RES 5535: Race, Class, and Gender in Literacy Research (summer 2010)

I agree that many students do keep things bottled up. What worries me the most is that many of our students are physically, sexually, and mentally abused and we never even know about it. In fact some of these kids are "average" students and sometimes I feel as if we overlook these students. They think if they are average then no one will give them any special attention and no one will notice that something might be wrong. Kids hide things very well. I would not be able to tell very easily if this is the case for some kids because I have a had a really good family life. My parents are still together and I honestly do not ever remember them fighting. However, I was the typical southern girl who was raised to care about what people think and to please people. Sometimes I wish this were not the case because this has affected me and still does today! We must do our best to treat our students as equal no matter what playing field they are on!

Katy Dellinger

"How can we expect our students to perform socially, intellectually and academically at school when they have so much pressure at home?" I had a new assistant this year that I just couldn't seem to explain this to. Stop fussing and try to find out what the problem is so we can help them to fix it. The children who are causing the problem or having the trouble are dealing with trouble outside of this classroom and we need to be a safe place for them so they can learn.

You make a very good point about the baggage that kids bring with them to school. It truly impacts their ability to learn as well as socialize with their peers. Many kids that struggle to maintain balance at home, appear lost in the classroom. The previous school that I taught had many children that fell into that type of situation. Life for them was full of uncertain events. Many of the parents at that school did play an active role in their child's education (or as much as they could offer). I hope one day children can appreciate a childhood like what many of us experienced (free of worry and fear).

Praise can go a long way. Your post made me think of a situation in my classroom. This past year I had a child in my class that had difficult family situation. You never knew what he was going to tell you about what happened at home. I knew that his home life was difficult and I knew that he was labeled the bad kid at home. This had followed him from preschool. Academically he was behind and from the first time that I met his mother she said "I don't know what you are going to do with him he is hard to handle." His situation was sad he was a problem in the classroom. I remember one day I sent a positive note on his daily discpline sheet which was full of notes about his behavior. At the top of the sheet I but a big sticker and wrote a good note to dad! You should have seen the little boys face light up. He looked at me and said this is not my Bee Book their is a good note. I said it sure is your Bee Book he beamed with pride!
Angie Somers

Odessa,
I think it’s interesting how the students cope with their home lives. Like you said, some of the students try to keep their problems and emotions bottled up inside, whereas other students feel free to share everything. For example, I had a student this year who was sitting across from me at lunch just talking about whatever when she suddenly started talking about her dad dealing drugs, attempting suicide, and being put into prison. She spoke about the police coming to intervene. She also spoke of her mom and siblings. I was shocked, but encouraged her for being brave, for coming to school every day and working hard, and for her good decision-making and manners. She is such a sweet girl faced with so many trying situations. How can she possibly perform socially, academically, and intellectually? I am hoping that I made a positive impact in her life.

Laura Corbello

Your post reasonated with me. My sister and I have always said that. We both became teachers and dealt with our share of students that seemed to have something more going on at home. My student teaching experience exposed me to a young sweet girl who was malnourished in dirty clothes with a quiet voice. She developed a rapport with me over several weeks and finally she confessed to me that she was being abused by her mom's boyfriend. I found out she was the primary caretaker of her siblings while her mother went out drinking as she said. Ever since then I have never failed to consider more carefully what I say, and how I can be compassionate and respectful. That positive energy and praise goes a long way. For some of our students that is the only time they feel safe.