Yesterday I watched a fascinating move on TCM called "Blackboard Jungle"--an "inspiring teacher movie" from 1955. Glenn Ford teaches in an urban school, and the problems he ran into were remarkably similar to some of the attitudes I also encounter. A good reminder that school problems didn't suddenly come from nowhere with this new generation. He pours his energy into building a relationship with Sidney Poitier's character, and by the end of the movie Sidney Poitier's character offered positive leadership, willing to help the teacher in a fight against a student.
This same shift has happened for me this semester. In every class, I have at least one student who has my back. This is a quiet leader in the class, who has watched me last semester and decided s/he is on my side. This semester as I have fresh classes and a fresh load, this solidarity factor has been huge. I have a student who will shush the others, tell people to do their work, or offer to help me collect papers or do other tasks.
This developed to an extent last semester but I am really noticing it now, and nowhere was I more thankful for it than today 7/8 period. It is amazing how different the class is from the class during that time period next semester. Two of the boys and one girl are the same, but everyone else is different. (Last semester this class was my anger management/needs intensive therapy class). Now it is my smallest class at only 22 students, 15 of whom are girls, 13 of whom are girls who really like me and want to learn Spanish and work hard. Now that's a class I can teach!! One of the 6 boys is a big troublemaker, the same intimidator as last semester, but these girls aren't intimidated by him. Just the opposite, they put him in his place!! Today he was back after having been out several days from suspension for some discipline issue, and from every side he was getting grief for not doing his work, for talking when he shouldn't be, etc. The girls even all told me today, Profe, we have your back. As they said that, as the class coalesced in solidarity with me against this boy who has given me nothing but attitude and grief from day 1 of school, I felt this deep knot of dread unclench itself. There's still a lot of discipline and wisdom needed for dealing with this boy, but oh the difference of doing it with a class of girls who have my back rather than angry kids who just sit back and let me walk into the lion's den alone. The cloud of dread no longer hangs heavy over my heart as I leave school each day, and the difference is in knowing I have students who have my back...I'm not battling all this alone.
All throughout "Blackboard Jungle" Glenn Ford's character debates about whether to quit his very difficult job and go to a school where the kids really want to learn. He eventually gets his students engaged in learning and in the end decides to stay, as demonstrated through a conversation with Sidney Poitier's character who wryly says, "if you left, we'd have to break in someone new." I am starting to feel the same way. I don't know where the Lord will lead next year, and of course following Him is my ultimate priority and the only thing I will do, but in this new semester I am beginning to see that to quit this job just after this year would be to throw away all the learning and training I have received. I am still praying about what to do, and for wisdom for this semester (this is only week 3 after all) but I am so thankful for the education I have received.
