I'm a Middle School Teacher in the Hood Who's Losing Hope For our Future AMA

[Henri Christophe]

Sad, but true. nikkas don’t take education, seriously.

Guilty as hell


I never took school seriously... I just coasted thru.

Luckily I been a smart nikka from young & still made it in life.

nothing you can do to collectively change it without government intervention

I feel you.... But the gov't aint coming bro.

Cacs aint saving the day.

So what we bout to do? Since we know cacs aint coming

 

[Ricky Dunigan]

Dated a teacher and some of the stories she told me were heartbreaking.

Fights, sexual assaults and one lil kid stabbed at her with scissors. She taught in a predominant black/latino school, and peep this, the kids were Pre K - 2nd grade.

Still, one of her proudest feelings (and something I give her props for) are the success cases that go on to make it and consider her their favorite teacher as adults. So the potential to do good is there breh, just gotta deal with a lot of bullshyt.

 

[Orange cream shake]

That's 1 part. We call parents all the time about kids wildin. I stopped 2 months in. About 80% of the time they never call/email back if you can even reach them. 10% the kids straighten up for a few days but then get wild again, 10% nothing happens either way. They got no standards for they kids.

Other issue is the government treats school like babysitting. We got kids in 8th grade that literally haven't completed an assignment in 3 years. No lie. They haven't done any work at all and get suspended every month but they still in here wildin. And they still pass

While I agree with you, on the other side, I know my oldest is a problem and me and his dad stay on him, the problem is none of his teachers tell us anything and when you call and send emails only 2 teachers returned them. Teachers are t proactive anymore. They assume this the new normal. I want to know if my son isn’t doing his work and acting an ass. If you don’t tell me I don’t know. Also why y’all don’t give homework anymore?

 

[Nicole0416_718_929_646212]

times have changed, fame ,is what most kids will strive for these days

and doesn't help that the parents are into the same fame wave as their kids.

 

[Rawtid]

Most definitely true. Wife and I are about to partner with a mentorship program one of her friends started this fall pull I've coached youth fball and basketball and worked with youth groups and what not. I'm actually looking to move into guidance counseling at the HS level where I can actually help kids plan for their future. But these lil middle school kids need help

I think that's an awesome idea!And congrats to you and your wife. I wish your program much success. There is a black male teacher at my daughter's school (elementary) and he is TIRED of those kids. I wish he would either leave or move to an other group or something because he makes a kid cry every class LMAO.

 

[Typical Knicks Fan]

Don't give up breh. The teachers that had a lasting impact on my life were from Middle School. My Social Studies teacher Ms. Reid and Science teacher Mr. Rubain. Both were black and cared about the students but weren't pushovers and everyone respected them for that. The kids you lose now will most likely be lost in High School.

 

[Henri Christophe]

Don't put all the blame on the parents because some kids, like myself, had parents that were on them consistently but we just didn't take School seriously

we were just more interested in sports or hanging out with the Bros or trying to chop it up with some girls or some other non productive stuff that kids do

Its not always parents failing the children... Sometimes children fail their parents.

 

[Secure Da Bag]

This school system is destroying our kids

But you're a teacher and you're part of the system. I doubt you're saying that you're destroying our kids. So how exactly is the system destroying our kids? Are there 3 things that we could do within 12 months that would have an immediate positive impact?

 

[CodeBlaMeVi]

I don’t have these issues because I don’t play. I let them know, I’ll patch their asses up and if they want beef, it won’t end in school. I’m cool, curse at them and they love me for it.

I’m real and sincere. Can’t be scared. They’re like sharks and can smell blood.

 

[mortuus est]

The parents are the most immediate and practical thing you can fix first. All the "deeper societal issues" is not something that is going to be fixed in a child's school career and hell, maybe our lifetimes.

I had behavioral problems as a kid and I know exactly why. I had some rough spots in my early childhood and my mom became single early on due to those issues. I was mainly raised by a single mom who did a great job in providing but by virtue of being a single mother who had to provide, I was a latch key kid with an often exhausted at the end of day from work mother who returned at night and the trade off being that my mother was not on top of what I was doing in school as much as a kid who maybe has two parents. Also had a lot of alone time to get into fukkery which also translate into a lack of a structured life which builds discipline and focus when it comes to being successful.

I happen to luck out through an epiphany during my life on my own that allowed me to go to college, a little later in life, and I taught myself on how to study and do well in school. Im not being arrogant in that I think it's reasonable to say I'm a rare success story in the end. Bu I'd be in better shape and maybe come to this point earlier with a different home life and environment. Also statistically, kids in that situation tend to fail.

i agree with you here as i was the same, it wasn't until i was in college and actually was learning stuff i had interest in, my learning changed
my mother had me young so was still trying to figure things out in her life so i was left alone most of the time but i think for me personally the school system wasn't great to catering to my needs of learning

kids with two parents do better but the school system is still lacking in partts

 

[Karb]

Teach at a private institution and tutor the kids at your school for free in your spare time? Start a non-profit after school program where you can integrate you own style of learning and not be bound to the rules of the school system. A sports league, chess team, self defense, boxing. Also lousy parents LOVE dropping their kids off to shyt. You don't need their input and you can just do you. You can be influential without making it your main occupation.

Repped

 

[FlimFlam]

I can only imagine bro bro...i can only imagine

Theres alot at play here and so many directions this kinda convo can go....but when not only the children, but now the parents abd grand parents of an entire community , dont have access to observation of the basic FRUITS of education you gotta kinda anticipate a lax attitude towards it , unfortunately

I remember a black girl who was the valedictorian at an all black high school in Chicago (not putting the school or yr our out of respect) ....she was working in fast food right after graduation and as far as i know that was that for her... Thats a failure that extends WAAY beyond personal/familial diligence....these kids see that kinda shyt (and oh yea, they see it) and our meaningful words lose value

But thank you for your service above all

 

[Verbal Kint]

That's scary. What controls are in place if the kids are running the school? These are 11-14 yr olds generally for middle school.. smh. Do you mind if I ask what general area you are in? (not the specific district but metro area).

I think the combination of no one having interest in the child (emotionally and academically) and the aggression/frustration from children cause them to act out. No boundaries and lack of standards (like you said). That's learned behavior from the home, at those ages.

What city is this?
What subject do you teach? Is the fukkery skewed towards certain subjects but maybe a little tame in others?
Is there a difference between the girls and boys?

I'ma stay vague but I work in Racine WI (I'm not from here though, I live in IL.)
There are no real controls in place here. We have no detention so that's not an option. ISS is essentially a room with 1 woman working in there and like I said the kids just walk out. Kids can come to class, tear the place up and walk out and the only 'punishment' is that they're brought back to class. Teachers actually get reprimanded if we kick a kid out of class. I've got classes where there's 8-9 kids wildin and ain't nothing I can do about it other than call the office to have them removed but we only have 4 people in that role plus 2 administrators and sometimes (most of the time) they never come because they're handling other things. The kids know that not only is it unlikely they'll be removed, but that even if they are nothing will happen. They'll sit in the office till the end of class then go on about their day. OR they'll just walk out of the office too and chill in the hallway. The kids literally run this place. It takes an actual trial to get kids expelled and that takes months to get to that point and multiple violent offenses. Like I said there are kids here that have literally hit teachers and are still here. And the girls are worse than the boys easily in terms of the fighting and disrespect.

Truth be told I do better than 80% of the teachers here in terms of having kids disrespect me which is crazy based on what I deal with.

 

[Iceson Beckford]

Don't put all the blame on the parents because some kids, like myself, had parents that were on them consistently but we just didn't take School seriously

we were just more interested in sports or hanging out with the Bros or trying to chop it up with some girls or some other non productive stuff that kids do

Its not always parents failing the children... Sometimes children fail their parents.

My Mom spend a lot of money on education(tutoring and private school for a few years) but she couldnt offer me consistency, a balanced lifestyle and patriarchal discipline.

I used to coast and procrastinate because I was scared of failing which meant I didnt even try.

I failed her but I’m trying to right my wrongs and get back.

 

[Chrishaune]

I grew up in a school that was basically 50/50 black and white. In the south, in the black belt . 94% of the students graduate. It's possible.