Tough Day

The start to the day was the killer. Routine morning, actually. Kids in the halls, at lockers, and teachers trying to herd them along from their lockers to homerooms. Some kids loiter at lockers to socialize, others pretend to check our message boards to see if they need their books, while actually moving to other areas to socialize or whatnot. One boy goes from the extreme end of our classrooms to the other, to trade a non-standard handshake with another boy. We have rules about that, not that every "handshake" is a sign or signal, or that they are in some way "wrong", but they are not allowed, mainly to avoid masking actual gang signs. Anyhow, I told them they knew better, and I got backtalk. As in "this is OK to do, and you can't tell us otherwise."

At the far end of the hall is an Assistant Principal. In fact, the one assigned to 7th grade. While they boys are giving me lip about being asked not to do the hand signals, I bring them to the assistant. Who ignores me. I needed him to put in his two cents about what is allowed and appropriate in school, and he did nothing.

I went to him afterwards, and even in presence of the principal, he dressed me down for raising my voice and making a scene with the boys. In other words, he won't back me up if my actions don't meet his criteria. Never mind that other, non-white teachers can and do get louder, more aggressive and even physical with students. . . I can't raise my voice or it is perceived as confrontational. And the kids have begun to know this, and take advantage of it. I am on the receiving end of sanctioned disrespect, and basically was told that I don't manage my students well, since they don't respond to me.

I expected support, and got slapped down. Same assistant who graded me down on my gradebook because he didn't understand my organization, where another teacher on the team got top marks by printing out grades from TeacherEase. Same assistant who we have problems with making any sort of meaningful consequence to students we refer to him.

I let the principal know my feelings on this, mildly. I don't think I will return next year, and today it was a close thing whether I will make it to Winter Break.