Back to School

     Four years ago, all I wanted to do was get out of high school. This Interim, my last at Wofford, I'm working as a student teacher at Spartanburg High School.  As I work to complete the Teacher Education program, I've been at a different school in Spartanburg County each semester. Last semester, I was in a 9th and 10th grade classroom at Broome High. Before that, I was in an 8th grade class at McCracken Junior High, and before that I was at Jesse Boyd Elementary.
     Dr. Ed Epps, my coordinating teacher, teaches three English 4 and two Creative Writing classes, which are almost entirely comprised of seniors. After three and a half years of college, a room full of high school seniors has been quite a change from the comfort and stability of the college atmosphere.
     Last week, I averted a fight between two female students. As the students were filtering into the classroom after lunch, one of the students accidentally knocked the other students' belongings off the table they were about to sit at. She refused to apologize, and suddenly tensions flared. As I came into the room, I heard a chair down, and saw the two girls about to square off.
     One thing I've found helpful when dealing with students is my size. At over six feet tall, I find myself head and shoulders above the bulk of the students I'm with, and because of that, the students have rarely ever given me trouble. So when I immediately came over to the two girls in question, my presence was enough to help keep the conflict from escalating. They sat down as the bell rang, and, luckily, were moved to separate sides of the room by Dr. Epps as he divided them up for a group activity.
     But, watching the two girls, it was obvious from their body language that they were both still furious. I knew that if they remained like that, the entire class would be a waste for them, so I decided to step in. I asked the first student how she was doing. Simple, just a "Hey, you okay?" She looked genuinely shocked. Of course both she and the other girl involved knew I'd seen the incident, and when I asked her how she was doing, instead of calling her down, I think i genuinely shocked her. She mumbled a "fine." I told her that I didn't care who or what started it, but that I was proud of her for handling it maturely. One of the things they say on the daily morning announcements at Spartan High is "Make it a great day or not, the choice is yours." I reminded her of that, and that, even though they'd heard it a million times and that it was kind of corny, it was still true, and that she'd just made it a great day. She smiled. I knew I'd struck a chord. I asked her how things were going, and she revealed that she was worried tense because of an unresolved academic issue from the prior semester. I talked with her about it, and thanked once her for making the right decision today. She's spoken to me or waved at me in the hall every day since then, even though she's no longer taking Dr. Epps class.
     I mentioned all that to say this. Almost every day we read in the newspaper or see on the TV a feature about another young person that made bad decisions. The media only seems to pick up on things when students make bad decisions. But it's things like what I saw happen that day, kids facing pivotal decisions and doing the right thing, that I think should be what make the news on a regular basis.