 "Tribal" is the key
If I had to guess, I'd say you hinted at the answer when you said "tribal". I bet people are 1000x more likely to help someone they know than someone they don't know. People are hardwired to help other members of their tribe... and let non-members fend for themselves.
The students stepping over your professor probably never had him as a teacher, and didn't know him, so they were wary of helping him. The kids in your son's class all knew each other well, so they helped each other.
If I'm right, this is why it's so important to build a sense of global community.
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