Where does a man sit on the bus on a field trip with junior high students? The question of how men are perceived in elementary education can be answered when one answers this question. A man can't sit with any student without a comment with the implication that he is a pedophile. If he sits with a fellow female teacher he must be an adulterer. Men in my experience are not well thought of by there students .
When I asked my students to write to the prompt "What is a man?" I was very suprised by the responses I got. It allowed me to see inside their minds in ways that I never dreamed. It also in my mind answered a question as to why they say such disrespectful things to a teacher. However I will wait to share their reactions and my Ruby Payne evaluations of their reactions for when we meet. What I would like to talk about is my reaction to the chapters that I have read. The first thing that came to my mind was that it was quite the eyeopener for me as a father and a teacher. I realized that my job as a male role model for those in my life requires that I think carefully before I do or act in anyway so as not to do irreputable harm.
The book was an eye opener for me in that it forced me to look at myself and evaluate things about myself. I looked at my own relationships and the boys and men in my life and who they are. I looked at the experiences that we share and I looked at them through the experiences shared in the book.
I couldn't believe some of the practices that I see in our school that go against what is talked about in the book. For instance by age six my school has students in reading recovery telling them that they are are already behind in reading. Is it possible that at age six students are just ready to learn to read.
I ask myself is it possible that perhaps society is creating its own problems. Are we over medicating and defending our children when perhaps the need for reprimand is there instead. Many times I have had to deal with the parent tho refuses to let their child be punished, but instead defends the child's actions.
I guess more than anything I look forward to being able to talk aobut what I have read and my reaction to it. I have been discussing it with my fellow teachers and I am planning on asking that we use the book as a book study for our faculty. There is so much in the book that I think everyone can learn from.
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2 comments:
Wow. Good post. Thanks for opening up.
Do you think some of the students' perceptions of teachers (men in particular) are affected by their past experiences with adults? I wonder how many of your students have had to deal with men who are/were pedophiles and adulterers. How do you overcome this?
Usually there's a question of sexual orientation as well for male teachers. Of course, people often confuse pedophiles for homosexuals due to their own ignorance.
I'll be interested to see what your students had to write.
Having worked in a low income community where child abuse was rampant (an indian reservation) it would not suprise me to learn that many of my students in this predominantly white low income community have suffered from some type of abuse. I have seen the signs in some of them, but what can you do? How many times can a person say something and be ignored or shot down before you just have to say to yourself, "I will do everything I can in the classroom to make a difference."
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