Student Consequence Writing

[eeyore kelly]

Ugggh! I am a sub at several schools in my school district. I have several teachers that request me for multiple day jobs. I am expected to teach and uphold the class rules and consequences, so the students understand there is no change to the classroom rules--regardless of the situation. I have been subbing this one class for three days and on Friday I had to assign consequence writing assignments to several students. Very few have them completed. Now, the writing is double they are given a minor infraction and they have lunch detention.

I wish they understood that they are exploding this writing assignment into a major situation by their own actions. If it doesn't get turned in tomorrow, I have no choice but to refer them to the office.

Gee just do the 20 minute assignment!

Sorry just had to vent on my off hour.

 

[disney junky]

English teacher here. I hate when writing is punishment. Sends the wrong message. For what it's worth. Vent on.....

 

[DaddyDon]

I am a sub teacher also and a sub bus driver.....Vent On!

 

[MM27]

I would never assign writing or reading as a punishment. Good way to turn kids off to doing those things for regular class assignments.

 

[Feralpeg]

English teacher here. I hate when writing is punishment. Sends the wrong message. For what it's worth. Vent on.....

I agree. While I understand your frustration, OP, it is hard enough to get kids to write. Using writing as a punishment definitely sends the wrong message.

 

[lovetoscrap]

The OP is a Substitute teacher. She is required to follow the rules and procedures already in place. She has no control over assigning the writing as punishment. She is just frustrated that the kids made the situation worse for themselves and her by not doing the assignment.

There is no need to judge the assgnment/punishment to her. It isn't her classroom and not her call to change it.

 

[spaceacewannabe]

English teacher here. I hate when writing is punishment. Sends the wrong message. For what it's worth. Vent on.....

SO glad that was the first reply; I was going to say the same thing (but I'm a music teacher). No academic skill should ever be made punitive. The writing thing is specifically "banned" as punishment in my school.

I do understand the frustration that students haven't figured out that they make their lives (and ours!) simpler if they just take care of things the first time.

 

[spaceacewannabe]

The OP is a Substitute teacher. She is required to follow the rules and procedures already in place. She has no control over assigning the writing as punishment. She is just frustrated that the kids made the situation worse for themselves and her by not doing the assignment.

There is no need to judge the assgnment/punishment to her. It isn't her classroom and not her call to change it.

I think we realized that---I thought the criticism was of the practice, not her. The fact that she's being forced to enforce a really lousy consequence makes hers even more of a losing battle.

 

[Feralpeg]

The OP is a Substitute teacher. She is required to follow the rules and procedures already in place. She has no control over assigning the writing as punishment. She is just frustrated that the kids made the situation worse for themselves and her by not doing the assignment.

There is no need to judge the assgnment/punishment to her. It isn't her classroom and not her call to change it.

I don't believe anyone is judging the OP. We realize that she has to follow the procedures in place. As English teachers, who have tried to come up with ways to get kids to write, the idea of writing as a punishment just rubs the wrong way. We understand the OP's frustration.

 

[golfgal]

Our DS17 was the CHAMPION of turning 15 minutes of homework in to 3 hours of work. I can TOTALLY relate .

 

[MushyMushy]

English teacher here. I hate when writing is punishment. Sends the wrong message. For what it's worth. Vent on.....

Totally agree!

(yep, we're not blaming the op. It sucks that she has to uphold that as a punishment)

 

[Boxley]

I actually got this assignment when I was a kid years (lets not count) ago. I got in trouble for talking in class and so while I was doing the paper, I decided to make a little spin on it by making a story out of it, I made it sound like a crime fiction ( I was watching some kind of cartoon that was spoofing the old detective films) and made myself the villian...my mother was never so angry at me but my father framed it at his office.

 

[MizTink]

I actually got this assignment when I was a kid years (lets not count) ago. I got in trouble for talking in class and so while I was doing the paper, I decided to make a little spin on it by making a story out of it, I made it sound like a crime fiction ( I was watching some kind of cartoon that was spoofing the old detective films) and made myself the villian...my mother was never so angry at me but my father framed it at his office.

i love it!

 

[MizTink]

SO glad that was the first reply; I was going to say the same thing (but I'm a music teacher). No academic skill should ever be made punitive. The writing thing is specifically "banned" as punishment in my school.

I do understand the frustration that students haven't figured out that they make their lives (and ours!) simpler if they just take care of things the first time.

i also hate when teachers give zeros for assignments for a behavior problem. my dd13 was passing notes during a video in class, when the teacher caught them she gave each of the kids 0's. only problem was dd had gotten a 100% on the quiz of the video she supposedly hadn't watched. now the teacher changed it to a 0%. i just think the teacher should punish behavior problems some other way. detention, principals office, whatever. but not academically. kwim?? besides, most kids aren't as worried about their grades as they are with missing lunch or staying after school for a detention.........
and this wasn't the only time i have come across teachers that do this
behavior and academics should be handled separately, imho

 

[declansdad]

I agree with the comments about writing being used as a punishment, however; most of them didn't specify whether they were criticizing the OP or the punishment. It is easy to get confused.

 

[MM27]

i also hate when teachers give zeros for assignments for a behavior problem. my dd13 was passing notes during a video in class, when the teacher caught them she gave each of the kids 0's. only problem was dd had gotten a 100% on the quiz of the video she supposedly hadn't watched. now the teacher changed it to a 0%. i just think the teacher should punish behavior problems some other way. detention, principals office, whatever. but not academically. kwim?? besides, most kids aren't as worried about their grades as they are with missing lunch or staying after school for a detention.........
and this wasn't the only time i have come across teachers that do this
behavior and academics should be handled separately, imho

That's a big no-no in my school. Behavior and academics are two totally different things. A child's grade should have nothing to do with their behavior, unless of course it is causing them to not do work, not hand it in, etc.

I wasn't criticizing the OP, just the practice. I hate when I hear teachers say that they are giving extra homework too. Then it turns into busy work homework. I'm all for correcting behavior, but not when it involves academics.

 

[kristilew]

My DD12 has had teachers who punished the whole class with writing assignments - I have instructed her to write "My mother would like a phone call from you to discuss the behavior at issue, her number is ...." and nothing else.

I've never actually gotten a phone call from her doing this, and she's never gotten in trouble for it. I don't think the teachers who use this punishment even read the assignments.

OP - subbing is a hard job - thanks for being willing to do it!

 

[MizTink]

My DD12 has had teachers who punished the whole class with writing assignments - I have instructed her to write "My mother would like a phone call from you to discuss the behavior at issue, her number is ...." and nothing else.

I've never actually gotten a phone call from her doing this, and she's never gotten in trouble for it. I don't think the teachers who use this punishment even read the assignments.

OP - subbing is a hard job - thanks for being willing to do it!

that's a good one! i think i'm going to tell my kids to do that if they ever get the opportunity!!
and then i'd like to see the teacher's face when he/she sees it!