Up and running

Well the wait is finally over I'm now 8 days into my second teaching practice and er its great. In the main the kids have been fine, I am re learning how to teach again....its amazing just how much you forget. I have charge of a year 10 form class.....ooohhh the responsibility! Actually they are proving to be really good....almost looking out for me....even got a compliment about my tie today.....which is a sure sign all hell will break loose tomorrow. The workload is completely mad, just a constant cycle of teach...feedback...plan but I still smile for most of the day so it can't be all that bad. I work with some fantastic people who ask for nothing in return for the help they give, I appreciate you all.

I managed to secure some post 16 experience at my local FE College.....not a bloody thing from the university of contempt, must still be sat on his arse. Have applied for 3 jobs now and heard not a thing, my application form and covering letter have passed my headteachers inspection with flying colours. Still, put in an application today so fingers crossed. On the jobs front we had a guy come in from a supply agency pitching for new recruits....it can't do any harm to register can it? Anybody have experience of supply (this decade preferably) to give me any tips?

Whilst not having much time to read one article did catch my eye, a speech to a heads conference by Dr Carol Craig, observing that schools risk turning pupils into narcissists by focusing on too much happiness. Dr Craig, head of the centre for Confidence and Wellbeing in Glasgow (I kid you not!). I surprised me that there was indeed a centre for wellness, especially in Glasgow which I thought had a life expectancy of about 50% of national average but I digress. As you may be aware for the past 2 years schools have had a statutory duty to promote their students wellbeing but now it seems to have gone to far. In some schools the words criticism and competition have been removed from the list of acceptable vocabulary so creating a raft of spoilt prima donnas unable to see beyond 'I'. As with everything else in life its all about balance......how do these, undoubtedly well paid, band wagon jumpers create massive cottage industries out of the latest fad, buzzword or initiative. Do we ever need a minister of common sense to take charge of these departments....no wonder education is so crap at times.

Anyway, its not all bad.......clocks go forward this weekend, 7 teaching days left till Easter!!

Keep Aa'had

Reading Week

Well as the title suggests this has been a reading week with no school so have spent the entire week on the golf course.

Some reading I did manage however was the Higher Education Funding Council who have promised £407 million to Uni's to "widen participation and cut the drop out rate". It goes on to state how monies should be used to help and support students with few or no qualifications cope with degree level studies. Ok, two points.....what the bloody hell are students with no qualifications doing on a degree course and why don't they invest the money into good teaching. This might just help improve the chances of students not quitting Uni through sheer boredom or the notion that these beholders of academia sit in ivory towers and talk in a language aimed about three feet over their heads.
Under the scheme the Uni of Teeside is to be given £11 million to tackle this. Now 11 million is a lot of cash by any body's standards.....if you break it down it would fund the tuition fees of over 1'200 people who might actually want to do a 3 year degree, rather than spending it on people who don't or quite simple can't. What is the obsession with pushing people further up the education ladder when actually it is much better to advise people that this is indeed their floor and would they kindly get off. 11 million quid would secure the jobs of over 400 people for a year at Nissan who were made redundant, it could pay an average mortgage on Teeside for a year for over 3000 people...you start to get the picture!

I can only speak from my experience at the University of Contempt but its no wonder people drop out. If it were an animal the vet would have shot it a long time ago, if it were a private business, operating in the real world it wouldn't need a recession to kill it off, ineptitude and incompetence would have done the job many moons ago. The bit I don't understand is, now that we as students pay for this crap, why is it accepted? Why is this place still untouchable, why do we have no right of recourse.....value for money...how would you measure that in an education setting?

Prison interview today....now that was an experience, but hey the sun shone and it didn't look such a bad place. Everybody seemed really friendly on the staff side so I just have to wait for security clearance.....minimum 22 days wait, will keep you posted on this one but fingers crossed.

Keep Aa'had

And the winner is......

The lady who stood in front of all the student and NQT teachers to deliver a session on pupils self abusing and delivered the line, in all seriousness: "...more information can be found at www.selfharm.com forward slash wrists....." Well, I was just creased....totally gone....pure unintended genius at its very best!

Flags out part 2....Uni is finished, no more teaching sessions, we have a reading week this week, which coincidentally is the week after the assignment was due in...you work it out! I have sent in my teaching timetable so you never know they may actually come out and see me as they failed last placement, can't wait.

2 jobs applied for....never heard nowt back....not exactly a confidence booster is it...any tips send em in! One application form to send out, have decided to visit the school for a viewing first (tomorrow) to see if that makes any difference. Have an interview at a prison on Friday to work as a cover lecturer over the holidays....if I get out will keep you posted.

Post 16 experience...school is still trying...Uni not arsed....boils my p*ss

2 weeks to go.....10 weeks of work to plan.....8 different classes.....and some crap Uni work to get in the road of it all.......nae bother!

Keep Aa'had