Self-Injury to Avoid Learning

Would [pronoun] really go that far just to avoid learning?

The Setup

My eyes were drawn to [pronoun], as they generally were. If something were to go wrong in the room, if there was some sort of uproar, if a student wasn’t where they needed to be, [pronoun] was almost always involved. I remember thinking, “Surely [pronoun] won’t really do that.” Little did I know.

The Player(s)

[pronoun] was highly intelligent. [pronoun]’s vocabulary was through the roof, even as a mid-elementary student. [pronoun] could read anything I could give, write to any prompt I imagined, do any math assignment without giving it much thought at all. The problem was that [pronoun] rarely used his intelligence gifts for the purposes of learning in school; instead, [pronoun] opted to use [pronoun]’s prodigious intellect to get out.

The Sequence

I had just given assignment. Considering the time of day it was probably writing. [pronoun] wasn’t working on the assignment though. [pronoun] wasn’t bothering anyone else, though, which was fairly uncommon, so I left [pronoun] alone. It wouldn’t be the first time that [pronoun] had waited until the night before something was due, completed all the work at home, and then turned it in for a very adequate passing grade. Given the relative peace in the classroom I left things alone.

But I was fascinated by what I was seeing [pronoun] do. I watched as [pronoun] very firmly, and obviously deliberately, maneuvered the tip of [pronoun]’s nose. This went on for some time – 30 seconds or more – long enough for [pronoun] to finish excavating whatever was in a nostril, or scratch an itch (should that have been the intention).

Not sure what was going on, I grabbed the nearest box of tissues from the bookshelf and walked over to [pronoun]’s desk and offered one. I was given a particular look, one I was very familiar with, that said, quite clarly, “Go away.” [pronoun] coupled with that the statement, “I don’t need a tissue.” So I left him alone.

Now that [pronoun] was aware of my interest, motions and actions became more furtive, but didn’t stop. My general path around the working students in the classroom changed so that I crossed [pronoun]’s desk (in front, behind and beside) multiple times in the next few minutes.

The Denouement

I had just passed [pronoun]’s desk on one of my many circuits around the room when [pronoun] stood up and said, “I have a nosebleed.” [pronoun] looked pleased. I rushed toward [pronoun] with the box of tissue that I had never put down. As I was moving toward [pronoun], I watched as [pronoun] very deliberately, with delight in [pronoun]’s eyes, dripped blood down the front of [pronoun]’s shirt.

The Result

Blood hazard. Can’t have bloody objects on or around students. In my most professional voice I said, “Go to the office and get it stopped.” Then call home for a change of clothes.”

Of course [pronoun] got the nosebleed stopped and called home. Parent came and picked [pronoun] up and [pronoun] missed the next 2 days of school to recover from the bloody nose.

There were attempts to try the same thing several times throughout the rest of the school year. When I saw it in the classroom I instructed [pronoun] to stop. And [pronoun] complied with my directive. However, when it happened outside of my classroom where supervision might not have been quite so close, it worked. After about the 4th time, Parent wised up and brought a change of clothes to the school and opted not to take [pronoun] home.

The Moral

Little learning takes place when a student is willing to go to such lengths to get away from school.