25 Biggest Mistakes Teachers Make and How to Avoid Them (56 page)

I threw a bucket and accidentally hit a student. I was trying to get a toy out of a tree
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Motive Probe

36.1. Describe the problem and your specific role in it.

I threw the bucket in order to get a ball from the tree
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36.2. Why did you do what you did?

See above
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36.3. What emotions or feelings were you experiencing at the time?

The student was crying and I felt badly for him
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36.4. Was your behavior justified? If so, why?

No
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36.5. Do you regret your action(s)?

Yes
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36.6. Do you ever think about this incident? If yes, approximately how often since the occurrence(s)?

(No response.)

36.7. If faced with the same or a similar situation, what would you do?

I would not throw a bucket in the tree to get a toy. I will leave the toy in the tree
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Commentary

The impulsive act of throwing a bucket into a tree, with children around, surely suggests a lack of good judgment and a basic knowledge of physics such as what goes up, must come down. Situations like this can be avoided if the teacher exercises good judgment and puts safety first when solving problems. If using a ladder or some other safe method of retrieval was not possible, the teacher could have explained to the student that the toy was irretrievable and next time to try to find a clear area to play in when playing with toys that could get stuck in the tree.

Mistake 21: Teacher Bias or Expectations

Teacher # 37

A Scenario of a Teacher’s Worst Treatment of a Student

I was short with a student because of his parent’s lack of responsibility and his learned helplessness. I had little patience with him when he messed up or complained of little things. My frustration was more with his mom than with him, but I took it out on him
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Motive Probe

37.1. Describe the problem and your specific role in it.

I was short with a student because of my lack of patience for a situation
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37.2. Why did you do what you did?

I was frustrated with the mom because she allowed him to manipulate her and she taught him to use his dyslexia as a crutch
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37.3. What emotions or feelings were you experiencing at the time?

Frustrated, angry, and annoyed
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37.4. Was your behavior justified? If so, why?

To some extent, because this student never tried and gave up immediately on “challenging” tasks. He cried any time I challenged him and would go home and paint pictures in his mother’s mind of a monster, because I challenged him instead of babying him
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37.5. Do you regret your action(s)?

To some extent, yes. I should have had more patience with him because his actions are learned behaviors from his mom
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37.6. Do you ever think about this incident? If yes, approximately how often since the occurrence(s)?

Yes, three or four times since it happened 2 months ago
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37.7. If faced with the same or a similar situation, what would you do?

Step away and take deep breaths
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Commentary

This teacher’s frustration is a manifestation of a deeper problem, namely, that some teachers are inadequately trained to deal with the complexities of inclusion. Many of the teachers that I have taught in previous years have complained about their feelings of inadequacy when having to work with special-needs children. This teacher’s lack of sensitivity to the child’s challenge
suggests that she was ill prepared to work with dyslexic children and blamed the child and the mother, to avoid accepting that she, the teacher, may be the source of the problem. Inclusion is probably here to stay. Teachers can avoid feelings of inadequacy by getting additional training for working with special-needs children and by seeking the help of an experienced teacher.

Mistake 22: Unethical Behavior

Teacher # 38

A Scenario of a Teacher’s Worst Treatment of a Student

The student was continuously acting out in class. He would do anything to get the attention of his peers, including making fun of and mocking me in front of the entire class. I was in my third month of teaching, and I was already fed up. One day, after he mocked me in front of the class, I gave him the middle finger. He noticed, and announced that I had done it. No one else saw it, so I convinced him that he must have been seeing things
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Motive Probe

38.1. Describe the problem and your specific role in it.

I gave a student the middle finger
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38.2. Why did you do what you did?

I was fed up
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38.3. What emotions or feelings were you experiencing at the time?

Extreme frustration
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38.4. Was your behavior justified? If so, why?

No
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38.5. Do you regret your action(s)?

Yes
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38.6. Do you ever think about this incident? If yes, approximately how often since the occurrence(s)?

Yes, about eight times per year for 4 years
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38.7. If faced with the same or a similar situation, what would you do?

I have much better classroom management skills now and I would have put a stop to his behavior before it escalated. However, if it continued, and I was in the exact same situation, I would not do this again
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Commentary

This teacher’s reaction to frustration is a character issue. To avoid situations like this, teachers should refrain from any type of vulgar or profane behavior and it will not become a default reaction. To maintain credibility with students, teachers should not lie to their students. In this case, the teacher realized that there may be serious consequences for her behavior and opted to lie to the student. Integrity and avoidance of inappropriate behavior are important components of professional teacher behavior.

Mistake 23: False Accusations

Teacher # 39

A Scenario of a Teacher’s Worst Treatment of a Student

It was not a student; it was my grandson that I mistreated. He was always doing something bad and lying about it. This time he was innocent. My nephew said he broke the VCR. I was tired of hearing him whine that he wanted to see a movie. I said if you hadn’t broken the VCR, you could watch it. I didn’t, he said. So I spanked him for lying
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Motive Probe

39.1. Describe the problem and your specific role in it.

The VCR was broken and I spanked him
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39.2. Why did you do what you did?

I was tired that day
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39.3. What emotions or feelings were you experiencing at the time?

Anger
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39.4. Was your behavior justified? If so, why?

No
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39.5. Do you regret your action(s)?

Yes
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39.6. Do you ever think about this incident? If yes, approximately how often since the occurrence(s)?

No
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39.7. If faced with the same or a similar situation, what would you do?

Count to 10 and walk away
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Commentary

Tattletales or children who voluntarily report on the activities of others are a particular dilemma for teachers. Who should the teacher believe? Certainly the tattletale is not always correct and could be lying. An underlying problem in this scenario is the grandmother’s perception that the grandson is always doing something bad and lying about it. That description of the child may have some merit, but it is too absolute to be true. The use of always doing something bad and lying suggests a negative perception of the grandson that probably clouds the grandmother’s judgment or she is using this negative perception to excuse her actions. Teachers can avoid a similar problem by discouraging tattletales, treating each situation as a new case and listening to both sides of the story. If the accused denies wrongdoing and the teacher did not see it, she must drop the matter because a lack of proof or evidence could lead to false accusation and harm to the innocent.

Teacher # 40

A Scenario of a Teacher’s Worst Treatment of a Student

We were at the mall (my mother, myself, and my two children) and we were driving around the parking lot trying to decide what to eat for lunch. We all decided on Luby’s except my 10-year-old son who was being disagreeable because he wanted Applebee’s. Finally my mother drove off and we headed to Applebee’s, which was further down the road. As we turned into the parking lot, a truck ran into my mother’s Jeep. I then looked at my son and said, “It’s all your fault.”

Motive Probe

40.1. Describe the problem and your specific role in it.

I blamed my son for my mother’s accident
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40.2. Why did you do what you did?

I blamed him because he was the one who wanted to go to Applebee’s
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40.3. What emotions or feelings were you experiencing at the time?

Frustration and anger
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40.4. Was your behavior justified? If so, why?

No, that was the wrong thing to say to a child and I never should have said anything like that to him
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40.5. Do you regret your action(s)?

Yes
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40.6. Do you ever think about this incident? If yes, approximately how often since the occurrence(s)?

About twenty times a year since 2003
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40.7. If faced with the same or a similar situation, what would you do?

I would not say it is anybody’s fault, it just happened
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Commentary

In this scenario, it is difficult to see who is the most immature, the adult or the child. The mother lacked the courage of her wishes and gave in to the child. She was resentful and blamed him for her decision to go to his choice of restaurants. She used the accident to express her resentment. To avoid scenarios like this, adults should not give in to childish demands no matter how disagreeable the child becomes. If they do, they are begging to be manipulated in the future and to subsequently feel exploited. They should not pout and sulk and show resentment; they should be decisive and stick to their choice. Ideally, adults can solicit children’s input with the understanding that the child will not make the final decision. A very democratic approach may be to take turns picking a restaurant and each member of the group agrees to abide by the choice of the decision maker.

Teacher # 41

A Scenario of a Teacher’s Worst Treatment of a Student