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Around the UK, students have been exclaiming the phrase “sixseven” during lessons in the newest internet-inspired trend to spread through educational institutions.

While some educators have opted to calmly disregard the trend, others have accepted it. A group of educators explain how they’re dealing.

‘I thought I had said something rude’

Earlier in September, I had been talking to my eleventh grade class about getting ready for their GCSE exams in June. It escapes me exactly what it was in relation to, but I said words similar to “ … if you’re aiming for marks six, seven …” and the complete classroom erupted in laughter. It caught me totally off guard.

My immediate assumption was that I had created an allusion to an offensive subject, or that they perceived a quality in my speech pattern that sounded funny. A bit annoyed – but honestly intrigued and aware that they had no intention of being hurtful – I asked them to elaborate. Frankly speaking, the explanation they then gave didn’t make greater understanding – I remained with no idea.

What might have caused it to be extra funny was the weighing-up gesture I had executed while speaking. I later found out that this typically pairs with ““sixseven”: My purpose was it to aid in demonstrating the action of me speaking my mind.

With the aim of kill it off I try to mention it as frequently as I can. No strategy deflates a trend like this more thoroughly than an teacher trying to join in.

‘If you give oxygen to it, then it becomes an inferno’

Being aware of it helps so that you can steer clear of just blundering into comments like “indeed, there were 6, 7 thousand jobless individuals in Germany in 1933”. When the digit pairing is unpreventable, possessing a firm school behaviour policy and expectations on pupil behavior proves beneficial, as you can address it as you would any different disturbance, but I rarely needed to implement that. Rules are necessary, but if pupils embrace what the school is practicing, they will remain better concentrated by the internet crazes (especially in class periods).

Regarding six-seven, I haven’t wasted any instructional minutes, aside from an occasional quizzical look and commenting ““indeed, those are numerals, excellent”. Should you offer attention to it, it transforms into an inferno. I treat it in the same way I would treat any additional disturbance.

There was the 9 + 10 = 21 phenomenon a previous period, and certainly there will appear a new phenomenon subsequently. This is typical youth activity. When I was youth, it was performing Kevin and Perry impressions (admittedly away from the school environment).

Students are unpredictable, and I think it’s the educator’s responsibility to respond in a manner that steers them toward the direction that will help them to their educational goals, which, with luck, is graduating with qualifications as opposed to a conduct report a mile long for the use of meaningless numerals.

‘Children seek inclusion in social circles’

Young learners employ it like a unifying phrase in the schoolyard: a student calls it and the others respond to demonstrate they belong to the identical community. It resembles a call-and-response or a sports cheer – an agreed language they share. I don’t think it has any specific meaning to them; they simply understand it’s a trend to say. Whatever the newest phenomenon is, they want to feel part of it.

It’s forbidden in my teaching space, though – it results in a caution if they shout it out – just like any other verbal interruption is. It’s especially difficult in numeracy instruction. But my students at fifth grade are children aged nine to ten, so they’re relatively adherent to the regulations, while I understand that at secondary [school] it could be a separate situation.

I have worked as a teacher for a decade and a half, and such trends persist for a month or so. This craze will diminish in the near future – this consistently happens, notably once their younger siblings start saying it and it ceases to be fashionable. Subsequently they will be focused on the next thing.

‘Sometimes joining the laughter is necessary’

I first detected it in August, while teaching English at a international school. It was primarily male students uttering it. I instructed students from twelve to eighteen and it was widespread within the less experienced learners. I didn’t understand its meaning at the time, but as a young adult and I recognized it was merely a viral phenomenon akin to when I attended classes.

Such phenomena are continuously evolving. “Skibidi toilet” was a well-known trend during the period when I was at my training school, but it didn’t particularly occur as often in the educational setting. Differing from ““67”, “skibidi toilet” was never written on the whiteboard in class, so students were less equipped to pick up on it.

I typically overlook it, or periodically I will smile with the students if I unintentionally utter it, trying to understand them and understand that it’s simply youth culture. In my opinion they just want to feel that sense of belonging and companionship.

‘Lighthearted usage has diminished its occurrence’

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