It was the first day of my new life in Sacramento. I started my unusual math teaching job for students who have been expelled or dropped out of high school, orphaned, homeless, or Eritrean refugees to name a few. As I waited in the security entrance to enter the school, I watched security wand every student that lived off campus. I had no idea what all my classes would be like, but the day went better than I ever dreamed!
My co-teacher has an extremely organized style which is exactly what I like. She developed a student filing system and now that she’ll have more time, I’m sure that she’ll organize more. When I told her that I had Aspergers, she didn’t know how to accommodate me. I explained, “I am brutally honest and have few privacy issues, so you just say, ‘TMI---too much information!’”
The students wear their trade uniforms to school. One had a bright-orange, reflective vest signifying that he was learning the heavy equipment trade. Many wore security guard uniforms. The gray-blue, certified-medical-assistant uniforms stood out. The culinary-arts program is ending, since the jobs in that area have dried up and a certified-nurse-assistant program will replace it. Job Corp is definitely doing a good job of training the students for jobs that are available and needed.
During an intervention meeting with one of my new students, I listened to the other teachers talk to the young man who was obsessed with boxing. He passed his CAHSEE, so he was intelligent and not in need of accommodations. He just wasn’t finishing his curriculum to get his high school diploma. The teachers were extremely frustrated, since this was his second intervention meeting.
“Where were you before you came to SIATech?”
“The streets.”
“Where will you go if you don’t graduate from SIATech?”
“The streets.”
“We can’t care about your high school diploma more than you. You have to care and do the work.”
After the teachers had exhausted their insights, I added, “When you’re stressed, you box. So you focus on boxing, because it helps you deal with all your stress. When you’re in math and frustrated, take a deep breath to relax yourself. That’s what I do when I get stressed. Then get up and write your name on the board to get help. That will give you a little physical movement to help calm you down.”
When I got to period 3, he was seated right next to me. So as he stewed in his silent frustration over a math problem, I helped him. Eventually, he said, “Look at this tutorial. This is what I don’t understand.”
Realizing that he just told me that he needed a different tool from which to learn, I pulled out a few math books---a pre-algebra and algebra book. He liked the traditional algebra book and really started working. I felt so jazzed that I was able to help him. Now he has a better chance of staying off the streets.
After all the tough classes for which I’ve taught or subbed, I found today that the challenging students weren’t even very challenging. This seems like it’s going to be an easy career life. Now I just have to get used to getting up at 5:30 am.
P.S. To my blog readers: If you want to support a struggling math/engineering teacher and author, please buy my first book, "The Romance of Kilimanjaro," soon to be followed by my second book at: https://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=9781613464960 Thank You!
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