Wednesday, April 8, 2009

The Jerk

I didn't notice him at the beginning of the period.  I didn't have to.  There was a student teacher, so all I had to do was sit back and relax.

The first time I noticed the boy, the student teacher was asking him to sit.  He protested.  "One, two, three, four, five other students are out of their seats!"  So, that makes it okay, then?

Then he asked the student teacher if he could go and get his homework which was in the resource room (five doors down).  By the time he returned, the class has finished correcting the homework.  He was upset.  He wanted to know why the 35 other students in the class couldn't wait for him.  Maybe it had something to do with how long it took him to get back?

The class was U.S. history for 11th graders.  Today's topic was the counterculture of the 1960's.  The student teacher finished up her lecture by playing a couple clips of Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock.

Most of the class was interested.  So was the boy.  I overheard him telling his neighbor that Hendrix was rollin' (this is synonymous with trippin', meaning Hendrix was high).  I concurred.  "I wasn't talking to you," the boy snapped.  Gee, I was just trying to be helpful (and agreeing with you!).

Usually with a student teacher I stay out of the way.  And I leave little in my note (it is the student teacher's class, after all).  Today, however, I had to mention Mr. Attitude.  But I had one problem.  I couldn't find the right word to describe him.  

Well, see the title.  Was I being too harsh?

1 comment:

  1. Harshness aside, you were being as truthful as you could be. I wouldn't worry about.

    By the way, I liked to stay out of the student teacher's way as well whenever I subbed, however, I probably would've said something too.

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