25 Biggest Mistakes Teachers Make and How to Avoid Them

138 Personality and Professionalism
This scenario is a twist on
the children’s story, “The
Emperor’s New Clothes.” In that
story, the Emperor was duped into
believing he was wearing a fine suit of
clothes when in reality, he was actually
naked. He felt happy and proud
and paraded himself before his subjects.
In contrast, the young girl in this
scenario was wearing clothes, yet she
felt naked and exposed. She was not
happy or proud; in fact, she was
ashamed and vulnerable. She was
psychologically exposed once her coat
or “shame cover-up” was removed.
Middle-school and high-school students
typically experience a period of
vulnerability as their bodies are
developing and they become overly
conscious of their appearance. Students
with perceived flaws will go to great
lengths to camouflage them. These
students prefer to keep a low profile
at school, particularly if they are
likely to draw unwanted attention to
themselves. A student wearing an
overcoat out of season should send
up a red flag for the astute teacher
that is paying attention. A sensitive
teacher would make a private inquiry
and ask the child if she is uncomfortable
and if she wants to remove the
coat. Such a teacher would intuitively
know that the child is trying to hide
something, particularly when the
child refuses to take the coat off in
adverse conditions.
The student in this scenario may
be correct in her belief that the teacher
just did not care. In our society and
schools, there is much bias directed
toward overweight, poor children.
This probably was not the first time
the child wore hand-me-downs that
heralded her lower socioeconomic
status. The teacher’s behavior toward
the student may reflect her personal
bias or perception that children of low
socioeconomic status are not worthy
of respect and gentle treatment. Tirri
(2001) contends that a teacher’s personal
preferences or biases can override
their sense of professionalism
and cause them to make moral mistakes.
A more foreboding perspective
suggests that the teacher knew what
she was doing and derived some
pleasure out of humiliating the student.
Most likely, the teacher was
just insensitive and unable to read
the telling signs of student distress.
This teacher could benefit from
lessons, such as valuing the student to
improve children’s self-esteem, offered
by Canfield and Wells (1976). I believe
the key to avoiding a problem like
this is for teachers to make every
effort to respect a student’s right to
privacy. They should be sensitive to
the struggles of overweight and poor
children, supporting whatever means
their students might employ to protect
their young, vulnerable selfimage
and self-esteem.
SCENARIO 16.11
Turning a Deaf Ear to Bullyragging
When I was in the sixth grade I was attending a new school and found it difficult to fit
in. I was constantly tormented by a group of girls. They started calling me Miss Perfect
and soon it caught on and everyone in my class was doing it. I told my mother about it