That time of year...

Staff morale is at an all-time low since I've started at Eisenhower...lots of grumbling...lots of the time...with very little affirmation of positive attitudes going into our last couple of weeks, here, for the year...

The teachers are tired of nasty attitudes from kids...which are frequent...and on days like today seem more frequent than more decent attitudes from kids...this is why they say middle school is such a critical time for kids, I suppose...because this is a period that is more challenging, developmentally, for teachers to deal with -- kids transitioning from being responsible for very little on their own to greater independence and maturity...but being little shitheads along the way, frankly -- and it's just an overwhelming time...

I usually have one of the stronger attitudes...

But today and this last week I've been dealing with both poor student attitudes and poor teacher attitudes...and it's just been a little overwhelming, lately, frankly...

And until both students and teachers see it...I'm kind of stuck in between...I'm generally the go-between...but I've definitely been taken for granted lately...and the kids are catching the brunt of the consequence of my shittier attitude, today, from taking me for granted on that one...

One of the tough things about dealing with kids is that they are, generally, satisfied by nothing, expect the world, and often have the most galling sense of entitlement to not have to do anything while they demand everything...I imagine this is particularly true in an inner city school where so many families live with a greater sense of entitlement, generally...

But it's just really wearing on me, lately...

I'm definitely reconsidering my career, right now...

But it's not just the kids...it's the district...and other teachers...and the Feds...and everyone who has a demand on my time and energy...

I just don't understand why people would stay with this work with this attitude of entitlement and demanding without concern for real limits from everyone...

It's shitty like this for everyone, I'm sure...

I just don't understand why we have such a hard time understanding that this doesn't work as a way of dealing with one another...it makes more work for all of us...

And one thing I'm totally becoming clear about is that noone is ever satisfied with anything, when they operate like this...

Which makes it doubly overwhelming and discouraging...

It'd make a lot more sense to just chill out and not push each other so much...

But that would require thinking about someone else other than ourselves...

And that's the one we all struggle with so much...

Ben