Student Teaching: Day 17
I’m noticing one of my students is just a well of complaints. Constantly complaining about one teacher and her poor grades in the class. I’m starting to get a little peeved by this, because she’s usually a sassy, Debbie Downer with everything, but becomes especially boisterous when there is a concern about that teacher and class. Don’t get me wrong. She’s a bright, outspoken, hard-working, goal-oriented, realistic, and caring person, but developmentally she embodies the egotism of young adolescence. The idea that they are the center of the universe; problems stem from other people and they don’t do anything wrong and are never at fault. It’s one thing to complain about someone who’s slighted you, but it’s another to do so every day, every other class period.
When a point is brought up to have her think a little about the circumstances of the situation, she just responds in a dismissive and sarcastic way. I really don’t want that attitude in the classroom and don’t want to reprimand her for voicing her concerns. However I know that like attracts like and misery loves company, so if this goes on everyday, it just brings in more negative energy and other students gravitate towards that and respond in that way. I’ll need to have to give her an ultimatum next time. To either move to action to confront the conflict, or save her rants for the hallway or outside of school.