Mark My Words...

In an unfortunate, Dead Poets’ Society inspired delusion of grandeur, I recently accepted a position teaching English Literature and Language to Grade 9 and 10 students at a private school here in Karachi. The idea being, that I could inspire young minds in the mornings, continue working with the NGO in the afternoons and evenings, and still write and shoot the odd television show (and I mean odd in both senses of the word). Little did I know that I would be walking into the classroom like a one legged man, dripping blood into an open shark tank.

Now, I’ve had a lot of jobs over the years: Teenage Landscape Artist; Junior Forest Ranger; Computer Fix-it-Guy; Forest-Fire-Fighter; Salmon Kidney Remover; Office Clerk; Teacher’s Assistant; Bartender; Tech-line Call Centre Operator; Bar Manager; Restaurant Manager; Writer; Editor; Researcher; NGO - Third World Educationist; TV Writer; TV Actor; Sometime Stand-Up Comedian; and Body Guard for Mr. Burns… but so far, teaching is by far the most challenging. Growing up as the son of a popular high-school teacher, I have always been well-aware of the supremely undervalued, overworked and massively underpaid status of educators, but I still was not quite prepared for the work involved. I was unaware at the outset that the previous teacher had "resigned" under special circumstances, that I would be starting two weeks before the end of term, or that ADHD and dyslexia have somehow become more common than paperjams in a copier. In any case, I’m not one to give up easily (after all, I’m still in Pakistan), so I’ll keep you posted.

Anyway, all that set to one side, what’s been getting my goat lately, is that it actually stipulates in my teaching contract that I am not to mark student work in red ink. Studies have shown that students have an adverse reaction to red, they feel demoralised, associate the colour with blood and pain, and many educators feel that it emphasises the students’ errors. Ok, but here’s the reason that I like using red ink… because it emphasises student errors. Call me a battleaxe, but I feel that we’re losing the forest for the trees here. I’ve heard about these "red-ink" studies over the last ten years or so, and gradually they seem to have taken hold. Even Staples and other such Office Depots have changed their marketing strategies for a younger generation of teachers who have been taught to grade in the less offensive colours of green and purple. The idea is that students should not be discouraged when they are wrong, but rather encouraged when they are correct.

Sure ok, I’m all for that, obviously, but I feel it’s gone a bit too far. Aren’t we now just coddling children too much? I don’t think it’s actually possible to fail a grade anymore, even if you tried. It seems to me that repercussions have become a thing of the past. I mean, can’t we presume that the human species has evolved to the point where they can handle a little red-ink? Why can’t we give kids a little credit and teach them to accept and work with criticism, after all, they’ll be dealing with it for the rest of their lives. On my more sceptical days, I question whether cradling student self-esteem might actually do them more harm in the long run. But I certainly do think that student-self-worth (whatever that actually means) has come at the cost of actual learning. I can insist all day (in pale, purple ink) that a student is very creative, but if I am not allowed to point out his or her tragic writing skills, because it might hurt his or her feelings, then what help am I?

The reason I use red to mark papers is for the very fact that it does stand out. I want students to see their errors. Maybe, although it’s admittedly far-fetched, they will attempt to learn from their mistakes. To be truthful, I want them to know when they have done poorly. Perhaps they may just garner satisfaction from writing a paper that has fewer errors next time. I don’t know. I’m no expert. As far as I’m concerned, green and purple just aren’t effective when you’re trying to correct papers written in dark blue and black. I’m not looking to shock anyone, I just want my corrections to be visible and plain. As for my current situation, I’ll probably end up getting a few bad-assed, dark green pens to commit my demoralisation of the youth. Which makes me wonder, if all the teachers switch to green, can’t we assume that eventually students will come to associate green with errors instead of red?

Because ultimately, red is an effective colour for the very reason that it does attract attention. In my opinion, that’s what Red is for. That’s why God made our blood a nice shocking crimson, so that when it leaks out, we go, "Whoa, Shit! That ain’t good." There is a reason why traffic lights don’t cycle from pink through peach to a lusty shade of teal. Perhaps as we continue to avoid that which causes distress and slide further into self-serving, self-esteem building, we will all be trying to remember to stop for pastel coloured stop signs, or for aqua-marine fire-trucks squealing by and playing "Always look on the bright side of life." Because, after all, sirens are distressing.