I was disappointed with all the zeros in my grade book — a lot of homework never turned in. So I stood in front of the class and gave them a lecture.
“Don’t ask me, ‘Mister, how can I improve my grade?'” I said, “when you can see as well as I can that you’re missing assignments. Turn in the homework, and your grades will improve. It’s as simple as that. I assign work at most twice a week!”
“And I can promise you,” I added, “that if you don’t do the homework problems, you won’t do well on the quizzes and tests.”
One of the students smirked. I looked at her and cocked my head in a “what” kind of way. Her smirk broadened into a smile, and she slowly shook her head.
“What?” I asked.
“You’re not being mean,” she said.
“I can be mean,” I said. “Let me show you…”
So I walked to the middle of the room and stood still.
“Listen!” I said loudly. “Do your homework!”
She shook her head. “That’s still not mean.”