tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post8615032285231975091..comments2024-03-29T04:34:05.185-04:00Comments on CURMUDGUCATION: Gentleness in the ClassroomPeter Greenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16511193640285760299noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post-10003003124314432732017-10-30T06:52:23.671-04:002017-10-30T06:52:23.671-04:00Absolutely love the insights offered here. I'm...Absolutely love the insights offered here. I'm a second-year teacher and I feel like I spent much of my first year trying to be the tough, forceful personality in the classroom as a way of "proving myself" or compensating for my own feelings of weakness of inadequacy. This year, I've been making an effort to try to remain calm in all that I do. (Honestly, using Pres. Trump as a negative comparison has been really helpful to me. However I imagine would react to a situation, I try to do the opposite.) And I have seen a big difference so far not only in my own stress levels but also in the amount of respect that my students actually have for me.<br /><br />I am interested, though, by the comment above that mentions the role gender plays in all of this. Is this a specifically male phenomenon? Do women have to work harder not to be seen as weak, whereas men tend to err on the side of aggression?Ray Heberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12492543157106475123noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post-66817691311707246102016-01-18T17:05:02.921-05:002016-01-18T17:05:02.921-05:00Bollard's first mistake was underestimating th...Bollard's first mistake was underestimating the ability of his students. They sensed his inferiority. They are tougher than he. His lack of understanding what the students would think of him is a classic error. Like anyone new in a business, he was on the bottom rung. You gotta work your way up. It's a public school. You work for the students. Lindahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05771252328624205003noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post-61057584350374699032016-01-18T11:21:08.564-05:002016-01-18T11:21:08.564-05:00As I say, with a traditional, large class, I don&#...As I say, with a traditional, large class, I don't know if I'd say "gentleness." I had to learn to be a lot more assertive than I naturally am. But you have to care, and you have to always treat them with respect, even if they don't treat you that way. With someone like Chantay, I would look her in the eyes and say, "Chantay, could you please sit down now so we could all get started on learning?" If that didn't work, I would explain why what we're going to do is important and how it will help if she follows directions. If she's intent on not letting learning take place that day, I would calmly explain that if that's her intent, I would have to send her out so others can learn, and then would do that if necessary. I taught at one school where I felt I had to send at least one student out on a disciplinary referral in almost every class for the first two weeks. (The administration was very supportive of the teachers and did not get upset about this.) After that I never had any real problem the rest of the year. <br /><br />I try to teach in a way that makes sense to them, try to be fair at all times, see each student as a unique individual, and do all I can to facilitate learning. It takes time, perseverance, and lots of patience to establish a rapport and a community within the classroom. Once you do, it's easy to be gentle about defusing situations. The most important thing is to treat each student with respect; that way they will come to respect you and each other. Rebecca deCocahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13168718846105012814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post-38678202176630501652016-01-18T11:20:08.736-05:002016-01-18T11:20:08.736-05:00Teacher Tom's most recent post about Martin Lu...Teacher Tom's most recent post about Martin Luther King is also about love being the ultimate answer.<br /><br />I don't know if I would use the word "gentleness". My daughter's first teaching job was in junior high. She was very gentle but these kids didn't know how to respond to it. (I subbed for two weeks in a junior high and I think it's the hardest age to teach. At the high school level a glare can work wonders but it doesn't faze this age kid at all. They can't be still at all. I had a friend who was a very successful teacher at this level; I think her secret was that she did lots of hands-on stuff where they could move around.) <br /><br />My daughter refused to act, in her words, as a "policeman". It's just not in her nature. She got through the year somehow, but she would come home and cry every night because the kids were so mean. Now she teaches at a credit recovery high school. Most of the kids are single moms or gang members. They've been thrown out of lots of schools and have never experienced anything but failure in school. Many of them are ADD or ADHD but don't take medicine, either because they don't have healthcare access to it ot because of side effects (I think too high of doses are prescribed for this.) <br /><br />Other teachers think these kids are either lazy (ADD) or troublemakers (ADHD). My daughter treats them all with respect. She adjusts the horrible curriculum so it makes sense to them. She listens to their problems. She teaches them what their strengths are and how to learn. She works with community organizations to get them involved in things that help people in the community, which gives them a feeling of empowerment. She can do this because in this school she can work with them individually or in small groups. She loves them and thinks they're all wonderful, sweet human beings. They love her because they know she cares about and respects them, and they work super hard for her. They would do anything for her, and they're learning. <br />Rebecca deCocahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13168718846105012814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post-42260866789554176872016-01-18T07:39:31.809-05:002016-01-18T07:39:31.809-05:00When the kid who called you every name starts tell...When the kid who called you every name starts telling you how excited he is to come to school, you know gentleness won.Jackie Conradhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15381347712120872904noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post-76101497211064864182016-01-17T20:02:38.476-05:002016-01-17T20:02:38.476-05:00Dear Mr. Peter Greene,
I like pretty much everyth...Dear Mr. Peter Greene,<br /><br />I like pretty much everything you write but this is probably my least popular. I have always been a short woman teacher. I always have to struggle. This article seems to be directed to the male teacher, who is male and maybe has a deep voice, and maybe depends on those things always working for him, but you aren't saying that. Boo. Hiss.<br /><br />LeilaLeilahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02447044081130341196noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6534665086749553287.post-27216251412130412272016-01-17T17:54:22.593-05:002016-01-17T17:54:22.593-05:00I like pretty much everything you write, but this ...I like pretty much everything you write, but this is my favorite. It really speaks to something few people who ostensibly instruct teachers have even the remotest notion of. It's so important, and almost utterly neglected.NYC Educatorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12188066345722781723noreply@blogger.com