I have a senior student who is on the Occupational Diploma track. His case manager and I work well together, because his case manager was my co-teacher last semester. So, we have been in touch off and on about this student. I will call him Seth for the sake of the blog.
I really can't say enough good things about Seth. He is a sweetheart of a kid: polite, respectful, and always smiling. He also works well with other students. When he does his work, he does a great job despite his low reading level. However, sometimes he's just not into it. He sleep and daydreams on a regular basis. I guess I can understand his lack of motivation. He works two jobs during the week and is graduating in 2 months; his first priority is probably not characterizing Lady Macbeth.
But, as you may have guessed, his grades are suffering. His grade is WAY below what he is capable of making, and he is on the pass/fail borderline. His case manager contacted me today through email to see what the problem was. I told him of Seth's lazy streak, which he already knew. He told me he might just need some encouragement. Mr. Case Manager printed out Seth's progress reports and given them to him.
All that is to say that when Seth walked in today, he said, "Mrs. Duncan, I'm going to stay awake the rest of the semester! I saw my progress report today, and I know I can do better than that." I was so proud of him, and said, "Well, Seth, you do a great job when you're awake!" He flipped around and looked at me with a serious look on his face. Then, he said, "Well, why didn't you tell me that?"
... I have no excuse. He is completely right. I haven't told him before that he does a good job when he focuses. Teachers are supposed to motivate students to do their best, and somehow I had just disregarded him altogether. I guess it was just easier for me to accept the fact that he slept in class. All he needed were some kind words. I need to pick it up!
I really can't say enough good things about Seth. He is a sweetheart of a kid: polite, respectful, and always smiling. He also works well with other students. When he does his work, he does a great job despite his low reading level. However, sometimes he's just not into it. He sleep and daydreams on a regular basis. I guess I can understand his lack of motivation. He works two jobs during the week and is graduating in 2 months; his first priority is probably not characterizing Lady Macbeth.
But, as you may have guessed, his grades are suffering. His grade is WAY below what he is capable of making, and he is on the pass/fail borderline. His case manager contacted me today through email to see what the problem was. I told him of Seth's lazy streak, which he already knew. He told me he might just need some encouragement. Mr. Case Manager printed out Seth's progress reports and given them to him.
All that is to say that when Seth walked in today, he said, "Mrs. Duncan, I'm going to stay awake the rest of the semester! I saw my progress report today, and I know I can do better than that." I was so proud of him, and said, "Well, Seth, you do a great job when you're awake!" He flipped around and looked at me with a serious look on his face. Then, he said, "Well, why didn't you tell me that?"
... I have no excuse. He is completely right. I haven't told him before that he does a good job when he focuses. Teachers are supposed to motivate students to do their best, and somehow I had just disregarded him altogether. I guess it was just easier for me to accept the fact that he slept in class. All he needed were some kind words. I need to pick it up!
1 comments:
Meghan said...
kelly whateva
i can tell just from reading this that you're doing a good job because you're so aware and actively trying to improve the way you teach :)
good on you!