Every time I get used to normal life . . .

[Guest DesiB]

I still don't have a permanent teaching job and am in my 4th year as a substitute teacher, but I love my job--at least 95% of the time.

Wednesday was another normal day. Life was good. One group of high school students I had just met actually told me they learned more from me in one class than they had learned from their regular teacher all year. They even said they wished I could be their full-time teacher. Not once was there ever a second thought about my sex/gender.

Thursday, I had a totally different type of middle school students who were so rude right from the start that it took more over 10 minutes to even take attendance! And this school did not even provide me with a 'sub' folder that outlined the school's discipline policy or even give me a phone number to the office if I had trouble with any extremely difficult students. So I handled things as I always do--in a manner that has led to many other schools placing me on their preferred substitute teacher lists. But in this school, I was hearing rude comments from a few students, such as (in second period), "Are you a man?" I did not directly respond to such comments since they were said quietly and not to my face. But I did have to send a couple students to the office and I had to confiscate cell phones from two students who refused to put them away after several warnings. One of those students actually had the nerve to walk out the door without permission and actually got the office personnel to side with him and call me ordering me to give him his phone back!

Then before 5th period started, a boy in the hallway was yelling the word "transvestite!" He came into the room being loud and pushing students, so I confronted him before he even sat down. He gave me backtalk and bad attitude, so I sent him straight to the office for insubordination and disruption of the classroom. Apparently they had all talked about me throughout the day and the entire class was disrespectful and knew I had no support from the office. All they had to do was watch a video and answer a few easy questions about it. But during the video I had to send another student to the office who wanted to argue with me because I would not give someone else permission to go talk to a counselor who other students admitted was not even present that day. So while I sat at the desk writing my report of the previous events, I was hit twice by objects thrown at me with the lights out. I did not even ask who threw it, but the one pencil eraser with metal casing that I found that had bounced onto the desk I just tossed safely into the corner of the room and turned the lights on. Then they got upset that I turned the lights on and started accusing me of throwing something back at one of the students! Then they said they could get me fired. I replied that they were free to say whatever they wanted, but they had an assignment to do first. So they only listened to the first part of what I said and all started to get up and leave to run to the office right then! Two of them actually did and ignored me and would not stop. The rest of them were all standing up and yelling at me and arguing and trying to gang up on me, so since I didn't have the office phone #, I decided to go there myself and ask them to send someone to my room. But the moment I stepped bast the doorway, the student who had been calling me a "transvestite" before class, said I was leaving because I was scared. So I turned around and walked back to make sure he could not make that mistake. He got all worked up like he really wanted to hit me and warned me not to get in his face, but I walked right up to him anyway and asked if he really thought I was scared. Once he walked away, I did go to the office.

Once two men from the office came up to the room, they ignored me--did not ask me what I needed or what was going on. But just asked the students if any of them needed to leave the room. A couple of students did. Then other students started making false accusations against me and I started to tell the truth, but the man (who turned out to be the principal) told me to stop! He treated me like one of the students, right in front of them. Then they started to leave the room as another boy made one more incredible statement. He claimed that they were simply trying to do their work until I stopped the video for no reason. The principal did not respond, but kept walking out. So I simply asked the student, "Do you really expect anyone to believe that?" So the principal turned around and tells ALL the students to leave the room! Then he turned and told me he told me to stop arguing! I asked him what kind of impression those students were going to have after seeing what he just did to me, then he replied that they will probably never ever see me again and that I should pack up my things and leave now.

So I sat at the desk and wrote a report of the events and within minutes, the girl who ran to the office saying she was going to get me fire, walked past and said, "Bye!" And the boy I had sent to the office earlier walked past and said, "She got fired because she's a man!" I was amazed not that the principal behaved this way, but that he also spread this information to the students so quickly and let them run freely through the hallways taunting me further like this!

Friday, life at another school was totally back to normal. I filled in for a kindergarten teacher who had to go home for her father-in-law's medical emergency. I had time to wrap a few presents from her to her students before they arrived. I did have an aide in the room and she was very appreciate of my ability to keep the students' attention and keep them organized and productively organized. Another teacher I had worked with in the past saw me in the hallway and seemed very happy to see me and stopped to say, "Hi!"

So it just amazes me how life can go from being so wonderfully normal most days to be such a living hell on others. and the sad thing is that if that principal decides to report me to the consortium that organizes my work scheduling, I could end up being banned altogether. Because I had a couple other similar cases of such bigotry over the past 4 years. I would have thought that the longer I worked, the more job security I would gain. But the truth seems to be that it only provides more opportunities for bigots to accumulate negative reports against me that never go away.

[Drea]

Hey Desi,

I tend to be able to look at situations and see it from both sides. Lot's of time there are opportunities to have avoided a conflict or have more productive outcome. I mostly don't comment one way or another. When I do comment I often find myself providing a different point of view than most.

In this case however, I have to say, damn girl that must have been hell. It seems there really wasn't anything you could have done. I am guessing you hadn't done any work at that particular school before. You have to wonder what kind of discipline that school has to begin with.

I am a big fan of getting all the facts in a conflict, talking with all parties independently. So to the degree they talked to students independently, I don't see that intrinsically as an issue. BUT it does seem there was some pre-judgement before the principle showed up at the class by not giving you an equal opportunity to present your side.

I sincerely hope there aren't future adverse consequences.

[Guest LizMarie]

There's also a matter of extremely unprofessional behavior by the principal. Singling out a teacher in front of students is a no-no. In fact, it's supposed to be a no-no professionally anywhere. On that basis alone, it's obvious the principal had issues and was part of the problem.

[Guest DesiB]

Actually I have worked at that school before, but I think last Thursday was the first time this year. Most times in the past, the secretary actually called and requested me personally for two separate weeks of testing where they needed certified teachers to read tests to students who have special accommodations for their testing. I work 5 days per week in 16 schools districts, so I stay busy and spread myself perhaps too thin. The downside is that no one really gets to know me too well, but I'm familiar at lots of places. Anyway, one of the boys, the one who got sent to the office and at the end of the day walked by and said, "She got fired because she's a man."--that boy went to another school last year and remembered that I had sent him to the office at that school last year (yes, I see a trend with him, although I didn't remember until he told me). A girl in his class from last year has lived next door to me for a decade and knows my past. So maybe he is the one who was the ring leader in turning everyone against me this time? I'm still on the preferred list at the school he went to last year--they support me and I'm not sure if the administration there has even heard anything about my past because no one in that school has ever insulted me (at least not that I ever heard), so it doesn't matter either way.

[Charlize]

Teaching is hard in the best of situations but can be so rewarding as well. I taught shop to severely disturbed students for several years and certainly had my share of problems but i also always had the support of the administration. The principal of that school is certainly not doing his job, but hen again you know that. Middle school aged kids can be the worse. My class with females were always difficult as they would use sex as a weapon. Even at 13 they were used to turning tricks and certainly knew what they were doing. The guys couldn't even begin to keep control of T but even so both sexes were often really fun and got into the work, enjoying and learning at the same time. Certainly a mixed bag and i never quite knew what was coming.

You must be a wonderful teacher Desi. May your classes be wonderful from now on.

Hugs,

Charlize

[tracy_j]

Not a good day at the office

I think that is one of the reasons why schools are externally checked here and ratings published. Anywhere that is consistantly as bad as that with such unprofessional behaviour from the principal is likely to be picked up and get bad reports. It does not mean that they are instantly sorted but they get a hard time of it if they don't sort themselves out!

I hope your days are better than that in the future Desi

Tracy