|
|
 |
|
The views expressed on this page are soley
those of the author and do not
necessarily represent the views of County
News Online
|
 |
Ramblings of an Old Man
Why Teachers
Teach
By Bob Robinson
“They cheered.”
“Huh?”
“They cheered,” said the teacher. “When they heard you were subbing
today, the whole class cheered. They didn’t even know they’d be seeing
you.” She grinned when she saw the expression on my face. Confused? Uh…
yeah!
The students had entered the room and I had to focus on settling them
down long enough to learn what their teacher expected of them.
I just didn’t get it. Still don’t. These are some of the same kids,
figuratively speaking of course, who will rush up to me for a hug, but
in the After School Program will want to work with anyone but me…
“Why are you here?” “I’m here to learn,” the kindergartner said. “Do
you want to work with me?” “No.” “But you know you are here to learn,
right?” “Yes.” So I assigned one of our Edison student volunteers to
read with him. “I don’t want to read!” he told her a few minutes later.
“I want to do puzzles.”
“Don’t want to read? I’ll get Mr. Robinson… he’ll…”
“Okay. I’ll read.”
Working with different personalities is challenging enough. Working
with different personalities in different age groups reminds me of the
Mission Impossible series my kids used to watch. “Your mission, should
you choose to accept it, is… this message will self-destruct in…”
Except it never self-destructs. It simply gets replaced with the next
challenge. These kids can be frustrating, but at the same time, oh so
precious. There is one child I’ve worked with – on and off – since he
was in kindergarten; he’s in the third grade now.
He’s smart. Academics are not the problem. Behavior is. I’ve lost track
of the number of times I’ve had to lean on him for pushing, hitting,
getting into a student’s face. We allowed him into the After School
Program to see if we could improve his behavior in a different setting,
but eventually had to remove him. And I always had to be the “bad” guy.
To this day, he’s the first to grin and wrap his arms around me when he
sees me. His grin is infectious; he really is a sweet kid when he wants
to be. I like him. Most times. Confusing? Yep.
The After School Program has been an eye-opener. It has also been one
of the most rewarding things I think I’ve done in my life. Over the
past eight months, we’ve worked with over 70 students, from
kindergarten through sixth grade. Some were there simply to do their
homework until mom or dad got off work. Most, however, needed varying
degrees of help.
We were usually short on tutors, but through juggling here and there,
some bouncing back and forth, and improving our organizational
approach, all students who needed help got it.
We have many ASP success stories. There is one student, however, who
has been a standout for his teachers, his parents, our After School
Program and – most importantly – himself. Recently from Africa, he
could barely speak English last fall and he was struggling in school.
He has arrived at ASP daily since September. By the end of the first
and second quarters, he had made Merit Roll. His English is much
improved.
And this last quarter he made the Honor Roll!
This is why teachers teach, and grumpy old men like me try to help.
|
|
|
|
