Today I had my mixed ability Y9 class and I had to send one boy outside for laughing uncontrollably. This unfortunately resulted in the rest of the class being unable to focus. He was outside the lesson for few minutes and it meant the rest of the class were focused and engaged with the task. I popped outside to have a word, but didn’t reprimand. The conversation which ensued was interesting and I felt like I made a bit of a breakthrough with one of my trickiest characters. It went like this (as much as I recall):
Me: “What kind of teacher do you think I am?”
Him: “Kind”
Me: “That’s interesting, because I sent you out and you still think that and why did I send you out?”
Him: “cos I couldn’t stop laughing and it was funny and…” Note; he rambles so this is a flavour of this part of the conversation
Me: “Okay, why is that a problem for me?”
Him: “cos, you want us to learn and stuff”
Me: “Exactly, I want you to learn to the best of your ability every lesson, what do you want to do when you leave school?”
Him: “Be a mechanic”
Me: “That’s great; I can see you’d be excellent at that. You know you’ll still need English for it though?”
Him: “Why?”
Me: “Well, when it comes to keeping records and booking people in and when you own your own business then you’ll need English to make sure everything is running smoothly.”
Him: “Thank you, Miss”
Me: “Come back in and have a go, so you can have the chance of owning your own business.”
Now, this is probably indicative of the kinds of conversations that go on up and down the country, but what was interesting was when he came back into the lesson, he was more settled, more focused and although not perfectly behaved I could see he was making a huge effort to focus (and I didn’t have to pop his name on the board under an unhappy face once during the lesson). That is a win in my mind. A two minute calm conversation had a clear impact on one student who finds it incredibly hard to focus: he was pretty focused.
What has stuck with me is that he immediately said “kind” and I do actually tell him off – a lot. So, he obviously realises (perhaps subliminally) that I am doing that to encourage and promote a good learning environment for him and his fellow classmates. That is another reason I love my job. I didn’t do or say anything profound. I took an interest and that is exactly what we all do, every day.
PS – This isn’t meant to be self-congratulatory just a reflection on some of the little things we all do, all of the time and which do hopefully make a difference!
susansenglish 
Hi Susan! As you say, this type of conversation is a true reflection of teacher-pupil conversations that have taken place as infinitum. The boy obviously values you, and your teaching, but it’s difficult for him to admit to that within a learning situation, and in front of his peers. What you showed, is that you care for him and that he can have something to aspire to, but that it requires a qualification in English.
I hope he repays your patience, kindness and your confidence in him that he can succeed.
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Thank you. Your comments mean a lot. I was a bit worried about posting this, hence the ps. It is the little things and yes instilling confidence is what we all want.
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