that is how my morning started.
as i was walking around my first block of the day and noticing that, based on the reading check quiz answers i was seeing, only half of my girls actually had a clue what we'd be talking about, the day seemed like it might continue to get more frustrating.
but as i waited for them to finish their quizzes, i made an 11th hour, day-changing decision.
basic lesson (i hope) they learned through the experience: it is not a right to mooch off the work and ideas of others. participating in class discussion is a privilege earned by actually doing the reading and having something thoughtful to contribute when you come to class. amen foreva.
result: from the crowd who spent the class working independently to redo a quiz for half credit that they should have easily passed- annoyed... at themselves. from the group who got to circle up for class discussion- more willingness to contribute... sense of camaraderie... shy girls that i haven't heard much from in months volunteered their thoughts. one in particular (timid as a mouse) made it a point to say hi to me twice in the halls after class.
there are plenty of aspects of life, positive and negative, that we have no control over. that's not an excuse for not taking responsibility for the choices you do make.
sad note: in a significant way, the success of this experiment is only due to the fact that i work in a private school where respect is the norm. in philly, telling the kids that they would miss out on discussion and would have to work independently would have resulted in markers being thrown at my head. seriously. sadly, perhaps inner-city kids would benefit from the core of this lesson the most.
