Teachers at Work
When I was contacted by the Principal at the Junior High School in Llano, Texas a few months back, I was thrilled that they had chosen to use my book to study the sociology of the culture of poverty. I had no idea of the adventure I was about to experience.
Students were engaged in my story in a way that I could have never predicted. They related to my story of being born into generational poverty. They shared their own stories of poverty, and they did something that neither I nor the teachers anticipated; they openly discussed their own internal fears and concerns in comparison to mine.
One student wrote to me via email, approved by the teacher, who stated simply, “I want to be a better person.”
- Bullentin Board of Q & A Session with Author
Teachers see students congregating in corridors throughout the school day, sitting with their backs against a hallway wall or cozily ensconced in a niche between two rooms. Teachers are teachers and students are students, and the two rarely associate in a social setting.
If I were a teacher, my objective would be to get my students to truly engage with the teacher in a meaningful way while at the same time preserving the integrity of the teacher/student relationship.
What happened in Llano, Texas is exactly that kind of experience. Based upon the feedback I received, the teachers and the students connected through the sharing of stories as they read the various chapters of my true story memoir, “Everything Will Be All Right.”
The class schedule for public schools can sometimes be a drag for students. Classes convene for a specified time period. Classes with drab titles and (to them) boring subjects, are part of their daily routine.
But based upon the questions I received from the students, it seemed to me that my story turned the classroom into a college-like atmosphere; the subject titles – and the effect it would have on students’ lives, now and long after junior high school, existed because the Principal believed in the dignity of young people and the need to treat them with respect, understanding and compassion.
In other words, in most schools there is an emphasis on order. At this school there was an emphasis on intellectual freedom – and WOW, those kids literally opened up their lives to the classroom and the teacher, pouring out their fears and ambitions in a way that created a bond between teachers and students that had not previously existed.
So how did my book do that? The message of my memoir is, I understand what it is like to be a troubled child. And moreover, If I succeeded in spite of multiple language and social barriers, then so can you. Here’s exactly how I did it.
Students are often pressured, worried, and anything but relaxed while at school, competing for high grades to get into competitive colleges, holding after-school jobs, preparing for sporting events, meeting homework deadlines. And all the while coming to school each day leaving behind who knows what difficulties and chaos they left behind at their home.
I wrote my story to help impoverished children develop their minds, personalities and most importantly, learn that the behavioral rules in the poverty culture are very different from the behavioral rules in the middle class.
This is the key reson many students born into impoverished families can often be disruptive in the classroom, for no reason other than the fact that their home life is in a constant state of chaos and crisis. At least that was the way it was in my family. I was, on most days, emotionally a wreck even before the morning classes started.
Troubled students need teachers and parents who can act as mentors, understand their concerns, and help them deal with real emotional problems. I believe my book helps build a framework for understanding the culture of poverty and also helps teachers and parents understand why the troubled teen or child is behaving the way they do in the classroom.
It is powerful to be a part of, and observe, a school philosophy that aspires to teach a lesson where the students are the stars, and my book exists in a supporting role. The teachers set up a well thought-out lesson, but the idea of a ‘lesson’ was one in which my story provided the prompts and guidance. It was the students, however, that generated the ‘A-Ha!’ moments of discovery.
It’s an immensely rewarding feeling to see the students taking charge of their learning, all because a visionary educator took the chance to try a different approach: a book that showed them something different and teachers who chose to personalize the experience through the author’s interaction with the students.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the principal for this wonderful opportunity. It was a immensely rewarding experience for me and I hope an equally rewarding experience for the students and the teachers.
