Teachers are meant to impart knowledge to the next generation, but they have to get the kids to pay attention first.
Not an easy task.
So many, too many schools are plagued by kids who have no self-control.
Teachers end up playing referee, counselor, and parent in addition to their teaching role.
All of those additional hats don't come with any additional pay.
It's no wonder we're in a teacher shortage.
Redditor _Planet_Mars_ wanted the teachers out there to share some rough student stories, so they asked:
"Teachers, what is the worst thing you've seen a student do?"
I once saw a kid drive their car into the school office.
They were drunk.
Thankfully no one was injured.
POP!
"The was a loud pop and a flash in the back corner of the classroom. I asked the student sitting there what happened. She said it was firecrackers. I sent her to the office. While she was still in the office, I realized the electrical outlets in the room didn’t work. At that point, another student fessed up that the student sent to the office had put a pair of scissors in the outlet. I’m not sure why that student thought it was better to lie and claim she was doing fireworks inside the school?"
mynamelessname
Pain
"When I was teaching preschool, I had a little girl, between 3-4, walk up to another girl who was sitting on the rug reading a book, grab her by the hair and slam her head into the wall. They hadn’t been interacting in any way prior. When I asked her why she did it, she said she 'wanted her to know it hurts.'"
No-Doubt-8748
That Kid
"A different type of bad than most of these."
"I was a teacher at a poor inner-city school. I had a lot of wonderful students but some difficult ones. One was the worst — bright but was always sleeping through class and acting up and never doing homework. I lived about 30 minutes away. One night, I stopped by the local Wawa after a night out with friends. Was at least 11:30 pm and I was already dreading the early morning drive to school. And who should be checking me out but my own 'problem' student."
"He was working late to make money for his family and then getting home at 1:00 am or later before heading into school on 4-5 hours of sleep. He was a smart kid. Really smart. I hope things worked out for him but I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if he’d been allowed to have a childhood and focus on his education."
Low_Cartographer2944
Blame the Heat
Sweating James Mcavoy GIFGiphy"It gets very hot here in the warmer months and so the school put out those big containers for water for everyone. Well, one student was caught peeing into a bag and dumping it into the containers."
huzzahserrah
Some kids really need some deeper therapy.
Peeing in bags? Seriously?!
From Beneath
"My wife is an elementary teacher and has a kid this year that likes to slip under their desk and lick toes (we live in a warm state) and they all think he will grow up to be a creeper."
CherryManhattan
BOOM
"This was the worst thing I know of that happened at my high school."
"Someone brought a blasting cap to school (OK, that's a bit dumb), and flushed it down the toilet (that's REALLY dumb). Then told a teacher about it, because maybe it wasn't such a good idea (their best idea that day, really)."
"Wound up with that restroom being taken out of service while the fire department x-rayed the plumbing to find and remove the (admittedly tiny) explosive. Took several weeks before it was back in service."
gogstars
Sad
"My favorite teacher in high school was a very kind a lenient man. Do your work, be respectful, and follow the major school rules and you and him would be cool. The one thing that would seem minor, but that he was very strict about was taking any medication in any way shape, or form in his classroom."
"One day, I needed to take some Advil for cramps and asked to take it. He said I needed to go to the nurse for permission. I ended up asking him why he was so strict about it. it turns out, he had a student pass out in class one day at his former school. He tried to wake her up and called the nurse, but she wouldn't wake up. They called 911 and by the time they got there, she had died of an OD on narcotics she took in the bathroom that she had hidden in a Tylenol bottle. I don't know how he went back to teaching after that."
musical-nerd24601
Painful
Moving Season 2 GIF by Paramount+Giphy"Saw a 4-year-old purposely push a piece of furniture over onto another 4-year-old at preschool. It actually really hurt the other kid, and her parents took the school to court."
MPD1987
Kids are brutal.
No wonder people home school.
"What did a teacher do that made you automatically gain respect for them?"
Words Of Affirmation
"I went to a small charter school for middle school."
"Our English/literature teacher was brand new to teaching."
"If I remember correctly she was only 22 which seemed old at the time."
"She always did her best to be so cheerful and make learning fun."
"But the thing that truly solidified her spot as my favorite teacher was that for every student’s birthday she would give you a personalized mini notebook."
"It was just a simple small composition notebook but she had filled the first couple pages telling me how much she loved having me as a student, how far she knew I would go, and other affirmations."
"It seems small but as a 13 year old who had a crappy home life it made all the difference in how I acted the rest of the year."- Voiceisaweapon
Studying University Of Colorado GIF by CU OnlineGiphyTeaching Is A Calling
"I had a teacher in elementary school who was prone to outbursts."
"He had a short fuse, at least compared to every other adult I knew at the time."
"For instance, when several of us in class weren't listening he'd throw a piece of chalk against the wall to get our attention."
"Honestly, we just thought he was crazy."
"A year or maybe two years later, the school had a talent show."
"Like a big one, in the gym, in front of everyone."
"One my classmates was really into music and wanted to play a drum solo."
"Our teacher had mentioned off-hand that he used to be in a band and played drums, so my classmate asked him, sort of dared, like kids often do with adults, to play a solo in front of the school."
"And he did."
"He f*cking rocked it."
"But that's not what made me respect him."
"Turns out the band he played for was a very successful, and at the time quite popular rock band."
"He left just before they became popular, because he wanted to be a teacher."
"He chose teaching kids over the chance at fame and fortune, and didn't regret it."
"Decided to look him up and he's still a teacher, and doing very well."
"Made me smile."- dasoberirishman
Drumming Music Video GIF by Simple PlanGiphyA Little Compassion Goes A Long Way
"When I was in the 1st grade my mother gave me one of MANY really awful haircuts."
"The first day back at school afterward the kids picked on me horribly."
"So much that I ran out and hid."
"The principal found me and we went back to the classroom and he asked me to wait outside for a minute while he talked to the class."
"He then walked me to his office and bought me a Coke."
"The next day, first thing in the morning, we had an assembly with the entire school and he walked up on stage with his head shaved completely bald and talked about bullying and the like."
"Some twenty years down the road he had retired and I ran into him at the local college."
"Shook his hand and said, 'you probably don't remember me, but-'"
"'Yes I do', he interrupted and said my name and the event."
"The man was and is a hero in my eyes."- hopgeek
Their Door Is Always Open
"I want to shout out this teacher of mine."
"She was our AP English Language teacher for our senior year of high school."
"On one of the first days in her class, she explained how she went from being a kindergarten teacher to a high school senior teacher."
"She always saw off her cute and happy kindergarten kids, but as they grew up and they came back to visit her, a lot of them came to her troubled and dissatisfied with their lives."
"It made her real emotional about how people had treated these kids she loved so much, how she couldn't afford to see kids so disconnected with life, and how she didn't want them to suffer as they headed out towards college and their adult lives."
"So she changed curriculums and started teaching seniors."
"If I remember right, it always came down to sending her kids off with a smile, prepping them for the real world."
"I respect the hell out of her and she'll always be one of my favorites."
"Truly like a mother to all her students."- NuluProton
Teachers Day Hug GIF by Teach StemGiphyHelping Their Students In Each And Every Way
"My 4th grade teacher would have a 'classroom yard sale' every year after she did her annual Spring cleaning."
"Her daughter was about 13, so the things she'd recently outgrown would be age-appropriate for us."
"I'm aware this wouldn't work out every year, and I'm not sure how long she taught at our school but she told us it was a regular thing."
"We didn't have to pay for them."
"If we needed or wanted something, we could have it."
"There was some sort of lesson incorporated into the yard sale."
"How to trade or value money or something like that, so we didn't feel embarrassed if we needed a few more things than the other kids did."
"I wish I could remember exactly how it worked, but this happened in 1994."
"She was an all-around great teacher."
"Thanks, Miss Ferrell, whose name I've probably misspelled."
"Your class was fun."- NeedsMoreTuba
A truly great teacher doesn't just teach you facts from a textbook.
A truly great teacher is one who likes to listen more than they like to talk.
By doing so, they learn more about their students.
As they continue to learn, their strengths as a teacher grow even stronger, and they, in turn, help students learn more about themselves.
Who was a teacher who impacted your life? Let us know in the comments.
