For @daily.prompt/2-april-2025-mariannewests-freewrite-writing-prompt-day-2694-he-coerced-me
He Coerced Me
Oh boy, talk about coercion!
We don't, actually, talk about it enough.
There's a lot of wonderful information in the Substitute teacher training about how to avoid coercion. I mean how to avoid coercing students.
We don't talk about it. All those disappointed glares or threats to write your name on the board? That's all coercion. When we're trying to address behavior that needs to be addressed, we have to start from the premise that there is a problem standing between the kid and the behavior we want to see. The first question is, of course, do we actually NEED different behavior from the kid? What would the consequence be for the classroom if we ignored it? Like, really. Not going off into some slippery slope "nip it in the bud" argument, but really. Because there's a lot of behavior that doesn't get ignored that should. Who cares if this kid doesn't look like he's paying attention? For all you know, he's hearing everything and processing it and that's the behavior of his mind working on something. Is it really disruptive?
If it is, if it needs to be addressed, let's address it. But not by trying to coerce a change. But by identifying the issue and taking steps to solve it. Do they need one-on-one help to master a concept, and they're being disruptive because
that's the bell!
