Sucker-punched - Day One

I've had all types of jobs, but I think teaching is the only one that has had the ability to sucker punch me so hard that I am nearly paralyzed and can't breathe. It comes out of the blue. Teaching takes so much energy that some days, if I don't put it in cruise at 75, I cannot do it at all. The organization of it all, the attention to the needs of so many, you just have to put it into high gear and do as much as you can. This is exhilarating and enjoyable, until you collide with a force outside of the classroom. Then it truly does feel like you have just been through the shock and trauma of a car accident. It's debilitating.

I'm not saying that some of these occasions aren't warranted and necessary, but most of these occasions have stemmed from what I perceive to be a slightly out-of-control "kids first" movement, a movement that has put power in the hands of the kids via parents, administrators, special education teachers, and even by teachers who have learned to acquiesce to popular policies around behavior and grading, just to avoid trouble. Some occasions that have brought this traumatic response on in me and my colleagues: 

• Having the principal take a complaint from a parent about us. This is the toughest one for the teachers I know, male and female, experienced, but especially inexperienced.  These complaints are usually something along the lines of a student feeling disrespected, a student disagreeing with a bathroom policy, a technology policy, a student feeling picked on due to race, sexuality, not being a "favorite." Sometimes it's a grade and the parent is questioning why you are grading so hard. I've had a parent tell me "We sent him here for baseball, Sheila." Another threatened to remove their son from the school if he wasn't getting a good grade by the end of the trimester. Most have been told in the past that Johnny is a genius, so clearly the problem lies with the teacher. Each of these complaints can leave you feeling helpless, even bullied. Was it NCLB that turned the tables on teachers to make sure not one student, regardless of background, history, behavior, home life, race, sexuality, creed would ever slip through the cracks? Saying that that is impossible feels like a guilty pleasure because no way would we be caught dead admitting that we can't really do it. The principal getting the call is not getting calls about the passive teacher who avoids conflict and gives As. No. S/he is getting calls about teachers actually trying to reach kids, and maybe making well-intended mistakes along the way. As a principal, it would be so much easier to lead a school full of teachers who play it safe. The risk-takers are T-R-O-U-B-L-E. But I wonder if they aren't the best and most influential teachers at the end of the day.
• Taking a terse remark from a colleague or administrator. It just feels like it takes a lot of energy to do the job in the first place, and nothing sucks the wind out of your day like criticism or the complaint of a colleague. 

Today's incident was particularly rough just because of the timing. When August 1st rolls around, I get excited about school. Ive usually read books on education over summer so August sees me setting up my classroom and changing my lesson plans to reflect my newest ideas. I get my debate and Model UN team started. We meet to get the ball rolling for the season which starts in September. This year I am honestly gunning for a leadership award with MIFA for my work in trying to get the SW side of the state up and flourishing with Public Forum teams. So when they called me to say they would like Gull Lake to host the camp due to our strong participation, I was excited and flattered.  

I contacted my principal to request the rooms, acknowledging that I had checked the school calendar to see what was happening in the building that day and noticed we had freshman orientation. This takes place largely in the cafeteria as I well know given that I'm always present to help at orientations for the purpose of recruiting members for debate and MUN, but students will walk around and look at the hallways and such. I received a peeved email response from my principal asking if I'd said yes before asking him and that he did not like the idea of having this camp in the building the day of orientation. Sucker punched. 

I'm sure it's me, and he has helped me sneak things by in the past due to my assumptions about what I should be able to do for kids. But damn, rough start!