I'm a Teacher

Friday was interesting to say the least.

I got called by the sub-finder system around 6am... for a high school job that started at 11am and ended at 2:30pm.
Hmm. I think to myself. If you take a job that starts before noon, it counts as a full day of work. AKA- I get paid for the whole day and I get to sleep in and work only three-ish hours.

I accept the job, thinking I've really lucked into something here. Little did I know...

So I got to sleep in (glorious!), and around 10 I got up to head to the school. This school is a high school in my district, and also the most "ghetto" of all the schools. Worst reputation. There are over 3,000 students. People say "oooh" in a pity voice when you say you're going there. It's got the toughest students and the most stretched out facilities.

No big deal to me. I'll be in Junior level English, and I'm not doubting that the students will be given some sort of busy work and I'll just have to make it through the time. I'm not bothered by gangsters, whether they're 12 or 17.

The classroom is what I expected... too small and cramped for the number of students shoved inside. The teacher's desk is overflowing with papers; if it's organized it's in a system I can't recognize. The teacher is a large overweight man with a narrow face (ironic). He verbally informs me that the students are to sit in their groups and read their assigned books. He then leaves the room, telling me casually over his shoulder that in the next period I will have a "co-teacher" because that class is difficult.

Now. I'm not opposed to co-teaching. I have been lucky enough to have experienced it succeeding with my wonderful mentor teacher from my final semester. We worked together through some really tough classes, trading off the duties of instructing, enforcing discipline, modeling work and grading.
So I'm open minded to this co-teacher.

The bell rings, and in comes the co-teacher. She's about mid-forties I'm sure but looks like she's pushing sixty. She has a scowl on her face and crazy thinning old-man hair... I'm a little afraid. She looks like she'd bite me.

She comes over to me and stands by me in the entry to the room.

"My name's Marvis, this is my third day in here. And just so you know," she said in no effort to whisper. "These kids are total turdballs."

Turdballs? Really.
1. Who even uses that word? That sounds like something one of my geekier 7th graders would say.
2. Why are you announcing this loudly to me?

I give her some sort of vague nod and step away to go get the attendance sheets. I don't want to make assumptions about a class before I've met them. Plus I'm turned off by the fact that a grown adult used the word 'turdballs' at all, let alone to describe students.

The kids (I don't know if I can really call them kids, they are all at least 16 and some look much older than that. Over half of them are at least taller and/or all around bigger than me) come in and there are the usual declarations of joy that there's a sub in the room. One girl with a massive lip ring pokes me in the shoulder and in an actual whisper tells me "Marvis is shit crazy." I give her a smile that I hope is equal parts "thanks for telling me- and -okay that's your opinion."

I get the class quiet by the method of just standing at the front of the room calmly leaning on the teacher's podium... just smiling a little and tapping the attendance sheet in my hand. It takes so much less effort than yelling and the students feel awkward with me just staring at them and so they get quiet in a few minutes.

So I start to call roll; "Axel Alvarez?"

Marvis doesn't like what's going on with the students. My roll call is interrupted by her sharp voice, "Rosa! Don't slouch! Sit up!"

The students all titter and make comments and I've lost the quiet I had obtained. I mentally frown at Marvis. Who cares if she's slouching? How does that bother me calling roll?

I resume calling names and am halted twice more by Marvis snapping at a student to stop leaning back in their chair and another to stop looking out the window.

Finally finally finally roll is finished and now is the time for me to give the students their assignment. I try to keep a casual air about it, telling the students that they are supposed to read but if they aren't going to read, there's no way I can make them and all I ask is that they do something else for school or put their head down. The point is not to disturb others who want to read. It's their choice.

I've used this strategy before, mostly in student teaching classes but it's turned out to be infinitely useful in subbing. I've found that when you're really upfront about the expectations and then give students multiple choices, they usually pick the objective you want them to do anyway.

Marvis really dislikes this. She is glaring at me from across the room as I'm speaking and a second after I've concluded she clears her throat obnoxiously. "No! That's not what you guys are supposed to be doing, you have to read." She stares at me. "There are no other options to do something else or put your head down. You don't get naps."

The kids are protesting this loudly and I don't even know what to say. The kid's objections are getting more boisterous.

"Why you so bossy?"
"But my math crap is due next period!"
"We get to choose!"
"Nah miss, you heard the teacher!"

That last remark must have been the last straw on Marvis' back. "You heard the teacher."
She gives the student that dared to utter such a remark a scathing glare then points her finger right at me.

"She is a substitute, I am a teacher!!"

Whoa.

Um, okay.

I don't even know what to do, or say. I stay rooted to my spot by the podium as the class erupts into protests.
There's the obligatory chorus of loud 'ooooooooo's into fists over their mouths making the background to comments such as "Marvis, that's messed up!" and "Why you play like that?"

Internally I'm wrestling down the dual emotions of 'don't cry' and 'don't yell at the bitch.' The result is I'm just standing here like a doofus. Probably only about 30 seconds to a minute went by but to me it felt like a sampling of eternity.

Eventually the kids pull out their books and I decide to busy myself with going around helping them with vocabulary on the opposite side of the room as Maniac Marvis. I make up my mind to ask politely to speak to her after class (this class is split awkwardly into two halves with a 30 minute lunch break in the middle) and politely tell her I was offended by her comment. Politely.

The bell rings for the lunch break and I manage to deftly intercept Marvis before she makes it out the door. The following went a little like this.

Me: Excuse me, I know you probably didn't mean it offensively (I know you did) but I took offense to your comment "you're a substitute and I'm a teacher.' I am a teacher. I graduated from the University of North Texas, I've been in this district for over a year.
Marvis: You have to understand, I need the authority in the classroom and you don't.

What!? What!? Are you serious?!

Me: Well I believe there is room for shared authority... that's what co-teaching is about. And authority doesn't come from verbal declarations. These kids don't respond to that.
Marvis: I have worked with these kids for a long time, I know how to deal with them!

And then like the big ol' grown up that she is, Marvis stormed out of the room in the middle of our conversation.

I stand there for a second, processing. The first thing that catches my mental eye is that she said 'I've worked with these kids for a long time'... didn't she tell me she's only been with this group of students for a few days? Whatever. I just can't believe an adult can act the way that this woman has acted. What a disgrace to teachers everywhere.

I go sit and call my mother because I have to talk to someone. I tell her everything that has happened. She advises me to report Marvis to the sub coordinator in the front office. If Marvis is this crazy, no doubt there's a file on her.

I'm nervous about this. The women at the front offices of schools can be a very tight-knit bunch. If Marvis is a friend of theirs or married to one of their brothers or something then reporting Marvis could mean being blocked from anymore sub jobs in this school. Ever.

But she was way too rude. Marvis- you're getting reported.

I use my Resident Assistant training (haha, it comes in so handy sometimes) and write up an incident report-style documentation of my experience so far with Marvis.

That takes up most of the lunch break. By the time I finish, the bell rings to bring back the students. And Marvis.

However, there are no more problems- seeing that Marvis just completely ignores me. She makes no acknowledgment of me when she enters the room. I remain at the teacher's desk. I pull out a book to read. If she wants the class, she can have the class. The students miraculously remain calm and the rest of class passes uneventfully. When the final bell rings, Marvis books it out of there before any of the kids even get up.

All the kids flee the room like it's on fire, which is normal. However- one boy who was sitting near my desk comes and stands by me. He has something to say and he gets right to the point.

Boy: Miss, are you a Christian?
Me: Um, yes. Why do you ask?
Boy: I can tell you are by how you acted after Marvis yelled at you.

He then just turns around leaves, before I can say anything else. I didn't even get to ask him if he was Christian or to say thank-you. I'm so surprised. I think I literally said "whoa" to the empty classroom. Maybe that was the whole point of me getting yelled at, to demonstrate Christian behavior to a group of teenagers.

The rest of my very short school day goes quickly. I don't have a co-teacher to deal with for the remaining two classes. The kids sit and read. All I do is work on refining my Marvis Report.

When school is over, I take my little handwritten report down to the sub coordinator. She's a chipper lady with bejeweled glasses, spiky black hair and red lipstick. She takes the rest of my sub paperwork and asks me how my day was. I hesitate, then proceed to tell her that some offensive comments were made to me by my co-teacher.

She gives me a very knowing look and says "Yes, Marvis was down here earlier." She put both her palms up and shook her head a little. "That woman does not represent our school. I am so sorry you had the experience you did. Let's see what else we can get for you to make it up to you."

So she books me a all-day job next Wednesday and makes a copy of my Marvis Report. She smiles at me and tells me not to think badly of their school as I leave.

What a very interesting day.
I was expecting a 3 hour workday to be my easiest sub job ever. Instead it turned simultaneously into the worst and best experience I've had so far. I was totally demeaned by a woman who needs to be introduced to Rogaine and must have been absent when common decency was being handed out, and yet my reactionary behavior (or lack thereof) prompted God to be shown through me.

And then I got another sub job out of it and made a friend of the sub coordinator.

What a very interesting day.