Chp 20: Bad Boys

"Whether the emotional expressions of children are proper displays of feeling or punishable acts is a matter of adult interpretation." pg 315

In the closing weeks of my student teaching I am left to reflect on the behaviors exhibited by the students in my classroom. I often wonder why one day a student will very actively participate in discussion and activities, while the next day they are completely oblivious to the rules. As Ferguson discusses further in the chapter the attitude of students if often at the heart of their disciplinary troubles. But this display of attitude is often much more physical body language than it is any verbal dispute. The emotional display often witnessed in a predominantly African American school is with the body. Teachers often categorize this as a sign of disrespect to them.

Last Friday in class I had a girl who was not following directions and when I confronted her about it she started bobbing her head around and sticking her chin up in the air. She did not say anything particularly rude or troubling to me, but her physical demeanor was essentially telling me to "piss off." It took a lot for me to keep my cool but I did. And after class I made her stay after to let her know that it was not O.K. to to blow me off in front of the entire class like that. I took no further disciplinary action with her.

I have thought a lot about this issue while doing my student teaching. I hear other teachers in the building sometimes screaming at students and have also witnessed my cooperating teacher remove his coat and challenge a student to a physical altercation after he was acting defiantly and refused to leave the classroom. My teacher told the student, "you can either walk out of the classroom or I can take you out." I find this to be rather troubling as we are supposed to be showing students how to act in a respectful way and demanding that they show us (the teachers) respect. I can fully sympathize with my African American students who feel as though they live in a world that does not respect them so why should they give any respect back?

The relationship of power in the classroom is a slippery slope indeed. We always talk about "empowering" students to learn but as soon as they display any type of body language that seems to challenge the teachers power they are deemed "troublemakers." Ferguson argues that African American students express their emotions in a way very different from the dominant social norm. Does this mean they should be punished for doing so??