Men's underwear (boxers) on keyboard as a teaching tool

[Anonymous]

I find it weird too. Imagine using girls underwear and telling boys to put their hands up inside the girls underwear.

It just isn't a good optic in the face of working on consent messages. Putting your hands up inside underwear is not a great choice. There is a just a sexual overtone to that.

We had cardboard taped over the keyboard so your hands were under the cardboard. Cheap. No misinterpretation.

[Anonymous]

I teach at a public elementary school and part of my curriculum is teaching keyboarding. Public schools do not have money to spend on purchasing blank keyboards or skins. Boxer shorts are a creative way to keep students from checking their hands as they type. I have not used boxer shorts but I am trying to create a pattern to make something that would be as effective as boxers but look less like them. I know my boys would make rude comments and gestures that would be very inappropriate. So to negate that, I’ll make something else with donated fabric. Cardboard, I feel, would be easily destroyed by students - intentionally and unintentionally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP again. I understand that it can be completely innocent but it certainly crosses boundaries which are difficult to explain to a child. My blanket statement would be not to touch underwear given by a random adult in your life. Teacher is male which shouldn't matter but because it is Men's underwear, it somehow didn't sit well with me.

I guess the lesson here is about teaching context and why this instance of it may be OK. However, I also feel like this is exactly what predators take advantage of (normalizing something, making you think you are crazy to be considering the worst case, and then slipping in new variations of the normalized activity). Or someone else may take advantage of the fact these kind of activities have been normalized. Children are still trying to figure out when to call something out, what is cause for alarm, etc. This type of activity just muddles the boundaries.

Again, I understand, it is up to parents to keep teaching about context. This is a specialty teacher (not regular teacher) that my child sees once a week and I don't know him from Adam. I thought it was odd that he did this and I wanted to see what others thought. I would think differently if the regular teacher did this (and communicated that they are doing this quirky activity and the purpose of it).

I mean, if you have to explain it to your child and he won’t understand it, why is it an issue? By your own statement, the kid won’t know. Do you think your daughter or son will grow up wanting to put their hands under someone’s boxers and type? I would believe that your kid is smart enough to read the context there. It is OK to touch clothing on a shelf in a store, but it is not okay when someone is wearing it.

What is wrong with that boundary?

[Anonymous]

This is really stupid.

[Anonymous]

No that's freaking weird. If my office handed me some underwear to dust my office or something... No. I would complain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That seems semi-inappropriate, especially with the slew of sexual misconduct allegations that keep cropping in this area (and nationwide). I understand the logic in covering up a child's hands, so they can learn keyboarding skills. However, there are other ways of meeting that objective. The teacher could buy cardboard covers or make their own contraption to accomplish the same intention. Something does not sit well with me when a teacher needs to say, "Now stick your hands up the leg of the boxer shorts and feel around for hand placement."

You should discuss your concerns with the teacher. If she still continues to use this as a learning tool, then you may wish to reach out to the Principal and CC legal counsel for that public school district for an added effect.

Prior to having this discussion, I sincerely hope that you — not the teacher — purchase or make enough covers for a roomful of keyboarding students and take the time to set up all of the keyboards with covers. That way when you reach out to the “Principal and CC legal counsel for that public school district “ you will at least sound solution-focused.

Yes, you lost me at: “The teacher could buy…or make their own…”.

If, following such a complaint, with zero effort to help with the concern in any way, the reacher drops the boxer shorts (Sorry/not Sorry) and lets the kids — including yours — learn to type any which way, you can console yourself with the knowledge that your kid can always use Siri and AI instead of touch typing.

Oh, and after a few giggles, the way it probably works is: “Cover the keyboards and put your hands on the home keys.”

[Anonymous]

What stops kids from looking at the keys is an attentive teacher and exercises designed to make look-typing a liability. No somebody’s great, big, huge, baggy boxer shorts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No that's freaking weird. If my office handed me some underwear to dust my office or something

... No. I would complain.

Yes kids are adults are exactly the same in all situations. That is why elementary aged kids vote and drive and shower and brush their teeth and buy their own clothes etc.

Flawed argument.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That seems semi-inappropriate, especially with the slew of sexual misconduct allegations that keep cropping in this area (and nationwide). I understand the logic in covering up a child's hands, so they can learn keyboarding skills. However, there are other ways of meeting that objective. The teacher could buy cardboard covers or make their own contraption to accomplish the same intention. Something does not sit well with me when a teacher needs to say, "Now stick your hands up the leg of the boxer shorts and feel around for hand placement."

You should discuss your concerns with the teacher. If she still continues to use this as a learning tool, then you may wish to reach out to the Principal and CC legal counsel for that public school district for an added effect.

OP can make or buy the covers if they are the one with the problem

[Anonymous]

Mavis Beacon doesn't teach typing that way

[Anonymous]

Gross. Why not just regular shorts?

[Anonymous]

Back when I was learning in Hs they just taped a piece of white paper to the bottom on the monitor that hung over the keyboard. Worked perfectly fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Gross. Why not just regular shorts?

Probably because 30 pairs of regular shorts are a lot more expensive and harder to use than 30 pairs of lightweight boxers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Back when I was learning in Hs they just taped a piece of white paper to the bottom on the monitor that hung over the keyboard. Worked perfectly fine.

So perhaps the OP can volunteer to do this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That seems semi-inappropriate, especially with the slew of sexual misconduct allegations that keep cropping in this area (and nationwide). I understand the logic in covering up a child's hands, so they can learn keyboarding skills. However, there are other ways of meeting that objective. The teacher could buy cardboard covers or make their own contraption to accomplish the same intention. Something does not sit well with me when a teacher needs to say, "Now stick your hands up the leg of the boxer shorts and feel around for hand placement."

You should discuss your concerns with the teacher. If she still continues to use this as a learning tool, then you may wish to reach out to the Principal and CC legal counsel for that public school district for an added effect.

NP here. I'm guessing that the boxers were the cheapest and easiest solution the teacher could think of. I'm guessing that the teacher spent his/her own money to buy them. Do a search online for alternatives and you can find other solutions but the price range is $13-25 depending on the product. Do you really think the school Principal or legal counsel for the public school district are going to roll up their sleeves and help the teacher come up with a replacement system that covers students' view, and that doesn't get in the way or break (like cardboard would)? I would keep this in mind when you reach out.