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11 thoughts on “THE BIG RULE – #2”
Ben,
It makes sense to start the year in one’s “stance”, ready to engage. Has this language/approach in the past brought about opposition or open defiance from the students in any way? I’m not opposed to students getting upset by rules, but how far does one go to set a firm tone? Not saying this is too far, just curious.
One situation I dealt with on the first day made me wonder if I did the right thing. I had a student twice in one day due to a schedule change (he was in my AM Span 1 class, but his schedule changed and now is in my PM Span 1 class) that occurred in between classes. In the 1st class, he asked to use the restroom, and I said “no”. Being the first day, I wanted to keep my stance. Plus, I know students are testing boundaries early on. I hadn’t gone over my actual policy yet. My first day plan was just to say “no” to everyone who asked unless in an emergency. Then, he asked in the PM class, and I said “no” again. Here he pushed and said he would just walk out. So, I said, “OK, but if you leave, you’ll need to go to Mr. X’s office (the dean).” I didn’t want this act of defiance to go unchecked. It seemed to send a message to the class, but I don’t know if it was the right one. I let him back into my class after visiting with the dean. He apologized, and we talked afterward. It’s fine now, but how would you handle a student saying they’re going to leave your class? Alos, my BR policy isn’t going to be so strict, but I figured I’d send a tougher message on Day 1. Thanks!
I don’t think it’s necessary to send a tough message on Day 1. You have two choices – a tough stance vs. an inclusive stance. Can’t do both.
I agree that the kid should not have asked to go to the BR and he certainly was testing you – no doubt about that.
I would announce my bathroom rule at the start of class on Day 1 that “you can go but not in the first ten minutes or last ten minutes of class.” They tend to go less during the that half hour in the middle of class if they are engaged, which they are bc you have build in the first weeks a culture of trust and inclusion.
Makes sense. Thanks!
Hi Jake. I don’t think you were too tough, at all! If what you wrote above is all you said to that student, you did great. I imagine it doesn’t feel good to have to be so firm with a student. It kinda sits with you for the rest of the day, right? However, it does feel good to know you’ve been soft but stern with students, especially after you’ve gone through a hellish year, or two, or three… trying to reign in student behavior, like many of us have. You should feel good that you’re setting the stage so that you and your students don’t have a hellish year.
It’s a wonderful thing that that student apologized to you and you got to chat with him. Bravo!
Students are looking for us to be the adult in the room. Like Ben mentions above.
My first day with students is tomorrow. You all are helping put on my adult shoes right now. They are hard to keep on, you know.
Good luck, Sean! I read on an earlier post of yours that you have 80 min classes. Is that still correct? Even if it still doesn’t apply, I’d like to hear your experience with doing CI in that amount of time. Could you email me if you get a chance: jfirestine@wardhigh.org? Thanks!
Yeah! Last year I had 100 minute class blocks. Phew! This year it’s split. 3 of my classes are 50 min and 2 of them are 100 minute.
I’d be happy to email you, Jake. But then again, why not just continue this thread here? What we talk about I’m sure will be helpful for somebody.
Fair enough. Did you work in breaks into the classes? If so, what did you do?
Sean don’t we have some video of you somewhere here? Jake you will see that Sean’s classes FEEL like one big break because of his ultra relaxed style. I guess it’s because he’s playing ball in what I call the big leagues – urban classrooms. So he is all about building community and acceptance. Meanwhile, what looks very slow and relaxed and inviting and inclusive on the surface carries beneath it a mountain of CI. In suburban classrooms, and I apologize for the generality, the teacher can create a split classroom for the fast processors. This is the content of my webinar tomorrow. But in urban settings where poverty spits its venom into the learning process, you need to do a lot more and Sean may not even NEED breaks. But the fact is we are all different in different settings and there never was and never will be one “right” way to instruct. As long as it’s CI we’re going to be good.
I watched them. Sean, I appreciate your style especially with all of the distractions. My population is also urban, but we don’t have as much acting out as what I saw in the videos. My heart goes out to you and your students. It was a pleasure to watch. Reflecting on my first couple days, I’m realizing that I can learn from your relaxed style. I am pretty relaxed also, but when I get in front of a class, sometimes I get more theatrical and overly enthusiastic. Not that that’s all bad, but the idea of acceptance and community is what I’m trying to engender right now, and I’m reminded that I need to breathe more when I teach. Watching your video helped with that.
Regarding the breaks, that’s just something I’ve been thinking about. Maybe I won’t need them, but knowing my population, I’m wondering if giving them 5 minutes at a transition or something would be good. I haven’t been able to implement anything yet since we’re testing all this week, and I haven’t been teaching. I pick that back up next week, so I’m doing lots of thinking and planning to hit the ground running with these 90 min classes. Ninety min seems awfully long to me (more for the students than for me), especially since we’ve only had half days for the last week. I think what Ben said sums it up though: “As long as it’s CI we’re going to be good.”