As most of you know, I taught Middle School for 37 good years. It was an interesting level to teach as you got to wear many hats and the clientele were quite changeable.
One of the duties that came by from time to time was to look after fights. This was far from my favorite job.
Now the good city planners planned so that two middle schools were kitty corner to each other. One was a public school and the other was a separate school or Catholic school.
So from time to time for whatever imagined reason a fight between the two schools was rumored to take place. Some of these gatherings took place and others were only rumors. But several times a year a crowd (100 kids) gathered .
I had a classroom on the playground side of the school. I was told to watch the yard and if anything happened I was to go out. Another teacher was also given the same assignment. Ole weighed about 300 lbs and was 6' 4".
So when a crowd gathered on the field Ole and I would slowly walk to the field. There were a number of reasons for the slow walk. One was to assess the situation. I always made sure I was a couple of steps behind Ole. I was a coward!
We would walk to the edge of the crowd and it appeared like a small group in the center was in discussion. No punches or pushing. Shortly the group in the center parted and both groups went off in their own direction.
These "meetings" were unpredictable. There's not a lot two teachers could do if there was a rumble.
Our kids knew very well what happened if they ever fought or attended a fight. They also liked Ole and they didn't want to get on the wrong side of him.
So we went back into the school and to the staff room. Some teachers always wanted to know what went on. Ole would always say with a big chuckle , "They called it off on account of lack of interest!"
Now over all the years I never saw a punch thrown or any shoving. It appears that most of it was about turf. I'll come on your yard and I'll chase you off our yard.
That is extremely interesting to me that there was never an actual fight at your school. I can remember a few fights at the school I attended growing up. My mother (a teacher) was caught in the middle of one fight by accident and thrown against a brick wall. It seems like we're a rowdy lot here in the east :)
ReplyDeleteIndividual kids would sometimes lose it in the moment and throw punches. However, a planned school to school fight is serious.
DeleteI've been lucky over my years on the playground to not have this happen. Ole must have been way intimidating.
ReplyDeletePlayground spats are not the same as school to school fights. Little guys sometimes lose it and throw punches but it only involves two kids.
DeleteDuring one of my lives as an educator I was a part time classified (non-teacher) staff member and one of my jobs was as a playground monitor. Fights happened. The appearance of an authority figure usually stopped the action, and the two combatants were sent to the office for someone else to sort out. Playground monitors are untrained, poorly paid, and yet it is one of the hardest jobs in a school, often requiring the wisdom of Solomon.
ReplyDeleteI never taught in a school that required playground supervision but I know what you're saying.
DeleteYou went with Ole that is not cowardly...cowardly would have been hiding in the bathroom:)
ReplyDeleteYou're right. We had to show some assertiveness to show that we meant business,
DeleteBoys always feel the will to prove who is the strongest....
ReplyDeleteThere was some issues of setting up a fight which was very much discouraged.
DeleteHello, I would be thankful for Ole and you. Ole sounds like he could handle a fight. Kudos to all the teachers, they often do more than teach! Wishing you a happy day!
ReplyDeleteWe wore many hats but it's also one of the reasons the job was interesting.
DeleteI wouldn't like that job, either. Getting in the middle of a kid fight is only slightly less dangerous than getting in the middle of a dog fight! Amazingly, I have never seen a fight at the school where I work now. We put a lot of emphasis on civility and the message seems to get through.
ReplyDeleteYou're right that the school has to set up a climate where fighting is strongly discouraged and that disagreements are settled in a positive manner.
Delete...I wouldn't mess with Ole!
ReplyDeleteOle was a great guy.
DeleteIt always helps to have someone with a little brawn to intimidate those who might want to start a fight. Good post, Red! :-)
ReplyDeleteHe was also a likable and respected.
DeleteOh, gosh. This takes me back!
ReplyDeleteYes, I knew it would take you back. It seems just like yesterday.
DeleteYou sure do have to have a lot of different skills to be a teacher! A friend of mine teaches at a high school in center city Philadelphia. Luckily, he's a bit like Ole. He's 6', about 230 lbs, and the football coach. The kids are tough, but they pay attention when he strides into the fray. If I was a teacher ... I'd take kindergarten!
ReplyDeleteYour last comment is too funny. Sadly , today there is much more violence in schools and a lot of it toward teachers and even at kindergarden level.
DeleteOh wow, you just reminded me of my junior high (middle school) days when fights would take place "on the hill." It was where students gathered to watch two guys pummel each other. I always had to run past it and not look.
ReplyDeleteIt's a sad and ugly sight. You did the right thing to go by.
DeleteMaybe Ole's presence intimidated the boys.
ReplyDeleteI think the kids knew that they would be reported and that stopped them. These were staged affairs. a blow up one on one is different.
DeleteI still remember my last day of seventh grade- there was a guy, fifty pounds heavier than me, had been picking on me the whole year, just a bully. I finally had enough. It turned out for all his size, he couldn't fight worth a damn, just used his size for intimidation.
ReplyDeleteI hit him and knocked him out. The school principal, who had a reputation for being a disciplinarian, saw the whole thing, asked what started it. I said what it was about.
And the other guy is the one who got in trouble for it.
The principal had probably watched this develop all year. It's too bad he didn't do anything about it.
DeleteI can understand you feelings Red. As a student teacher my least favourite part of the job was recess monitor.
ReplyDeletePlayground supervision can be a bore but it.s a different way to interact with kids,
DeleteI remember fights in the schoolyard when i was in elementary school and they also were a lot of yelling and threatening and very little hitting. I think you were wise to stay on the far side of Ole — just in case!
ReplyDeleteWell, I was joking about staying behind Ole. we had to work together and show that we meant business,
ReplyDeletewhen it comes to fight i am coward dear Red
ReplyDeletei had job as teacher few times for some years and this problem encountered many times during these years
fight between teenagers are always scary to handle because it is most difficult age and so hard to convince kids to realize or except their mistake
glad that all ended well at your side :)
There were a few bullies in our school but can't remember ever seeing anyone fighting.
ReplyDeletePerhaps kinder, gentler times back then. Now schools are fenced off and you worry about someone pulling a weapon. I taught middle school for about a year and decided I couldn't handle it. Kudos to you for 37 good years. I'm guessing you were one of those great teachers that really loved what they were doing!
ReplyDelete