Teachers Page #4

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Okay.

- Thanks, Eddie. Thanks.

- Forget it. Forget it, will you?

Okay. Thanks.

Okay, I'm taking off. You want to come?

Sure, yeah. Sure.

- MAN:
Hey, wait...

- Sh*t!

What're we gonna do now?

Hey, trust me. Come here.

- Come on, will you.

- Okay. All right.

(WHISTLE BLOWING)

Can you believe this sh*t?

If John Calvin was a student here at JFK,

would his name appear on these records?

Yes, it should.

Good.

Now, who's in charge of the records?

I don't know.

(SIGHS)

Nice touch.

What touch? I really don't know.

(ALARM SOUNDING)

That's the fire alarm.

Move it out, quickly.

To the right! To the right!

(CAN'TSTOP THE FIREPLAYING)

(STUDENTS CLAMORING)

Hey! Hey, you two! Come here.

I want to talk to you. Hey!

You're in big trouble.

(STUDENTS WHOOPING)

(ALL CHEERING)

- Get in. Come on!

- No.

We can't do this, Eddie.

Haven't I taken care of things

since third grade?

(SIREN WAILING)

Have we got balls or what?

This is f***ing great.

Give me five.

(SCREAMING)

So, that's how I passed the bar exam.

So, whatever happened to Mrs. Jurel?

I wanted to be a teacher

and she wanted something more

than my teacher salary could provide.

Food, clothing, shelter.

(CHUCKLES)

So there hasn't been anybody else?

No, not really.

What about you?

Oh, hundreds.

I'm a lawyer after all.

So, you haven't told me what you think.

Oh, the meal was great.

No, I'm not talking about the dinner.

I know the dinner was great.

I got an "A" in home ec.

- I'm talking about the case.

- What case?

Oh, that's how we're gonna play it?

I'm serious.

I really want to know what you think.

Why is it so important

what I think about your case?

Because the other teachers

will follow what you do.

You're one of the leaders of that school.

Boy, Lisa, you've been gone a long time.

Yeah, I guess I have,

because JFK is nothing like I remember it.

- Maybe you have a selective memory.

- Oh, come on.

In the two days that I've been there

I've seen a stabbing,

a teacher attack another teacher,

a student bite a teacher,

a fire alarm that looked like Hiroshima.

It's not a school anymore, it's a loony bin.

- Oh, Lord, here comes another subpoena.

- What's that supposed to mean?

- What?

- That crack.

What's the matter? You afraid

I might do more for education than you?

Education? Are you nuts?

Lisa, your lawsuit isn't about education.

It's about money.

Nobody really cares if that kid didn't learn.

They just wanna make some major bucks.

Oh, great. Just what we need.

Words of wisdom

from a guy who hides out in bathrooms.

(SIGHS)

You know, Lisa, there's nothing worse

than a female lawyer with a cause.

Except a male teacher without one.

Is it so hard for you to admit

that something's wrong there?

Oh, hell, Lisa. Come on!

Do you think

you're telling me something here?

I've been there day in and day out

for 15 years.

Don't even think you can try.

Listen.

I counseled a kid named Eddie Pilikian

the other day and it was a waste of time.

I can't reach this kid.

The parents and the system,

they've so f***ed up this kid

that I don't know.

I don't think

I'm ever gonna be able to reach him.

Yes, you will.

You'll reach him. You'll make a difference.

You did with me.

(EXHALES)

Look, it's not right for a lawyer

to be discussing a case

with someone she's gonna be deposing

in two weeks, is it?

No.

But I didn't ask you here as an attorney.

Why did you?

I think I better check the dessert.

What do you mean,

what am I gonna say at my deposition?

I'm gonna say the same as everyone else.

ROGER:
Oh, Carl, just forget it.

Easy for you to say. You forget it!

I'm telling you that Reese kid

has gotta go!

He's trying to drive me crazy.

First he attacks me,

now he's trying to drive me nuts.

- I want him out!

- Will you calm down?

Yeah, Alex, I had Eddie Pilikian.

The kid had about

a sixth-grade reading level.

He couldn't do the work.

I didn't know what to do with him.

How about teaching him to read better?

Mr. Van Ark, I am a social studies teacher.

It is not my job to teach reading.

But you are a teacher.

Some people should have more experience

before they speak.

(TEACHERS CHATTERING)

So, what are you gonna say

at your deposition, Ray?

What is this? An inquisition?

- Carl, be reasonable.

- "Reasonable"?

Now, what do you want me to do

with him?

- I told you!

- I cannot expel him!

Why not?

Because the courts will not allow us

to violate that poor child's rights.

What about my rights?

And a juvenile hall will just send him

right back here.

Nobody would want us

to let that kid loose on society.

Then put him in his class.

Oh, it's fine with me.

- I'll handle him.

- You'd bore him to death.

What's that supposed to mean?

What do you think it means, Ditto?

Your class is boring.

Your students don't learn a thing.

If it weren't for tenure,

you'd be selling vacuum cleaners.

Have I left anything out?

I don't have to take that from you.

I have received three consecutive teaching

awards for the most orderly class.

Three consecutive teaching awards

for the most orderly class.

And what do you think about that, mister?

Gee, Ditto, your sh*t don't stink.

(I'M THE TEACHER PLAYING)

And how was your date last night

with Ms. Hammond, Alex?

(BELL RINGING)

Reese, where the hell is my desk?

Reese, where the hell is my desk?

Reese!

All right.

Let's talk about the responsibility

a school has to its community.

Aren't we going over

our homework questions?

We'll do that later.

Let's talk about this first.

Does a school have a responsibility

to its community?

Babysitter.

All right, babysitter. That's right. Yeah.

Anything else?

You were supposed to be here yesterday.

Mrs. Wensel says

I ain't even supposed to be in this class.

Mrs. Wensel says

I ain't even supposed to be in this class.

Yo, me neither.

No one knows

where you're supposed to be at, Terry.

(ALL LAUGHING)

It's all right. I'll take care of it. Take a seat.

So, what other responsibilities

does a school have to its community?

Where did you leave off?

Pickett's Charge.

(ALL CHEERING)

(ALL APPLAUDING)

(ALL LAUGHING)

"Four score and seven years ago,

"our fathers brought forth

on this continent

"a new nation,

"conceived in liberty

"and dedicated to the proposition

"that all men are created equal."

(SNORING)

(CLASS ALL LAUGHING)

All right, all right. Forget community.

Let's just talk about you.

Let's talk about us.

You in school,

what does school do for you?

- Nothing!

- Nothing?

It gives you a diploma

so you can get a job.

Then it does something.

School is just a place

where teachers make money.

Yeah, sure.

I got a yacht in the Caribbean. All right?

Lot of money.

- Does school round out your knowledge?

- No.

Why?

They teach you all this junk like

who was Hiawatha.

I don't care who she was.

They never teach you

what you want to know, right?

Hiawatha was a man, Tim.

You see what I mean? Who cares?

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