Handshakes, The Classroom and Adult Opinions
I'm working today, scanning for articles to comment on, working on post and increasing my online presence, preparing for a video blog shoot today. And there it is, a single tweet. You know those tweets you see where you just get sucked in and sucked in to the overwhelming back and forth ping pong battle between intellectuals who in real life are brilliant but get reduced to name calling and emojis the further down you get. The base of the tweet was a simple picture with good intentions I'm certain. It says "Welcome every learner to the classroom with a handshake at the door #shakeyhandgang." It is retweeted and criticized by another tweeter and her comment request that this not be done and she begins a conversation about consent and personal space that really gets ugly as you keep clicking in the midst of retweets!
And here lies the issue in opinions in the world of helping professions. Now in the end, which is how this got started in the first place, at least where I found it, is Dr. Bruce Perry confirming that there definitely needs to be boundaries in regards to interacting with children and teens in the classroom. I am in agreement with this. It is clear...on the first day of school engaging each student in a handshake as a new teacher greeting them to your classroom may not be the best idea in the world. I can also see where the original tweeter was coming from in regards to the important of acknowledging each student and making them aware they exist and you see them. The problem lies within social media, filled with intellectual adults arguing about which one of their opinions are right or not! My analysis of it all is pretty simple. Agree with the tweet, but also ask you students if they are okay with it.
This brings to light a whole new conversation if I dare say "in my opinion" because often times what young people are saying is they are getting left out of these conversations entirely! None of the retweets, tweets, tweets, etc are actually young people who (news flash) actually have thought, opinions, concerns and input of their own. Of course this is a world where only Ph. D's, Doctorates and dissertations matter. You have to have the collected research and evidence in order to prove your point. It only all matters if it is attached to a 15 long paper of 3 year long research on kids who are now adults. In case you haven't noticed, this is a pet peeve of mine. I get it though, I understand the questioning of the whole thing. I totally believe there should be relationship building before the handshaking occurs. Let's take Ron Clark Academy for instance. I watch the children's interactions with their teachers at that school. They hug, high five, dance together, etc. They are a family. It is a trust filled family environment developed by both the leadership and teachers of that education community. The young people clearly feel safe there. This conversation may not necessarily apply to the students of this school, but it might apply to the new students who walk into the hallways when the school year starts next year. I also observe, however, that Ron Clark Academy meets their students personally, go to the homes, meet the parents, etc before the young people are even selected to attend the school. Relationship building.
So with all that being said. Another person's opinion I suppose, just not in the form of a tweet. Maybe we should spend less time arguing about it on twitter and take to the streets and simply ask kids, hey can I give you a handshake. Or maybe spend our time as helping professionals educating others and the public about the important of relationship building and ensuring young people feel comfortable in our interactions with them. Because at the end of the day there actually might be a kid dying for someone to ask them can they shake their hand. Don't want to take that risk either do we?
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