‘আপনাকে শুধু হাসতে হবে’: শ্রেণীকক্ষে ‘ছয়-সাত’ জনের সাথে আচরণের বিষয়ে পাঁচজন শিক্ষক
Across the UK, school students are uttering the word “six-seven” during lessons, in the latest meme-based craze. While some teachers have decided to ignore the trend, others are embracing it. Five teachers explain how they’re coping.
‘I thought I’d said something rude’
In September, I was talking to my Year 11 tutor group about preparing for their GCSE exams in June. I can’t quite remember what it was in reference to, but I said something along the lines of “…if you work on it in sixth, seven…” and the whole class burst out laughing. It completely bewildered me. My first thought was that I had alluded to something rude, or that she had heard something in my pronunciation that sounded odd.
A little crestfallen – but genuinely curious and aware that she didn’t mean to be mean – I asked her to explain. Truthfully, the explanation she gave didn’t make much difference – I still had no idea. That the insinuation I had made about putting on weight whilst speaking might have made it more interesting.
I’ve since learned that this often happens with “six-seven”: my intention was for it to help me express the act of thinking aloud. I try to mention it as much as possible to wrap it up. There is nothing that can suppress a craze more powerfully than an adult trying to pander to it.
James, secondary school teacher, north London
‘If you give it oxygen, it goes to hell’
It helps to be aware of it so that you can simply avoid mistakes in statements like “In 1933, there were 6, 7 million unemployed people in Germany”. If a mixture of numbers is unavoidable, then a firm school behaviour policy and expectations about students’ behaviour really helps, because you can brush it off as just another disruption, but I haven’t really had to do that.
Policies are one thing, but if students buy into what the school is doing, they’ll be less distracted by internet crazes (at least during lessons). With six-seven, the occasional frown and a “Yes, it’s a number, good.” is enough. If you give it oxygen, it goes to hell.
I treat it the same way I treat any other disruption. Some time ago, there was a craze for 9 + 10 = 21, and no doubt another craze will follow. Kids do it. When I was growing up, it was doing Kevin and Perry impressions (outside class, obviously).
Kids are unpredictable, and I think the adult thing to do is to gently steer them back on to the path that’s going to get them where they need to be, which is, fingers crossed, coming away with qualifications rather than a mile-long behaviour list for random number usage.
Conor, 39, history teacher, London comprehensive
‘They want to feel part of a group’
Children use it on the playground like a bonding mantra: one says it, and the others respond to show they’re in the same group. It’s like call-and-response or football chants – an agreed language they share. I don’t think it means anything special to them; they just know it’s the thing to say.
Whatever the latest craze is, they want to feel part of it. However, it’s banned in my class – if they shout it out, it’s a warning – just like any other shouting. It’s especially difficult in maths lessons. But I have Year 5 classes of nine to 10-year-olds, so they largely comply with the rules, whereas I understand it can be different at secondary (school).
I’ve been a teacher for 15 years, and these crazes last for three or four weeks. This fad will go away soon – they always do, especially when their younger siblings start saying it and it isn’t cool anymore. Then they’ll move on to the next thing.
Jane, early 50s, primary school teacher, north-west England
‘You have to laugh with them’
I started noticing it in August while teaching English at a foreign language school. Most of the boys would say it. I teach children aged 12 to 18 and it was more prevalent among the younger students. At the time I didn’t know what it was, but I’m 24 and I realised that I was at school, it was a meme.
Fads constantly change. When I was in my training school “Skibidi Toilet” was a popular meme, but it wasn’t really as much of a thing in the classroom. In contrast to “Six-Seven”, “Skibidi Toilet” was never written on the board in class, so students were less able to understand it.
I just ignore it, or sometimes if I accidentally say it I’ll laugh with them, try to empathise with them and understand that it’s just pop culture. I think they just want to feel a sense of community and friendship.
Harriet, 24, English teacher at a foreign language school, southern England
‘Shouting loudly means I barely hear it anymore’
I’ve been doing the job for 30 years and I’ve seen fashions and fads come and go, it’s one of those things. The first time I heard it was when I came back after the summer break, I said, “exactly how many examples do you need to read of the paper; excellent!”
Also, my practice of shouting at students (with hand signals) with gusto means I barely hear it anymore. The students roll their eyes in amusement, and you can tell from their faces they’re thinking “for God’s sake”. Seeing a teacher old enough to be their granddad (so to speak) doing it is off-putting for them, because it turns the cringe factor up to 11.
Paul, 54, secondary school teacher, Cheshire
‘Part of an ever-globalised repository of abuse’
This meme-ification of a brain-rotting statement is nothing new. “Sigma”, “Skibidi”, “Cooked” are examples of an ever-globalised stock of insult words. The thing that is most interesting to me about “six-seven” is how widespread and universally recognised it is, at least in the Anglophone world.
Already running the risk of sounding teacher-ish, I would say that in my day schools had their own local, domestic vernacular. With the ease in which all kids watch the same videos on social media and send them to each other they go viral – and quickly.
I think children today are much more plugged in with global trends and popular culture. Coupled with the advent of short-form videos, kids are able to consume far more information and access far more memorable popular culture than ever before. Combine this with America’s gargantuan pop culture export and you end up with “six-seven” on every corner.
George, 26, trainee history teacher, London
প্রকাশিত: 2025-10-25 14:39:00
উৎস: www.theguardian.com
