swearing

It's not surprising that many of my students know English swear words. They're learning a new language, it's natural to want to know what the worst words in that language are.

When a student does swear, I can't help but laugh, but of course I have to yell at them as well. My yelling can't possibly discourage them, hell it probably encourages them because that's just the reaction they were hoping for. Still, what else can I do?

I have one student, a 12 year old boy called James, who loves to show off his swearing ability. What started as non-sequitur "shit"s and "fuck"s, has graduated into non-sequitur "shithead"s and "why don't you fucking die?"s. He's really blossomed.

Another student, this one a 7 year old boy called Tom, also has the habit. At the start of most classes I'll say, "Okay everyone, homework out," to which this kid, if he doesn't have his homework, replies with an emphatic, "Oh shit!"

Today I had another student, Jack, join the club of swearers. An 8 year old in one of my classes, he kept saying "fuck." He clearly had no idea how to use the word in a sentence or what it can mean, he just knew it was a bad word and fun to say. I tried to ignore it, so as not to encourage him, but it got to the point where I had to say something. He understood that I didn't want to hear him say it anymore, and promised to stop. Later in the same class, a fight between two other kids (Issac and Luke) nearly broke out, resulting in Luke bawling his eyes out. This is not uncommon in this class, I don't think I've had a period with them yet where somebody hasn't cried, or a fight hasn't broken out. In the aftermath of the argument I was attempting to find out what caused it and who was to blame. I asked around, searching for answers, and found that Jack was willing to testify. "What happened, Jack?" I asked, to which Jack responded, "Issac was fucking Luke." No wonder he was so mad.

Rather than praise Jack's use of the past progressive, or explain to him how important the word "with" can be, I just laughed, moved Issac's seat, and sent Luke out to be consoled by a Korean counselor.

This is a weird job.