A recent video of a student’s speech that has gone viral on Facebook has left many users divided for several reasons. In the video, a student can be seen getting up in class and disrupting the class to explain to his teacher that students will never succeed in her class with the way that she has been teaching them.
According to Facebook comments, the video takes place in a Texas classroom. The student got up in a rage and was deeply disturbed by the way in which his teacher was conducting her class. The student says to the teacher to “get up and teach something instead of handing out a packet to students,” and points out that “some students don’t learn from packets, some need face-to-face instruction.”
The teacher can be heard in the background shutting him down saying “Bye, you’re wasting my time.” The student retaliates by saying that if the teacher can come in and make statements that she “can control her class as it is her job and she collects a paycheck,” than he has every right to have a say in how the students in the class should be learning because they are the future of his country. He continues that he, himself, is unhappy with his own education and he is not “b*tching,” but making an observation.
The teacher continues to dismiss his comments, and he decides to leave after making his final point.
https://www.facebook.com/callmechoko8/videos/1523872931051393/UzpfSTEwMTcwMjk1NjI6MTAyMTU3MTMwNjMzMTIzODk/
After the video was viewed over 26 million times, users began leaving comments on the post. Some felt that this student was absolutely right and had every right to speak his mind. Many even said he seemed to be the perfect candidate to become a teacher himself.
Others say it’s not about the kid, and about the bigger picture–teachers shouldn’t have kids getting up and complaining about their teaching habits and style. 
But, some believe that this student was rude and out of line, even if the points he made were truthful and valid.
As a New York City public school teacher, here is my take:
Yes, it’s unfortunate that the student caused a scene in a classroom that I am supposed to be in charge of. But, the bigger picture is that this student is upset and unhappy with the way in which I, the teacher, am educating him and his peers. Maybe I need to look back in my unit and lesson plans to see–a) am I engaging the students enough? b) am I differentiating my lessons enough so that there is a way for all different learners to stay on task and get involved in my classes? c) am I getting feedback from my students?
All of these are vital and important in order to conduct a positive learning environment that allows students to have room to grow. Is the student wrong? No, he’s not. The person who is wrong here is the teacher.
If a student in my classroom was this unhappy and wanted to speak, I would not dismiss him by asking him to leave and saying “goodbye” several times. Instead, I would ask him to please meet with me after class, and show genuine interest in what he had to say. I would never tell a student that their opinion was “wasting my time,” because there is where she lost him–and lost me.
Your job as an educator is not to collect a paycheck. If you want a job where you go to work to collect a paycheck, education is not the field for you. Your job as an educator is to mold the minds of tomorrow’ generation–to nurture critical thinking and foster skills to lead students to grow and function in a global society. Shutting kids down and telling them they are wasting your time is not the way you do this.
So yes, I commend this student for speaking up. But, more so, I am disappointed with this teacher for shutting down such impressive critical thinking and debate.