This is a personal analysis of a short story entitled "New Boy" by Roddy Doyle
People might think that teaching is just such an easy thing to do while in fact it is not; it is beyond what people see because there are so many things to consider and do. Teaching does not merely focus on transferring knowledge from one to the others but the activity should also help students to develop their attitude and overcome their problems that might encounter and disturb the learning activities. The different range of age, social status, ethnic, and religion might be the reasons why the teacher should be aware of their students’ need, resulting different treatment and behavior given from the teacher to his or her students. Thus, teaching students with a different background also need some different actions such as treat them equally, be aware of their need, and also strengthen the relationship between teacher, students, parents, and school.
The first thing that a teacher has to do while teaching students who come from a different background is making sure that he or she treats them equally. Being fair is one of the important personalities a teacher has to practice because students’ perception towards teacher’s decision is somewhat cannot be separated from what they see and feel. As what Roddy Doyle depicts in his short story entitled “New Boy” telling about the new life of a migrant boy in a country he never visited before, what “Miss” –the teacher does is such a good example of how to teach students having a different background in terms of ethnic. In almost the last part of the story when she asks the three boys to stand at the corridor and says “Not a squeak out of you. Just stand there,” then investigates those three lads. Despite the fact that Joseph is a new student and the possibility of being bullied by their new friends, she still asks him and the other two to tell what happens and be responsible for it.
Being aware of what students actually need also becomes one of the essential aspects a teacher cannot neglect. Those students who have different reasons to go to school, for example, of course, will affect their different perceptions on what and how they will learn in the teaching and learning process. A student’s motivation in learning is also recognized as what students look for while coming to the class. Still, quoting what the teacher does in “New Boy” short story when the teacher tells Joseph the new student “Look, Joseph. I know a little bit about why you’re here. Why you left, your country,” at the break session not in front of the other students, but alone in the class. Furthermore, she then comforts him by saying, “And if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s grand,” showing that she actually knows what Joseph feels and has been experienced, and she does not push him too far, giving such a perfect sample of how a teacher has to act against students having different needs.
Another one that has to be done is strengthen the relationship between teacher, students, parents, and school. The communication that happens in school, in fact, is not just between two directions, teacher and students only just like what people think in common. A good relationship that involves all parts starting from teacher, students, parents, and also school has to be strengthened because if there is a problem related to the students, all of them have to play their role and participate in helping them solve it. In a school with high differences in terms of background, a routine meeting might be conducted so each person knows what happens in school, how far the progress of the students, and to be more significant is to get to know each other better directly. One just cannot judge based on the appearance or the ‘news’ he or she hears that might be inaccurate, so by building a good relationship among school elements, it could lessen the unwanted prejudice that perhaps appears in the middle of the thoughts of those people from different background.
To sum up, what a teacher has to do while teaching students having different background can depend on three aspects. When a teacher encounters such condition, he or she has to treat students fairly, be able to recognize their needs, and also build a strong relationship between teacher, students, parents, and school.
Written by Lailatul Putri Ramadhani, Lia Ngatalina, Lia Widiana, and Zuhrufi Latifah
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