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What Really Matters

By Jason Bedell, on January 12th, 2010

As teachers, we are often isolated from the real world. Regardless of outside circumstances, we expect students to come in and perform. This is not going to be a long or preachy post. I’m running on little sleep and several things happened in the last 14 hours that woke me up again to the realization that students have lives outside of school. As I write this, I realize that it sounds trite, but having that knowledge and actively making decisions based on it are two different things. Last night, as I was leaving my second job, I came across a young woman who had just been assaulted by someone who she had thought she was close to. A few minutes ago, one of my students just told that someone committed suicide who texting him. The person actually put the burden on him of trying to get him to choose the method. These are things that no person, let alone teenager, should have to deal with. Before we lose our temper when students do not perform the way we want them to, let’s do both them and us a favor and try to really listen to them and see what is going on before we make snap judgments.

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  • Robin

    You are right, teachers expect students to come in focused on whatever subject they may be teaching, not worried about whether or not something outside of the classroom is going on. I agree with you, teachers should listen a bit more and try to accomplish their goals in a way that benefits the student as well as the teacher. As for the student who’s “friend” asked him to choose the method with which he committed suicide, this is not altogether uncommon. Young people are very dependent on their friends, more so than their families it seems lately, so therefore feel that their friends can show them the best way out for them, when, in reality, they are only causing said friend unnecessary pain and trouble. I honestly wish teachers would relax a bit more and realize that just as they have lives outside of the classroom, so do all students. It would make teaching a lot easier for teachers and learning easier for the students. Thanks for your time

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