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I am a white woman who was a teacher in an tough inner-city school. AMA (self.IAmA)
submitted 1 year ago by dander79
[–]LinkBalls 27 points28 points29 points 1 year ago
How do you reach these keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeds?
[–]dander79[S] 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
haha. Love.
[–]EricCartmenes -1 points0 points1 point 1 year ago
How do I reech thees keedz?
[–]Shred_Kid 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
I got it.
[–][deleted] 5 points6 points7 points 1 year ago
My aunt did the same thing, teaching at a highschool for "troubled students" on the lower east side of manhattan in the 70s and 80s. Her very first day, she says, she was busy not knowing what she was doing and yelling at the class for being unruly. This of course got her nowhere... until she sat on a chair and it collapsed under her.
Her automatic reaction was to laugh hysterically and pick herself up and adjust her boobs under her giant jungle-cat bedazzled sweater (youd have to understand the era). And in just that instant, she won the kids in that class and all of her future classes, as the legend about the chair was passed on.
She tells a story of how she was saved from a mugger right outside the school by a couple of her students, who saw what the guy was about to do and tackled, saying something like (if memory serves) "THAT RIGHT THERE IS MAH TEACH! YOU WANNA FUCKING BLEED?"
Damn kids today. Buncha pussies.
[–]dander79[S] 2 points3 points4 points 1 year ago
haha love that story. the kids think it's their right to be mean to you, but ONLY they can be mean to you.
[–]anonemouse2010 12 points13 points14 points 1 year ago
How's Coolio doing?
[–]Vox_Populi 3 points4 points5 points 1 year ago
Please don't have a movie made about you. Those are the worst.
already done. and i wrote a personal memoir.
[–]ButtFartMcPoopus 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
Wait, seriously?
[–]dander79[S] 5 points6 points7 points 1 year ago
no.
[–]Vox_Populi 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Oh thank god.
[–]dander79[S] 3 points4 points5 points 1 year ago
Glad for the positive response. I taught 6th grade math for one year, and then 9th and 10th grade for another two. The age spans in my high school classes were anywhere from 14 to 19.
[–]lawcorrection 2 points3 points4 points 1 year ago
Were you ever sexually assaulted verbally or physically?
Yes. My first year, one of my children (age 12) threw a desk at me, not once, not twice, but three times. I also had kids throw various shit at me, steal my wallet/cellphone and graffitti my classroom (one swaztica-- i'm jewish but don't look it, so i'm not sure if this was a factor). I was definitely the subject of innappropriate comments, which I tried to brush off. There was one student who wouldn't stop saying things about wanting to hook up with me, so I had to take him aside and set him straight.
[–]lawcorrection 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
Follow up, did you do Teach for America? Was it as rewarding as I have heard it is?
[–]dander79[S] 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
I did another program similar to TFA but for career-changers. TFA is rewarding but I have a problem with their overall philosophy...
[–]lawcorrection 7 points8 points9 points 1 year ago
Do you mind elaborating?
[–]dander79[S] 10 points11 points12 points 1 year ago
Sure. TFA is a two-year program for recent college graduates. The idea is to get them into education for at least two years, so that even if they don't stay teachers they can be invested in the education system and be an advocate for change. This all sounds great in theory, but the first year of teaching is really a clusterfuck. You don't know what you are doing and, with very few exceptions, cannot manage the class. The kids end up suffering. It bothers me that inner-city kids have to suffer while suburban kids get good teachers... that inner-city kids are somehow the guinea pigs. Furthermore, two years is a very short time and a huge problem with the education system is that we can't retain good teachers. While there's an argument to be made that TFA brings good people into bad schools, there's something that bothers me about such a prestigious organization approving of this revolving door policy. I think career-changing organizations, like teaching fellow programs, are way better, not only because they include people from a wide range of backgrounds and careers, but also because they help their members train to be teachers with the assumption that that is their long-term goal.
[–]xmashamm 2 points3 points4 points 1 year ago
I think I just fell in love with you.
I rule. Just kidding. Actually I'm dating a serious redditor/ karma whore, so you have some competition :)
[–]xmashamm 3 points4 points5 points 1 year ago
But why date one serious redditor when you could date two? ;)
hahaha
I definitely understand your point but I feel like it can't be all that bad. Why would schools accept teachers who were worse than their current faculty. Also, the people going into the TFA program are usually very smart and hardworking people since the program selection process is so tough. Overall I can't imagine that it is hurting the education system. So guess my follow up question is, so long as the net effect of the program is positive for inner city education(and it might not be and I would like for you to refute that point if you feel otherwise) do you think that the program is a net bad influence just because it is not the best way to improve inner city education?
I'm not sure how to answer this question. On the one hand I agree that there are some really great TFA teachers who do great things, and the program overall seems to be somewhat successful. At the same time, I think there's just something problematic about subjecting poorer students to novice teachers. Setting a lower standard for teachers in the inner-city ultimately sets a lower standard for students, which is one of the biggest problems in education. As smart as they may be, they really lack competence in classroom management (on the whole), which is a pre-requisite to teaching kids anything at all. Actually, supply now outstrips demand in certain teaching markets (like New York), so I think that TFA should reframe its mission. I think it could be a much better program if it put its teachers as student teachers for the first year.
Thank you for answering all my questions so thoroughly. I think I finally ran out.
haha no problem. it's really cathartic to do this :)
[–]xmashamm 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
Part of the problem is that veteran teachers aren't flocking to the inner city. It's the young idealists that charge in there, only to be beaten and bloodied into accepting a job in the suburbs where the pay is higher and the schools safer.
ha, totally. and the ones who do make it, like me, go to graduate school for something else because they are so burnt out :( I am part of the problem
[–]selekta 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
My wife teaches the same type of demographic that you work in and she (along with all her colleagues) has very little positive to say about TFA. The logic behind it is almost infuriating. Most if not all, TFA teachers are not even credentialled, and then they are put into struggling classrooms. These classrooms need an experienced teacher, not someone who is just "passing through". The majority do their three years and leave the teaching profession alltogether. Parents of children in higher performing public schools would not tolerate a new 4th grade teacher every two or three years only to lose that teacher when said teacher decides to go back to grad school or leave the profession. TFA is not the answer. Smaller classrooms and restoring full funding to our public schools is the only solution.
I hear you. I readily admit that I am part of the problem...
[–]table_lamp -3 points-2 points-1 points 1 year ago
one swaztica
You mean a swastika?
sure
[–]truco 6 points7 points8 points 1 year ago
Did they make a movie based on your life starring Michelle Pfieffer?
[–]ohnostereo 4 points5 points6 points 1 year ago
Mr. Presbo?
[–]boogersonsteve 5 points6 points7 points 1 year ago
sheeeeeeit
[–]dander79[S] 4 points5 points6 points 1 year ago
I think that show represents teaching in inner-city schools pretty accurately. I find some of the episodes really hard to watch because they resonate so much and remind me of sad times.
[–]afiefh 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
I was unsuccessful at googling it so please tell me: What show are you talking about?
ha! the wire.
[–]Flammy 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
You couldn't find it because Mr. Presbo is the kid's nickname for Mr. Presboluski (sp)
[–]DastardlyBarnacle 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
You will bow in the presence of Bunny Colvin.
He's one of my favorites. Season 4 is really a tough one to watch though. Those kids remind me of so many I've worked with. :(
[–]eandi 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
Did you get through to them with music, dancing, or sports?
Actually, my kids taught me a great song about dividing fractions, which I think originally came from the KIPP program: (to the tune of Ms. Jackson by Outkast) Dividing the fraction Oo I am for real First you've got to flip the second term then you've got to change to multiply Dividing the fraction OO
I used to sing this with the kids and they would get really embarassed. It was hilarious.
[–]eandi 3 points4 points5 points 1 year ago
My math teacher used to sing us this except she would sing "MONOMIAL, doo doo doodoo doo. BINOMIAL, doo doodoo doo." Hilarity ensued - by hilarity I mean unit tests...
I like it.
[–]science_diction 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
Do you think the education system would be better off if education was treated as a priveledge instead of a right: i.e. if people make trouble / are merely taking up seats / they are expelled immediately?
You know, I'm not sure about this one. I definitely had disruptive kids in my class who I wanted to get the hell out of my class. But the truth is, most of the time it was my flaw and not the kid's. Really good teachers can get even the most disruptive to engage. The one exception to this is really emotionally disturbed kids, but I even had some breakthroughs with them.
[–]jkaska 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
kudos. Similar - white woman, I was a social worker in poor communities / "the cape flats" in cape town, south africa. its not easy, but greatly rewarding. Just LOVED when you said one of the greatest compliments you got was when a kid called you "gangster" for being firm!! have had similar :-) oh, and there's always at least one kid who's gonna hit on you, lol.
you go girl! :)
[–]ares_god_not_sign 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
I've met some white people who claim to have developed negative opinions of blacks because they interacted with the worst parts of the black community in their jobs. Did your opinion of blacks change during your tenure? Did any of your coworkers have a negative opinion of blacks that they blamed on the job?
The first year I had 90% Jamaican students, and the next two I had only 40% black (the rest were latino with some asians and whites thrown in). My opinion of black people didn't change that much, though I gained a greater understanding of why our cities are so screwed up, which in my opinion has very little to do with race. At first, I was belittled by my black students as a "cracker," but this had more to do with my behavior than theirs. As soon as I toughened up, they treated me just as they would any other teacher they respected. One of the highest compliments I received from my students was when I told a student off and they started calling me a "gangster."
[–][deleted] 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
What was this insight into why our cities are screwed up? Do you see any possible improvements that we can make?
So many things... I'll start with the solutions: 1) Get teachers who have been in the system for 20+ years to run the schools and reform the policy. They know the kids and what they need one thousand times better than the "suits." 2) Create aw citywide agency that coordinates between all the different departments. I can't tell you how frustrating it is to see a kid that really needs some service, like proper psychological care, fall through the cracks. Alexandria is working on this. 3) Pay teachers more to raise the prestige of teaching and recruit talent. 4) Get better services for kids at risk and kids who are behind academically. 5) Cut class sizes. 6) Create better public housing that gives people a sense of ownership. Low-rise housing rather than towers-- like in Philly. 7) Create more opportunities for inner-city kids to go to good colleges-- government funding, etc. I could go on and on but I'll leave you with those. As for the insights, I think my biggest revelation is that kids in the inner-city really don't have many opportunities or options. Everything in their lives-- from their education to their healthcare to their housing-- is subpar. Their world is filled with traps and obstacles, and they need all the help they can get. One teacher can really change a child's life forever.
1) Get teachers who have been in the system for 20 + years to run the > schools and reform the policy. They know the kids and what they need > one thousand times better than the "suits."
I'm not sure I agree. I do realize that the "suits" are pretty much effing it up, however, in my student teaching experiences, I would say that the older teachers, the ones in it for 20+ years, are certainly not the ones I would want running things. Sure, there are of course some great ones, but from purely anecdotal evidence, the old guys were the worst.
They tended to be stuck in the mud, unidealist, unrealistic, unintellectual, and unwilling to listen to criticism of their teaching style, or to change. The old science teacher at the middle school I student taught at actually threw a students binder down the hallway in rage. Explaining that this teaches students that rage and physical violence are appropriate responses fell on deaf ears. This man is now studying to become a principal. :(
I think there is something to be said for "educational theorists" though these wouldn't be like the administrators of today. These would be people who work on educational theory, performing studies, spending time in classrooms. Basically focusing on studying and improving education as opposed to being a "boss". The problem is that legislation for education is made by people who don't study education at all. Everyone seems to think they have a say in education simply because we can all produce children. For some reason knowledge of pedagogy or child development isn't requisite to run education.
Perhaps I just got saddled with an awful school but it turned me away from teaching, at least for now. It seemed as though the efforts I could make couldn't possibly produce change. Instead of working within the system it seems as though we need to dismantle it. But then again maybe I'm just being young and hippy. That's probably closer to the truth.
Kudos to you though. Mad props and such :)
Yeah I totally agree to you about some of the teachers. I literally saw some of them reading the newspaper with their feet on the desk while the kids ran amok. This was when they were supposed to be teaching. I hear you. Awful schools are awful teachers are awful. :( I guess I'm talking about the really good long-term teachers. I know of only a handful, but how many does it take to reform education? Just a few. In particular, I had a mentor my first year who had been teaching for 35+ years and was just amazing with the kids. He helped me deal with my awful principal and really helped me just survive the first year. He was just so wise, and I want people to listen to heros like him!
[–]MR_Rictus 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Amen!
[–][deleted] 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago*
I'm about a start working towards teaching high school math in a completely different situation, but I do find your thoughts interesting.
I've imagined teaching elsewhere, like in the city, but there's one thing I can't get over. Though I love math, I don't actually see much of a point to it for most people, beyond algebra. What do you tell a kid when they ask what they need to know math past algebra for? I'd like to say that this sort of education can raise their quality of life, and maybe one or two students can use it to improve their lives, but for the majority I feel like it's a waste of time.
Yeah, I know the feeling, especially when we were doing something like polynomials. I guess my goal was to make it relevant when I could and make it exciting when I couldn't. So obviously there are great applications for probability and basic arithmetic, among many topics. My favorite activity was to tape a 20 dollar bill on the board and do a lottery with 6 digits. There was basically no way any of them were winning, but they didn't know that-- until I lost and they were interested in learning how I could be so certain they wouldn't win. With more obscure topics, I tried to make it as hands-on as possible. Games are super easy to incorporate into even mundane topics-- jeopardy is easy and fun. Also competition-- team games-- gets kids to break out of their shells. If I could make math a little fun, maybe they would stick with it in the long run. I also tried to show them why math was really cool-- we did stuff that go them engaged and interested like trying to derive pi using measuring tape and circles of various sizes.
Also, I should mention that there are some really old-timey teachers (mostly black) that think the kids are just unreachable. I think this has more to do with their opinions of the neighborhoods and families rather than skin color.
[–][deleted] 1 year ago*
[deleted]
For me, I didn't really have any parents who I felt were racist against white people. Usually the terms "white devil" and "cracka" were used as ammo to insult me generally rather than with real implications about my race. There were white students who were accepted by their black peers in the school I worked in.
[–]Exedous -2 points-1 points0 points 1 year ago
Worst parts of the black community? Sir, they're almost all like that. I'd say over 80%.
[–][deleted] 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Can you tell me the name of the program you used to change careers?
google teaching fellows, there are a number throughout the country that are unaffiliated with each other but similar programs... don't want to reveal my identity more than that :)
[–]ButtFartMcPoopus 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
How on earth do you get them to listen or respect you? What makes the difference between a first year teacher that gets walked on and talked over, and a seasoned teacher that can command authority from unruly kids that otherwise don't give a fuck?
Oh lord knows it took awhile. I am HUGE pushover in real life, and I am very friendly and nice. I basically had to change my personality for the first few months of each school year. I was a HUGE bitch and very strict about everything. I had windex and paper towels for kids to wipe off their desks if they wrote on them, called parents very regularly, made kids pick up three pieces of paper to leave the classroom, etc. Setting the tone on the first day solves 90% of management problems. Other than that, I used a lot of candy. My best trick was giving them a lollipop when they started doing the problem on the board at the beginning of class. 19 year olds turn into children when there is candy around. Also, most of the truly disruptive kids are just extremely needy. One on one conversations were important. Most of them were just puppy dogs hiding behind their toughness.
Also, you'd be surprised how many of these kids cower in front of their mama.
Do they tease you a lot?
At the beginning, they used to call me cracker a lot. As soon as I toughened up, they didn't dare.
I was going for a lame "Welcome Back Kotter" thread but I guess everyone's too young. :-)
Thanks for the answer. I can deal with Tokyo but a classroom like that, no thanks.
And thanks for the IAmA. Very informative.
[–]lozenge_chewer 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Many kudos to you for taking that challenging, benevolent role.
Have you ever been physically threatened / harassed by a student?
Thanks! Yes. I had one student throw desks at me three times, and others throw other things at me. I also had a kid talk about shooting with guns at me-- he had an attitude but was this biggest mama's boy I've ever seen. I got him in trouble.
[–]OldNoFace 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
What grade(s) did you teach?
6th, 9th, 10th. 6th- ages 11-14, 9th/10th- ages 14-19
[–]xoites 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Did you have textbooks in the classroom? What was your budget like? Did you think the Administration cared about the students? Were standards set high or were the students expected to fail?
Our budget was small-- maybe 300 dollars a year for about 100 students. I was able to secure more money through donorschoose.com, which is a FANTASTIC website. Books were in seemingly short supply, and I basically made my own textbooks and designed my own curriculum, which was hugely time consuming. The amazing thing was that the books existed, but they just weren't distributed properly. I was shocked when my principle took me to the basement of our school, where there were literally mountains of books, instruments, tables, chairs, computers, etc., that had just been abandoned. I worked in new charter schools, so the standards for students were really high. However, the "bad" students were often forgotten about and suspended constantly because we couldn't handle them as a school. It was really sad to watch these students struggle.
[–]Neker 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
I was shocked when my principle took me to the basement of our school, where there were literally mountains of books, instruments, tables, chairs, computers, etc., that had just been abandoned.
Could you elaborate on that ? I really don't get it. Why were those supplies abandoned ? Could you grab some and put them to use ?
I could grab them, but they were literally decaying at that point. There were a couple problems: 1) School have a budget to spend and they need to spend every penny. At the end of the year, if there is a surplus, they will spend randomly. If they don't, they don't get as much funding the next year. Stupid. 2) Teachers and principals come and go, so people will leave stuff just lying around and never come back to it. I did this myself when I switched schools. Stuff just gets lost track of. 3) A lot of huge high schools are transitioning to multiple small schools in one building, and the materials from the old high school are sort of just forgotten about. Additionally, a lot of programs (like band) don't exist in small schools or were cut, so no one uses the instruments and everyone forgets about them. 4) Some of the textbooks are outdated and people don't know what to do with them. 5) There is a lot of waste in public schools because there is a lot of incompetence in public schools. Principals will get a shipment and just not open it because they forget about it!
[–]maleman 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Some of the textbooks are outdated and people don't know what to do with them
I find more often than not, this problem is overstated. I mean, how much has really changed in high school math in the last 20 years?
In my opinion, you are totally correct. Problem is, the whole method for teaching math has changed. Now it's all project based and experiential learning. It's really a dumb approach. But teachers get evaluated based on how well they are teaching the curriculum, not how well they are teaching. Also, you have to teach to standardized tests, and those change pretty regularly. Finally, the school usually gets new books in every year (although not enough and doesn't distribute them) so you are supposed to use those.
And that is the crime. The tools are locked up in the basement paid for and useless. Most people have no clue how screwed up the schools are in the poor parts of the country. When the students graduate to prison cells they are blamed for their situation.
Totally. It's so sad. I spent so much of my own money to get supplies in the classroom. You should have seen my first year classroom-- it was just awful. Tiny little cell for 30 kids, marked up tables, marked up green board, old sink that didn't work, super super hot with no air coming in.
Thank you for being there and thank you for trying.
You're welcome! I really loved my kids and teaching-- it was just so frustrating to watch them come in year after year with the same problems. Kids are the same everywhere, though-- they just want love and attention-- even the "worst" ones. Now I'm in law school, and I'll be a lawyer in legal services or public defense for the rest of my career. Hopefully this will be more satisfying and make me feel more useful.
Well you will meet your former students or the former students of other teachers in what can only be described as a dysfunctional and failed system.
Also, thank you for saying thank you-- a teacher rarely hears it. The biggest thank you you could give me would be to donate to donorschoose.com-- it's a really amazing website that connects donors with real teachers looking for extra funds for projects. You even get pictures and thank you letters from the kids!
I spent twenty years as a volunteer running homeless shelters in DC. At 53 i am trying to figure out how to pay for my retirement, but you might think of doing a separate post about that because many people here are very generous and have some money.
how do you feel about poverty in the US now? how did you start your career? thanks for your work :)
[–]xoites 2 points3 points4 points 1 year ago
Poverty in the US has the same underlying reasons today as it did four decades ago; systemic racism, unbridled Capitalism, willful ignorance and long division. My "career" started when i was 17 and i went to a soup kitchen to help serve soup.
[–]Exedous 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Lack of personal responsibility also plays a huge roll. "ITS THE SCHOOLS FAULT THAT I KILLED SOMEONE." I suppose it's cultural now as well.
[–]xoites 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
I very sorry you killed someone. Perhaps if you had been given the proper tools to have an opportunity in life you never would have been in a situation where life and death decisions were part of your day to day environment. Had you been taught how to think your way out of problems and given language skills to impress someone in a job interview perhaps you would have gotten that good job despite the fact that most Americans expect you to end up in jail because of the color of your skin and the neighborhood you grew up in. Had a single teacher cared enough for you to expect you to succeed instead of writing you off as hopeless maybe things would have been different and it could have been you dumping your bullshit on a person who was never given a chance on some website somewhere.
And then there are apologists like yourself who always have explanations for everything but never act on anything. It makes the problem worse in my opinion.
Never act on anything?
Are you suddenly my biographer?
When the hell is the book coming out because you are way the fuck behind schedule.
When you finally stop making excuses for everything that happens. The book title will be 'Grow some fucking balls: Taking responsibility for your own actions'.
What is your excuse for poor students being the objects of neglect?
Let's get down in the dirt here and talk about taking responsibility, shall we?
Sure we can. We can also talk about various countrys who have financial problems and yet do not produce as much animals as predominantly black neighborhoods do. Really it goes beyond just teaching them at school. A friend of mine works for a program for the state that attempts to prevent gangs from getting ahold of students in highschool. The majority of the kids are Hispanic and black. Out of the 30 students, 3 are likely to graduate from college, all hispanic. The blacks are breeding generations of welfare recipients in the state of California. The parents ate just as thick headed and wreckless as the kids. In short, they are essentially uncivilized. At least the Hispanic parents realize that their children are not on the right path and actually WANT to help their kids. This is not the case for blacks.
[–]lanismycousin 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
pics ?
I would love to post pics and have many, but I want to maintain my anonymity and for many reasons can't post pictures of my students.
then photoshop your face ... or take a pic that doesnt show your face?
k
[–]KCGKSW 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
do you constantly walk around and wonder if you're dreaming?
dont get the reference-- is this an inception thing?
[–]Badmoto 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
A couple questions, but first, a huge thank you for doing something so few people would have the balls to do.
Do you feel like you made a real difference with any of the students you taught? As in, got them to break out of the ghetto lifestyle for college or a stable job.
Were there any students that surprised you with how well they did by the end of the year?
My friend's mom taught 5th and 6th grade for a number of years at a very low income school. She would always give her all to every child she taught, but generally she could tell, based upon their home life, personality, other issues, which one's had a real chance to make it and which ones would always be sucked into that lifestyle. More often than not, she was correct but every so often she'd be surprised by one of these "bad" students coming back and thanking her for the influence she had in their lives. Those were to moments that kept her going back every year.
Aww, what a sweet story and so true. Even after my first year, the students who really adored me were the "bad" ones-- the one who threw desks at me, in fact, loved me by the end of the year. I definitely felt that I had some impact on students, but it's really hard to say. I can say that the class I enjoyed teaching the most was an intensive prep class for students who were SUPER behind. They all could do the math but were just so embarassed by their weaknesses that they caused disruptions in their regular classes. I had one gang member in this class-- I think a blood-- and to see him complete math problems and excel was a real treat. I was able to engage with him about his goals and hopes... I have no idea where he is now, but that interaction meant a lot to me and I hope it meant a lot to him. Another of my students got out of juvie and was a continual disruption until I sat down with him and talked to him-- then I became the only teacher who could reason with him. Sadly, I lost my temper with him and he later transferred schools so I lost touch with him, but I hope that he knows how much I cared. I got very few thank you's as a teacher, but every moment with these kids was special. Many of them amazed me with their intelligence, especially some of the ones labelled as lower-achieving. Sadly, I also saw the opposite pattern. I had one top student whose grades plummented. Turns out she was evicted with her family-- I have no idea where she was living-- probably the street. It was really disheartening to see this happen. And no need to thank me-- I think I was just meant to work in the inner-city. I get a lot of personal satisfaction from it, so it really is selfish in a way.
Gotta head out for a few hours, but keep the questions coming if you have any. And any future or current teachers feel free to message me with questions, etc. I'm happy to lend a listening ear or talk something out. For the person who said I sounded familiar, the first letter of my last name is M-- am I your guy? :)
[–]methylin 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
What's your worst story that happened to you or another teacher?
I went to an inner-city school. Another student in the same district got into a fight with a teacher and scalped her. This 15 year old girl ripped a patch of her hair right off among other injuries she inflicted.
Also, my school was consistently ranked #1 by our state's magazine / #15 in the nation by Newsweek but so much money was funneled into trying to fix the other schools, we didn't have paper for a few months one year. Do you ever find lack of money to be an issue?
Jesus. Nobody I knew got scalped. I know someone who got a good punch in the face while trying to break up a fight. I never had anything super terrible happen to me beyond desks being thrown at me and my wallet being stolen... I guess those are not great. Funding was a huge issue, but at my second school I had a remarkable principal who made stuff happen. She found tons of independent donors and volunteers and got our kids whatever they needed, without question. I remember some of our calculators (TI-83) got stolen, and we got new TI-85s within a few weeks. Also, the city I was working in was running a deficit so they literally cut funds AFTER they had promised them. Our whole budget was screwed.
[–][deleted] 1 year ago
My experience as a white woman is very different from those of other people. A lot of people would assume that I wouldn't be able to effectively handle the class because of my race/gender. Effective teaching in the inner city actually has very little to do with race and gender and a lot more to do with attitude. I specified this to communicate what the kids' first impressions of me, which is pertinent because it hugely affects our interactions. Regardless of my attitude and intentions, many of the kids first viewed me as an outsider who didn't really understand them and couldn't relate to their issues. Plus, I was in the minority among the students and staff, so I stuck out like a sore thumb. This of course affected my day to day experience in palpable ways. Regardless of how I feel about my own racial identity, many of the kids initially dismissed me as outside of their culture. I also wanted to share my successes-- race and gender are relevant to but not determinant of success as an educator.
i'm a year or so off from getting a history degree, and i have the retarded plan of teaching in an inner city school for a couple years to have an excuse to live in a city and at least attempt to spread some truth to the kids.
if you had it to do over again, would you?
Yes. 100%. So lifechanging. But make sure you really want to do it, because it will be the hardest thing you have ever done. If you are looking for an easy job, don't do it.
[–]runmarleyrun 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
they should pay you more money - the most noble profession
thanks! i also think paying teachers more money would increase the prestige of teaching and retain good teachers in the system and help the kids.... :)
[–]rynlnk 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
Do you know Coolio?
Yes, we're besties.
[–]Crackertron 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
I take a look at my life and realize there's nuttin left
Cause I've been blastin and laughin so long that
Even my mama thinks that my mind is gone
Why did you agree to do Grease 2?
At the time it seemed like it was a sure hit.
[–][deleted] -5 points-4 points-3 points 1 year ago
I hope you weren't an English teacher.
[–]natego -7 points-6 points-5 points 1 year ago
If you don't get this, he's talking about the completely stupid use of 'an' in the title.
[–]Imnolongerlurking 9 points10 points11 points 1 year ago
Completely stupid? That's harsh. I'd say incorrect.
[–]dander79[S] 9 points10 points11 points 1 year ago
And thanks for the harsh comment, which was rather unnecessary. I always taught my students that everyone makes mistakes and that no one should belittle you because of them. You could stand to learn that lesson.
[–]natego -1 points0 points1 point 1 year ago
False. I have never made a mistake in my life. I am perfect.
thanks haha. the an was coming from an inner-city school, but I added the tough at the last minute. apologies.
[–]peu4000 -1 points0 points1 point 1 year ago
Did you teach them violin?
[–]strikershuttlesworth 1 point2 points3 points 1 year ago
lulz i saw that movie
No.
[–][deleted] -2 points-1 points0 points 1 year ago
It must be fucking difficult to teach those niggers math
[–]NEWSBOT3 -1 points0 points1 point 1 year ago
was it a gangsta's paradise?
[–]Imajeanius -1 points0 points1 point 1 year ago
soooooooo, what's with your fascination for Cuban mafia drug lords?
Please don't blame yourself for Tony Montana's downfall, you were a strong woman to walk out on him.
don't get the reference... don't hate me
[–]Imajeanius 0 points1 point2 points 1 year ago
sorry 'bout that, michelle pfeiffer in Scarface
hahaha ok
[–][deleted] -1 points0 points1 point 1 year ago
Rope and Duct tape would have solved all the problems you dealt with.
This joke has been made.
[–]sexaddict124 -2 points-1 points0 points 1 year ago
Not an English teacher, apparently.
[–]TimeforPie -2 points-1 points0 points 1 year ago
Are you Michelle Pfeiffer?
[–]kmlymi -3 points-2 points-1 points 1 year ago
Can you answer me, whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy arrrrrrrrrrrrrrre weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee sooooooo bliiiiind to seeeeeeeeee that the ooooooooooooooones weeeee hurttttttt arrrrrrrrrre youuuuuuuuuu and meeeeeeeeeee?
[–]lynxification -3 points-2 points-1 points 1 year ago
Was this your theme song while driving to school everyday?
haha. I definitely felt like Michelle Pfeiffer at times. But honestly the most accurate description of teaching in inner-city schools that I've seen has to be season 4 of the wire. There were some innacuracies, but overall it was very good.
[–]Im_Helping -10 points-9 points-8 points 1 year ago
the "white woman who helps the poor black kids" is almost as tired of a cliche as "the magical black friend who helps out white people"
Sorry if it's a cliche, but it's my life and I do the best I can.
all it takes is a username and password
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