winner of the most annoying student of the year

[ubonr1971]

I work at a low class govt uni where the students essentially don't care and each year they progress they get more confidence- irrespective of their incompetence.

I teach a writing subject and one student in the group is the 'leader'- (I'm assuming self appointed). She is a below average student with a big ego. Several times in the past 17 weeks I have found her to be rather annoying. A typical example is last week at the end of the lesson I started packing up my stuff and she stood up and started speaking Thai to the group. I had no idea what she was saying in Thai but when walking out I noticed she had the course booklet and was teaching the students my material. I did not ask her to do this and in front of everyone I said that it is best that all students do there own revision for the exam in case xxx (student) accidentally translates the wrong information to them- thus resulting in them all getting it wrong in the final exam. There are a lot of students who are smarter and better at writing than her and thus I was shocked she was pretending to be a teacher without prior authorisation.

This afternoon is another classic example of her behaviour.... Right before I was about to go into a meeting she handed me a Christmas present. I thanked her and was grateful. I then walked into the meeting and the 3rd boss told me she had received some Line messages from xxx claiming that the final exam for the writing class was not fair. The reason stated in the message was that the assignment 4 and one question in the exam were very similar and that many students had cheated in the assignment and accordingly they had an advantage over her. Its a crock of ...... She also said that some of her friends had cheated in the exam.

I sent her a message in English from the bosses phone reminding her that she is a student not a teacher and that we do not need her help. I also said that instead she should focus on her own studies blah blah

Without a doubt she is going to annoy someone when she starts working next year. She will be at the bottom of the ladder but think she's the boss.

About 4 weeks ago she was in the teachers area and one of the male thai teachers told her to empty his bin. When she was walking out I said to him 'did you tell her to empty your bin' and we both laughed. Her ego was shattered. Maybe I will ask her to empty my bin tomorrow.

Sometimes this job takes the urine out of me. Its too much brain damage to deal with. I will grab another beer. Cheers

[schondie]

That sort of attitude is just one of the many reasons why I gave up on teaching in Thailand. When I return next year I look forward to never having to step into a classroom ever again.

The biggest reason why this sort of attitude pervades schools and places of higher learning is that they know that they'll pass regardless of effort.

[aircooledflat4]

You really should look at yourself OP. Blaming students means you're not facing reality....that in all likelihood you probably suck as a teacher.

[Africanteacher]

I tend to agree with aircooledflat4, above. It might be objective to accommodate this young girl's educational needs and reflect on your methodology. From your description, one may deduct that she is trying to reach out to you for help, because she might not be accessing learning, based on your teaching method. Reflect.

[DekDaeng]

I tend to agree with aircooledflat4, above. It might be objective to accommodate this young girl's educational needs and reflect on your methodology. From your description, one may deduct that she is trying to reach out to you for help, because she might not be accessing learning, based on your teaching method. Reflect.

Cut the crap.

[dotpoom]

Egos, we all have them....just some more than others... some of us may have had a few more turns on the "reincarnation" cycle than others.

[jacksam]

Op your the one with the "licence" ....drive your bus.

[KED]

Sorry to continue the OP bashing, but you are the teacher. If the girl's actions are out of bounds, you should meet with her and have a student-teacher discussion. I know it is unlikely, but maybe you could set her straight and give her some perspective on her actions so she could become a better student and person. Rather than making fun and fuming - take charge and teach her.

[F4UCorsair]

I'm often appalled at 'teachers'' grasp of the English language.

Maybe she is knowledgeable, is picking up deficiencies and passing them on to her fellow students, an arrogant position, but she could be a smartar $ e.

[mikiea]

wow i love it when a gaggle of "teachers" pretend they are a important part of everyones life when they are not. do your job, go home rest,relax, knock a few back. come back next day, do your job again. stop whineing, complaining, no one wants to read about you and your broken relationship with your " students", not one person. give it a res, thanks :-)

[SOTIRIOS]

...you will never win...

..the slightest 'conflict' or disagreement.....you are the guilty.....

...I would guess this has already happened....now it is time for you to go....

...so next step is slander or defame you....and get rid of you...

(...that is the process generally...)

[lucifer666]

Actually, i had a student very similar to this, I made sure he was involved in every lesson, gave him the homework to distrbute and used him as the ( whiteboard writer), Had him wipe the ( windows10 screens) and used him as a demonstration model when i was teaching body parts and/ or names of clothing....It worked brilliantly. Children are empty vessels that need to be filled with knowledge and there are many ways to achieve that goal. Sometimes it may be left side or out of the box, but so what ?, use what works

Edited December 16, 2014 by lucifer666

[scorecard]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

I tend to agree with aircooledflat4, above. It might be objective to accommodate this young girl's educational needs and reflect on your methodology. From your description, one may deduct that she is trying to reach out to you for help, because she might not be accessing learning, based on your teaching method. Reflect.

Your pretty quick to rush to be judgmental.

Some of these uni classes at bachelor level have as many as 200 students and even more. And there is no magic way to try to accommodate the personal needs of 200 students into each course.

I'm well aware of students who have no intention of learning anything, much more so at bachelor level and well aware of very poor behaviors:

- Barge into the classroom one hour late (or more), interrupt the teacher and demand to be given the attendance sheet and at the same time start talking to friends right across the classroom with subjects that have nothing to do with the lesson or course.

- One of my lecturer colleagues recently had the experience of coming back to the room after lunch and one girl (arrives at lunch time - all day class) had taken the teachers bag out of a drawer in the teachers desk and emptied (dumped) everything out of the teachers briefcase onto the teachers desk looking for the attendance sheets for that day. Passport and other personal items just left dumped all over the desk. In fact the attendance sheets for that day had already been passed to the office. The same girl had done the same thing to a couple of other teachers. On this specific occasion she freely / proudly admitted she had emptied the teachers bag on the desk. She was taken to the director who cancelled her study for all courses for that semester and she will have to pay again to retake the courses.

Same girl has a 'gang' of 4 or 5 girls. Several times they have stolen the notes and textbooks of other students, A few months back they threw a girl down the stairs, and more. None of them ever hand in individual assignments and they have no intention of handing in assignments. When asked about assignments, especially this 'gang' there is just rudeness and comments like 'what for' ?

In the university I'm referring to students do get failed. And they have to pay the course fees again if they want to retake that subject. And no hesitation to call the teacher and offer money for a regrade up to a passing grade.

- Another example, two tough tom boy girls (I'm not being judgmental about lesbians) who deliberately sit in the two back corners of the classroom and talk loudly across the large room throughout lectures, all deliberate to disrupt. Also very annoying for the students who do want to learn. Outside the classroom during breaks I talked to this duo about 4 or 5 times and asked them to stop which just invoked abuse. I then refused to have them in the class.

- And many more.

Sure some of these students may well have personal difficulties of some sort but there is a limit.

Edited December 16, 2014 by scorecard

[Scott]

I notice that a lot of members seem to have adopted the Thai philosophy, "It's always the teacher's fault."

Very, very few of us get the luxury of working in an environment where there aren't a few who annoy us. Why are teacher's expected to be any different?

As long as we stay focused on trying our best at educating the students, then we are doing our job. Sometimes because of personality clashes it might be harder and we may need to overcompensate.

[raybal5]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

You really should look at yourself OP. Blaming students means you're not facing reality....that in all likelihood you probably suck as a teacher.

I tend to agree with aircooledflat4, above. It might be objective to accommodate this young girl's educational needs and reflect on your methodology. From your description, one may deduct that she is trying to reach out to you for help, because she might not be accessing learning, based on your teaching method. Reflect.

OMG - these two apologists for bad conduct are a large part of the poor attitudes of young people. They try to deflect responsibility for a bad student behaviour to the teacher. It seems they are totally ignorant of the fact that the Thai system will not allow a student to fail a class. THAT is the problem, not the teacher. Morons!

[Frank James]

Man, this is a pitiless crowd here today!

[Frank James]

After China takes over this country all of this s--t will get sorted, and then some. Tick..tick...tick.

[kaorop]

each and every unruly student is a challenge to come up with something creative that works

i enjoyed developing something that works, you learn from it

try 50 thai lads 17 yr old auto mechanics, slightly tougher crowd than some uni girls, 555.

[scorecard]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

each and every unruly student is a challenge to come up with something creative that works

i enjoyed developing something that works, you learn from it

try 50 thai lads 17 yr old auto mechanics, slightly tougher crowd than some uni girls, 555.

- 50 vs 200 plus?

- Boys more difficulty to handle than girls. Often not true.

[Mudcrab]

Man, this is a pitiless crowd here today!

A nomination for" Winner of the most annoying thread of the year"? Another first for TV?

[aboctok]

After China takes over this country all of this s--t will get sorted, and then some. Tick..tick...tick.

Fark, how do I double-click the tick.

[sead]

Yes the Thai educational system is srewed but this girl just wanted to show of abit and nothing wrong about that. If she explained something wrong it will backfire on her later. If she got some attention she could just as show more interest in your classes in future. Maybe she did this in front of you for you to see and think how good she is...Just judge the students on their merits. How can they cheat if you standing and watching over them. My daughter 13y in Sweden says its impossible to cheat when 2 teachers constantly watching over them. But if teachers chose to put their heads in their smartphones then thats another situation. Think as a teacher in Thailand theres alot more things to worry about than this. Its not your job to patronize or demoralize students after class. What they do after class is their worries. There will always be leaders and followers.

Edited December 16, 2014 by sead

[ironbark]

Actually, i had a student very similar to this, I made sure he was involved in every lesson, gave him the homework to distrbute and used him as the ( whiteboard writer), Had him wipe the ( windows10 screens) and used him as a demonstration model when i was teaching body parts and/ or names of clothing....It worked brilliantly. Children are empty vessels that need to be filled with knowledge and there are many ways to achieve that goal. Sometimes it may be left side or out of the box, but so what ?, use what works

As an ex-chalkie myself (from the days when we still used real chalk) I used a similar technique. Many kids are attention seekers, some seek it by being "good" others by being "bad". Teachers want to be "fair" and resent giving unwarranted attention to the "bad" kids but if you give those kids the extra attention they seek you can often redirect their behaviour in a more positive direction.

Instead of yelling at the kid or throwing them out of class and shunning them the rest of the time I used to try an engage them in friendly personal conversation outside the classroom. In many cases they would then begin to feel they had a special relationship which they did not want to jeopardize in the classroom and their behaviour in the classroom would change dramatically.

[Africanteacher]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

I tend to agree with aircooledflat4, above. It might be objective to accommodate this young girl's educational needs and reflect on your methodology. From your description, one may deduct that she is trying to reach out to you for help, because she might not be accessing learning, based on your teaching method. Reflect.

Your pretty quick to rush to be judgmental.

Some of these uni classes at bachelor level have as many as 200 students and even more. And there is no magic way to try to accommodate the personal needs of 200 students into each course.

I'm well aware of students who have no intention of learning anything, much more so at bachelor level and well aware of very poor behaviors:

- Barge into the classroom one hour late (or more), interrupt the teacher and demand to be given the attendance sheet and at the same time start talking to friends right across the classroom with subjects that have nothing to do with the lesson or course.

- One of my lecturer colleagues recently had the experience of coming back to the room after lunch and one girl (arrives at lunch time - all day class) had taken the teachers bag out of a drawer in the teachers desk and emptied (dumped) everything out of the teachers briefcase onto the teachers desk looking for the attendance sheets for that day. Passport and other personal items just left dumped all over the desk. In fact the attendance sheets for that day had already been passed to the office. The same girl had done the same thing to a couple of other teachers. On this specific occasion she freely / proudly admitted she had emptied the teachers bag on the desk. She was taken to the director who cancelled her study for all courses for that semester and she will have to pay again to retake the courses.

Same girl has a 'gang' of 4 or 5 girls. Several times they have stolen the notes and textbooks of other students, A few months back they threw a girl down the stairs, and more. None of them ever hand in individual assignments and they have no intention of handing in assignments. When asked about assignments, especially this 'gang' there is just rudeness and comments like 'what for' ?

In the university I'm referring to students do get failed. And they have to pay the course fees again if they want to retake that subject. And no hesitation to call the teacher and offer money for a regrade up to a passing grade.

- Another example, two tough tom boy girls (I'm not being judgmental about lesbians) who deliberately sit in the two back corners of the classroom and talk loudly across the large room throughout lectures, all deliberate to disrupt. Also very annoying for the students who do want to learn. Outside the classroom during breaks I talked to this duo about 4 or 5 times and asked them to stop which just invoked abuse. I then refused to have them in the class.

- And many more.

Sure some of these students may well have personal difficulties of some sort but there is a limit.

In my post I mentioned that I 'tended' to agree with the thought that the OP's teaching methods may be questionable. If it came out judgemental, then my apologies.

Of course the young student's actions are way out of line. But we don't necessarily think that the OP is the 'best teacher' there is out there, based on the subjective language he/she used in the above topic,do we?

Teachers MUST reflect on their teaching methodology, regardless of their student population. If you, for even a moment think that you can't access any of your learners, then you're in for a rough ride in your teaching career.

[Africanteacher]

Actually, i had a student very similar to this, I made sure he was involved in every lesson, gave him the homework to distrbute and used him as the ( whiteboard writer), Had him wipe the ( windows10 screens) and used him as a demonstration model when i was teaching body parts and/ or names of clothing....It worked brilliantly. Children are empty vessels that need to be filled with knowledge and there are many ways to achieve that goal. Sometimes it may be left side or out of the box, but so what ?, use what works

As an ex-chalkie myself (from the days when we still used real chalk) I used a similar technique. Many kids are attention seekers, some seek it by being "good" others by being "bad". Teachers want to be "fair" and resent giving unwarranted attention to the "bad" kids but if you give those kids the extra attention they seek you can often redirect their behaviour in a more positive direction.

Instead of yelling at the kid or throwing them out of class and shunning them the rest of the time I used to try an engage them in friendly personal conversation outside the classroom. In many cases they would then begin to feel they had a special relationship which they did not want to jeopardize in the classroom and their behaviour in the classroom would change dramatically.

[Africanteacher]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

You really should look at yourself OP. Blaming students means you're not facing reality....that in all likelihood you probably suck as a teacher.

I tend to agree with aircooledflat4, above. It might be objective to accommodate this young girl's educational needs and reflect on your methodology. From your description, one may deduct that she is trying to reach out to you for help, because she might not be accessing learning, based on your teaching method. Reflect.

OMG - these two apologists for bad conduct are a large part of the poor attitudes of young people. They try to deflect responsibility for a bad student behaviour to the teacher. It seems they are totally ignorant of the fact that the Thai system will not allow a student to fail a class. THAT is the problem, not the teacher. Morons!

You clearly never taught elsewhere other than Thailand.

Having taught in Europe and America, and I can assure you that Thai students are relatively better. Pretty harmless too, if I may add!

[aboctok]

Man, this is a pitiless crowd here today!

Heyyy... how did I end up here?! There I was, in Google, checking the spelling of sanctimoanious. Next thing I know...

[Scott]

I don't spend much time in the classroom teaching due to other responsibilities, but I do know that most teachers have a student or two that annoy them to no end.

At one school, the teacher's office is across from a classroom and one of the teachers is about to lose his mind because of one of the students who spends pretty much all day with her finger in her nose, picking away and then eating them. His desk is positioned so that she is directly in his line of vision. From an educational point of view, she is quite a good student and she speaks English quite well. It's just the nose-mining that is a bit off-putting.

[lostinisaan]

I don't spend much time in the classroom teaching due to other responsibilities, but I do know that most teachers have a student or two that annoy them to no end.

At one school, the teacher's office is across from a classroom and one of the teachers is about to lose his mind because of one of the students who spends pretty much all day with her finger in her nose, picking away and then eating them. His desk is positioned so that she is directly in his line of vision. From an educational point of view, she is quite a good student and she speaks English quite well. It's just the nose-mining that is a bit off-putting.

I'd make a little movie, then show it to all her friends and others.

I hope she covers her mouth, when she cleans her teeth.....

[Scott]

I am not particularly annoyed by it, but a colleague is totally grossed out by it. She's been asked not to, but since nose picking is a national pastime, it sort of falls on dead ears.