Danger said:
There's another new concept; we sure never had a school nurse. Is that common in the States?
Yep. I don't know of schools without a nurse.
I agree with most of your post to some extent, but not completely. For instance, I was never diagnosed diabetic until I was over 20. All I knew was that when I had to go, nothing better get in my way. And that feeling could come up almost instantly, without warning, even if I'd just gone a few minutes before.
Which is why my first advice, in my first reply here is that if this person is finding they can't wait until the end of class to use the restroom, then s/he needs to see a doctor. It's actually quite a bit more common for kids to develop type II diabetes now than it used to be (thanks to the obesity problem), so doctors would be much more aware of that as a possible diagnosis now than when you were a teen (or even when I was a teen).
(Still happens sometimes if I've had more than 5 or 6 cups of coffee.)
Yeah, with the 16,000 gallons of cola kids drink with every meal nowadays, that's also a possibility, in which case it's time to cut back on the caffeine (consuming so much caffeine that you have to pee like a racehorse every 10 min is not conducive to learning anymore than not being allowed to pee when you need to).
The only other scenario when a student may need to use the restroom fairly urgently and that would be less apparent to the teacher would be the case of one of the girls in the class starting to menstruate. Since they tend to be more irregular than adults, and don't know how to recognize the advanced warning signs yet, it can begin unexpectedly and when they have not taken any preparation in advance for it. Adding to that, they may be embarrassed to give their reason in front of the whole class, or even to approach the teacher and ask quietly if the teacher is male. Again, in that case, I'd suggest opting to go to the nurse's office to use the restroom there. That way, the nurse can vouch for you that you really did leave the class to use the restroom, and it's usually easier to explain those reasons to them than to a teacher.
My experience is that teachers tend to adjust their rules according to how many students before have abused them. If students make a habit of disrupting one particular class to use the restroom, or are constantly coming and going, or suddenly needing to go only 5 min before class is over (so they don't have to return), then the teacher is likely to deny anyone permission to leave unless they're clearly fidgeting in their seat or turning green. If students don't abuse it, some teachers would just leave a hall pass on the edge of their desk or near the door for any student to quietly excuse themself to the restroom. Leaving one pass out meant only one student at a time. If only one student a week ended up needing it, they don't restrict it too much, but if the same student is leaving every day in the middle of class, or half the class is wandering in and out to the bathroom every class period, then they'll put a stop to it.
Sometimes it's also when you ask. If the teacher is right in the middle of presenting new material, or you're taking a quiz, they might ask you to just wait 5 min, or until you're done with the quiz. If they're just reviewing homework assignments, or everyone is sitting quietly at their desk doing an in-class assignment, they're likely to let you go right away. If you've just been caught passing notes and not paying attention to class or talking or complaining about the class being boring, they aren't very likely to believe you suddenly need to use the restroom.
In any case, the middle of class is not the time for debate because that just disrupts everyone's learning. If you disagree with your teacher (about anything, not just bathroom permission), wait until after class...or if you still need to run to the restroom, meet them afterschool, or discuss it before class the next day.
