NationStates Jolt Archive

I'm mainly asking the African-American community for help with this one.

I am a white teacher who has an African-American student in my Sophomore English class who, while he is a very smart kid, insists on showing me disrespect at every turn. He calls my decisions bull$#!@ to my face, refuses to keep his head up, swings a big silver necklace around on his fingers during lectures, etc. I have every belief that the kid could get places if he shapes up, but what kinds of ways might I get to him? I could just keep sending him to the dean, but might there be a better way to reach him?

bump

Maybe they are bull*%$#, given your profession.

Hmm, I'd get a student to mess with him, set him strait. Students can gety away with much much more. I've had a teacher ask me to handle something due to my intimidating size (the kid was being an ass). Put the class against him, make him feel bad for doing what he's doing.

Don't give him the attention he craves.

I'm mainly asking the African-American community for help with this one.

I am a white teacher who has an African-American student in my Sophomore English class who, while he is a very smart kid, insists on showing me disrespect at every turn. He calls my decisions bull$#!@ to my face, refuses to keep his head up, swings a big silver necklace around on his fingers during lectures, etc. I have every belief that the kid could get places if he shapes up, but what kinds of ways might I get to him? I could just keep sending him to the dean, but might there be a better way to reach him?
Hire a Para Professional. My mnom has them in middle school.
"Turn your Head Mrs. (Name)." My mom does and she smacks the kid. The parents have no problems with it.
No work on white kids but then again its not their culture.

African Americans are okay with other Africans who are adults smacking them. Maybe the parents do so its okay, not sure.

Juat making sure the person is black.

Just call Waters Middle School for details.

I'm mainly asking the African-American community for help with this one.

Not many African-Americans around here, but I grew up in a neighborhood dominated by African-Americans and their culture, so I feel I may be able to help in some way.

I am a white teacher who has an African-American student in my Sophomore English class who, while he is a very smart kid, insists on showing me disrespect at every turn.

He's at the age (and is part of a culture, voluntarily or involuntarily) where being a badass is very important to him. There's not much to do about that, unfortunately.

He calls my decisions bull$#!@ to my face,

Are they bullshit? If not, sit his sorry ass down and explain to him politely the reason behind your decision. Don't discipline him first, explain first, then discipline him. He'll probably have more respect for you if you explain things and are willing to compromise occasionally. Also, don't play the uptight authority figure all the time. If possible, be a friend on occasion.

refuses to keep his head up,

That hardly seems important unless he's sleeping.

swings a big silver necklace around on his fingers during lectures, etc.

That is probably just him not giving a fuck about school, an attitude that is hard to change (my personal past experience as a highschool student is speaking on that one). Doing so requires very skillful explanations/demonstrations about why it's a good idea to stay in school. (ie. his ass will end up broke if he doesn't stop dicking around in school)

I have every belief that the kid could get places if he shapes up, but what kinds of ways might I get to him?

I would need more data to make a determination about more specifically appropriate methods of pedagogy for this kid. Send me a telegram if you have more detailed information you would like to give me. No need to air someone else's laundry all over a forum. :)

I could just keep sending him to the dean, but might there be a better way to reach him?

Yes, sending him to the Dean doesn't work for very many people of that age irregardless. The only suggestion I have so far is to make sure he learns some life lessons so that he'll actually appreciate the school lessons. That's a hard thing for a teacher to effect, though. Good luck.

Why don't you just pop a cap in his ass

Or

Offer to smoke a blunt with him, then sit down and talk over some munchies and another blunt.

I'd go for the initial, sitting down with him and talking to him. If he talks back to you during class, stop class and take him outside. He needs to talk right when he's misbehaving, not afterwards.

Another way would be to call home. Sometimes you will get parents that are very supportive of you, and sometimes not. But you need to try it.

Also, with certain kids, if you can get them to see your point of view, or even not, you can get them to agree to a contract with you in class. But to do this, you have to find something that he wants. Then you can each agree that if he fulfills his end (behaving or not swearing at you) then he can have what he wants (if you can find it).

Another part of this is how distracting it is to the students. Besides the disrespecting you, how problematic is the rest of it?

So I keep thinking of ideas, but I don't want to keep going on and on. There's always a ton of possibilities, but they depend on the student and your comfort level with them.