Can I Rebuild that Bridge?

Just two days ago, I made a terrible teacher mistake that I have regretted every minute since I realized that it was the worst thing to do in that situation. My students were unusually rowdy during class, talking and fidgeting. There were marvelous moments during the lesson when they were truly engaged and asked brilliant questions that I was thrilled to explain. But I was ready to collapse after our hour and a half was up, because I was exhausted from telling students to quiet down and free their hands to eliminate distractions. So I ended class by letting them know how disappointed I was in their inattentiveness, specifically one student whom I pointed out by name. He immediately looked at me with helpless eyes, tried to explain that he was telling his peers to stop distracting him, and then sunk his head down like a dog hides his tail in shame.

Indeed, humiliating students is the WORST thing a teacher can do to discipline them. This situation was particularly harmful because the student was struggling with incredibly low self-esteem already. I rebuked myself afterward because this was the very student that I was desperately hoping to break through to, and now I feel that I have undoubtedly lost his respect. He would not even look me in the eyes after class as I personally apologized for putting him on the spot when all the other students had left. The daunting question tugs at my heart: will I ever be able to rebuild that bridge?

I pray that I would never repeat this mistake and that some good would still come out of it. I share this personal flaw because it reaffirms the fact that humiliating students is not only inappropriate and ineffective, but it hinders a child’s ability to learn in a safe environment and is harmful to their sense of self-worth. It communicates to the student, and worse, to their peers, that they in particular have ultimately failed to meet your standards – when in reality, it is I, the teacher, who have failed my student.