Skip to main content

Adults Bullying Teachers - more common than you might think


A recent post by Pernille Ripp sounded eerily familiar and resonated with my own experiences as a teacher. It reminded me of my own trials and tribulations "fitting in" and "feeling appreciated" for what I bring to the table. I have always been an independent thinker, which has inadvertently created jealousies or bad feelings with other teachers and even administrators. I am not a "follower" and I have often gotten into hot water without realizing what was happening until it was too late. Yes, negative professional relationships abound no matter what field we are talking about. However, the situation that Pernille describes sounds all too familiar to many teachers and is ironic given school rhetoric around teacher collaboration and community.    

Pernille's experience is, of course, unique to her situation, time and place. However, I know I am not alone when I say that many of us have experienced rejection and weathered poor relationships at our school sites, at one time or another in our careers. Some of these encounters have bordered on or have clearly been characterized by bullying behaviours by other adults in the building. If you haven't experienced this, you have been extremely fortunate. I say this because of the many comments teachers have left on Pernille's blog post testifying to their own bullying experiences. So, for those that have not experienced this, I hope you will leave a comment or two about how you have been able to rise above these petty (in the big scheme of things) but uncomfortable and potentially debilitating situations. For the rest of us, it's time to reflect. 

I don't think it's about trying to figure out what was done to us and why or what we did to deserve a negative response from colleagues or immediate supervisors but rather how we can be smart and respond in a healthy manner without being blind sighted. I say this because I have had experiences where I have all the good intentions of doing just that, then I let my guard down, and boom, I am hit from behind. Of critical importance is the ways in which we react or respond to personal and/or professional attacks in our place of work. When these attacks happen they are intended (yes, I believe there is premeditation, here) to injure our professional and personal integrity. This is never justifiable but it can rarely be fought on an even keel. In other words, these situations aren't usually resolved by confronting the offending party; they will always deny it and will, by that time, have a circle of supporters to defend them. So, one way to deal with these situations is to find others, including colleagues, students, family and friends, who can be positive with us in order to deflate the negative energy. We need to set our sights outside of our workplace in order to put these pernicious situations in context. If not, we will burn out faster than a waning candle. And, if nothing else works we can find our strength with our students.  

Of course, we are often our own worst enemies. I know I am, and by saying this I am publicly admitting that I need to follow the advice I just gave so freely and authoritatively. If I did, I would be a happier and more effective educator, not to mention that my family would appreciate my efforts. So, I hereby proclaim the following: 
  • to not allow others to get me down when I know that what I am doing for my students is right given my particular situation and group of students; no one knows them better than I do no matter what they think. 
  • To seek positive and like-minded colleagues (here's a shout out to my PLN, both virtual and in person) from whom I can get and give support and sustenance. 
  • To treat others the way I want to be treated - it does rub off producing a trickle effect. (Maybe in that sense, Ronald Reagan was right - good vibes do multiply themselves.) 
  • And, finally, to consider alternative ways to connect, teach, learn, give back, feel professionally validated outside of my school because the reality is that it may not happen there. Sad but true. I am always enriched when I reach out to others through Twitter, blogs, etc and, as a result, my colleagues are impacted as well even if they don't know it.
What have your experiences been? Do you think my proclamation is realistic? What do you suggest to teachers experiencing bullying situations in their places of work?


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Partner Reading and Content, Too Routine (PRC2)

I'm a hoarder. There, I've said it. I try to deny that I'm a hoarder but it comes back to haunt me every time I move houses, or pack up my classroom at the end of the school year. I have old articles, lesson plans, handouts, folders brimming with teaching ideas, past issues of profesional journals. I hardly throw anything out though I've learned to be more selective over the years. My one rule of thumb, and I really try to stick to this, is that if I haven't used or referred to something in a year, then it's time to toss it into the recycle bin. One exception to this rule (you knew this was coming, didn't you?) is past issues of journals from professional organizations. However, with the ability to locate articles online through my professional memberships, even this exception is becoming less and less useful, which brings me to the topic of this blog post. I am currently reading a copy of The Reading Teacher from 2010. I've clipped a cou
Post a Comment
Read more

The Reading Strategies Book - Chapter 12, Supporting Students’ Conversations – Speaking, Listening, and Deepening Comprehension

The strategy lessons highlighted in Chapter 12, Supporting Students’ Conversations – Speaking, Listening, and Deepening Comprehension, in The Reading Strategies Book by Jennifer Serravallo are critical to students’ engagement and comprehension, as well as their ability to write literary essays, or even book reviews, summaries and reflective pieces about books. If students aren’t able to talk about books in a way that is invigorating and joyful, they will be less likely to develop an interest in growing ideas for writing about books. In her introduction to this chapter, Jennifer Serravallo, reminds us that when conversations go well, children are inspired by what they read and are motivated to keep reading. However, when conversations fall flat, then kids get bored and tune out. How do we avoid this situation and teach kids to  have  focused conversations about books?  The answer is easy: teach kids  strategies to help them develop effective conversational skills .  As in
Post a Comment
Read more

Are we listening?

A child sits alone with a ripped worksheet packet on his desk. He appears to be singing or subvocalizing something though no one hears him. Or, perhaps they're ignoring him. The teacher stands at the front of the room teaching on the SmartBoard. The children follow along in their worksheets. Except the child sitting alone. He is in his own world. No one engages him and he engages no one. My heart aches for this child. He is physically and emotionally removed from the class. I ask him why his paper is ripped. (It's not an accidental rip.) He says he did that on a different day. When he had been frustrated about the work. He tells me that he sometimes sits by himself because the work is too hard for him. He later tells me that he sits by himself because the teacher thinks he talks too much during the lesson.  He says he does that because he wants to find out about the "lives of the other children". My first impulse is to rescue him from the wrongheade
10 comments
Read more