‘Sometimes you’ve got to chuckle’: a quintet of UK teachers on dealing with ‘‘sixseven’ in the classroom

Throughout the UK, students have been shouting out the expression ““67” during instruction in the most recent viral trend to take over schools.

Although some teachers have chosen to calmly disregard the trend, some have accepted it. Several instructors explain how they’re managing.

‘I believed I’d made an inappropriate comment’

During September, I had been speaking with my eleventh grade students about studying for their secondary school examinations in June. I can’t remember specifically what it was in relation to, but I said a phrase resembling “ … if you’re aiming for grades six, seven …” and the whole class erupted in laughter. It took me completely by surprise.

My first thought was that I had created an allusion to an offensive subject, or that they’d heard something in my speech pattern that appeared amusing. Somewhat exasperated – but truly interested and aware that they had no intention of being malicious – I asked them to elaborate. To be honest, the clarification they then gave didn’t provide much difference – I remained with little comprehension.

What might have caused it to be especially amusing was the weighing-up movement I had made while speaking. I later discovered that this typically pairs with ““sixseven”: My purpose was it to assist in expressing the action of me verbalizing thoughts.

To eliminate it I try to mention it as frequently as I can. Nothing diminishes a trend like this more thoroughly than an grown-up trying to get involved.

‘Providing attention fuels the fire’

Being aware of it assists so that you can prevent just blundering into statements like “well, there were 6, 7 thousand unemployed people in Germany in 1933”. When the numerical sequence is unpreventable, possessing a strong student discipline system and expectations on pupil behavior proves beneficial, as you can sanction it as you would any additional interruption, but I rarely needed to implement that. Guidelines are necessary, but if students embrace what the learning environment is doing, they’ll be better concentrated by the internet crazes (particularly in class periods).

With sixseven, I haven’t wasted any instructional minutes, other than for an infrequent eyebrow raise and commenting ““indeed, those are numerals, excellent”. When you provide oxygen to it, it transforms into a wildfire. I handle it in the identical manner I would treat any different disturbance.

Earlier occurred the nine plus ten equals twenty-one trend a few years ago, and certainly there will appear a new phenomenon after this. That’s children’s behavior. During my own growing up, it was imitating Kevin and Perry impressions (admittedly outside the learning space).

Students are spontaneous, and I think it’s the educator’s responsibility to react in a approach that redirects them back to the course that will enable them toward their academic objectives, which, hopefully, is coming out with certificates rather than a behaviour list a mile long for the employment of arbitrary digits.

‘Children seek inclusion in social circles’

Students utilize it like a unifying phrase in the schoolyard: a student calls it and the others respond to demonstrate they belong to the equivalent circle. It resembles a interactive chant or a football chant – an shared vocabulary they use. In my view it has any specific significance to them; they merely recognize it’s a thing to say. Regardless of what the latest craze is, they desire to experience belonging to it.

It’s banned in my teaching space, however – it results in a caution if they shout it out – similar to any additional shouting out is. It’s especially difficult in maths lessons. But my pupils at primary level are nine to 10-year-olds, so they’re relatively adherent to the regulations, whereas I recognize that at secondary [school] it might be a distinct scenario.

I’ve been a educator for 15 years, and such trends persist for a few weeks. This craze will fade away in the near future – they always do, particularly once their younger siblings begin using it and it stops being trendy. Subsequently they will be engaged with the subsequent trend.

‘You just have to laugh with them’

I first detected it in August, while instructing in English at a foreign language school. It was mostly boys uttering it. I taught students from twelve to eighteen and it was prevalent with the junior students. I was unaware what it was at the time, but being twenty-four and I recognized it was simply an internet trend comparable to when I was at school.

These trends are continuously evolving. “Skibidi toilet” was a well-known trend back when I was at my training school, but it didn’t particularly exist as much in the classroom. Differing from ““67”, ““that particular meme” was not scribbled on the chalkboard in instruction, so pupils were less prepared to embrace it.

I typically overlook it, or periodically I will laugh with them if I inadvertently mention it, attempting to relate to them and understand that it’s simply pop culture. I think they just want to enjoy that sensation of togetherness and friendship.

‘Humorous repetition has reduced its frequency’

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