Dilemma

I'm hoping I've not made an error of judgement. In every school there are some pupils that we might call the "hard nuts" or something similar. The ones that every teacher in the school can name, the ones that spring to mind if there's something going on, or rumours of something going on, the ones that like to give you attitude if you walk past them and wish them a nice day, the ones that are to be found wandering around the school site when everyone else is safely tucked up in a classroom. Well, maybe not every school. But surely it's not just mine?! Anyway, today I was walking around the school, making sure that things were running smoothly and removing anyone who was interfering in that educational bliss. And I came across such a group of boys. They ran away from me a couple of times, but eventually one of them had the wherewithall to speak to me slighltly more calmly and coherently, and it became clear that there was more than simply fear of learning that was causing them to behave in such a manner. There is obviously something else going on in their lives, in their community. I went to speak to our school police officer, but the boys did not want to spill any beans, so I took a note of their names and left it, since the day was about to end. They can be picked up tomorrow, and since they are all on report, it will be obvious that they were truanting.

Anyway, by the time I made my way past the office, some of the boys were there, trying to call for a taxi. I was asked to phone, so I did so, and the taxi duly arrived, taking away a group of our least desirables. However, it was while they were waiting, that something said by one teacher made me wonder whether this was such a good idea. I think I am filled with the milk of human kindness (!!!) and naively assume everyone else to be! I hope that the taxi driver and his charges all arrived safely, and that my trust in the boys - they may be toerags but I hope they have some sense - has been rewarded this time. And I hope that they may begin to have some trust in us at school, so that we might be able to help them a bit, or at least point them in the direction of some help, for whatever is going on in their community. I wouldn't like to be a young person today. It's such a shame.