A lesson from middle school

Well, we are well into the academic year here in Michigan and I am betting that quite a few teachers have identified the students they would already like to see removed from their classrooms.  Those students that if they were absent tomorrow would be living examples of addition by subtraction: subtracting them from the classroom setting adds something to the quality of the educational experience for the rest of the class.  I get it: some students make our lives immeasurably more difficult and make us question our career choice.  However, before we judge these students too harshly, or give up on them, let me share a story with you.

Some things you hear in a school just break your heart.  Last year I was talking to a 6^th grader about his plans for Thanksgiving break when I heard something that really hit me hard.  The student I was talking to was explaining to me how he was journeying to Detroit with his father to spend the weekend with family.  I replied that it sounded like fun when he proceeded to tell me “Yeah, they have a PS3 and I really like playing it.  I used to have a PS3, but my mom had to pawn it for money and she forgot to go back and get it.” 

I am going to go out on a limb here and suggest that most of you reading this post have never had one of their belongings pawned to help mom make ends meet.  It may come as no surprise to you this particular student often struggles to behave properly during the school day and is frequently reprimanded, punished, and removed from class.  In fact, I am willing to bet that most of his teachers would have identified him as their most significant challenge.

That day, prior to releasing our staff for Thanksgiving break, I shared this story with our staff.  I asked them to think about this particular student’s day-to-day life at home.  I asked them to think about how the context of this student’s life might influence the behavior we see at school.  In my opinion there is no doubt that context influences, if not directly determines, behavior.  Every person has a story, and each and every person we encounter is fighting some type of battle.  Be gentle; be kind; and be understanding.  Have a great school year and continue making a difference.