The participants described the ways in which they reacted to not being able to get help or not understanding the work. These responses ranged from disengagement and ‘switching off,’ to active rebellion. Therese’s response was the most extreme. She described how when she perceived she was ignored and was unable to get help, she deliberately set out to give her teachers ‘grief’. At the time Therese thought it was fun but subsequently has regretted it.
I’d give them grief in class. I regret it now. I had a good time, it was a lot of fun, but I do regret it, (Therese, Interview, 2007).
When Therese was probed about this statement, she explained her response:
Because I felt if I wasn’t going to get listened to and if I didn’t understand what was going on, I might as well have some fun with it. If I’m going to ask a question and it’s going to get
disregarded, or if I don’t understand I’m going to entertain myself in another way. And it just so happened…to rebel,
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Therese then started missing classes and eventually was expelled from her school as reported earlier. It is an important story because it details the response of a student who starts off by not understanding the work, but then finds her requests for help are ignored or not answered in a way that helps her
understanding. So, initially there is disengagement and then disruptive behaviour and finally truancy. It is important to note that this was a student who was previously happy and successful in school. After her expulsion, Therese attended the local state secondary college which she hated. She discovered that unlike her previous school, no-one noticed if she wasn’t there and none of the teachers asked where she was. This had the effect of making Therese think that nobody cared and that she wasn’t worth bothering with. Therese then played truant frequently as a result of which she had to repeat Year 11 and
subsequently dropped out of school completely. The researcher’s impression was that there was a lot of regret and sadness expressed during the telling of her story.
Um, I hated school. [In reference to Therese’s second school] I wagged, a lot. And because of my attendance in the first year I had to repeat Year 11, which I did. But I just ended up dropping out and [thinking] they’re not going to chase me for my homework. I just had other things interesting me half the time, (Therese, Interview, 2007).
Annabelle also dealt with her science classes by totally opting out and playing truant from school. I discovered I wouldn’t get caught…teachers never told me, never said why you weren’t in class, (Annabelle, Interview, 2006).
As a result of this, Annabelle developed the perception that nobody cared about her or her progress. Therese’s comments on playing truant from school echo those of Annabelle. Both students felt that the teachers were not sufficiently interested in them to follow up on them. Both of these stories illustrate the importance of teachers following up on poor attendance or work not handed in. Both of these participants interpreted the fact that nobody checked on them as an indication that nobody cared about them or had any interest in their progress or their future. Truancy is going one step further than the statement by Xandra reported above where she felt that if she didn’t understand, she didn’t want to attend that class or even go to school.
Edward tried playing truant but was caught and in his words was in ‘real trouble’. Well, after a bit, I started skipping his classes but then I got into real trouble.
I had to go to class because they caught me but I was bored and sort of switched off from then and it was no fun, (Edward, Interview, 2006).
Edward dealt with his science classes by ‘switching off’, a similar technique to that employed by Bertha below. Bertha opted out in a different way. She said that because she didn’t understand and was given no help, she ‘blocked’ it. She then felt she could say it was because she didn’t try if she failed. (She did pass her school science but got a ‘D’ which she regarded as pretty close to a failure).
I was trying to understand it but I just couldn’t and maybe because I couldn’t understand it I just blocked everything else out. Like, I was going badly at it and I don’t like failing at it, so I just didn’t try, (Bertha, Interview, 2006).
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I don’t know. I guess because I blocked it out at least if I got the low grade I could say, oh well, I wasn’t paying attention and that’s why. Like, I wasn’t trying or something and that could be the reason why I got the low grade I guess, (Bertha).
Xandra’s description of how confused she felt in science makes it very clear why she disliked the subject. Her description of going blank is similar to Bertha’s description of ‘blocking’ everything.
You just go blank and you look at your book thinking, I don’t know what’s going on. You’ve read and read and read and it’s like you don’t understand anything of what you’re reading. It’s just, I think it’s just the way the teacher like comes in, explains everything does that, does that and then like the bell rings and seconds later the class is finished already. I used to be blank, (Xandra, Interview, 2007).
The researcher was impressed by the sheer grit and determination to succeed that was displayed by these participants. In spite of what was a very unpleasant experience for some of them in their school science, they have persevered and done well. What also came through was the level of disappointment with their school science and how miserable they were in their science classes. They started out keen and interested and were disappointed by the reality. For several of them, that keen interest has been revived in their science classes at TAFE. Annabelle was really traumatized by her science teacher and is still bothered by it. Her description of being ‘shut down’ by this teacher makes the extent of her experience with this teacher very clear.
And then of course being shut down like that by the teacher didn’t help. Especially that woman: I’d start looking for a job now if I was you. I still cannot get over it. I cannot get over the pressure that’s put on young kids to know. Like she was just if you don’t do well in year 12 you can go and work in a factory for the rest of your life. The entry score was everything to her and she just didn’t want to know about you. And then I asked her for a reference and she just said no. I really would like to see her today and tell her what I’ve done with myself since Year 12 because she just wrote me off for nothing pretty much, (Annabelle, Interview, 2006).
As a result, of the statements made by this teacher, Annabelle developed the perception that she was not valued or respected. The teacher thought so little of her that she would not even give her a reference and nobody cared whether she attended school or not. This was quite devastating for
Annabelle, who blamed herself for her poor progress in science. Annabelle states that she loved science in Year 7 and that it was fun. She then says that she ‘sort of lost it’. However Annabelle is an able student. She successfully completed Year 12, in spite of playing truant from school and the suggestion that she should leave school early and get a job and is doing well in her TAFE course. There is also her statement about enjoying science in Year 7. This story raises questions about what happened with the change of teachers from Year 7 to Year 8. An important consideration in Annabelle’s story is the lost potential achievement of this student had she not been so traumatized by this particular teacher. The comments cited above show how important it is for students to feel safe not just physically but also emotionally for optimal development of confidence. They also show how important it is for students to feel they are a valued and respected member of their class at school. The other point that is very clear from the interview transcripts is the importance of a student feeling that they can ask about areas that they don’t understand without feeling intimidated or fearful of being humiliated in front of their peers. Constance made it clear that this was a real problem area for her. In reference to her TAFE teacher offering help at her first lesson Constance said:
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Like, in high school you don’t feel you can go to the teacher as easily and ask for help, but having someone offer it is a lot easier, (Constance, Interview 2006).