Not All Teachers Should Be Teaching by Dr. Robert Wallace on Creators.com

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Not All Teachers Should Be Teaching

DR. WALLACE: We have a young new math teacher who is in his first year of teaching. He is a good teacher, but at times he can be very rude and crude when talking to students. Let me give you an example:

Yesterday in class, he caught me passing a note to my girlfriend. When he asked me what I was doing, I just said I sent a short note to my friend and it won't happen again. He then embarrassed me by saying, "Are you sure you weren't passing drugs?" All I could say was, "Of course not." Yesterday he told a classmate that he was a "dirty liar." I could go on and on about his uncouth statements, but you get the message.

What should I do to get him to act like a teacher, not an army drill sergeant? I thought of going to the principal, but I don't want to get him in trouble. — Nameless, Phoenix.

NAMELESS: Find another student with the same concerns, and both of you can talk to the teacher after school. Make him aware how unhappy you are with his rude language toward students and ask him to please stop. If you can't find another student to go with you, do it yourself. If that doesn't cause him to change, have your parents meet with the principal, who will sort things out.

YOU CAN REST ELBOWS ON THE TABLE — SOMETIMES

DR. WALLACE: Is it ever permissible to rest your elbows on the table during a meal? I've been told by a very educated and socially correct lady (my best friend's mother) that placing your elbows on the table is permissible. My grandmother, who is also on the ball socially, says that elbows and tables should never meet in the course of a meal.

This all came about because my boyfriend occasionally puts his elbows on the table when he eats with our family.

I know you don't write a manners column, but I would be happy if you could come up with the correct answer. — Nameless, DeKalb, Ill.

NAMELESS: I asked 14 members of my extended family whether your best friend's mother or your grandmother was the more socially correct, and all 14 agreed with your grandmother. So did I, for that matter.

Then I did some research. It turns out that, contrary to popular belief, it is socially correct to rest your elbows on the table, as long as you are not actually eating. So said etiquette guru, Amy Vanderbilt. While eating, the free hand should rest on your lap.

HAMSTERS MAKE GREAT PETS

DR. WALLACE: My best friend is moving out of state. He has a pet hamster and wants me to have it because he knows I'll take good care of it. My parents think that hamsters are "dirty, stinky" animals. My friend says they aren't. My parents are telling me that my friend is just saying that so he can dump the hamster on me. Do hamsters make good pets? — Morgan, Sidney, Ohio

MORGAN: Hamsters make wonderful pets. Go to your local library and read up on them. Then share the good news with Mom and Dad. They are cute and clean, not dirty and stinky.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. E-mail him at rwallace@galesburg.net. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.