NYC Educator: Good Cop, Bad Cop

NYC Educator: Good Cop, Bad Cop:

Good Cop, Bad Cop

by NYC Educator

Today, one of my favorite students surprised me by getting the highest test score in her class. She's a good student of English. She has a good ear and likes to use it. But this test focused on grammar, something about which she is totally indifferent. She learns it, but only because she can't really avoid it. She tends to pass tests, occasionally not, but ranges closer to 80% for the most part.

The student in the class who usually gets the highest marks was horrified. He couldn't understand how she beat him. I couldn't either, to tell the truth. She's not the type to cheat, and in any case I had arranged the seats in three rows, so it would have been difficult to do. She would have scored significantly lower if she copied from the guy in front of her.

"Did you study?" I asked her.

"No," she said. "I'm very smart."

That was an odd response. She usually says, "You're very smart," sarcastically, whenever anyone does