Adult Learners, Problem Children, and Your Role as an Educator
by Valerie DeFrance, EMS Educator
Problem Child, Part Five of Five Dealing with Disruptive Behaviors
This series has been a five-month examination of
general information about adult learners, potential
causes for disruptive behavior, and solutions and
techniques for dealing with them. The focus on
disruptive behavior exhibited in the classroom in this
series has been limited to a behavioral sense. Problems
caused by learning disabilities, disorganized study
habits, and like issues are not addressed.
Two more problem children: "Take advantage" students and cheaters
Students who take advantageSadly, many times a predicament with this type of student manifests itself after the educator has committed the error of making, or appearing to have made, a friend of a student or students. It is generally unwise to go out for dinner and a few beers after class with any students. In some of the most serious cases, after-hours consorting with a student, especially of the opposite sex, can reap problems serious enough that you have to remove the student or yourself from the course.
Other students may try to take advantage because they were once EMTs and lost certification, having to repeat the entire course. These previously trained students may start out as a Take Advantage student and when that fails, progress to a closet or full-blown Sharpshooter, or overtly display other hostile behaviors.
Both Sharpshooters and Take Advantage students feel they have a special place in class, because you are now "buddies," or because they already know all this "stuff." They may see themselves as your equal and begin to be tardy, miss classes, or not turn in assignments and complete tasks. They may adopt a superior, highly annoying attitude with fellow students. Once you make it clear that they are not special and must meet all the requirements as any other student, they can become sullen and resentful, and feel betrayed or unappreciated. They may attempt to sabotage your instruction behind your back or undermine you out in the open.
You cannot be the students' friend. Friends do not give assignments, grade papers, or mete out discipline. Never date a student or allow the appearance that you are dating. Not only is dating a student frowned upon but it also may be grounds for your dismissal or a harassment suit. Save the dinner, beer, and dates for after they have passed the certification exams and are no longer your students.
In all cases you can expect them to be, at the very least, disgruntled throughout the course. Unless it is disruptive, ignore it. You can try to deflect some of the more serious negative behaviors that result after clarifying their role.
If your mistake of making, or appearing to have made, a buddy (or a suitor) of them caused the problem, swallow your pride and apologize for any misunderstandings or for inadvertently misleading them to believe they had a different role from the rest of the students.
If this is generated from a student with former EMT training, you still need to clarify your expectations and their role, and enforce the rules. It does not make things better by making them into a Helper or assigning them any position of authority, and it may worsen the attitude and repercussions.
Cheating students
This one is simple enough. Not tolerated, ever. You catch them and they are out of the course. While cheating only affects the students if they suspect or know another student is cheating, cheating or suspicions of cheating distracts us and reduces our instructional effectiveness. So what about those you (and possibly the students) suspect may be cheating, or those students who did not view it as cheating?
Unfortunately, sometimes students don't always agree with you as to what is considered cheating. This may include those who obtain a commercial test bank because they know it's the one you use to generate exams. Is this really cheating or is it just capitalizing on an opportunity to get great scores? If you suspect this has happened and feel it is cheating, cease using test banks and write exams. If you must use a test bank because the educational institution requires that you do so to ensure consistency in the courses, can you supplement the questions, perhaps with scenario-based questions? Can you use other methods to quantifiably measure knowledge?
If you suspect outright cheating, use sharp, consistent observation to root it out. Know past and current methods employed against cheating, such as the pyramid configuration, and how to deal with it. It probably goes without saying that clear, factual, and compelling documentation is a must.
If you have students use practice and check-off skill records before a final check of skills by you, alter groups frequently and hold groups accountable for their own learning. This may also help to deter the temptation to cheat or thwart a group you suspect of cheating during skill practice check-off. Fortunately, in this particular education we get to employ more than just written scores in grading our students; they also must adequately perform skills for you and pass an independent test for certification.
Be very careful and sure of your information and facts before confronting a student about cheating. If you are wrong, you still destroy trust and respect, perhaps of the entire class. The consequences of prematurely or falsely accusing a student of cheating can be devastating or perhaps put you in a courtroom.
A word about the soft core and hard core "here is how we did it" students
"Here is how we did it!" Hearing that too much from students? Thank them for the input. Explain that there is more than one way to skin a cat and that each service may have developed its own methods. Remind them of the current skill or knowledge that must be exhibited to complete this course.
To be firmer, say, "This is how we do it here and now and will do in this class for successful completion of the course. Confer with me before sharing your in depth or previous knowledge as it may confuse the other students." (Keep an eye and ear on them, though; they may have a few good ideas!)
A word about the overtly displayed "two students in love"
For those who are obviously in love: Bluntly tell them (verbally and in writing) that disruptive or disturbing behavior will stop now. If they cannot behave in a professional manner in class, it will be reflected on their affective form. If it continues, they can be dismissed from the course. You may also choose to assign seats, with them seated across the room from each other; however, other students may view this as punishment for no crime on their part. (Then again, peer pressure is a beautiful thing, almost as beautiful as love.)
A few favorite lines from fellow instructors
This one speaks to us, the educator; and yes, it does take time and experience to learn to deal with problem children:
"…a good instructor can lead the discussion in the directions that they intended in the first place or if need be bring it back on track should it stray. Both are learned instructional skills and are mastered by a few instructors that I've had the pleasure of teaching me. When I teach instructor candidates I try to tell them to let students with knowledge, skills, and abilities beyond that of the class average to become an asset rather then a hindrance; the trick is in the balance."This one shows the importance of swiftly correcting even minor problems and the lack of respect you may be garnering with unfair treatment if you do not:
"In some cases I blame teachers and instructors for allowing disruptive behavior. I recently completed Comp and Lit 1 in college and could not believe how some of the students carried on. One guy, about 18 years old, sat and had his Walkman on every class and the professor never said anything. The guy actually passed the class. Me, I had to struggle just to get a B+. Go figure."Some problems are just plain hard to combat:
"Have you been teaching at my fire hall?! I, too, have the same problems with our students. At times I feel like I'm trying to teach a kindergarten class. Maybe if I give them crayons and finger paint to use they might be happy. My problem is that we work at a location that has calls that are few and far between. When I try to conduct training I get the response, "Why do we need this training? We never do this stuff." I think what we need is a wake-up call, very serious in nature, to jolt my people back to reality that we are a real fire department and training is important."Start off how you mean to go on, and back it up:
"… be very clear, very specific, and very comfortable with yourself in that when you set the ground rules you have to not only mean them, but say them in a way that conveys openness and at the same time conveys a firm limit... know yourself well enough to know that you can back up what you say and what I call "contain" the room… try not to take it personally, although even I sometimes become irritated by individuals who do what I call, "sucking the air out of a room."In our dreams:
"Here in Texas we simply arrest the disruptive students and execute them. Then if they want to appeal, we'll look at it to see if errors were made. We've never made a mistake yet."A word about the "what if'ers" (or as I call them, "whiffers")
Tom is applying for a job as a signalman for the local railroad and is told to meet the inspector at the signal box. The inspector decides to give Tom a pop quiz, asking, "What would you do if you realized that two trains were heading toward each other on the same track?" Tom says, "I would switch one train to another track." "What if the lever broke?" asks the inspector. "Then I'd run down to the tracks and use the manual lever there," answers Tom. "What if that had been struck by lightning?" challenges the inspector. "Then," Tom continued, "I'd run back up here and use the phone to call the next signal box." "What if the phone was busy?" "In that case," Tom argued, "I'd run to the street level and use the public phone near the station." "What if that had been vandalized?" "Oh well," said Tom, "in that case I would run into town and get my Uncle Leo." This puzzled the inspector, so he asked, "Why would you do that?" "Because he's never seen a train crash."
My thanks to the many instructors who sent in their thoughts, suggestions, examples, and solutions for this series. As long as we have each other, we can muddle through it all!