Fighting Classroom Boredom

[Editor's note: Ms. Socrates is a first-year 10th-grade science teacher in a school in Brooklyn. She blogs at Teacher's Diary where this post originally appeared.]

It is a frequent occurrence in many 10th-grade classrooms: A lesson is underway, when suddenly, from the back of the room, comes the exclamation that no teacher wants to hear: “Miss, your class is so boring!”

Midway through my first year of teaching, I’ve been really getting into improving as a teacher. I’m excited about trying out new techniques and receiving criticism on my teaching. I have learned to detach myself much more from the day-to-day incidents and distractions in the classroom. However, no teacher likes to be told his class is boring, especially not one who is consciously trying to be the best teacher possible. As a first-year teacher, I know I could be more engaging at times, but hey, at least I’m giving it my all!

Since the beginning of the school year, I have dealt handily with comments about my breath, my hair and even my handwriting, never batting an eyelash. But for some reason, the boredom comments always throw me — either into rage or despair.

Fortunately, in my weekly “Fellow Blast,” I found the following advice from another Teaching Fellow:

“I’ve learned not to take it personally when I hear my students say, “This is so boring!” Instead, I try to figure out why the student is reporting feeling bored.

Often, “this is boring” means, “I am so confused.” It also may mean, “I need some attention right now. “ Instead of feeling offended, I’ve learned to realize that the student declaring boredom is really saying that she needs some help. If the student were uninterested, she wouldn’t have called attention to herself and to the lesson.

If boredom isn’t truly the problem, then we shouldn’t treat it as such. I direct the student to the task at hand, and explain the teaching point in another way. Sometimes I model part of the task for the student, guide her through the next portion of the task, then say, “Great, you’re ready to do the rest yourself.” The student who previously declared boredom will often be more likely to share at the end of the lesson, because she has gained confidence.”

Using this as fodder to better my own practices, I let a comment on how boring my class was roll off my back. I did not confront the student, as I often had in the past. However, the following day, I found the student during lunch and asked her to sit with me for a while. We chatted a bit and I brought up her comment from the previous day. Immediately, she admitted that she did not understand the material, and was further frustrated because she had encountered this material before. She agreed that she should come for extra help and was more engaged in class today, although I still have not totally won her over.

But how to approach students also depends on each one’s unique personality. Another student of mine is constantly complaining about my class, especially the current topic of geology. He is a funny kid, with a witty sense of humor, so I chose to make use of this trait. I started off our conversation, mock crying, “You really hurt my feelings yesterday.” Continuing in this sarcastic manner, we discussed how he loves astronomy, and I was quick to point out that studying other planets’ composition was just like studying rocks here on Earth and that we can better understand other planets by better understanding our own planet. My AP joined in and together we cornered him, concluding that, in fact, he loves rocks!

Miraculously, the next day he participated non-stop, while also making off-hand comments about how he does not like rocks. It was clear that my rapport with him had improved and he was feeling less bored in class. He even came up at the end of the period to apologize to me for making too many jokes in class. I can’t wait to see how he is during the astronomy unit!

I am slowly learning that, yes, I must make the classroom engaging, but I also have to accept that not all students are going to understand, regardless of how exciting the presentation. And when students don’t understand, they react in different ways. They may shut down, or they may express their frustration by lashing out at those around them. Rather than getting offended, I have to use these clues to reach out to those students and help them connect with the material. They could feel the excitement of science, if only they could understand the basics I’m trying to teach them.

Tagged: Brooklyn, science

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