After the test, a student came up to my desk. He was holding a homework assignment that was due that day.
“Do you have the answers, Mister?”
I generally provide answers to the problems so that they can check their own work. It’s reassuring when I see them checking, since it suggests that they are sufficiently engaged to want to know if they got the problems right. This isn’t always the case.
I opened a binder and flipped to the previous days lesson and that days homework. I clicked the rings open and took out the answers and handed them to him.
He glanced briefly at his work and the answers and then handed the answers back to me.
“How’d you do?” I asked.
“Ok… but I’m a little unsure about the quadratic formula. I need more practice.”
That made me smile. Then he walked to the table where they may charge their phones. He picked up his phone, sat nearby, and sank into that oblivion that we all recognize.
So much for more practice.