Stormy gets "promoted"

[elfs]

Storm at graduation

Omaha, Kouryou-chan and I attended Storm's promotion ceremony at her high school. It was a two-hour event that featured some of the most rude people I've met yet in my dealings with the school system.

It's called a "promotion" because the kids aren't graduating from anything at all; they're simply moving to a different facility, the high school down the block, and so will no longer be under the care of the middle school staff. They're being promoted to ninth grade. Still, there's a ceremony for getting out of middle school alive.

Man, the lighting in a gymnasium does nobody any favors. It's too dark for a high-speed lens, and too garish to make anyone attractive.

Storm was one of the top 10% of students, so she got a "silver" award, signed by Barack Obama's autopen, congratulating her on the constant 3.8 average and consistently higher than average test scores. She looked bored throughout the ceremony, but as she pointed out, most of her friends were up on the peripheral stage with the band.

Not paying attention

The band played for the opening and closing ceremonies, and that's where the rudeness was most pronounced. After having chaperone them at the Disneyland trip and having heard them play, I can say they were a highly competent middle school band. The audience apparently didn't care, because they talked right over the band's performance, constantly. They chattered and giggled and ignored the hardworking students on stage who were trying to play a rather complicated medley. The woman to the right was one of many playing a video game or otherwise just staring into his or her phone. It was all very disconcerting.

I think it's a small but representative sample of what's wrong with America: our generation didn't learn how to let other people have their moments in the spotlight. We all want it, and if it's not on us, we're as like to ignore it and do our own thing, damn them all.

I congratulated my daughter, and then sadly sent her on to her mother's, where she'll spend the next two and a half weeks, pausing only long enough to come back and watch Kouryou-chan's ballet. Ah, well.

Comments

[tamino.livejournal.com]

I'm trying to think of what kind of social cues *I* look for, to try to decide when to talk over a band and when not to. There's one example I can think of, which is the Christmas Revels, which I go to every year. There's a brass band that always plays before the show, and that's *precisely* the time when you're trying to read the program, talk with the people you came to the show with, and if you're as weak on sight-reading as I am, you also use that time to read the sheet music for the audience participation parts, and try to practice it enough that you'll be able to sing it correctly when the time comes. So I do talk (and practice singing) over that band, as does more or less everyone else.

What signals do you think people should look for to determine whether it's appropriate in a given situation?

[gromm.livejournal.com]

Is it really our generation that's like this? I understand that it's a long standing tradition among say, politicians to fall asleep during everyone else's speech, or practice your own, or generally speaking do anything but pay attention, even if the speaker is the guy you're rooting for.

And when it's a band playing... well, unless it's a concert, the music is often there just for ambiance. Imagine if there was a live band playing at a party, for example.

[elfs.livejournal.com]

If you need cues and signals for how to behave at a ceremonial event, UR DOIN IT WRONG. We aren't chimpanzees. We don't look to the silverback for moment-to-moment guidance.

[tamino.livejournal.com]

If I filter out the 4chan aggression from what you just said, here's what I get:

"I think the biggest clue in this case was that it was a ceremonial event, which carries with it a different set of defaults than other situations in which there might be a band."

Sound about like what you meant?

[elfs.livejournal.com]

Politely, yes.

[omahas.livejournal.com]

I think I have to disagree with you, my dear. And here's why. Many people who put together various types of events that include live music, either music meant for background or music meant to be paid attention, don't know how to do so appropriately so people understand when it is background and when it is TO BE PAID ATTENTION TO.

I've seen this in many different types of events. But in Storm's ceremony, the person at the podium specifically lead everyone's attention to the band. That was the very specific signal that everyone was now to pay attention to the band.

The problem was that people were rude enough that they wouldn't even STFU when the teachers and principle at the podium were speaking. This is the core of rudeness. All they wanted to do was to be there when their kid received the award/piece of paper/other item, then scream their lungs out (I do NOT exaggerate). Any other time was to be ignored. After all, it was some other person's kid...why should they care?

[omahas.livejournal.com]

Again, a live band playing at a party is meant for background noise. But when the event coordinators specifically direct your attention to the performers? Then you are demonstrating rudeness by not shutting up.

My memories of graduation ceremonies in High School (there was no equivalent to Storm's ceremony for middle schoolers) was that people were quiet during the ceremony. There was always a very low buzz as people whispered here and there, but the screaming was left for when the principle introduced the class of . Otherwise, you remained quiet, because that was respectful to the people who were receiving their diplomas, giving their speeches, etc.

[pakraticus.livejournal.com]

I'm generally left wondering why the spotlight was brought out in the first place.
The band, orchestra, or chorus performing without other distraction is worth the spotlight. An art show is worth the spot light. A play is worth the spot light. An academic awards ceremony is worth the spotlight. If your experience was like mine it tried to mix all of those things along with a lot of self esteem crap for everyone.
Having endured two middle school "moving up" ceremonies rife with perfect attendance awards for students that couldn't bother to be present and the principal and key teachers puffing themselves up, I think my kids got a raw deal compared to having the last day or few as field day (And I HATED field day events).

As for the rudeness, odds are that rudeness has been disrupting your child's classroom every year she was at middle school. It was one of the important factors in my youngest girl declaring she didn't want anything to do with the local public high schools.

[fayanora.livejournal.com]

Your kids are still in school in June? o_O

[hydrolagus.livejournal.com]

2 of my housemates are Seattle teachers. Their classes got out just last week.

[omahas.livejournal.com]

When do your kids *start* school in the fall? Ours start after Labor Day.

[fayanora.livejournal.com]

I don't have kids, but when I was in school we were usually in school by mid August.

[fayanora.livejournal.com]

My only opposition to year-long school is the myriad schools that have crappy or completely broken air conditioners.

It depends on the school district.

[shunra.livejournal.com]

I know of districts (in WA) that do Sept-June, and others (in Illinois & Alabama) that do August-May.