For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for June 05, 2019

Oooooh, Lizzie thought the F word from “The Wizard of Id”!

It’s not that the teacher doesn’t like you Lizzie, it’s you don’t like the teacher.

Funny how a child who was so disinterested in school grew up to be a teacher. Oh, the irony.

Pay attention? Elizabeth was fully asleep and slumping back in her chair. As for not following along in her books, it’s hard to do that when you are asleep.

As for misspelling words clearly printed on the blackboard, that is probably on the teacher. The language of “clearly printed” tells us the teacher has a high opinion of her blackboard writing and is not taking the blame for poor printing that one of her students can’t read.

Hated school. Never did well till I was older and went to community college and graduated with a 3.75GPA. It was important that I do well to get a better job. The thing I hated is it was boring and you had to learn stupid things. Strangely though, I needed a mickey mouse course to pass high school. I took two years of typing. Who knew what a help it would be, especially when I became a programmer!

Perhaps she needs glasses? My daughter had this issue in 3rd grade and discovered she couldn’t see the board. Got her glasses (now she wears contacts) and all was well with the world!

How much are you supposed to pay attention?

Someone needs glasses…

If I remember this arc, this was when it was discovered that Elizabeth needs glasses.

Someone’s getting glasses!!

Perhaps a trip to the eye doctor is in order?

I see where this is headed, as do a few other people on here!

It’s a 2 way street. I always told my kids to come home and vent, but never let them know you don’t like them.

I lived in fear, dread, and hatred of my Latin teacher – who also was the Dean of Discipline at the minor seminary I attended. I just knew the man sat up nights devising ways to make my life miserable.

Imagine my chagrin, when I found out he was the one who gave me the best and most glowing recommendation to get into college!

Acd

Before the glasses, Elizabeth needs some milk of magnesia. She looks constipated in the third panel.

As I recall, two things turned Elizabeth around academically: getting glasses and Mrs. Edwards. I can sympathize. Until I got glasses, I was working the wrong homework assignments, and I never had a Mrs. Edwards in any class.

Not being able to see well can lead to all of Lizzie’s problems, including inattention. If you cannot see what the teacher is writing on the blackboard or follow along in your books, your attention wanders and occasionally you might even fall asleep in class.

My younger son hated school. (still have a report card where he got 4 Fs in industrial arts) but went to WIU to become a teacher and was so well liked at one of his earlier assignments, was asked to return to do the graduation speech. Now half-way to retirement at a school near Springfield.

The Ag teacher at my HS told about a friend of his that said he’d never go into agriculture or be a teacher – and became an Ag teacher! He was also a Navy veteran, but said there were two people that would never go down in a submarine – him and the man they sent after him!

One of my favorite books as a kid was The Great Brain by John Fitzgerald. It told of being a kid in Utah in the 1890s. A couple of chapters dealt with education, and one specifically about discipline from a new teacher, who system was easy to understand “Students caught goofing off in class, failing to pay attention, or dipping a girl’s pigtails in the inkwell will be dealt this way: Boys will be hit on the bottom with this paddle. Girls will be slapped across the palm with this ruler and made to stay after school to help me clean the blackboards.”

I haven’t seen or heard the word “fink” in years.

A fink! And a rat fink, at that. I’ve missed that word…..

Makes sense to me. :)

The child needs glasses. It took a teacher to tell my stupid mother that I was half blind.

If they are not for me they are against me…no middle ground.

Even back in the dark ages when I was in elementary school, in 4th grade, there were some schools like mine that did eye exams every year, for which I am still grateful. I didn’t realize I was nearsighted, because I was close enough to the blackboard to read it. Even my attentive parents had not noticed a problem. They tested me at school, and found out I was VERY near-sighted. Shortly thereafter, I was whisked to the eye doctor, got glasses (and updates every year or so) and all was well.

I see glasses un her future.

sounds to me like she might need to have an eye exam.