Somewhere along the way of
making education mandatory for all youngsters, it stopped being a privilege and
became an entitlement. Everyone under a certain age must go to school whether
student and parents want it or not. It became the law.
I am not against enforcing
education on children and young adult, and for sure, I am for a system that prepares
adolescents to become functioning citizens, with education, skills and social
values. What I am against, though, is forcing every young person to go through
the same mandatory system. There should be different systems for different
needs and wants of youngsters and their families.
Even if every child was
capable of becoming a rocket scientists or a brain surgeon not everyone would want
to become one. The most talented girl at my school, whose father was a medicine
doctor, and her mother highly educated as well, wanted just to learn manual
crafts, and fortunately her parents supported her.
What I see at schools every
day are classrooms full of students who are not only completely disinterested
in education, but also determined to spoil the experience for everyone else.
They are using every tool in their arsenal to resist any positive progress;
refuse to cooperate or participate, disrupt teacher and students and tease the ones
who show interest. They destroy educational materials that are handed to them with
no cost, and leave graffiti on books and trash on school property.
I can’t describe the
frustration of trying to teach, aide, or even just observe such a class; watching the phenomena of students
wasting, on purpose, the one most valuable asset, given to them for free –
education, paid by each of us. It aggravates to see the time and resources
wasted; tax money paid by all of us, including their parents, earned with hard
work; Spoiled opportunities – theirs and others!
My frustration and anger often
boil to a point that aggravates administrators. I understand that kids will be
kids… They don’t see the whole picture and lack the maturity to recognize what
is good for them, but - how do we allow that? How do we let few irresponsible
youngsters to spoil education for eighty percent of school population? How do
we let them control us, educators, kind and giving individuals, whose only
fault is trying to help them? Why are we so helpless against them?
I heard it so many times – “…but
you are the teacher! It is your job to control the class!” And my reply is “How?
Using what tools? “ What do you say, or do, to a student who is completely candid about his
disinterest in school?
This is not a new problem,
what new is our inability to deal with it. We, school staff, cannot force students
to learn, their parents have very little influence, the system has neither authority
nor alternatives, and law suits are looming over everyone who dares say “fine,
this is your choice…” Politicians are making decisions for school
administrators; officials who had never been to a classroom…
Before I started teaching I
worked as a teacher aide. Helping in different classrooms I was amazed to learn
what teachers are facing every day at their job. I must admit that in most
cases I blamed, in my heart, the teachers. I thought the chaos was a result of
a poor classroom management and bad teaching methods.
I vividly remember one
specific class where the teacher was standing in front of the room, lecturing to
only two students; a brother and sister who just emigrated from Iran. They were
the only ones who showed interest, or maybe just had good manners… The rest of
the students were throwing paper balls, talking, and listening to loud music. I
would walk around the room, trying to get students to focus their attention on
the teacher and work with them individually. I even had some successes with a
sharp African American boy who showed interest and ability (but unfortunately got
involved in a fight, and was expelled from school, despite my pleas…). I would
come home and tell my family about that one bad teacher, that though I liked
him personally, was, in my opinion, a poor educator…
Over the years, I often
thought of that teacher, and the longer I stayed in education, the better I
understood him. It was not long before I was ready, in my frustration, to do
just that – teach the only two interested students and ignore the rest. I was so
discouraged by the inability of the system to deal with what he used to call “those
low performing students”, who disrupt learning and teaching, that I justified
him.
… I saw him again years later.
It was by a pure coincidence. I lost a job due to low enrollment and was
offered a temporary assignment at a different school, replacing a teacher on a sick
leave, for an unspecified length of time…
The name of the teacher
sounded familiar, and something about the way he worded the instruction made me
suspect that this is the same person. Few days later when we spoke over the
phone he did not remember me, yet I could swear it was him… It took few more weeks
before we met, but when we finally did, sure enough, it was the very same
teacher, dealing with the same frustrating situation. Trying to teach
unmotivated, low performing students, in a low performing school…
I could tell him now how much
I sympathize with what he was going through back then, and now. Apparently he was
hoping I would stay and replace him for the rest of the semester but when he
asked me my reply was “Thanks! But no, thanks!”. Unfortunately he was forced to
come back, despite of his health condition … but as bad as I felt for him I did
not want to stay beyond the two weeks I committed for. There was nothing I
could do to improve the learning environment, and I knew that eventually I will
be the one to be blamed for that… It was a losing game…
You see – since education
became an entitlement, it carries only rights! Students have the right for an
appropriate education; best teachers, best programs, best materials. If not - they
are entitled to sue; every sixth grader can, and will, tell you that! However,
they don’t have to come to school ready; bring supplies, protect the ones they
are given, respect property, teachers and staff. Their only requirement is to show
up at school! And yes! Schools are very particular about that; it means money!
But what about other obligations like carrying a pencil and a piece of paper? Displaying
positive attitude, attempting to learn something, or at least – give just
respect to the people who try to teach, and to the ones who try to learn?
Every time I hear complaints
from parents, backed by a smart advocate, I want to scream. I want to ask –
have you been to a classroom? Have you seen those students sitting with a big,
empty, backpack, with absolutely no school supplies? Have you noticed those
students who completely ignore instruction, deliberately disrupting the lesson?
They don’t learn because they don’t want to learn! They should be held accountable
for that! Teachers are not responsible for the failure of the education system!
It is the system itself that fails those reluctant students by not making them answerable
for what they do, or don’t, know!
Why do schools have to
provide students with every piece of supply is beyond me, but at least students
should protect and respect what is given to them! Instead – they complain! Give
them papers they ask why they are not lined, and make paper balls! Give them
pencils – they break them, but not before complaining that they don’t have
erasers… Give them erasers – they through them at each other! Providing
something for free, without attached liability, is not only expensive and
wasteful, but also against every value and principle that we are trying to
instill in our youngsters. It is education without educating!
So, next time when you ask
your student what did he/she learn at school today, ask yourself what did they
NOT learn at school! What basic human and citizenship values, like respect,
responsibility, care for property, appreciation to resources, among others, did
they not learn!
