I have often told my students that on day one of teacher training would-be teachers have to swear an oath. The made up ritual goes something like this: Each new potential entrant to the noble profession troops up solemnly to the front of a classroom where there sits a traditional teacher’s desk. On the desk is a pile of books. The new recruit places their right hand upon the pile while raising their left and utters the following words “I swear to give all my students a hard time.” On Tuesday this week I was heading up to the Drama floor in the lift along with two students. Getting into the same lift, on floor two was a colleague, of many years experience at my school. She stopped the lift, reminded the boys in no uncertain terms of the rules of the lifts (students may use them after 1545 only) and then oversaw their exit from said lift. It made me think. Did I have the mean streak necessary to ensure the extraction of students from lifts? I was put to the test today, but more of that later.
I have involved myself in the Middle Years Development Group since my arrival at my school, and it is a fascinating work group to be part of. This week we asked the enlightening, but also frightening question of what do we want children to be like at the end of year nine in our subject areas? Teachers are all guilty of being ruled by the demands of the exam board and when combined with the OFSTED Overlords teachers can easily find themselves a very long away from such questions as those we have been encouraged to ask ourselves. But fundamental questions about what we are teaching, how students learn best and is what we are doing the best way of doing it need to be asked regularly of ourselves as well as of our students too.
On a completely different note while in the Middle Years Group I accidently sat on a chair that was splattered with water. Result? A wet bum. The tropics though is a good place to get a wet bum as a few moments out in the sun after the meeting and my bum was once again bone dry. Thank goodness for hot weather.
Kids, particularly secondary school kids, are the same the world over in many ways. Yesterday one of the Drama studios was being used for a school board meeting so as to prevent the possibility of my year tens charging into a gathering of very important people I put a notice up telling the class to go to the dance studio instead for their lesson. Things happened that made me a couple of minutes late for the lesson and when I walked into the dance studio I was not in the least bit surprised to see that there were no students there. Knowing exactly what had happened I walked back to the Drama studio and saw all twelve students sitting in the Important People Chairs that had been specially placed in a square therein. I asked the class whether they were able to see notices, let alone read, and they assured me that they had all made a mistake and not seen my note. All except one student who gave me the priceless answer of “ Well Mr Lawrence, I did read it, but I thought I’d follow everyone else because they were all going into the studio.” Bless her!
Today I was overwhelmed by administration in connection with next week’s trip to Thailand for a mass drama spectacular. As requested I had emailed Air Asia with the names, passport numbers, birth dates, passport expiry dates, nationalities and loads of other stuff about the gang who are going on the trip. Air Asia emailed me to let me know that I should now check in online to confirm the flight. And guess what information they wanted me to input? The names, passport numbers, birth dates, passport expiry dates, nationalities and loads of other stuff about the gang who are going on the trip. But it got better as the website would not let me input more than five people who are going on the trip (there are twenty in our party). It was getting too much so I had to resort to the final solution. Phone Air Asia Group Bookings number. It took ages to find the number on their website and then even more ages while I waited to be connected to an agent. Amusingly while I was waiting the message that was on loop announced “All of our sales agents are busy due to overwhelming response to our promotions.” It is no wonder that Air Asia is overwhelmed if they overwhelm their customers. Finally when I got through to a human being I was assured, I quote, “You can check in at the airport, maybe. And maybe there will not be a charge to check in.” Maybe? Maybe? Now I really was overwhelmed by Air Asia’s promotions. Wish me luck next week.
And so back to my mean streak. What did I do with the boys who I found in the lift earlier today? One of them said he had a lift pass and another was the injured lad’s Sherpa. What about the other two though? I put it to them that they were trying it on and abusing the system. After further lecturing their metaphorical tails appeared to be between legs they promised not to do it again, on pain of being unceremoniously ejected if I caught them again. My mean streak is developing, but still has some way to go.
Day off again tomorrow, Friday. That is the third Public Holiday in two weeks.