"Bad Kids"

 “I want you to write up an achievable goal for this class. Even if it is as simple as, ‘Write one sentence’, just put something up on the board.”

They had been working on their critical analysis essays on the short stories we had studied in class. It was a Year 11 group, one where essays weren’t uncharted territory. Everyone had put something on the board, mainly scribbles of tiny writing, an attempt to shield it from their peers. The last person to write something up on the board was one who had jokingly asked me, “Can you write it for me, Miss?” 

I watched as he wrote in large letters, watch youtube videos, with no capitals or punctuation. He capped the whiteboard marker and stared at me, his eyebrows challenging. He watched as I read the words again, hoping for a response. I didn’t give him the satisfaction. I nodded and continued to help the students I was currently with. In my mind, I replayed the conversation we had weeks earlier. 

“Miss, it’s too many words!” He exclaimed. 

“450 words is nothing for an essay, I could write that in 10 minutes.” I retorted. 

It wasn’t the first time I had joked around with him in class but it was notable that he responded well to it. One night, I decided to take a look at his ‘Wellbeing Notes’, something that the students’ teachers were able to update. It could range from something as simple as “So-and-so worked really well with X, Y, and Z during this class” to something as difficult as, “So-and-so threw a chair in class today and was sent to Mr. A.” This particular student had an abundance of negative comments, all of which I had never seen happen in my classroom. From my contact with him, I found the comments to be farfetched and simply unimaginable. Him? Do that? Impossible. 

Alas, I took the notes on board and continued to work with him throughout their assignment. It wasn’t until the next class, he came in with a ‘Daily Report’. I wasn’t privy to why he had received it, only that any student on a ‘Daily Report’ was to be watched carefully, and signed off from their teachers. He seemed almost ashamed that he had to bring this to me and it wasn’t until I put two and two together that I’d realised he had been told he was ‘bad’ constantly, and I hadn’t. I hadn’t even realised the “Awww, Hamish.” words I had uttered, until I saw the disappointment in his face. 

“I know. I’m sorry, Miss.” he apologised. 

For what? He hadn’t done anything to me.

The next class, some things stayed the same, ‘watch youtube videos’ still plastered the whiteboard. Some things were also different. I kept an eye on him and found that he had started writing. I continued to make my rounds in the classroom and only stopped by him once. A drop of a quick and encouraging joke, and watched from a distance. It wasn’t until the end of the class and him forgetting to get his ‘Daily Report’ signed off, that he needed to find me. 

I watched from my fellow teacher’s classroom, where I spoke about how proud I was of him, during our non-contact hour. He came into the classroom to get his Report signed, finally finding me after realising I hadn’t been in my classroom.

“You did so well today, Hamish. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to check in with you much.”

“It’s alright, Miss.” He looked away, unused to positive feedback.

“Remember when I told you I could write that in 10 minutes?” I said as I signed off on his Report.

He nodded.

“You did that.” I smiled at him, handing his Report back to him. “And you said you couldn’t, look at you!”

That was the first time I had seen a genuine smile on his face, and the first day he received a positive comment in his ‘Wellbeing Notes’.

Critical Reflection

“You’ve done really well with the ‘bad kids’.” 

These were words that I didn’t think I’d hear inside of a classroom. Our tauira are not inherently ‘bad’. They sometimes did ‘bad’ things, sure, but in this instance it was evident that they had been talking about these labelled students.

It hadn't been the first time that I had encountered a situation with a labelled "bad kid". Initially, I had been privy to information about a student who had been moved to the school. His parents had moved him out because he was hanging with the "wrong crowd". This was the student that they were initially, what they thought, complimenting me on. My efforts were definitely they type of help that they wanted me to give, but one I found worked with the student. Since these incidents, I have made it a point to check in their Well-Being notes consistently.

With the notion of Prescribed Outcomes to Personalised Inquiry Base Learning, I took on this self-reflection of having my own child being labelled as a "bad kid". Perspectives were imposed on my son and myself in my youth. These shaped the way we were both treated in those deficit thinking environments and I did not want that to happen to the students in my class. I was able to ask myself questions such as, "How do my own experiences affect my view on the students?". This helped me reflect on my own learning and integrated what they needed in the situation they were in.

In my journal entry above, I could see that this student was used to pushing out negative behaviour, to gain any sort of attention. I realised that this sort of attention was what they were used to. I also realised, this was a form of needing to be heard, in the right circumstances. I was able to do this with all of the "bad kids" that were in my classrooms. By asking myself the questions of what I could do better, to accommodate and promote good behaviour, I was able to make the right connections to help them succeed. All of the "bad kids", I am proud to say, are the most respectful and well-rounded students I have in my classes. And I continue to push them to be their versions of success for their future.