If You Can Do It

Eye-Opening Moments Unleashed are real-life stories of adversity, encounters, and perspectives intertwined. They are moments that can lift your spirits, give you some food for thought, or move you. For the introspective mind that likes to reflect, discover, and find solutions or meaning in a complex life, this is for you. In this episode you will hear about If You Can Do It.

         
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Transcript

Hello and welcome to episode #236 of Eye-Opening Moments Unleashed where you’ll hear stories of adversity, encounters, and perspectives intertwined. They are moments that can lift your spirits, give you some food for thought, or move you. For the introspective mind that likes to reflect, discover, and find solutions or meaning in a complex life, this is for you. I’m your host Emily Kay Tan. In this episode, you will hear about If You Can Do It.

If You Can Do It

"If you can teach here (and survive), then you can teach anywhere," the school psychologist said to me. I was a young teacher who was still filled with enthusiasm after four years of teaching. Still, her words stuck to me, and residuals remain with me. It told me that if I could meet this challenge head-on and succeed, I could handle any kid. However, images of the children before me were shocking and perplexing.

Before I could unpack my personal stash of supplementary material for the job, I stepped into the classroom. It was strange; there were only a few students. I started to teach anyway. Soon, I realized the students trickled in. No one was at school on time. How could I teach with kids coming in at different times? I continued speaking, but no one seemed to be listening. One kid would say something to another across the room. Kids were socializing while I was teaching. They knew to sit down and stay in their seats, but they had their business, and it did not involve me! Before I could finish a sentence, someone else was talking. My words seemed to land on deaf ears. I was teaching to the wall. I gave a set of directions to do some written work. The ears of the audience did not seem to hear anything as no one followed my instructions. Their eyes would not even meet mine. I looked straight at them, and they stared away from me. Puzzled and baffled, I was at a loss for what to do about it. The rumbles of a battle for the life of my career began.

Another day would arrive. Everyone seemed relatively quiet as I spoke. It was progress, I thought. There were small whispers; I could not hear what anyone was saying here and there, but it was soft enough not to interrupt me. I smiled and was glad I could speak and teach a thing or two to some listening ears. Eyeballs even faced me and the board. A glimmer of hope sparkled before me for a few seconds. 

Suddenly, Wayne, the student sitting right before me, got out of his chair and pushed it back with a loud rumble. Maybe it sounded loud because it was the quiet before the storm. Soon, another student diagonally from the back came forward, and a physical fight between the two ensued. They were on the ground, punching each other. Other students watched with smiles as if it were entertainment. My eyes popped out in shock. I had never experienced such a thing at work and stood frozen. I was afraid that if I tried to break them apart, they would accuse me of hitting them or laying any hands on them, or worse, they would injure me. Luckily, a student said, "Call the office!" I called, and quickly, the powers to be, a safety patrolman, and the school psychologist appeared. At that moment, they looked larger than life to me. As soon as they came in, the two on the floor got up, and my two heroes escorted them out. 

Though shocked and disturbed, I pressed on and continued teaching. The students were quiet and behaving. The words of the school psychologist came back to whisper in my ears. "If you can teach here, you can teach anywhere." I could feel myself fighting back tears because I could not let my students know I was afraid or could not handle being their teacher. I needed to be a role model of strength. This situation was not just one scene that needed swift attention; my entire career was at stake. 

Scared that all my hard work studying to become a teacher would go down the drain, I paused. Frightened that my dream to make a difference for kids was but a pipedream, I cried inside. I thought I was clear that I wanted to be a teacher. But was I cut out for it? Could I survive working with such unruly children? The disrespect, the attitude, and the dysfunctions in their backgrounds stomped and pounded on me. Could I stand up to it and forge ahead? If the answer was no, disillusionment brought me to tears as I sobbed after work.

After two weeks on the job, other teachers told me I was that class's longest-lasting teacher. The ones before me lasted one day to one week at most. My heart ached for the children who needed stability, warmth, and understanding, but could I give it to them before they broke me? Could I teach them and make their ears listen and eyes look at me? I was not sure.

One day, a resource teacher walked into my class. She showed me a behavioral system to engage kids and have them behave. It was simple, but the challenge was doing it frequently and consistently while I was teaching simultaneously. It took a lot of practice; I hated it. I felt like a police officer in the classroom. However, I kept at it because it worked. It produced results. The kids started paying attention and participating in class. It was a miracle.

After two months with the class, the suspension of students stopped. Students showed up and lined up in the yard when the bell rang. My class was the only one lined up at eight o'clock in the morning. Other classes had kids running around, and there were not many who were on time. My students walked up the stairs to class while I followed behind to see all of them. Suddenly, they were stopped! The principal appeared and said, "Wait, what are you guys doing? Where is your teacher?" The students turned around to point at me. "Oh, okay," said the principal. She was not used to having a whole class of students coming to school on time, so seeing that many were together was cause for suspicion.

Just as I thought things were getting better and it was the end of one work day, I told students to put their chairs on their desks as usual so the janitor could sweep the floor easily. Sam decided not to do it and held a stretched rubber band between his forefinger and thumb. With his forefinger on his other hand, he pulled the rubber band and aimed it at me. I looked at him and said, "You get to choose what you want to do and think of the consequences if you let it go and hit me. You have a choice; choose." Whew! He chose not to release the rubber band on me. I made a note of my attitude. I was calm, spoke matter-of-factly, and was unafraid because I had confidence and believed my student would make the right choice. I smiled; I grew a mile that day.

Soon, I was in the news, in the school news bulletin written mainly by the principal. At our faculty meeting, she reminded us that we had disadvantaged children and challenging children, but we needed to be prepared for class each day and bring order and structure for the children we taught, like the class in room 201. It was my class. My eyes watered. I assured myself that I could conquer the horror that I experienced, save my career, and make a difference for the kids. 

The school psychologist's words came back to my mind, "If you can teach here (and survive), you can teach anywhere." Facing the daily challenges and armed with practicing the behavioral system I learned, I triumphed. Persistence and determination brought confidence and conviction for my students to learn and grow. Since then, I have believed and agreed with the school psychologist. The experience gave me the confidence to think I can teach anywhere and handle any challenges with children.

As I train hundreds of new and seasoned teachers, I can feel the confidence I acquired from that fifth year of teaching. It came from meeting the biggest challenge in my teaching career. It warms my heart to see that it could even give other teachers confidence and hope that they could make a difference for children. Indeed, a few words from someone, like the school psychologist I met, could make all the difference when you take on a challenge.

Key Takeaway: Though an enormous challenge was before me, I faced it head-on and strengthened my skills and character.

Next week, you will hear a new real-life story called The Hybrid He Bought. If you enjoyed this episode of Eye-Opening Moments Unleashed, please text someone and ask them what they think about this podcast, or go to www.inspiremereads.com and leave a message. Thank you for listening!