I Have Been Spat Upon

For the first time in my career as a teacher and substitute teacher, I have been spat upon.

The room I inhabited today is next to the water fountain.  I was standing in the hall outside the door prior to school starting.  A student was drinking from the fountain.  He saw me standing there.  He took a mouthful of water and deliberately spat on my crotch.

My first reaction, of course, was "He didn't really do that."  But I know the student.  He did.  He is a special needs child in middle school.  His interactions with me as a new authority figure in his world have all been fraught with exploration of behavioral boundaries.  I'm not really sure what in my demeanor suggested that spitting a mouthful of water on my crotch might be acceptable behavior.

My response, of course, was to let him know in no uncertain terms that this was not acceptable behavior.  He immediately apologized and offered me a hug.  He told me I needed a hug.  I stood firm.  I felt that he needed to understand that an infraction of that severity (although after my initial shock I wanted to laugh a little) went beyond "I'm sorry; here's a hug" reparation.

But I have limited education in how to best deal with a special needs child in this circumstance.  I turned him in to his primary teacher.

I can't leave the experience alone, though.  I have to take something away from it.  I want to apply the experience to every day interactions with all children.  Special needs children feel the same impulses and motivations that general population kids experience.  The testing of boundaries, the exploration of acceptable behaviors.  They may be more likely to act on impulses and less able to judge where the boundary lies, but the impulses are there.  General population kids will cover the spectrum on judgement and actions and behaviors.

Of course, the best response and policy is to leave no room for doubt in any child's mind where the boundaries lie.  They will test those boundaries, but the boundaries must remain consistent and enforced.  This will take care of most of the student population.

Then there are the others.  The students who need attention, who push the boundaries not to find out where they are, but to seek attention.  Even negative attention is better than no attention.  These students are problematic.  The issues and infractions committed must be addressed, but in a low-key manner.  When possible, the early signs of an attention-seeking behavior must be recognized.

I have always tried to redirect the student by finding a positive behavior to praise.  This, of course, can be difficult to do as a substitute.  Unfortunately, classroom management as a whole becomes more difficult.  Subbing several times can allow a substitute to develop a positive relationship that can be utilized in behavior control, but substitutes are often put in the position of enforcing acceptable behavior without that necessary relationship.  Substitutes are often subject to behavior built upon previous substitutes' management skills.

I hope I am never spat on again as a substitute or as a teacher.  But if it happens, I will be better equipped to deal with it.  I am happy that my response was more along the lines of "How do I best deal with this?" than "Somebody just spit on me!"  It's good to know that even in extreme circumstances, my responses are going to be considered rather than just an emotional knee-jerk reaction.