A Student Punished For Saying 'bless you'

Next thing you know, students are going to start getting suspended for saying thank you and hello.

Quote :

VACAVILLE, Calif., Sept. 29 (UPI) -- A California high school teacher who reduced a student's grade for saying "bless you" to another student who sneezed said the punishment was about disruption.

Steve Cuckovich, health teacher at Will C. Wood High School in Vacaville, said he knocked 25 points off a student's grade for saying "bless you," but the punishment had nothing to do with religious beliefs, KXTL-TV, Sacramento, reported Thursday.

"It's got to do with an interruption of class time," Cuckovich said.

"The blessing doesn't really make sense anymore," he said. "When you sneeze in the old days, they thought you were dispelling evil spirits out of your body. So they were saying, 'God bless you,' for getting rid of evil spirits. But today, what you're doing doesn't really make any sense anymore."

Principal Cliff DeGraw said he has spoken with Cuckovich and the teacher now understands the punishment was inappropriate.

"He realizes there's better ways to do that. We don't condone that type of punishment," DeGraw said.

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WAT?

I was raised in a Pentecostal Church and I had no idea saying 'Bless you!' to someone who sneezed had anything to do with religion. I just thought it was being polite, like saying 'Thank you' to someone who handed you something or helped you.

And disrupting class? If someone saying 'Bless you!' to someone who sneezes disrupts your class, you probably weren't in control of it in the first place.

How is saying "bless you" distracting? I help at a local high school, and people say that when someone sneezes. It doesn't distract from class in the slightest.

Sounds to me like the teacher is trying to use that as an excuse because his real reason would probably be even more unacceptable then the one he gave.

Quote :

"When you sneeze in the old days, they thought you were dispelling evil spirits out of your body.

This guy is a fucking idiot. They said "bless you" because everyone assumed you were either dying of the plague or dying of the common cold.

When the teacher says "No talking during the test", it means no talking during the test.

I've seen students have their tests ripped up and replaced with a zero for giggling excessively during a test. (It really was distracting)

Not that big of a deal, imo.

/rod up ass

I saw a student get twenty points off for repeatedly tapping his pen loudly on the desk during an exam.

This really doesn't surprise me. Seems like it's more about "No talking" than anything to do with saying "bless you".

HOWEVER

It's pretty ingrained in most Americans to say "bless you" when someone sneezes, to the point you don't even realize you're saying it. I feel like this was definitely taking it too far. Then again, for all we know, the kid has a habit of making noise during exams.

I seem to be missing the bit where we're told that this occurred during an exam. If it did, that would be one thing, but all the article actually says is that a student's grade was lowered for saying "Bless You".

Also, if it was during an exam, why does it matter whether or not the teacher considered the remark appropriate?

Talk about missing the point. There's no way saying 'bless you' is more disruptive than stopping everything to punish a student for being polite.

I get the feeling this guy is one of those teachers. I think we've all had one of them at some point: the kind of teacher during whose class you're afraid to even breathe, because the slightest gesture is perceived as a personal offense.

Yeeeeah, I'm sorry, but as much as I am a stick-up-the-ass gal when it comes to classroom discipline (I have a raging hate-on for people who feel they must have a personal conversation in class, move and twitch so much that a shared desk is shaking, or drum on the desk with their writing implements - in short, if your movement or noise keeps me from concentrating on class, you're on my shitlist), and punishing a student for saying "bless you" is just completely excessive. So what if saying it "doesn't really make sense anymore" - it's ingrained into society and expresses politeness and consideration, not that the person saying they believe the sneezer is infested with evil spirits that need to be exorcised. Seems like Mr. Cuckovich isn't one for social interaction, or he would have realized that.

Lapin wrote:

This really doesn't surprise me. Seems like it's more about "No talking" than anything to do with saying "bless you".

It was; a kid who talked during a test lost points. Another site I saw this on had the local TV news story linked; while the tone of the piece was overwhelmingly "mean old teacher trying to restrict religious freedom" nonsense, they did quote him talking about how, whenever a student sneezed, there'd be a dozen or more saying, "Bless you," and the sneezer would then thank every one of them individually. Does anyone really think that's about religion or politeness? So he cracked down, and they went crying to their mommies, one of whom then went crying to the press.

Geez, what a stupid teacher. Saying 'bless you' to a sneeze may not have much religious significance, but it's something a LOT of people do on reflex.

Why not punish the other kid for sneezing too?

For crying out loud, some teachers can be so goddamn arrogant.

Not to mention paranoid.

Drabbler wrote:

It was; a kid who talked during a test lost points. Another site I saw this on had the local TV news story linked; while the tone of the piece was overwhelmingly "mean old teacher trying to restrict religious freedom" nonsense, they did quote him talking about how, whenever a student sneezed, there'd be a dozen or more saying, "Bless you," and the sneezer would then thank every one of them individually. Does anyone really think that's about religion or politeness? So he cracked down, and they went crying to their mommies, one of whom then went crying to the press.

No, that's not politeness, that is disruptive and smells of procrastination if the guy deliberately goes, "Thank you Marty, thank you Steve, thank you Jane, thank you Bob..."

A quick "bless you" - "thank you" exchange, done in two seconds, even if the "bless you" comes from multiple sources, is not disruptive. The instance Drabbler quoted is. If that is what happened, I can understand his ban to a degree, although his quotes kinda-sorta don't sound like it.

Quote :

After one student offered another the sentiment post-sneeze, Mr. Cuckovich reportedly chastised, “Do you think that girl is evil, do you think the evil spirits are coming out of her?”

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Of course, I would actually warn and punish the sneezer in the instance of disruption alleged, not the well-wisher, since he's the source of procrastination (First offense: "You know, Ken, it's great to be polite, but it is cutting into class time. Please just say "thank you" generally and thank each well-wisher individually after class, if you wish. Don't do it again or I have to dock you points for disruptiveness." - and if he does it again, crack down).

I'm pretty sure his point about evil spirits is that IT ISN'T FUCKING NECESSARY TO SAY "BLESS YOU" WHEN SOMEONE SNEEZES. It'd be one thing if we still lived in medieval times where people really, truly believed that God was eating your soul or something whenever you sneezed.

I can totally believe little smart-mouthed fucks chimed in with "BLESS YOU" as loud as possible every time someone sneezed for the sake of fucking with the teacher and ruining everything for the five students in the class who actually wanted to learn. And now they've got other dopes whining about political correctness and religious freedoms.

I hate to agree with Harley, but I find people saying "bless you" really offensive. Also stupid - I know I've just sneezed, you know I've just sneezed. Why do you feel compelled to remark on it?

Dixie wrote:

I hate to agree with Harley, but I find people saying "bless you" really offensive. Also stupid - I know I've just sneezed, you know I've just sneezed. Why do you feel compelled to remark on it?

...because it's polite?

Dixie wrote:

I hate to agree with Harley, but I find people saying "bless you" really offensive. Also stupid - I know I've just sneezed, you know I've just sneezed. Why do you feel compelled to remark on it?

It's an odd social thing. Sneezing can be an awkward moment, especially when there is total quiet. Some people feel they need to acknowledge another person's noise, even if it is involuntary.
Kinda like when you're walking past a complete stranger on the street, and there's nobody else around, and then you make eye contact, and then you realise you know that person from a really long time ago. Do you say 'hi'? Oh, wait, you passed them, time's up. Fuck, now they're behind you, no going back, that would be weird.

Sneezing is one of those awkward social things. And, as an autistic person, I would be a fucking expert on awkward social things. Religion or no, some people just feel the need to acknowledge the other person to avoid weird silence.

Maximilia wrote:

Dixie wrote:

I hate to agree with Harley, but I find people saying "bless you" really offensive. Also stupid - I know I've just sneezed, you know I've just sneezed. Why do you feel compelled to remark on it?

...because it's polite?

Why is it polite? Why would it be not polite to not remark on the other person's sneezing?

I personally dislike anyone commenting on my sneezes. I mumble an 'excuse me' if I'm in public and don't mind if someone says a 'bless you' while they're going about whatever they were doing, but if they're going out of their way to say something I just find it weird and slightly intrusive.

Sakurelf wrote:

Kinda like when you're walking past a complete stranger on the street, and there's nobody else around, and then you make eye contact, and then you realise you know that person from a really long time ago. Do you say 'hi'? Oh, wait, you passed them, time's up. Fuck, now they're behind you, no going back, that would be weird.

Oh, I thought that was just me.

Sutremaine wrote:

I personally dislike anyone commenting on my sneezes. I mumble an 'excuse me' if I'm in public and don't mind if someone says a 'bless you' while they're going about whatever they were doing, but if they're going out of their way to say something I just find it weird and slightly intrusive.

This has been my opinion for years. I've even been scolded for not thanking people who said, "Bless you," (mostly by the people who said it). I try to explain my position, but usually they just get angry and say that if I'm going to be ungrateful, they'll stop saying it, as though that isn't exactly what I was asking for.

*shrugs* I don't know--I was taught when I was a kid that it was polite to say bless you after a sneeze. I don't care if they say thank you afterwards or not; if I'm being polite, I'm certainly not going to scold you for not saying thank you... because that'd be rude. Maybe it's not something people in other places do, or maybe it's viewed as intrusive. I don't know. In the Midwest, it was taught as good manners.

So you don't know why it's polite, and it's one of those things that's done because people do it?

@Sutre: You mean like shaking hands? Or saying thank you?

There's no real reason to say thank you, but it's polite and you do it anyways.

Sakurelf wrote:

When the teacher says "No talking during the test", it means no talking during the test.

I've seen students have their tests ripped up and replaced with a zero for giggling excessively during a test. (It really was distracting)

Not that big of a deal, imo.

/rod up ass

Except it didn't say they were taking a test?

Not to mention the fact that sneezing has nothing to do with the grade. I can see a detention, for disrupting, but why would you knock off academic points?

When I was in high school, one teacher had a great way of handling the matter. She said whenever anybody sneezed, burbed, farted, etc, nobody would say anything. There would be a moment's pause and then we would continue. It worked out quite well.

Howithurts wrote:

@Sutre: You mean like shaking hands? Or saying thank you?

There's no real reason to say thank you, but it's polite and you do it anyways.

Sakurelf wrote:

When the teacher says "No talking during the test", it means no talking during the test.

I've seen students have their tests ripped up and replaced with a zero for giggling excessively during a test. (It really was distracting)

Not that big of a deal, imo.

/rod up ass

Except it didn't say they were taking a test?

Not to mention the fact that sneezing has nothing to do with the grade. I can see a detention, for disrupting, but why would you knock off academic points?

I'm not really sure why. I think it's a tactic that's always been used academically, as a crappy way to scare kids straight. The logical conclusion, however, is to follow up on it and actually do it if they choose to be disruptive. If you talk during a test, even utter a noise, it is considered cheating (by communicating to peers) and you get a 0 for that test. Some teachers are even quite dramatic about the paper-ripping itself.

Off topic, but I can't stop staring at your avatar, with its pretty moving words.