How not to be a good teacher

Via Silver Rights I read about Brian Emanuels, a teacher who really needs some reschooling on how to teach people lessons.

The incident happened during a computer class May 2. Several sources say the teacher became upset when a sophomore called an assignment "gay," sometimes used as a general derogatory term. The teacher, a white male, reportedly called the teen out into the hall and asked him how he'd like to be called a "n- - - - -."

Brenda Little, deputy general counsel for Seattle Public Schools, said the teacher then walked back into the classroom with the boy, saying to the class, " 'Well, I guess the n- - - - - can come back in.'

Personally, I disagree with Mac Diva's assesment that in this situation the word "gay" is not a slur. I detest the fact that the word "gay" has become a slang term that means "sucks". Every time I catch my little sister saying it, I call her on it, and she now calls her friends on it, too. In that context I think that term is actually an epithet. If I were a teacher, and I heard one of my students say that, I would call them on it, too.

However, I would definitely not use that "n-word" in doing so. And I feel the teacher's motives were especially revealed when he said "I guess the n--- can come in now". "How would you like it if someone called you a n-----" might be explainable (but still stupid) given what the student was saying, but the second time the teacher uses "the word" he showed nothing but contempt for the student in front of the entire class. This teacher, I feel, is stupid and bad with teenagers at best and racist at worst. Either way he shouldn't be a teacher.

This teacher, I think, turned what could have been an excellent moment to open the classroom to a discussion on tolerance of diversity (or lack thereof) in our pop culture and turned it into just another display of our lack of tolerance. Not exactly the best example to set for a bunch of kids.

Note: this post appeared in its original form as an email to Mac Diva.