Teachers are not going to let you kill their high

Z and I haven’t talked about school in a while, so I was surprised when he started a conversation like this the other night as we walked into Target.




Z: Some people don't like *Ms. Key because she's quirky. I like her. She's just excited about her subject. They don't understand that teachers are like that. They get geeky and excited and there's nothing you can do about it. (He laughs.) No offense, mom. [Teachers are] not going to let you kill their high. Kids try, but they don't allow it. You can always tell the teachers who want to be there. They try to save you until the end. The others don't care. You can do your work or not; it doesn't matter to them. I don't like lecture. Mr. Costner lectured the whole time. It was painful. He had 40 slides!

K: Did he give you a handout of the PowerPoint?

Z: No. That would have been helpful. Even if he didn't want to make copies, posting the PowerPoint on his site would have helped.

K: But you like it when English teachers lecture.

Z: Well, yeah, it's a story. They're talking about life. I like that.



Just like that the conversation was over. Z headed to the electronics section, and I went to pick up some washing powder.

*Names are pseudonyms.