justplainbil

Just Plain Bill

Observations of a Substitute Teacher XI

Queue

One thing that hasn’t changed a bit in schools over the years is young students lining up and moving from one location to another in some sort of line. This became especially evident the other day when I observed six classes moving from one location to another on my campus.

During this movement by more than 150 youngsters, ranging in age from five to ten, they were accompanied by strident commands such as “stay in line”, “stop talking”, “slow down”, and “keep your hands to yourself.”

As my students were relatively “under control” as we moved from our classroom to the lunchroom, it struck me that this movement was very similar to the movement of my charges when working as a probation officer in a juvenile facility during my college days.

Accompanying this flash of memory was the question asked by one student, “Mr. Bill, why do we always have to stay in line?” After pondering this common question, I must admit I couldn’t provide an answer that would make sense to my charges, or to me for that matter. 

Of course excessive noise is the most common reason, but other than that, I couldn’t think of an answer that would stand the test of debate.

Throughout my four decades of teaching children of all ages, I’ve never found a response to my student’s question that is based on educational theory, children’s natural tendencies, or pedagogical principle.

What do you think?