At Hawthorne High School, I reluctantly took on a long-term U.S. History assignment, with one class meeting during Zero period, from 7:00am to 7:55 every day.
I cannot believe that I put myself through such a heavy and demanding regimen. I am very much a night person, although I have no problem waking up to go to work in the early morning. I played the clarinet in my high school marching band for three years, and I had to wake up for Zero period for that, but that was a class that I looked forward to attending.
I did not like working at Hawthorne High School. The timing, waking up at 5:30 in the morning to rush out of my home and get to class with about an hour to spare, it was too much, especially for a man who was lost and still looking for a way to make sense of my place in the lost and losing world.
The one consolation about Zero Period U.S History: the students were respectful and committed. They wanted to take the class, or at least they were committed to doing well because they wanted to take another class during the day, but they needed the U.S. History credits to graduate.
One of the students, Naomi, was the assistant principal's daughter, a well-behaved young lady who had failed AP US History last year. In fact, half the students enrolled in the class were dedicated students who had failed that AP class, a rigorous program which exploded the light self-esteem of students who had been passed along for years in the local schools, with little to show for their learning.
They knew enough about US History to demonstrate a well-placed knowledge of the subject. Their knowledge base made it easier to teach them. The fact that they were willing to get out of bed as early as I did to get to class also motivated them enough to get something done. They were motivated, which was saying something, compared to the other four sections that I had( chosen) to tolerate.
Some of the highlights of that class. There was the Arab student, Denny, a loud type, one who hated history, who had been jumped at another school, so he was enrolled at Hawthorne because the district had a notorious policy of punishing everyone involved in an altercation, perpetrator or otherwise.
John was a well-behaved type, responsible and cautious. To the best of knowledge, he did not graduate, taking on another job to help support his family.
Roddy never came to class on time. Even when I set up a conference with his older sister — his parents were working and could not come — he still did not show up to class on time. The kid had no incentive to show up on time, as did none of the other students. Most teachers tolerated rampant tardiness, a real shame and frustration for me.
Alfie cared about doing well in class. He would shake my hand every morning, looking forward to learning something. Two or three other ladies were on time and ready to go. They did their work well, never talked back, followed directions as best as they could.
Aside from the unsightly early morning hours, I actually looked forward to that class. Those students wanted to learn, and I did not face hasty hardships to get through one lesson. We even had some interesting discussions, in part because of the repeat-seniors who had failed the AP class.