Thursday, September 18, 2014
Confrontation, We Meet Again
Yesterday in the class that I sit-in on, we had a student show up that had missed the last three sessions. He come in late, was on his phone, and didn't have the paper that was due that day. I assumed that my mentor was going to want to talk to him after class. Being a little unclear about my position in the class I wasn't sure whether I should stay or not, so I left. I thought that she was going to be very strict about the class policies, especially because of her hatred of cell phones in the classroom. However, when she found me later that day she explained that the student told her he was confused about how to write the essay and he didn't know how to ask about something that we had already talked about in class. She said that she decided to give him a chance to complete the assignment, but that she firmly stated that the attendance policy was still in place and he must complete all the assignments to pass the class. She also told him that she was always available to explain things if he didn't feel like he could ask questions in class. As a person who struggles with confrontation, I think it would have been beneficial for me to have seen he handle this in person and I wish that I had stayed. From now on, I plan to just ask my mentor what her preference is for these types of situations. Hopefully, I won't miss another possible learning opportunity.
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I totally understand. I think it's good that you asked your mentor their viewpoint and din't simply do your own thing about it. We all handle situations in very different ways and I also agree that viewing your mentor speak to the student directly is more beneficial than just hearing about it. I made sure to ask my mentor how much control and opinion I'm allowed to have in the classroom, and I have pretty free rein. For example, if I feel the class is being too noisy, if I see a student on their phone such as you did, or if I want to tell them not to pack up their things while they still have 3 minutes left of class time, I'm able to voice those thoughts. Perhaps specifying that with your mentor and then trying it one day when you see a student going against the rules, just try it out and then ask your mentor what they thought about how you handled the situation. Maybe? Or would that be too much confrontation? :)
ReplyDeleteThis is really interesting to think about. You obviously expected something close to punishment, while your mentor saw it as an opportunity to offer the student a chance? I'd imagine it's hard to know which students need discipline and strict rules to perform well, and which act out because of insecurities and confusion. I'd like to see how different instructors handle these situations, because each one will be different.
ReplyDeleteI'm conflicted about the mentor's response to the situation. I understand wanting to help a student that does not comprehend something about an assignment or lesson, but I don't understand dismissing the student's disrespectful behavior concerning lateness and the phone. Perhaps the student had talked to the instructor about the absences and had a genuine reason, but what about being late and talking on the phone. If there was a no phone policy, it seems the student was being disrespectful and I would worry about the other students seeing the behavior and assuming they could disregard certain rules too. Perhaps you could warm up your confrontational skills by confronting your mentor first about why they did what they did.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you wrote about this. It's good to know how an experienced teacher handles situations like these. As for staying after class, I probably would have felt the same way--not sure if you should stay or not. I wouldn't ever want to step into a situation where my presence may not be welcome when disciplining a student. Because we have the same mentor, I now know what I should do. Thanks for sharing :)
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