Oz Provocation 6: unacceptable behaviour?

Posted on | August 4, 2008 | 3 Comments

Familiar scene: high-school teacher offering a monologue to class while writing notes on the board. Pupil X is restless, talks to neighbours throughout the lesson, and writes nothing. End of lesson, teacher pulls up pupil – “Where are your notes? Why have you written nothing? How will you learn without a copy?” Pupil lifts phone out of bag, photographs the board and returns camera to bag – continues talking to friend.

The pupil is sent to the principal for unacceptable behaviour.

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Category: teaching

Comments

3 Responses to “Oz Provocation 6: unacceptable behaviour?”

John
August 4th, 2008 @ 7:58 am

Pupil has broken the rule. ‘do anything but things that negatively affect others’. His/her talking may have distracted an auditory learner in the class.
The pupil might have been better served by an issue of notes at the start of the class and the opportunity to leave to study at own pace. I would have taken such an opportunity at school, put the notes at the bottom of my bag, ignored them and gone for a walk.
Judy O'Connell
August 5th, 2008 @ 2:18 pm

Beaut example. We can do the same! At a recent PD event at school my colleagues assiduously took notes, while I took notes with my mobile. Interestingly, a highly respected young Boarding Master, who understands students very well commented “Oh, that’s what my Year 7 students do too!” He has seen the potential, but too many have not …as this tale points out.
Gilbert Halcrow
August 6th, 2008 @ 7:22 am

I think I will go against the grain on this one – Teaching the practical component of Media studies and Theatre Studies – Didactic teaching makes up less than 10% of my delivery.
When I do deliver content and put notes up on the board they are usually schematic to support the PP or discussion that evolves. Sometimes well go live foruming or student will post to their blogs. So I hardly run a “traditional” learning environment.
I banned students taking photo of the board about 18months ago, because, while I would consider it inappropriate behavior, I found it indicative of a student who was less likely to engage in whole class discussion or read the notes they had photographed.
Unfortunately the student had already made the Faustian deal of “tell me what I need to know and I”ll pass the exam” and the photographing was the minimal requirement in that deal!
Let the phones in; they are an amazingly cheap access and recording device, ideal for upper primary and lower secondary. But the pedagogy must move in sync with the technology or bad analogue habits just get worse.