Submitted by Sandra Dee Nixon
Grace Dodge High School
Bronx, New York
Who Is Your Keeper?
With the permission of the author, personal religious
references and expressions have been eliminated from the essay as submitted.
Submitted
by Sandra Dee Nixon
Grace Dodge High School
Bronx,
New York
An individual’s ability
to fill a void in anyone’s life depends on the following: 1) the
philosophical, political and/or a religious belief of a person and 2) the
personal life experiences of that individual.
Given these factors, all teachers fill voids in students’ lives—some
positive, others negative. A
teacher remarked in exasperation “The students complain that I’m not
teaching them anything. They aren’t learning. I’m tired of being
disrespected every day. I’m not
teaching anymore after this year!” I conveyed that the frustration lies not with the student,
but with the teacher. I explained
that the freshmen come with many deficiencies of lack of love, manners, writing,
reading, thinking, and so forth. The
job is not to bring every student up to speed in every deficiency but to strive
to perfect the craft of teaching. I
further explained that many students wail to hide dismal failures from shabby
work habits, passive learning patterns, and faulty memory.
In addition, I had the opportunity to lunch with the same teacher and
learned that the individual was struggling with family conflicts.
As the teacher spilled out frustrations, I gleaned there was a lack [of]
coping skills to manage the trials that were being experienced.
What void then could this teacher fill in such a state of mind?
…
If an individual comes from a lack of nurture, lack
of morality or good values, or ever changing principles then these factors shape
interaction and communication with young people.
For instance, whenever a value was placed on the floor, I asked students
how they arrived at that line of thought. Students
responded that their mother or father or grandmother said the idea.
I would then ask where did that person get the moral. Students would then draw a blank. And so when we speak of morals, values or principles, we need
to first know of the well from which these attributes are drawn for ourselves
because that will be the source of foundation for every thought that proceeds
from our mouths and each deed that is witnessed, which is to serve as a role
model before all people.
When teachers lose control in a classroom
setting, the instinctive response of students is fear.
But if the teacher often loses control the fear is downgraded to
normalcy, and students become immune to it.
However, if loss of control is marked by offensive remarks or verbal
attacks, then students are subdued into silence for fear of public assault
before their peers. In this
instance, their fear turns from coal that crumbles into chiseled diamonds of
hatred for teachers who abuse their authority.
To illustrate, the class
was engaged in discussion about the power of words from analysis of “The
Necessary Knocking on the Door” by Ann Petry.
Mrs. Taylor, a white woman said, “I’ve never eaten with a nigger, and
I’m too old to start now.” The
notable remark was uttered about Alice while attending a Christian conference. In fear, Alice Knight made the decision not to assist Mrs.
Taylor who later died of a heart attack. In
discussion, students remarked that teachers made offensive remarks such as
cursing or prophecy such as “That’s why you’re not going to amount to
anything because you don’t do your work.”
I said that I was sorry to hear they had to endure such sorrow and that
that teacher cannot predict the future. …
How does one stop anyone from becoming
destructive to themselves and others? …
Every human being is born with a rebellious and selfish spirit, give or
take degrees. Recall that toddlers
most favorite word is “no.” Note,
they rarely say “yes.” Also,
many must be taught to share because they are territorial about their
possessions. Further, many adults
cry, “I’m grown” or Nobody can tell me what to do” or “I’m my
own boss.” These attitudes
give way to the idea that rules are to be broken or even eliminated, if it
violates personal freedom. So, I
can use literature to reveal truths about destructive words and behavior, and I
can also engage the students in discussion where personal experiences yield
lessons about misconducts, but ultimately I believe that destructive tendencies
in individuals is shaped by their nature, environment or God’s intervention.
In other words, a person can come from the harshest of circumstances …
and prevail against a personal history of lack; whereas, another coming from the
same background or worse might not survive for the better.
Then, you have scenarios where a child is born with loving parents,
wealth, intellect and talent, only to fall to drugs, alcohol, crime or emotional
bankruptcy. So, environment may
explain some situations, but it doesn’t necessarily define them.
It was towards June, so viewing of
A Bronx Tale was not possible but the issue of disobedience was
thoroughly examined in Aesop’s The Old Man and Death, the
English folk tale The Master and His Pupil, and the Ashante
People’s tale The Spider and the Turtle. If you consider, you’ll note that the heart of most
conflicts begins with one act of disobedience.
I demonstrated this truth via an in-class conflict. The students were
instructed to read in silence and respond to questions in writing.
A student began to talk which necessitated a command to change her
seat—she refused to obey. I charted on the board the path of conflicts arising from the
primary act of disobedience—talking when silence was the command.
The students marveled that one act of defiance gave birth to 10
conflicts, culminating with a climax of security being called to remove the
student from class.
In A Bronx Tale
I note the boy was given a positive role model of responsibility and integrity
via his father, yet that role model did not dissuade the boy from building a
relationship with a mobster. Why?
And, what could a teacher do to teach that boy about morals that would be
more powerful than his living father?
At the heart of all
humans is rebellion, for there is a strong desire to have one’s way, whether
it’s good or bad. As for guns,
metal doesn’t have a mind of it’s own to pull a trigger; it requires a mind
to do that. For instance, in
America obesity is a problem in adults and children.
People seem to be overeating and incorrectly eating for a myriad of
reasons. Now, what if food were
less accessible? Let’s say, we
close all restaurants, fast food chains, and eateries, and people could only
purchase what’s on a government list for grocery.
Would this stop obesity? No.
People would rebel and disobey the laws, and obesity would remain.
Should guns suddenly vanish, teens would find another outlet for their
rebellion. …
Television, music, and media only draw out what
already exists within an individual. These
three factors are not responsible for maladies in society.
However, I regret that the media has free rein with violence, perversity,
and profanity because it’s so offensive. …
Required Reading Responses
Q1 The 6-year-old student with the telescope is usual
for his age. Many young children
ages 12 and below are bold with inquiry about life and people. I recall that my six graders would often raise their hands to
answer or ask questions with zeal, but as I taught grades 7-12 I noticed that
students didn’t have a zeal for learning.
In fact, they seemed to be utterly bored, overwhelmed or turned off by
it. The upper grades, with few
exceptions, see learning as an imposition and demand, whereas the younger grades
experience learning as a delight. Incidentally,
the few students who love learning are forced into a low-key interaction by the
dominant culture of apathetic students. Should
the motivated students openly express their knowledge or zeal they will be
ridiculed, shunned or antagonized by the dominant culture.
Q2 … seemingly good, nice or sweet people who would
curse, lie, or betray other people would often dismay me.
As for children, when I was teaching in Catholic school two students
hoc-spit into some lunch food and offered it to me, which I ate and was later
informed by other students of the deed. I
was stunned by the student’s misconduct, for I didn’t have a negative
exchange with them or other students that would warrant such evil.
Now, four years later, last week I heard on the news about a teenage
student putting a formaldehyde heart of a frog into a substitute teacher’s
coffee, which she drank and became ill. Upon
inquiry, a fellow student revealed that the teacher was a good person and
didn’t warrant that evil act. What
do we say about the wicked students?
Q3 Again, the teaching of morality depends on the
philosophical, political, and/or religious belief of the teacher and his or her
personal life experiences. Morality
cannot be taught like the various subjects.
A teacher need not believe in science, math or English to teach those
subjects. He or she is simply
presenting facts and discussing them. However,
morality is another matter entirely. How
can a teacher teach that a lie is morally wrong when he or she may lie often,
even to the students? How can one
teach that profanity is wrong when that same teacher curses often, even to the
students? How can one teach that to
kill is wrong when that same teacher utters cutting remarks that kill
student’s spirits? Finally,
morality has to be lived so that it can serve as an example to teach.
Q4 I share with my students my failure of high school.
I told them that alcohol, truancy, and poor work habits sabotaged my
future efforts to build a living for myself. I
continued that I may have survived to teach, by God’s will, but the road was
paved with 20 years of poverty living in a ghetto among drug dealers who take up
office in the vestibule of my building, smoking drugs and drinking alcohol.
At June’s end, a freshman shared with me that her family was finally
moving from the Bronx to Yonkers in their new home after 17 years of cramped
living. I asked her why was she
happy, and she said because her neighborhood was overcrowded and there was too
much drug traffic. Why did she
share her joy with me? She knew I
struggled with the same toxic living and that I would be happy for her.
As for the lessons of my academic experience, I’ll never know its
effect on the children. Perhaps, I
hope, that God may use it to serve to deter one student from academic
derailment.
Q8 Teachers must establish control beginning in
September in their classes for decency and order.
It is deplorable to see students banging and kicking the doors of other
teachers or raising their voices and cursing the teacher or another student.
I explain from day one, that I’m responsible for their well-being and
that I cannot have disobedience in the class room.
They must submit to my authority in order that they can learn and
communicate in the class. I further
explain that I will not betray their trust by disrespecting them or abusing my
authority. Finally, I explain
consequences. A failure to obey
will result in a dean’s referral, call home or class change.
And so, mischief will not be tolerated.
Incidentally, I taught three works of literature with a focus on the
nature of mischief: Aesop’s “The Shepherd Boy and the Wolf,” Ann Tyler’s
“Teenage Wasteland” and Ann Landers’ “Dead At Seventeen.”
The unit was so successful that students were now identifying behavior on
their own as mischief and so it caused an awareness of mischievous conduct and
its dangers.