Teacher's Pet Peeve

Dear Alisa and Gina,

I was teaching a seminar to about 50 teachers last week. During one of the lecture and discussion periods that I was leading, two of the participants went to the back of the room and had a private conversation. It wasn’t as private as they thought; the acoustics in the room let us all hear some of what they were saying. It was noticeable to the group and as they were in my line of sight, I was also a bit distracted. I didn’t say anything at the time because I didn’t want to just let off steam. But now I think I should have said something. What do you think? ~ Steamed

Speaking from a place of frustration and anger often doesn’t have the desired effect. Taking time to consider the purpose of speaking up can be very useful for clarifying what you want to accomplish and for also weighing the effectiveness – and effect on your subject. After the seminar was over I think it would have been reasonable and helpful to let them know that their conversation was not quite so private and suggest that in the future, if they feel the need to talk during a lecture they should leave the room. They may not have realized that their actions would have been distracting in a large group. ~ Alisa

You know what’s the best part about this question? These are teachers! Teachers who probably reprimand kids every day for talking. Hmpf – talk about the pots calling the kettles black. I would have stopped the seminar and said, “Excuse me, would you like to share what you’re saying with the entire class. I’m sure we’d all be interested.” Then I would have made them stay afterward in detention. ~ Gina