Forensic jobs out here in the boonies are few and far between. I finished my Masters 3 yrs ago and I am still waiting for a position to open up. Unless someone dies, moves or retires, I am pretty much screwed! The state doesn’t have the money to hire more forensic people, even though the backlog is ridiculous. I am on every eligible list in 2 counties for every forensic related job, and also NCIS. I have done all I can do. So, in the meantime, I have decided to substitute teach for the school district, K-12. There are 17 schools in this district and I’m told the work is steady.
Today was my first day! I was assigned a Home Economics class at a high school that has the worst reputation in the area. I woke up around 4am last night having a panic attack, I was so nervous! I got to the school, checked in, picked up all the keys and the attendance rosters and went to my first classroom. Well, the teacher didn’t leave any instructions or lesson plans. All I knew is that it was a Nutrition class! Which was actually a relief- if it had been sewing, I would have been screwed! When I walked in the room and saw all the sewing machines, I almost had a stroke! I don’t do well with sewing machines, my fingers always seem to end up getting sewn to the fabric. Nutrition, I can handle! There were about 25 kids in the class- mostly 10-12th graders. While I was taking attendance, the teacher came in and stuffed a big folder in my hand full of lesson plans and worksheets and then bolted! She couldn’t get out of there fast enough! And they couldn’t wait for her to leave. Apparently she is “boring”, “stupid” and “German”. LOL We had to go over a worksheet for their test tomorrow…on WATER. Yes, water. They were a pretty well behaved group, especially after I told them it was my first day and begged them not to do anything that would get me fired! When I asked if anyone had any questions, a kid in the front asked if I would marry him. I told him if he stayed in his chair and completed his worksheet, I would think about it! lol It worked!
After that period ended I had to run to the opposite end of campus to open up the next classroom. It’s a good thing these kids don’t have to stop at lockers between bells, b/c there is no way they would ever get to class in time. They don;t get lockers at the high school here, instead, they have to lug 50lbs of textbooks around. Chiropracters take note! You’ve got a whole generation of new customers coming your way in about 10 yrs! Anyway, I got to the room in time. There were about 20 kids in this class- also Nutrition, although at least half of them were “special ed”. I don;t know if it was b/c it was after lunch or what, but these kids were all jacked up! They came in like a herd of elephants, screaming and swearing and frothing at the mouth! Then they noticed me- the sub…and they were so happy their teacher was gone that they sat right down and actually shut up for 2 seconds so I could take attendance! Then they totally ripped the teacher, just like the previous class, using the very same adjectives “boring” and “stupid”. They left out the “German” part but added “she totally needs to get laid!!” Followed by a discussion of her marital status “she’s married, she has no excuse!” which really made me laugh b/c for all their worldly wisdom, they actually think married people have sex!! I didn;t want to burst their bubbles, so I whipped out the water worksheets and had them work on those for about 40 min. The teacher had made a note to give a particular girl a worksheet with the answers already on it because she “never does the work anyway.” I knew exactly who she was without even looking at the attendance sheet b/c she came in the room screaming and yelling about some “motherfucker”. So I went over and gave her the answer key and the girl sitting next to her was all “why doesn’t she have to do the worksheet!??” and the girl said “because I’m STUPID!” Well, I could tell this chic had behavioral issues but she didn;t seem dim to me, so I said “you’re not stupid. This is a worksheet on WATER…you think you can handle that?” and she was all “HELL yeah!” And she did. Not only did she do her work, she stopped disrupting the class. It made me think…her teacher had thrown in the towel- the girl didn’t want to do her work, the teacher didn’t give a shit- it was easier to just let the girl not do the work. Maybe all some of these kids need is a little positive reenforcement! They get labeled special ed but are integrated into the classroom, where they obviously feel “stupid” and holding them to lower standards from their classmates only makes them feel worse!! What the hell is going on in our educational system?! If you treat the kids like animals, they’re going to act like animals. I think that if you show them some respect, you’ll get it back, and I really saw that in action today. I had such a great time walking around the room, talking to each one of them while they were doing their work, It’s a small thing, but I think it gives them a little validation. Tomorrow they get their “boring, stupid, German” teacher back, but today, at least, they had one good class and maybe that’s something.
It was gratifying to have you say something nice about the kids. Not many do.
Proud of you sweetie. The elementary will be fun too. There is a reason I have always worked with kids, even when they are bad they still are better than adults. lol
The kids were awesome! The teacher was not. I’m not knocking teachers, there are some really great ones and some not so great ones. I was lucky enough to have some of the great ones when I was in high school. I just think back to what made them so great and try to be like that w/ the kids. Sure, a lot has changed in 20 yrs but kids are still kids. They have hopes and dreams and they want something to believe in and someone to believe in them.
I understand that teachers have to deal with a lot of issues today that were not present when I was in high school. I understand it’s stressful and that some kids are evil little shitbirds no matter what you do, and this can wear on you. However, when it gets to the point that you start seeing all the kids as shitbirds, it’s probably time to think about a different career or retirement, b/c you are not doing anyone any good.