Up The Down Staircase Page #9

to come, he didn't want to come with me.

But l made him do it.

Oh, he listens.

l wanted him to come here

so you could see him go

to work at 8:
30 p.m. in that garage

all night.

l wanted you to see him go.

He brings home all his money.

How's my five minutes?

Just begun.

He wants to be around cars, Roy.

But he wants to be good at being

around cars, so he wants to graduate.

l don't see how one follows the other,

but he says it does.

He's got this made-up mind

about cars and graduation.

But you don't graduate from nowhere

with D's.

Well, there are things that he can do

for extra credit.

Now l'm... l will help him.

What good is English to him when all

he wants to do is to be around cars?

He's not like... Like other kids

to look at them and drive them.

He wants to work around cars.

What good is English to him?

lf he wants to graduate,

it must be important to him.

Then why not pass him on?

lt's no skin off your pretty nose.

Miss Barrett.

Miss Barrett, l believe. l'm Alberta Kagan,

mother of Harry A. Kagan,

President of the General Organization.

Oh, l hope l'm not interrupting.

No, ma'am, l'm through.

Mrs. Lewes, please sit down.

l won't keep you a minute, Miss Barrett.

l just wanted to give myself the pleasure

of making the acquaintance

of such a lovely teacher like yourself.

A book like Silas Marner can mean

a lot to a boy like Rusty, Mr. O'Brien,

even if it was written by a woman.

lt's about people's responsibility

to one another and parental love.

His mother already gave him

too much parental love.

The story can help him understand

such things from an adult point of view

rather than a child's point of view.

lt can help prepare him to become a man.

You think he's not a man?

For example,

when we finish reading the book,

we are going to improvise a trial.

And Rusty...

Rusty is going to be the defendant.

Through the story, he will know

what it means to stand up for himself.

They tried to teach him self-defense

at the youth center.

He came home.

l'm... l'm not talking about

that kind of self-defense.

Yeah.

Well, l just wanted to see

what was going on in here.

Joe?

Did you bring your parents to see me?

Joe, it's 10:
30.

Are you in trouble?

Came for our talk.

No, l meant after school.

This is after school.

Well, we're not supposed

to be in the building now.

You wanna go someplace else?

l want you to go home.

Look, l'm here.

lsn't that what you wanted?

Custodian will be checking the rooms

in a minute.

You want it in the dark?

Joe.

Joe, please, turn on the lights.

What is it, Teach?

Ever since the first day of school,

defending me with McHabe,

breaking rules for me, getting into trouble.

Maybe l'm what they call

a low under-achiever.

Took me long to figure it out.

But l figured it out.

Oh, Joe.

ls that the only reason you can think of?

What else?

Always wanting to see me

after school, alone.

Well, we're alone now.

-Finally got to me, Teach.

-No.

Joe, oh, Joe, no.

l've come to submit my resignation,

Dr. Bester.

On the basis

of less than a term's experience?

l will finish out the term, of course.

Do you think you've given us

a fair chance, Miss Barrett?

l have given myself a fair chance,

in and out of the classroom.

l have used everything l ever learned,

every instinct l have

or thought l had about teaching.

And you've decided

you're not cut out to be a teacher.

Not here.

You know, when l visited your class,

l did notice certain deficiencies

in your methods,

but l put them down to inexperience,

because you are a born teacher,

Miss Barrett.

Not here.

You say that as if that's your point.

There are better schools, we all know.

But there are worse.

And whatever waste, stupidity,

ineptitude you've found,

whatever problems and frustrations

of teachers and pupils,

something very exciting is going on,

even here.

ln each of the classrooms,

on each of the floors, all at the same time,

education is going on.

ln some form or other, for all its abuses,

young people are being exposed

to education.

Even here.

A teacher should be able to get through

to her students,

even here.

Very well.

Write a letter to the Board of Education.

They'll send you the proper form

for resignation.

Thank you, Dr. Bester.

Sylvia, Sylvia !

l suppose you're ticking off the number

of times you have left to walk this block.

Thirty-two.

Hi, Eddie.

And then what?

l've made application

to several private schools.

Well, Joe Ferone never came back, did he?

One or two

have expressed interest already.

Oh, you'll find some place

with white columns and green lawns

and high tuition.

And you'll sit in a quiet room

with eight or 10 well-dressed students,

teaching Chaucer.

ln Old English, l'd dare say.

And they'll be so polite,

they'll let you love them, without risk.

Miss Finch.

They keep sending me retirement forms.

What l need is a resignation form.

They even make it hard for you to give up.

Maybe you should give up giving up.

Syl.

The Teacher's lnterest Committee

is planning a gala luncheon

on the last day of school before Christmas.

-Henrietta, are you all right?

-Oh, Syl.

Bob Whiteside.

l went into the book room

yesterday afternoon late.

l just opened the door.

My Bob Whiteside with Linda Rosen.

Your Linda Rosen. Why, he won the essay

contest, and she can't even spell.

Do you want the chicken patty

with the cream sauce or fillet of sole?

-Patty.

-Patty.

Look at this lvanhoe, Mr. McHabe.

Gutted.

lt's been used to carry something

in and out of this building.

Something filthy, you can be sure.

Who would dare to do that to lvanhoe?

Miss Barrett, you said we could

turn in extra-credit book reports,

and due to midterms and horsing

around, l need that ''E'' credit.

So here's a myth report, Miss Barrett,

about Venus and Adonis. Funny, huh?

Thank you, Lou.

You gotta pass me on, Miss Barrett.

lt's just my spelling that keeps me back.

At home, they won't let me drop out.

Class, class, please.

Class, pay attention.

Class.

Come on now, we don't have

all sorts of time, class, please!

Now, boys, Herbie, Ronnie, please.

Now, listen.

The jury pool sits down in the auditorium.

Will you please take your seats there

until you're called for examination?

Now, go quickly and go quietly.

Quietly.

Quietly. Listen to your teacher, now.

Prosecuting... Prosecuting attorney

sits here.

Lou? Lou. You there.

The plaintiff here. Wooley, right here.

Now, who's my defendant?

-Where's my defendant?

-That's me, Miss Barrett.

Rusty, defense attorney.

Well, Harry, stop trying to influence

the witnesses ahead of time,

and take your seat

next to your client, please.

Now the... The court clerk sits in here.

Gary, that's you. Right down here.

Don't look so worried.

All you have to do is write down

everything that's said and repeat it back

if the judge asks you to.

Now, let's see. My witnesses.

Witnesses will sit along here.

Girls, everybody along here,

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