Newton's Third Law: For Every Action there is a Reaction

Case No. 1

'MY FOUR EXAMPLES OF LEARNING ON THE JOB '

BY A FIRST-YEAR OUT TEACHER

INTRODUCTION

These four matters arose in my first year of teaching, and present difficult decisions that had to be made. The first case, in particular, had my own emotions interfering with my professional judgement.
In all the cases, I took the sensible step of consulting more experienced members of staff but they were often unable to suggest a satisfactory course of action.
Four Case Scenarios:: 1. Daniel, Wallace, Andrew; 2. Zoe; 3. Adrian; 4. The Curriculum

1. Daniel, Wallace, Andrew

INTRODUCTION
My name is Harry. I am in year 9 at a Sydney High School. My Science teacher used to be Mr.S., but we have had Mr.X. since the start of last term. Mr.X. is really young, but he is an alright teacher except he hasn't marked our last test on our assignments yet. He also makes us do too much work.
Me and Adam used to muck-up and be rude when Mr.X. started, but he always kept us in at lunch, then he told us if we do what he wants we might like science. Adam and I behave better now and Mr.X. Iets us do more experiments and we sometimes watch videos. Now we are doing stuff about reproduction. We learned heaps about people reproducing but the bit about plants was really boring.
Daniel still makes heaps of stupid jokes in class about reproduction but most of them aren't funny so we tell him to shut up. Daniel and Wallace aren't allowed to sit near each other any more, because Wallace set his book on fire in an experiment and he has to sit by himself now. Wallace, Daniel and Andrew had a fight flicking bits of rubber at each other yesterday, but Mr.X. didn't notice because they were quiet. Daniel can't sit next to Andrew either because Andrew is dumb at Science and sometimes mucks up with Daniel.
Since Adam and I started being good we are allowed to sit with each other again. We sit near Chris. He is a brain who likes schoolwork, but he is alright. Mary sits behind them and talks about anything to Lisa all lesson.
BACKGROUND
I have been teaching this Science class for a little more than one term (around 12 weeks). The class is not a high ability group and as an inexperienced teacher I find motivation of the class to be my main challenge. Daniel and Andrew are two 14-year-old boys in the class. Both are quite disruptive in class, and Andrew really struggles with Science. This is (I think) the main cause of his disruptive behaviour. By this stage I have separated them in the classroom.
A new student, Wallace, has arrived at the school. His last school was quite close. I suspect he was asked to leave the school, but the information is not readily available. Wallace quickly settles in, makes friends with Daniel and Andrew, and approves to be more disruptive than either. During an experiment, Wallace attempts to set his book on fire. I offer him an after-school detention and explain that he will not be permitted to do any more experiments.
Monday The School's rumour mill is working hard. Wallace, Daniel and Andrew are all absent and apparently Daniel was on the Friday night news. Stories suggest Andrew has been killed, also stories say he is in hospital, and some suggest he is taking the day off. Q. How do we deal with it?
Tuesday Daniel and Wallace return to school but both are very withdrawn. The are not talking to each other. The rumour mill has now come to some agreement that all three were playing with explosives and Andrew had his hand blown off.
Wednesday At the regular staff meeting, we discover that Andrew has actually lost two fingers. The police have let the Principal know that the explosives used were actually railway detonators that Wallace stole. A vague tension is building up in the classroom at
that stage. That afternoon I went to visit Andrew in hospital to find Daniel and another friend. Charlie, there. After a brief chat, I asked Andrew if he wanted me to do anything at school for him. Andrew muttered "kill the little shit".
Friday Visiting Andrew again and chatting with DanieL I discover that Wallace gave Andrew the explosive, told him how to set it off and walked away. Andrew set it off in his hand, Daniel tried to get help and Wallace ran.
There is now open hostility in the classroom towards Wallace.

Suggest ways of dealing with the classroom situation.

As a teacher you have personally separated this student from the main class because of safety concerns in experiments
The other students have also rejected him both in the classroom and socially.
Attempts to include him in non-experimental classwork fail, as he makes crude or disruptive comments.
There is tremendous tension in the room, making learning difficult.
Also suggest day-to-day ways of dealing with the tension and rumours as the full story gradually unfolds.

Questions for Consideration:: How important is it to get the information?; How can we, as teachers, control the rumours?; Should the class be told the true story when it lays the blame so clearly?; Should we, as teachers, involve ourselves in an event, which happened outside of school?
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2. Zoe

Zoe is a l6 year-old girl in a year 11 class. She makes no attempt to do the classwork or assignments, preferring to talk quietly to another student.
Several teaching strategies have been tried; none of which are successful. Offers of assistance are rejected Zoe is completely unmotivated
The strategy I adopted, after consulting my head teacher, was to tell Zoe that if she didn't do the next assignment to my satisfaction, I would not allow her to satisfactorily complete the preliminary (Year 11) course. This means she cannot sit the HSC in this subject next year. During the weeks before the assignment was due I frequency asked how she was going, she lied by saying she was doing the work. She had actually made no attempt to do the work.
The problem: Zoe's family is from a very traditional, non-Australian background, and they place little value on education. If she fails year 11, if she is placed on detention or if her parents are notified, I suspect she may be beaten, possibly drawn out of school and married off. If physical abuse were to be investigated, the entire family, including Zoe would deny it.
Questions for Consideration:: Discuss other strategies that may have been taken.
Other suggested activities:: 1. Role-play an interview with Zoe. One person may investigate why Zoe behaves as she does; another may try to solve the problem by talking it through with her.; 2. Write a letter to her parents explaining Zoe's situation. Remember that your wording is very; important! If you present this the wrong way, Zoe may be beaten. To further complicate the issue, Zoe's family does not have good English skills.

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3. Adrian

Adrian is a 14-year-old boy who is a borderline "IM" student. Adrian is literate (just). He is quite capable verbally and usually understands that he takes the responsibility for his behaviour. He occasionally picks up a concept in his Science class, but isn't learning much. Adrian enjoys Science, especially experiments and excursions. He gets on well with his classmates and is quite popular.
The teacher of the IM class wants Adrian in her group, where the material is presented at a level more suited to Adrian's learning ability. This will undeniably improve Adrian's schoolwork, but the IM group does carry the "dummy' stigma in the playground.
Questions for Consideration:: Individuals should think about and list the "pros' and "cons" of placing Adrian in the IM class. The mainstream class is too large to give Adrian the individual attention he needs, and his parents don't believe there is anything wrong at all.; Debate the issue. Should Adrian be placed in the IM class? Are there any other options?

4. The Curriculum

You are starting a new topic with Year 8. You are presented with a list of outcomes and limited time to teach them. On starting the topic, you touch on some material not in the outcomes. The class shows unexpected ability and enthusiasm for the new work (which is actually Year 10/Year 11 work). After briefly pursuing this interest, the class still wants more.
This class is usually unmotivated, and you are very surprised to see them so keen to learn. If you continue to teach this advanced work to indulge the class' curiosity, you must sacrifice the original outcomes, which will be examined. However, you are quite sure that the work you originally planned will hold little interest.
Questions for Consideration: 1. Make a decision: Do you teach the advanced work, or stay with the original curriculum?; 2. Make a short speech to your group to justify your decision, and be prepared to answer questions.