True Story
A teacher reflects on a student's bad behavior and successfully defuses himself and the student. Yes, it's a true story, but I've changed it a bit to protect the innocent. Which isn't all that big a deal because the teacher in this story did a really good job of using his Reflective Function. (If you don't know what RF is, click here.) And it's a story that will sound familiar to many, many teachers.
So here it is:
Mr. Krieger redesigned his 11th grade English class to incorporate technology more effectively. He was a little nervous when he made his first homework assignment using an online bulletin board, as he wasn't sure how it would work for him or for his students. But he was downright shocked when one of his students emailed him at 11 p.m. with the following message:
"I don't get this, it's stupid and I don't like it, I'm not going to do it."
Aside from the flagrant comma splices, Mr. Krieger was incensed by the student's arrogant, presumptuous tone. How dare she tell Mr. Krieger what she would and would not do? How dare she call Mr. Krieger "stupid"?!? And at 11 o'clock at night!!
Mr. Krieger hit "Reply" with shaking fingers. He would tell his student what for! He would put a stop to this outrageous behavior! His student wouldn't know what hit her!
Then Mr. Krieger paused. He sat back in his chair and wondered. Why would a student write something so clearly insubordinate? Why would this particular student, who was a nice kid and a hard worker, write something so thoughtless and damaging?
As Mr. Krieger reported it to me, it was at this moment that he heard a voice calling out to him, a voice that floated to him from weeks of work in a Teacher Support Group:
"Where's the anxiety, Mr. Krieger? Where's the anxiety?"
"Oh," Mr. Krieger said to himself. "The anxiety is in the student."
Where might the anxiety be coming from? he wondered. It wasn't hard to make some good guesses.
"I bet the student, like me, is unfamiliar with the technology and isn't sure how to use it properly. Because she is a good student, someone who likes to do things right, AND because it's late at night and she's tired and frustrated, she's gone a little out of her mind. This email seems to be more about expressing frustration than criticizing me. (And, now that I read the email more carefully and calmly, she called the assignment stupid, not me.) In fact, she's done a super job of implanting her feelings in me. Very efficient, considering she only used 17 words to do it. Now THAT'S good writing!"
Just between you and me: This is Mr. Krieger mentalizing, or utilizing his Reflective Function. He's imagining what's going on emotionally inside his student and connecting his student's state of mind with her behavior. Mr. Krieger is also noticing his own emotions and how intimately they are related to his student's. As an added bonus, Mr. Krieger is able to step away, to detach, and commend his student on a job well done. This last move is very healing, as it allows Mr. Krieger to chuckle, which releases his rage and activates his fondness for this suffering, anxious student.
Having used RF, Mr. Krieger responded to his student. He made a conscious choice to avoid the content of the message -- he did not combat the student's assessment of "stupid," for example; he did not deride the student for making an inappropriate unilateral decision or for being so inconsiderate as to email her teacher close to midnight -- and directly addressed the anxiety. Here's what he wrote:
"Not to worry. The technology is new to all of us. We'll figure it out tomorrow. Thanks for trying so hard! And get some sleep!"
Note that Mr. Krieger did not model mentalizing for his student by talking out loud in front of her. He simply did the work (what I call "emotion work") on his own. Doing emotion work led to a sense of understanding and some good guesses which led to an email that conveyed compassion, reassurance, and a plan of action. This behind-the-scenes modeling of Reflective Function took very little time and effort. And it worked.
Immediately, Mr. Krieger received this note from his student:
"Phew! Thanks, Mr. K. I was about to throw my computer out the window. See you tomorrow."
A job well done, indeed. True story.
Do you have stories about your teaching? Stories that show you using your Reflective Function well? Stories that continue to mystify you, that you'd like to figure out but don't know how? I would love to hear them. And I'd love to post them. Leave a comment with your story in it and be sure to tell me if I may post the story (or not) and if you would like a private reply from me that might nudge you along in your RFing. Confidentiality guaranteed!