NY Times Article: For Teachers, Middle School Is a Test of Wills

A recent Times article highlighted the challenges middle school teachers face as they deal with volatile young adolescent emotions. As one former middle school teacher put it, "Twice as much time was spent on putting out fires; twice as much time was spent getting the class quiet. Twice as much time was spent on defusing anger in the kids." That's one reason it's so hard to recruit and retain good middle school teachers. Another reason is that so often students reach middle school underprepared, and middle schools have the face the heat if their kids can't perform on tests.

I've spent all but six of my 26 years of teaching at the middle school level. I never planned it that way; I was all set for a career teaching high school. And my six years of high school teaching were a piece of cake compared to the middle school teaching I've done. But I honestly have come to love what I do.

As I reflected on my school day this evening, I thought about that teacher's remarks. Too much of the time, he's right. But today, I managed to engage the kids. Though TCAPs (our BIG test) loom only two weeks away, I spent the block with my accelerated students tying up loose ends on our unit on treatment of blacks in America vs. Holocaust victims. For once, my ADHD student wasn't up and down and talking out of turn. He was fascinated and totally engaged.

In the next block, I had the class playing a game designed to review them on some of the elements of poetry. But surprise! One of my loudest students was back today from alternative school. This always
livens up a dull class period! He got the other potentially loud student in that class going, and they were shouting out the answers full blast. The teacher from next-door appeared to see if I needed any help, but quickly saw to her relief that things were going just fine.

Afterwards I apologized to her for the noise. "No problem!" she said. "If you can keep that bunch on task, more power to you. It's just great that you had them engaged."

That's it. They were noisy, but engaged. Whatever we can do to get our kids engaged in the learning process, that is what we have to do to make it work, whatever our situation.

Have a good day tomorrow!