25 Biggest Mistakes Teachers Make and How to Avoid Them

Mistake 24: Inappropriate Reactions
SCENARIO 24.4
Oops! Too Bad for You
One day another student knocked over my desk. The teacher watched and snickered.
I had to pick up my desk myself and tried not to cry. There were no apologies from
teacher or student. It was difficult to concentrate the rest of the day. I thought I had
done something wrong.
Every person has a radius of
personal space that encompasses
their person and their belongings.
When an outsider trespasses in
their personal space, the person is
entitled to an apology. This is in
accordance with the conventions of
our society. Failure to give an apology
or to show contrition is considered
bad manners or rude behavior.
It also sends a silent message that the
person who is violated is not valued.
When teachers condone rude behavior
and fail to demand an apology
for bad behavior, they rubberstamp
the lack of value for this person.
SCENARIO 24.5
The Smoke Detector
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Teachers who laugh at a student’s
misfortune communicate that they
do not care about that student.
Effective teachers are aware of the
obligation to model and expect good
behavior. In this scenario, the teacher
should have demanded an apology
for the student whose desk was
knocked over. Insightful teachers
would realize the importance of making
the child who knocked over the
desk go back and pick the desk up
and put it back. Teachers have a professional
duty to suppress any bias
they might feel and to insist on fair,
courteous treatment of all students.
My worst experience with a teacher was in fourth grade with Mrs. D.; I swear this lady
hated me. I was home sick for three days, maybe a week, so I had a lot of take-home
work to complete. Back then my mom smoked, and my papers must have stunk with
cigarette smoke. Well the day I got back to school, I went up to the teacher’s desk to
turn in my papers. I don’t know if it was one of her bad days or not, but she goes and
just throws my papers on the floor. I was so embarrassed. I wanted to cry. The class
got real silent. No one liked what she did. She told me to pick up my papers and put
them on the windowsill to air out. This happened before lunch, and at lunch everyone
in my class was sympathetic.
When I got home I told my mom about the incident and she called Mrs. D., who said
that she was allergic to cigarette smoke and that was why she did what she did and she
said she was sorry. However, I think she could have handled the situation better. The
reason I don’t believe she liked me was because throughout that year she would do or
act in such a way that you knew she didn’t like you. I could feel it. A few years later I
came across her again when she was a judge for a science contest. Her attitude let me
know that she didn’t like me.