New Perspective

Breaking News: Period 7 Bio was under control today! We even finished 5 minutes early -- something that has never happened before, thanks to the absurd amount of time I spend each day trying to get them to quiet down.

So what was it?! Did swine flu strike? Was it the plague? A natural disaster? Did my students finally come to understand the meaning of the achievement gap? Well... no. My two most disruptive students showed up to class and promptly decided to go back to sleep. They put their heads down and snoozed quietly for the duration of the class.

Several months ago, when I was much more gung ho about all children realizing their full potential blah blah blah, I would have spent the entire period trying to wake those two girls up. Today, I was delighted that they both chose to go to sleep. What has happened to me?

I guess I am beginning to let go, just a little bit, of the lofty goals with which I started teaching. When disruptive kids have their heads down, 100% of students are not learning. But when disruptive kids have their heads down, I think the remaining students are learning 100% better. I found today that the rest of my students were more focused, more engaged, and more inquisitive. The talking didn't stop -- it never does -- but much more was conducted at a whisper. Students were more likely to stop talking when I asked them to, rather than follow the usual example of Miss Disruptive and Miss More Disruptive and blatantly ignore my requests.

So here I am. Somewhat giving up on student achievement. Three months in and on the downhill slope toward disillusionment. Or maybe this is a good thing? I just don't know yet.