25 Biggest Mistakes Teachers Make and How to Avoid Them

198 25 Biggest Mistakes Teachers Make and How to Avoid Them
“my other teachers let me.” Often when he was asked to do something he would say
“I am doing it,” but he was not, and did not; he just ignored the directive. He would
be standing; I would say “sit down”; he would say “I am.” Then he would remain
standing. I tried moving his seat, calling home, and writing office referrals. Nothing
worked; to top it off, he is reading way below level and he was in denial. One day I had
enough. I grabbed him by the arm and forced him to sit down, while yelling at him.
Motive Probe
7.1. Describe the problem and your specific role in it.
I forced a student to sit down, while yelling at him.
7.2. Why did you do what you did?
I was frustrated and wanted to communicate with him in a language he
could understand.
7.3. What emotions or feelings were you experiencing at the time?
Anger.
7.4. Was your behavior justified? If so, why?
Yes, the boy needed to know his behavior was going to hurt him in the long
run and “conventional” means of telling him that was not working.
7.5. Do you regret your action(s)?
Only that it was illegal.
7.6. Do you ever think about this incident? If yes, approximately how
often since the occurrence(s)?
No.
7.7. If faced with the same or a similar situation, what would you do?
Now, I don’t get as angry because I have come to accept that some children
will be failures and there is nothing I can do about it. So I do all I can.
Commentary
What appears to be misbehavior may in fact be a student’s defense tactic to
mask an embarrassing learning disability. The child’s misbehavior, talking
back to the teacher and being off task, may be distracters designed to redirect
the focus off real problems such as his reading deficiencies that interfere with
his ability to perform at the level of his peers. It is easier and face saving for
the student to act as if he does not want to do the work. To avoid misdiagnosing
chronic misbehavior, note when, where, and why it occurs. Teachers
should try to clearly distinguish between behavior disorders and intentional