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Case: Smelly Kid
I guess I am still considered a novice teacher because I have been teaching for four years only. I am an elementary school teacher who teaches in a mostly White suburban setting. Couple of weeks ago a new student joined my classroom. He and his parents recently moved from Eastern Europe. His father works at the local university as a music professor. I am not sure what his mother does. He is a wonderful child. Although he speaks little English, he tries to participate in class activities and to make friends with others in the classroom. Couple days after he arrived, I noticed a strange smell around him. I was sure that it was body odor. The other students in the classroom started noticing it too. They started making fun of him. I learned in my multicultural classes when I was at the university that not all cultures promote taking showers everyday, and that body odor is not considered a problem everywhere in the world. Now I have a big dilemma. If I tell my student about it, I might embarrass him. If I sent a note to his parents, I may appear disrespectful toward their culture. But the way he is treated in the classroom by the other students is becoming a real problem. What should I do?
Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!)
I would try to let the parents know first by sending a nice, compassionate letter home first. I would say that you realize it may be cultural, unintentional, etc. but that you are looking out for your student's well-being because you have noticed the remainder of the class reacting negatively towards the smell. I would also include in your note to the parents that you welcome their response and accept cultural differences and would be happy to explain to the class if that is the case. I would tell the parents that you are doing your best to monitor the other students' behavior to not hurt the child's feelings and that you wanted to seek their help first in dealing with this issue because you wanted to be sensitive to the student. |
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Rating
| The suggested solution is respectful of the individual (student) |
Yes
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| The suggested solution is relevant to the case |
No
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| The suggested solution is reasonable (easy) for the teacher to implement |
No
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| The suggested solution is likely to solve the problem/issue |
No
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| The suggested solution is original |
No
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| Comments: Sometimes a letter can come off as 'important' but you don't want them to feel ashamed about the situation so a chat might be more appropriate. |
| Rated On: October 19, 2014 1:42 pm |
| Rated By: Adam Sanchez |
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Rating
| The suggested solution is respectful of the individual (student) |
Yes
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| The suggested solution is relevant to the case |
Yes
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| The suggested solution is reasonable (easy) for the teacher to implement |
Yes
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| The suggested solution is likely to solve the problem/issue |
Yes
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| The suggested solution is original |
Yes
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| Comments: I agree! Sending a letter home to the parents will help defuse the problem and stop all of the distractions. |
| Rated On: February 23, 2018 9:04 pm |
| Rated By: Kenneth Allen |
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