"Little Angels Of The Silences"

So I had to chew out a student again this morning. Same one I chewed out Sunday night, actually. He came in for his tutoring session with me this morning, and he hadn't done any of the reading (which is sorta normal for this guy, but I digress). Anyway, I got really pissed off (because I told him Sunday to come prepared or not to come at all) and told him I wasn't going to tutor him, so he might as well just leave. He did so like a puppy with its tail tucked between its legs. It just frustrates me to see this guy show up and expect me to just tell him everything he needs to know, to do all his thinking for him. As an educator (or someone who wants to be one), it irks me that a student would want someone to tell them what to think. Now, helping a student figure things out on their own...that, I'm cool with. That's the whole point--to aid a student to the point that he or she can make decisions and judgments about information and ideas without having to ask me every other sentence, "Is that right?"

Bah. I just hate having to be mean. I may have a vicious streak in me when I'm pushed far enough, but that doesn't mean I enjoy being cruel or mean to people. But dammit, sometimes they just go out of their way to force you into behaving like that.

~chuck

Song of the Moment: Counting Crows, "Angels of the Silence"