When it comes to learning, there are several different types of teachers. Broken down into two main categories, there are strict teachers and there are lenient teachers. Personally, I have more strict teachers, and they have really helped me improve. In the short story “Miss Awful,” by Arthur Cavanaugh, we focus on a young boy, Roger Clark. He is initially introduced as a care-free boy who simply wants to spend his time at the park as opposed to doing homework. Later on in the story, we can see a complete personality change. This is because of his strict substitute teacher, Ms. Orville. So, we ask the question, do the advantages of strict or lenient teachers outweigh the disadvantages?
An advantage of a strict teacher is that they can help instill a sense of discipline that would improve motivation, independence, and respectfulness. Going back to the story, we see that in the beginning, Roger is a carefree, young boy who had neglected to do his spelling homework. After Ms. Orville brought a strict environment to the classroom with her constant rules of discipline and scolding, we see the class develop as a whole. Roger, specifically, was a whole new boy at the end of the story. He had built discipline: “Who’s got time for sodas? I have homework to do.” Also, he could finally spell after working very hard. “Flower. F-L-O-W-E-R. Castle. C-A-S-T-L-E.”
The disadvantage of a strict teacher is that it makes students want to rebel. We see a clear example in the book: “That dopey old plant she’s always fussing over,” piped Midge Fuller. “We could rip off all the dopey leaves. That’d show her.” The students were plotting to take revenge on Ms. Orville because she had been so strict on them. Roger was also planning to do such but had a change of heart. The students not only threatened to do other things, such as throw rocks at Ms. Orville, but they actually followed through with their plan. After recess, Ms. Orville noticed the torn leaves and became very sad. She said “Whoever is responsible, I beg of you only to be sorry.”
An advantage of being a lenient teacher is that all the students are content with the learning. When Ms. Orville wasn’t in the picture yet, Roger was recounting a story from class about how Ms. Wilson had laid down on the floor with all the students. “Well, I like Ms. Wilson, she’s fun. Last week, for instance, when Tommy Miller got tired of staying in his seat and lay down on the floor…Know what Ms. Wilson did? She lay down on the floor, too.” Roger said to his family. It is clear that Roger and the rest of his class liked Ms. Wilson and had no complaints about having her as a teacher.
A disadvantage when it comes to having a lenient teacher is that students would not learn as much. In the beginning of the story, we are told that Roger has difficulties with spelling. “True, Roger’s scholastic progress wasn’t notable–his spelling, for example, remained atrocious.” Even though Roger was struggling with spelling, he insisted on going to the park and procrastinating on his homework. The next day, Ms. Orville discovered Roger’s backpack to be full of toys and she confiscated them. At the end of the week, she returned the toys only to be met with Roger spelling out words. Roger learned more in one week with the strict Ms. Orville than he has in however long with Ms. Wilson.
Both teaching styles have their benefits and disadvantages as we learn in the story “Miss Awful.” A class of students, including the main character, Roger, were originally rambunctious, carefree, and not disciplined due to their lenient teacher, Ms. Wilson. However, when an older, stricter teacher, Ms. Orville came to be their substitute, she had a major impact on the students. She had the biggest impact on Roger, a boy who in the beginning failed his spelling quiz and didn’t do his homework. By the end of the story, Roger flourished into a boy who did his homework persistently and was finally able to spell words. Though such is not always the case, in this instance, a strict teacher was a great benefit to Roger but his lenient teacher appeared to be a detriment to Roger’s education.