A teacher who found that one of her brightest boys was setting a bad
example in this respect, dealt with it in a tactful way which proved
entirely successful. She was an excellent teacher, who trusted her
pupils very fully. They responded to this trust on the whole admirably,
but in one particular case her usual methods did not work. She said
nothing to the boy whose restlessness was causing the trouble, but
assuming that his frequent absences from the room were caused by
ill-health, she called on his mother and asked her to have Robert’s
health looked after. The mother promptly sent Robert to the family
physician, who made a careful examination but found nothing wrong. All
this to-do over his health, together with the trustful anxiety of his
mother and teacher, embarrassed Robert exceedingly. He finally went to
his teacher and told her that he was “now quite well,” and that she
would not be annoyed any more by his frequently leaving the room. He was
better than his word, for he stopped leaving the room during the
sessions altogether, and when he stopped the other boys almost ceased
also. Without having said a word to any boy, without having shown them
that she knew they were indulging in a foolish and childish trick, the
teacher had cured the evil by dealing with the ringleader in a way that
made him ashamed of the quality of his leadership.
(3) _Coughing epidemics._ Often pupils indulge in epidemics of coughing.
One pupil begins, and by suggestion other pupils join in the annoyance.
The usual method of prevention is a scolding which may arrest the
outbreak but does not remove the tendency to repeat itself. The very
fact that the teacher notices the coughing intensifies the suggestion.
It is to be understood that children often suffer from colds and must
cough. It would be cruelty to attempt to stop them. A better way would
be for the teacher to ask all the pupils to stand and take several deep
breaths and make some arm movements. The windows must be opened to admit
fresh air for the breathing and exercises. The teacher can do this
without the pupils having the slightest idea that it was for the benefit
of the pupil who coughed. In extreme cases of coughing the teacher can
go quietly to the pupil and ask him to leave the room and take a drink.
In most cases this will stop the coughing. When coughing in the
school-room is unavoidable, every pupil should be taught how to cough
into the handkerchief. The article serves as a muffler for the sound and
as a protection of one’s neighbors against contagion.
It is quite worth while for the teacher to remember that the more
attention she pays to an outbreak of this kind, the more troublesome it
will prove to be, the oftener it will recur. One teacher who came into a
school in the middle of the term found that the pupils used coughing
outbreaks to annoy and worry their former teacher. They tried the same
on her. But much to their surprise she went right on with her work and
pretended that nothing unusual was going on. The youngsters carried
their outbreak to the limit of their capacities, still the teacher went
on unheedful of their efforts at annoying her. When noon came she
dismissed a band of worn-out youngsters. She had won. They felt
themselves outwitted. They did not try to annoy her again.
Sometimes a pupil hiccoughs in a way to be annoying. While at times
hiccoughing can not be helped, still indiscreet teachers have scolded
pupils for it and thereby caused every pupil that could hiccough to do
it in a most annoying manner. Whenever a pupil hiccoughs, a teacher may
quietly ask the pupil to leave the room or she can have the entire
school stand and take several deep breaths. This will usually cure
hiccoughing. At the same time the windows should be opened to admit
fresh air.
(4) _Giggling._ Some pupils are addicted to “giggling.” In such cases
the teacher will find that to notice the annoyance will tend to
exaggerate it. If she can ignore it, the possibilities are that the
misdemeanor will cease. However, if it is so marked that it requires her
attention, the method applied must be indirect. It is quite certain that
if a teacher will persist in having a pupil that “giggles” do something
every time he indulges in the annoyance, he will be cured of his trivial
habit after a month or two.
Laughing in a proper way will hurt no one, and is by no means a
misdemeanor. It does children good to laugh and would sweeten the lives
of many soured teachers if they would laugh more. Often all the pupils
seem to want to laugh. The discreet teacher will let them have their
laugh; he will join with them. When the fun is over, he will say, “Now
let us all get busy.” If there is a tendency for the laughing to become
too boisterous, he may say pleasantly, “I like to see people have fun,
but if you will remember to laugh quietly when anything funny happens, I
shall appreciate it very much.”