I am an Adult
I am an adult.
To me that means a few things. It means that I try to do what is right in my life. It means that I no longer can excuse bad behavior due to my age or claim that I did not know better. Being an adult means that I take responsibility for my actions. I know that my actions influence the lives of those around me, and I try not to act in a way that causes others to feel unnecessary pain.
I am also a teacher.
This means that I seek to help other people become good adults. I know that I am looked at as an example by my students and I try to be a good example of how adults behave.
Sometimes, being an adult, being a teacher, means that you do what is right regardless of if it is easy. Today, I feel like many of the other adults that I work with often choose to do what is easy knowing that it is not the right thing to do. They have given up authority to the desires of students. Of course students will try and milk getting out of class, they will take a mile if given an inch, but it is the job of the adults, the teachers, to push students to attend class.
Having my principal tell me that getting students to go to class after having their photos taken for the annual was too difficult send me the message that instructional time is not valued in this school. His feeling was that it was not worth the fight for 25 minutes of class.
My feeling is this: You gotta start somewhere.
I would have rather had the 25 minutes of class time with my students than no class time with them at all. If every time students don't want to go to class the adults agree with them, what is that saying to the students? Do the students see that the administration does not think they are deserving to be taught? Do the students think that all things in life will come to them for the asking?
When will these students learn that there is a cause and effect relationship when it comes to success in life?
More importantly, when will the adults start acting like adults?
To me that means a few things. It means that I try to do what is right in my life. It means that I no longer can excuse bad behavior due to my age or claim that I did not know better. Being an adult means that I take responsibility for my actions. I know that my actions influence the lives of those around me, and I try not to act in a way that causes others to feel unnecessary pain.
I am also a teacher.
This means that I seek to help other people become good adults. I know that I am looked at as an example by my students and I try to be a good example of how adults behave.
Sometimes, being an adult, being a teacher, means that you do what is right regardless of if it is easy. Today, I feel like many of the other adults that I work with often choose to do what is easy knowing that it is not the right thing to do. They have given up authority to the desires of students. Of course students will try and milk getting out of class, they will take a mile if given an inch, but it is the job of the adults, the teachers, to push students to attend class.
Having my principal tell me that getting students to go to class after having their photos taken for the annual was too difficult send me the message that instructional time is not valued in this school. His feeling was that it was not worth the fight for 25 minutes of class.
My feeling is this: You gotta start somewhere.
I would have rather had the 25 minutes of class time with my students than no class time with them at all. If every time students don't want to go to class the adults agree with them, what is that saying to the students? Do the students see that the administration does not think they are deserving to be taught? Do the students think that all things in life will come to them for the asking?
When will these students learn that there is a cause and effect relationship when it comes to success in life?
More importantly, when will the adults start acting like adults?
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