Chapter 3 Response to: Psychosocial Development, Parenting and Cheating

by April

I completely understand what you are talking about when you say that teachers will often just give answers in order to avoid the frustration of teaching a child who just isn't getting it. When I lived at home I used to help my sister with math. She has fetal alcohol syndrome and so helping her was very trying. She was frustrated, I was frustrated, and yes, the easy thing would have been to just give her the answer. Of course that's not acceptable. I do think you are right in suggesting that the conversations between teachers about students cause part of the problem. If you are a third grade teacher and over the last 3 years a child's Kindergarten teacher, 1st grade teacher and 2nd grade teacher have all been complaining about this child in the teacher's lounge, how do you set aside all your preconceived ideas about the child so that you can look at him/her with fresh eyes to find a fresh approach? It's certainly not easy. I even saw that in teaching preschoolers. And honestly, the more you talk bad about a child, the more that child becomes dehumanized. All you see is the challenge they bring rather than who they are. It's certainly something teachers should not be doing.

I agree that these children who are struggling need a teacher who is not going to give up on them. They need a teacher who will provide guidance, not answers. This is where the idea of scaffolding comes in. You begin by modeling the behavior you want the child to do and then slowly release more and more of it to the child. For example, when a child is learning how to read a book you first read to them. Then you let them turn the pages while you read and hold the book. Then they hold the book and turn the page while you read. And often after that they will be able to begin "reading" the book by themselves as they look at the pictures and remember the story you've read to them so many times before. Scaffolding can be a very helpful tool for the child who is struggling.

I thought your connection to the WASL in regards to cheating was an interesting one. In a high pressure situation such as that one, it's not only students who are attempted to cheat, it's teachers. I can't believe the stories I've read about teachers trying to cheat on the WASL in various ways. I spoke to my friend who was a Professional Development Specialist at the time of our conversation and I asked her about this very thing. Being rather ignorant of what the WASL entails I asked, "Is it really necessary for teachers to teach to the test and put all this pressure on students or if they just did a good job teaching in general, would the students do fine on the test?" She seemed to think that it was unnecessary for teachers to teach to the test and really they aren't supposed to do that. But she also reminded me of the pressure teachers are under to get good scores. So the pressure issue here is a trickle down effect. The administrators are under a great deal of pressure because of the impact that low scores will have on their school, the teachers are under pressure from the administrators and the students are under pressure from the teachers. What a mess.

Lastly, you aren't incompetent. If you were, you would not be a part of this program. It's natural to feel that way when you are having so many new things thrown your way all at once. I know you don't feel you have the experience and understanding that some other students have but you will and I'm guessing you know and understand more than you realize. I imagine once Fall starts and you are in the classroom observing and interacting will all of this information in the back of your mind, things will start clicking and your confidence will grow. I've been working with kids in a variety of "teaching" roles for about 6 years now and I still feel overwhelmed by all the information and most of the time I feel it flies right over my head! But I just tell myself to give it time to sink in and I'm sure it will.