Audience

I think I know a lot about a lot, but the truth is I know a lot about a few things, a little about many things, and nothing about many, many things. Teaching is one of those things that because I was a student and am a parent of a student I think I know plenty, when in fact there is a ton more for me to know to really understand what teachers know and do.

Having said that, I am lifting the following comment to its own post because it speaks to my lack of knowledge about teaching in a way that makes me feel like I learned something without making me feel like the jackass that I am. The comment comes from this post about writing and free speech and Lou makes a fabulous point:

As an ex-high school English teacher I would like to make a couple of simple points. First, I always encouraged my students to think about their audience when writing. They were told not to write anything that would not be appropriate for me or other teachers to read. Sexual content, bad language, violence all being things that would not be appropriate. Hey, this was public school, and it was important to control the atmosphere. Just because school is public and free doesn’t mean you get to do and say whatever you want. Sure a kid could write how he hated the food in the cafeteria, but he could not write that he would like to kill the cafeteria workers. If a kid did write something inappropriate, it should certainly set off bells and be dealt with accordingly. Which bring me to my second point - any teacher worth his/her salt should be able to discern serious threats of violence and just simple mouthing off (or showing off). Knowing your students, watching their behavior, sensing their emotions is a large part of teaching (yeah being a psychologist is part of it). I could give lots of examples here, but will spare you my battle stories. The “dealt with accordingly” has several meanings. It could mean the student is watched closer, questioned and talked to by the teacher, sent to the school counselor, sent to the principal, suspended, expelled, etc.

Having freedom of speech sounds great, but nothing is ever truly free. There are boundaries everywhere - from public schools to the work place to the everyday life. Kids must learn to function within those boundaries. If an employee wrote sexual or violent fantasies in the work place, you bet your bottom, it would be dealt with seriously. Being taught what is appropriate for different situations or different audiences is part of education not stifling the imagination. There is plenty of freedom in writing other places, but not necessarily in public school.

Okay, one quick example: A few years ago I was in charge of the youth portion of a local art show. It was a typical small town art guild art show. Local schools were encouraged to send in student art work. One school sent in a drawing of a person looking into a shattered bathroom mirror pointing a gun at his own head - basically a kid committing suicide. Truthfully, it was a great piece of art work - thought provoking and well drawn, but the audience was horrified as was the judge of the art show. It did not win any prizes and most people had comments like, “That kid needs serious help.” The art teacher was angry that the drawing did not win and said it was because our art show was a bunch of old fogies and that in a college environment the drawing would have done very well. I agreed, but pointed out that a painter or writer must keep his audience in mind. That school has never participated in our art show again which is too bad for the students - another form of stifling the imagination?

So, teaching kids is challenging enough, but some times getting adults to think is even more of a challenge. It would be easy to draw parallels in many aspects of life today with Lou's example above. Politicians are particularly keen on playing to their audience, though with instantaneous news regurgitation, they are finding it harder and harder to tailor their messages to one specific audience because it turns out that everybody is watching all the time. Or so it seems. Actors, singers and dancers are aware of audience, though that awareness doesn't always seem to extend to when they are offstage. And writers, particularly those at our learning centers be they high schools or colleges, must also be aware of their audience and sometimes must tailor the message accordingly.

I agree completely that there are boundaries with everything and that mature adults respect the boundaries and keep their actions consistent with their surroundings. Adult activities limited to adult settings, family activities around families, etc. It is the awareness and respect of the boundaries that is the grease of modern society. We have lots of names for boundaries: rights, laws, morals, customs, courtesies and so on, but the principle applies regardless of what you call it.

Ok, I'm rambling, but you can tell what I'm trying to say, right? What do you say? Is Lou on the mark? Am I? Are you?

Lou, I'd love to hear more. You must've had some great experiences and had a special influence on many kids lives. Teachers deserve more credit for the hard work we ask of them.