings. It’s as a reminder of our calling.
Thanks, Courtney. I’m glad you’re here.

Hello. You don’t know me, you probably don’t even remember my name, but I’m your student.

I’m that eager beaver over achiever who sits in the front of the class and raises her hand for every question. What you don’t know is that the pressure my parents put on me, and that I put on myself, is starting to break me. When you “talk” to the troubled kids, I often wish it were me you were talking to so I could open up about how much weight is on my shoulders.

I’m that kid who sits in the back, slouching and you don’t think I’m paying attention. Truth is, I am trying really hard but my effort goes unnoticed. Teachers constantly tell me to try harder and it makes me want to give up because I feel like I am not good enough.

I’m the class clown, always loud and making inappropriate jokes. You try your best to hide how you really feel about me, but you don’t realize my jokes are me crying out for attention. Maybe I am unheard at home and enjoy that people listen in class. Or maybe I am hurting and use comedy as a way to cope. It is my way of yelling for help without having to say the words.

Sometimes I think that making others laugh will somehow mute my pain.

I’m that quiet kid who never speaks. You call on me, but barely hear my answers when I give them to you. Sometimes you look at me like you pity me. But I don’t want your pity; I have social anxiety and you put me in a tough place by forcing me to answer in front of the entire class.

I’m that girl that dresses like a guy and prefers a different name from the girly one I was born with. Or I’m that boy that likes other boys even though it means getting beaten up in the locker room because everyone thinks I’m checking them out. Or maybe I’m that girl who just isn’t sure if she likes girls or guys. And I am just starting to come to terms with who I am.

It’s been a long journey of self-discovery, and all the kids around me make me hate myself because they don’t understand. I cower when you call on me because I don’t need any more attention brought to me. They ask me why I’m the way I am, or lecture me about what is “right.” I’m tired of trying to explain that it’s just who I am. I can’t help it, or explain it so they’ll get it.

All I want is for someone to care, and for my feelings to matter, even if they don’t agree with them.

I’m that kid who can’t even fake a smile for the jokes you think are so funny. Every day I walk in looking like I haven’t slept in days, and often I haven’t. Depression has set in with me and I just can’t make the effort.

Every student, no matter how they behave, has a story. We all go through things we wish others would see.

That misfit student you can’t seem to put your finger on? The one that gets on your nerves for being silent, or for being too loud? They are screaming in one way or another for your attention. Sure, they may be cold with you at first when you try to talk to them or you try to get them to have a one-on-one conversation. But don’t walk away. Don’t give up on them.

Honestly, they need someone to try for them, to fight for them, to show them they matter. They want you to know that they are struggling, whether it’s stress over college and the future, or whether they’re worried they won’t have food on their plate tonight.

Some are being bullied so badly all they can think about is how much easier it would be if they were no longer here. Others may be worried about just passing so they can go to the next grade.

I have been all of the students I listed above. Each year I tried a new persona as a way to cry out for help when none of the other ways worked.

Luckily, my 6th grade year, I had a teacher who genuinely noticed how “off” I was. She saw that I was pressuring myself too much while also battling social anxiety. She’s the one who encouraged me to write as a way to cope with my feelings, and to be more vocal. It was obvious to her that I didn’t have a voice, and she thought that writing could be my voice.

She was an English teacher, and after a few assignments, she came to me after class one day. “Your writing is raw and emotional in a way I haven’t seen in a while.”

Simple words, but for me they held so much meaning. To me, it meant that the feelings I poured out into everything I wrote were being heard. After that day, I began to pour myself into my assignments even more. I started showing her poems I had written that were just for me. I opened up to her and talked to her about the serve depression I was facing, all because she took the time to acknowledge my feelings; to acknowledge me.

Years later, I connected with her on Facebook and explained to her just how much of an impact it had, her taking time out of her day to encourage me and comfort me. Little did she know that simply talking to me would lead to that voice being amplified by that writing she had pressed me to continue. There was no way she could have known that it was because of her that I would start writing and speaking up against the injustices I faced and I have watched others face.

Taking just one minute to talk to your students really can change their life.

Sometimes we just need a boost. Every now and then we need a shoulder to lean on and an ear to talk into. Just because we don’t come to you first doesn’t mean we don’t need you. Sometimes we just have our own ways of trying to get your attention. Sometimes we think we don’t want your attention, even when we do.

Don’t think that we don’t care about what you say, even if we do have an attitude. Sometimes we simply can’t admit to needing the help. But your words run deep and ignite things inside of us. Teachers are inspirations. Use that power for good.

I was a misfit. Fitting in just wasn’t something I could do. I was suffering from serve depression and anxiety. But my recovery started with one teacher who took the time to understand me and talk to me, even if she didn’t believe in everything I did or support all the causes I did. Her taking the time to say, in so many words, “Hey I care,” helped me to realize there are people out there who will listen and there is a reason to keep fighting.

RELATED POST: Can We Talk? (Weird Kids Edition)