‘It’s impossible not to smile’: several UK instructors on dealing with ‘‘sixseven’ in the school environment

Throughout the UK, students have been shouting out the words ““67” during classes in the latest internet-inspired trend to sweep across educational institutions.

While some teachers have chosen to patiently overlook the craze, different educators have accepted it. Five teachers explain how they’re managing.

‘I thought I had said something rude’

During September, I had been speaking with my secondary school tutor group about studying for their qualification tests in June. It escapes me exactly what it was in reference to, but I said a phrase resembling “ … if you’re targeting grades six, seven …” and the entire group burst out laughing. It took me completely by surprise.

My immediate assumption was that I’d made an reference to something rude, or that they detected a quality in my pronunciation that sounded funny. Somewhat frustrated – but honestly intrigued and conscious that they weren’t trying to be hurtful – I got them to elaborate. Frankly speaking, the explanation they then gave didn’t make much difference – I continued to have minimal understanding.

What might have caused it to be particularly humorous was the considering motion I had executed while speaking. I later discovered that this often accompanies “six-seven”: I had intended it to assist in expressing the process of me verbalizing thoughts.

To eliminate it I aim to reference it as much as I can. No approach deflates a craze like this more emphatically than an teacher attempting to participate.

‘Providing attention fuels the fire’

Knowing about it assists so that you can prevent just blundering into comments like “indeed, there were 6, 7 hundred unemployed people in Germany in 1933”. When the digit pairing is unavoidable, maintaining a firm school behaviour policy and standards on student conduct is advantageous, as you can address it as you would any additional disturbance, but I rarely been required to take that action. Guidelines are necessary, but if learners accept what the learning environment is doing, they will remain less distracted by the viral phenomena (particularly in lesson time).

With sixseven, I haven’t lost any teaching periods, other than for an periodic quizzical look and saying ““indeed, those are numerals, excellent”. If you give focus on it, then it becomes a wildfire. I treat it in the same way I would manage any different disturbance.

There was the mathematical meme trend a few years ago, and certainly there will appear a new phenomenon subsequently. That’s children’s behavior. During my own youth, it was imitating Kevin and Perry impressions (admittedly away from the classroom).

Children are unforeseeable, and I think it’s the educator’s responsibility to react in a way that redirects them back to the path that will help them to their educational goals, which, hopefully, is coming out with certificates instead of a disciplinary record lengthy for the utilization of arbitrary digits.

‘Children seek inclusion in social circles’

The children utilize it like a bonding chant in the schoolyard: one says it and the others respond to indicate they’re part of the equivalent circle. It’s like a interactive chant or a stadium slogan – an agreed language they use. I believe it has any particular importance to them; they just know it’s a thing to say. No matter what the newest phenomenon is, they desire to feel part of it.

It’s banned in my teaching space, however – it results in a caution if they call it out – similar to any other shouting out is. It’s notably tricky in numeracy instruction. But my pupils at primary level are pre-teens, so they’re quite adherent to the rules, while I recognize that at teen education it could be a separate situation.

I have served as a instructor for 15 years, and such trends last for a few weeks. This trend will diminish shortly – it invariably occurs, especially once their younger siblings commence repeating it and it ceases to be trendy. Subsequently they will be on to the following phenomenon.

‘Sometimes joining the laughter is necessary’

I began observing it in August, while teaching English at a foreign language school. It was mainly young men uttering it. I educated students from twelve to eighteen and it was common with the less experienced learners. I didn’t understand its meaning at the time, but as a young adult and I understood it was just a meme akin to when I was at school.

Such phenomena are always shifting. ““Toilet meme” was a popular meme back when I was at my educational institute, but it failed to appear as frequently in the learning environment. In contrast to ““67”, “skibidi toilet” was not inscribed on the whiteboard in class, so learners were less prepared to embrace it.

I just ignore it, or occasionally I will smile with the students if I unintentionally utter it, attempting to relate to them and understand that it’s merely pop culture. I think they just want to feel that sense of community and companionship.

‘Playfully shouting it means I rarely hear it now’

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