I hope you don’t mind, a bit of a bit of a change of tone in this part of the guide, can’t see a way of satirising the point I want to make and it’s one very close to my heart. As always, interested to know what you think.
At school we require students to use ‘Yondr pouches’, which are lockable bags into which students must put their smart phones, smart watches, ear pieces etc. first thing in the morning to then be unlocked as they are leaving school. Of course, the system isn’t fool proof, the locks can be broken, students can have a second phone, and doubtless a whole number of ways of which I’ve not thought. But the fact that locking phones away at the beginning of the school day is part of the routine means that, if a students is found with a phone out during the middle of the school day, the culpability level is that much higher. If teachers wish to do activities needing phones during the day, whether that be using subject specific apps or playing ‘Blooket’ which seems to be the current favourite, then we can unlock the bags, with the responsibility of ensuring that they are relocked at the end of the period and used only for the intended purpose. It won’t surprise you to hear that the latter can sometimes be a bit of a challenge….
On Monday of last week we were doing a periodic slightly more thorough check than normal, so I was making sure the locks worked. Bit of a challenge to find the right level of pressure which does a proper check but doesn’t risk breaking it, but think I succeeded. Afterwards, as I was restating the need for phones to be locked away, one of my tutor group said that he thought that teachers also should lock their phones in Yondr pouches. I agreed. I would have no problem at all in doing so – or leaving my phone at home, in my car, in a locked cupboard in the maths office, etc. Certainly I would not dream of using my phone in front of students in the normal course of things, on the one recent occasion when I wanted to do so – to contact somebody just about to leave the country – I asked the permission of my tutor group which they graciously gave, knowing that, should they need to contact somebody on an urgent basis, I would also agree.
I have, I’m afraid, been aware of adults using phones in front of students at times when they are not allowed to use theirs, and am really not comfortable with this at all. What is the justification for this? It is, of course, the case that students and teachers are in the classroom for two different reasons which means that, for example, I tell students to sit down and stop talking but would not allow them to say that to me. Can the use of mobile phones by adults be justified on these grounds? I really don’t see that it can.
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you,
for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12, emphasis added
One of many things which irritated me when I was working in teacher training was reading personal statements from Christian applicants implying that because they were Christians they would make better, more committed teachers. I see no evidence at all that this is the case, any more than I see evidence that people who are older / younger / male / female / with children / without children etc. etc. make better or worse teachers, as a group, than others. But, speaking as a Christian who works as a teacher, it makes sense to me that I should bring a Christian framework to my chosen profession. I expect students to be polite to me? Then I will be polite to them. I expect students to work hard at their lessons? I will work hard at their lessons. They are supposed to be smartly dressed? Then I will be smartly dressed, particularly, when I have been working in schools which require students to wear ties, then I wear a tie. Actually, I take this one somewhat further, possibly too far – at a school when students weren’t allowed to wear short sleeve shirts in the winter, I didn’t either.
There are some grey areas here. There was a time when a female colleague was telling a girl off for wearing dangly ear-rings only for the girl, not unreasonably, to point out that my colleague herself was doing so. I can only speak for myself here – I am with the girl on this point. If you disagree, please do say so!
At the time of writing there is an indicative ballot going on as to whether teachers will take further strike action at some point in the not too distant future. Yet, I have been in assemblies, and indeed spoken to my tutor group from provided PowerPoints myself, about the importance of attending if at all possible, and the correlation between attendance and achievement. So, students, bring your cold with you, parents, do not arrange holidays during school time, students, work through any anxiety you may have, hugely exacerbated by the COVID lockdown it would seem to me. How can I look students and their parents in the eye about the importance of attendance if I myself am going on strike? Again, I realise that not everybody will agree with me, but I just can’t see it. Please do write with an alternative view, I’d love to hear from you!
So, I’ll continue wearing a tie, keeping my phone away, being polite, in general, acknowledging the difference in role between student and teacher, looking to do unto others as I would want them to do to me. I’m very aware I don’t get things right every time, do pray for me in this endeavour!
Geoff Tennant's Blog 