In my first year of graduate school, I encountered an idea that completely changed the way that I managed my classroom.
This idea seems problematic, especially in the context of classical education. As teachers, we are aiming to cultivate excellent moral character in our students. Assumedly, part of this excellence should include an understanding of manners and the ability to ask for things respectfully. Moreover, teachers are meant to model this moral excellence every day. If this is the case, how can I say that teachers should not use the word “please?”
Teachers should not use the word “please.”
The answer has to do with another principle of classical pedagogy.
The teacher is the leader of the classroom.
If we think of the classroom as a ship, the teacher is the captain, who is charting the course to the destination and commanding his crew, the students, so they may reach that destination. The teacher is the one who knows how to get to the truth, and the students are the ones who need to be led to it. This should be the case for both intellectual and moral truth. The teacher should know what excellent habits of behavior look like and always seek to inculcate those habits in their students.
As such, teachers should give instructions in a way that direct students toward excellence, but the word “please” is problematic to this formation of behavior. Specifically, problems emerge when teachers use the word “please” in a question when they really intend to give a command. Compare the following instructions as an example.
“Students, will you please fill out your planners?”
“Students, fill out your planners.”
If a teacher gives the first form of this instruction, they are inviting their student to have the chance to say “no” in response. This response both undermines the authority of the teacher and their ability to lead students to form good habits through instruction. The second form of the instruction eliminates both of those problems by simply shifting the instruction from an interrogative sentence to an imperative sentence. Imperatives are wonderful because they do not allow for a response; they demand action. If you want to have authority as a teacher, if you want to be the captain of the ship, give commands to your crew. Lead your students with your language so they can develop excellent habits.
The Classical Classroom 