Jail or Class

I was asked to help out in a high school classroom with a regular Algebra teacher. The kids talked across the room to one another while the teacher was trying to conduct the class. The teacher had to call security to remove two students. Three or four students slept. One girl yelled at the teacher. There were about five students who actually followed teacher’s explanations and worked out problems on the board and at their desks.

I was shocked! I thought this kind of disrespect only happened to substitute teachers.

I saw some of these kids later in a special education class for which I subbed. I found out that some kids were in trouble with the law and would go to jail if they didn’t go to school. That is why they were so concerned about being marked present on the roll sheet.

During study hall the students were supposed to be working on lessons from other classes. When I gave a pass to one student so he could get his work from another class, I was told by other students that I shouldn’t have done that. They said the errant student would not return to class.

I didn’t know the student’s name! I had really messed up this time. So I asked some of the other students his name. No one knew it! So I decided to take roll again to figure out who was missing. Well, you could have heard a pin drop when I said, “I am calling roll again.”

I called names until I got to the missing one. His name was Patrick. Other students became alarmed when I stopped calling names. “Hey, Sub! You didn’t call my name,” was heard en chorus.
“I found the person I was looking for. The one who is missing,” I replied.

In less than a minute I heard someone say, “Patrick.” Then I heard some barely audible talking and pretty soon Patrick came bursting into the room. “You marked me absent?” he inquired. I couldn’t figure out what was happening right away. Then it dawned on me. Someone had called Patrick on a cell and told him to get back to class!

So much for not knowing the name of the student who left class.