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Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Hands Off
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In yesterday’s post about sleepers, Robert wrote: “As a teacher, I am not allowed to touch the students. So I cannot even tap them on their shoulder to wake them.”
I’ve heard teachers lament about this before. Some say they cannot hug a child, even a first- or second-grader. It’s against policy. Others say they don’t dare place a hand on a student because of fear of being accused of inappropriate conduct.
At a workshop for new teachers I attended recently, the leader advised teachers to ask a child if it’s okay to pat him on the back. Some children would be intimidated, she said.
Teachers are expected to give kids what they need so they can do well in school. Is it possible to accomplish that if teachers can’t even tap the child on the shoulder?
