Not So Sneaky

Tuesday. US history. It was the end of eighth period, and as per normal, the kiddos had lined up at the door, waiting. (I do try to discourage this behavior, but they ignore me.)

At the front of the line were Percy and Gerardo. I've been having issues with the both of them. They both have F's in the class, and instead of doing any work, they get sucked into their phones or their computers. (Percy and I had a long debate about this. He doesn't care that he has an F and is looking forward to summer school.)

We had a few minutes left of class. Percy and Gerardo stepped onto the outside ramp. And once I could no longer see them, I went to check. 

Percy was still standing there. I shooed him back inside.

But Gerardo was halfway to the front entrance, too far for me to call back.

*grumble, grumble*

I do not appreciate students leaving class early. And I wasn't having it.

On Thursday, when Gerardo got to class, I informed him we needed to have a conversation. He had his earbuds in, so I'm not sure if he really didn't hear me or if he pretended not to. But I followed up. And I explained the situation.

Gerardo did not have a reason for leaving early. I rather think that he didn't think. He didn't know why he left early (at least that's what he told me), but I believe that it was a matter of no impulse control. He saw the opportunity and took it.

Well, Gerardo needed a consequence for this. (Everyone saw that he left early, so I didn't want to tempt them into thinking that they could get away with it, too.) So, I told him that he owed me three minutes after school. (When I noted the time when he left, it was about three minutes early.) 

He didn't argue with me about it. He didn't complain. And at the end of the period, he remained in his seat while everyone else left. 

Well, okay then. 

I kept note of the time and released Gerardo after his three minutes. 

I was expecting more push back. I'm quite happy that I didn't get it, though. 

I'll have to see if they attempt such things again. I'll be keeping a closer eye on them, too.

About Time

Eighth period graphic arts. They were doing what students usually do with a sub: as little as possible. But it was nearly the end of the period, the end of the day. 

This school has the new clocks. They're nifty. They're digital. They show the day of the week as well as the date. And, of course, the time. They're all synced, so at the exact minute that's the end of the period, the bell rings. 

Alas, the time on the clocks is not the same as the time on their phones...

"My phone shows it's time to leave." 

Me: "But we're on school time. School time is the time on the clock." 

And then I got into a discussion on time.

"What is the 'right' time, anyway? How do we define what the exact minute is? There was a time when each individual town had its own time. It was only with the coming of the railroads that any sort of shared time was established. Before that..."

I darted to the door.

A boy decided it was close enough to time to leave, so he left. 

Yeah, not on my watch.

I got to the door before he got too far. I called him back. We argued. He said it was time according to his phone. It was close enough to the end of the day. I informed him that the bell designated the end of the period, and it hadn't rung yet.

Reluctantly, he returned to class. And I stood over him, making sure he didn't leave. 

(At least I got him back. The next day I had a student that absolutely refused to return to class, but that's a whole 'nother story.)

Finally, the bell rang, on the exact minute it was supposed to, at least according to the clock.

The group I had started talking about standardized time to weren't actually interested, but I finished my thought anyway. As they were walking out of class. 

I mean, I have to do my job, but I do like to spout random facts when the opportunity arises. 

Addendum

Friday. Art. 

It was one of those boring days (so boring I brought along a project to work on) where the students do what they're supposed to do. I take roll, verify they're on task, and then I try to stay awake. 

Sixth period. Class went much like the rest of the day. 

I've started a new note system this school year. I created a Google doc where I can rate each class, list names for out of class, and leave a brief remark about anything needed. I can then email this to the teacher at the end of the day. 

So, on this day, I had completed my note, attached it to the email, and sent it off about ten minutes before the end of the period. 

The class had had an assignment in Google Classroom. (It was on line which is an element of art.) They had returned the Chromebooks to the Chromecart, and I was making sure they were all plugged in for the weekend (read: plugging them all in). That's when I heard the door. 

I turned, and sure enough, a couple students had slipped out of the classroom minutes before the end of the period. Grrrr. 

Such an event belongs in the note, but the note had been sent. 

Well, I guess the note needed an addendum. 

Rather than get a computer out or try to send it on my phone (I don't know the teacher's emails, but they pop up when I compose the email on computer; on my phone, their emails don't pop up), I grabbed a sheet of paper and wrote that out. 

I hate it when students slip out like that. (If a student must leave early, all they have to do is ask. If it's a reasonable request, I generally allow it.) It's cheating. And the teacher is definitely going to hear about it.

Early Exit Denied

It was Friday, and I was surprised by a minimum day. That's a good surprise.

Although, it wasn't actually a minimum day for the students. It was what they call International Day, which is a day where the campus clubs sell food, and the kiddos spend time in a carnival-like atmosphere with dancers and other performers. The entertainment and the food are from many different nations.

So, while the classes ended just before 1 PM, the students were still "at school" until their usual dismissal time a little over two hours later.

However, they let the subs go after the classes were over.

I had checked out, and I was on my way to my car. At the above gate, there was a girl climbing over. (This is known as "hopping the fence". Read: ditching school.) She was almost to the top when I got there.

"What are you doing?"

Yes, it was pretty obvious, but I had to open the conversation somehow.

She did not have an answer for me, of course. She got her legs over the top, and she was ready to hop down on the outside.

I said something about if she really wanted to leave, she needed to go through the office. There was a crowd of parents picking up their kiddos there as I checked out. She said she was going through the office.

I told her to go back on inside. She said she needed to hop down. I reasoned that it would be the same hopping down on the inside as it would be on the outside. She managed to get her legs to the outside, so it would be just as easy to throw them over the other way.

And... She did.

Keep in mind that I'm just a sub. I really have no authority here. And there's no other adult nearby. I have no authority to stop her, really. I can't grab her. I don't know her name. I can call the office and ask for security to show up, but by the time they get there, she can totally be gone.

But, the girl tossed her backpack down to her friend who was waiting on the other side (presumably to follow her over the fence after she got out). And then her phone.

The boy questioned why she was doing this. She informed him that I was telling her she couldn't leave. (Although, I could see him, he could see me, and we could both hear each other, so none of this was news to him.)

Then the girl threw her legs back over and hopped down. On the inside.

I knew they'd try again the minute I left. So, I waited. The girl and boy argued. I was still there. And I debated calling the office to let them know about the soon to be breakout.

The girl and boy walked back towards the festivities which weren't too far away. That's when a woman I recognized from the main office turned the corner. She talked to the boy and girl.

I figured it was safe for me to leave.

Did they eventually find a way to escape campus? Perhaps. I rather hope the woman booted them to a detention of some sort. While she's not an administrator, she works with them. At the very least, their attempted flight was noted.

Does this make me the bad guy? Well, in their story, at least.

Would you have let them leave? Did you ever ditch school?

Today's A to Z Challenge post brought to you by the letter...

Better to Ask Permission

It was 7th period at the continuation high school. The bell rang. One boy stood at the door, looking out.

I urged the boy to sit down. It was time to get class started. He informed me that he didn't feel like sitting. So, I went over and closed the door.

(That was only half about him. I had the air conditioning on. I leave the door open between classes to urge the students to come in, but once class starts, I want to keep the cool air in.)

I passed out the assignment. I turned to the class to explain what they were to do, and the boy walked out.

Um... Okay...

After explaining what they were to do, I called roll. When I called the name Nathan, someone informed me that was the name of the boy who had left. Okay. I had a name. But I was marking him absent, because he wasn't in class and didn't have permission to be gone.

About a half hour later, Nathan returned. With the assignment. Not complete, because he hadn't been in class to get the instruction as to what all needed to be done.

I asked him where he went. He told me that he went to work in another class. Why? Because he didn't feel like being in the room we were in. (He might have been irritated with me.)

Have you heard the expression: it's better to ask forgiveness than permission? It seems like there's a lot of that going on at the continuation high school lately.

But it doesn't work there. Because, if he had asked to work in a different room, I probably would have let him. I did, in fact, give permission for five different students to work in different rooms that day. Each one of them asked to go.

Nathan? I informed the office about what happened, and he was marked as cutting class that period. Because, in this case, it is much better to ask permission.