Youth in Adult Education

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

by Marie R. Paiz

Borrowing from Aretha Franklin, “Respect” is the way I have found to work with my GED students who are between the ages of 16 and 21. Respect for yourself and respect of others not only gives you control in the classroom but also allows you to build a student’s self-esteem and confidence.

When a young student comes to your class, they often have already been bounced around in the system and, for whatever reason, everyone believes this student will only finish school by obtaining their GED. So they may already have a chip on their shoulder and they don’t like the system or the instructors. Most of these students are intelligent and only need a bit of guidance and coaching to build up the self-esteem to take the GED and finish their studies. When I show the students in my class I have respect for the decisions they make, it shows I believe in them and I am going to allow them to succeed or make mistakes, the choice is theirs.

My classroom setting has both students aged 16-21 and the 25 to 60 age group. Therefore, trying to find a point of integration was hard at the beginning. Again, respect says it all. Your younger student needs to understand that they can show respect to the more mature student by being quiet in class, helping them understand a math concept, or even by showing them the difference between adjectives and adverbs. Because the younger students have not been out of school for very long they are able to help those who have been out for several years. In addition, the mature student not only has to respect the younger student who is in the class, but they also can help the young student by showing them different ideas and opinions. Not everyone thinks like the teens do, your younger student can get a different perspective on politics, current events and life in general when listening to the mature student.

When the students get a bit out of hand remind them they need to be respectful of the others in class. Not everyone can work on a test or an assignment with chattering taking place. Let them know if they must get the giggles out of their system to go outside. They can come back in later when they have more control over themselves. Advise them you will not allow them to disturb the entire class. That is disrespectful to everyone else who is trying to learn.

This lesson of respect will carry over into the real world. The employer they work for will not tolerate disrespect from an employee to himself or other employees. If you can show the younger student how to respect others they will get along with all the coworkers not just the young ones. This becomes a life long lesson.

When you conduct classroom discussions respect all of your students. Do not let just the mature students participate also let the younger students give their opinions. When you allow everyone in the classroom to share their ideas you show all the students the respect they deserve. By the same token, do not force everyone to participate in classroom discussions; not everyone is comfortable talking in front of other people. Respect the feelings for sharing they have.

One way I learn about my students occurs during the first class session. While they are waiting for others to finish an assignment, I ask them to write a small paragraph about themselves. I ask them to tell me why they are here and what are their strengths or their weaknesses. When I read these papers I get an understanding of why my students are here, young or mature, everyone is going to tell you something about themselves. Respect what they tell you. If they don’t like to read in class because they have poor reading skills, help them by finding other exercises for them to do while discretely improving their reading skills. Remember not to call on them in class. In the same light, if you find out a student likes to read in class and participate, call on him or her and let them help you lead discussions. Both of these situations could have led to the student not progressing in school as he or she was not shown respect for his or her character or abilities.

Earlier in the article I mentioned self-esteem as a by-product of showing respect to your younger students. When you show the student you respect their ideology and opinion they get a sense of pride, a sense of confidence. They do have some knowledge on a subject and they understand what is being taught. This sense of confidence will spill over into taking their GED; they will realize they are ready and they can pass and get on with their lives. You see this confidence time and time again and especially at graduation where they can show others the confidence they have gained.

Respect is a powerful tool in the classroom. Respect doesn’t just help the younger student but helps in the classroom situations where you have the younger and mature students together. There has to be a mutual respect for one another. Until the mutual respect is shown you are not able to carry on with your instruction. Respect not only lays the ground rules for classroom behavior but it instills a good work environment for the students. When you show respect for your students they will also show respect for you and what you are trying to accomplish.

With a little help from Aretha R-E-S-P-E-C-T yourself and others. It will make the classroom situation easier.

Marie Paiz received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Texas Lutheran University in May 2004. She teaches ABE/GED classes and computer basic classes for GED and ESL students for the Comal, Kendall, and Guadalupe Counties Co-op in Seguin, Texas.