Still lots to learn

All set with two boxes of chocolates and a packet of biscuits as inter-active visual and gastronomic aids I was rather looking forward to my Media Studies Class this afternoon.  Armed with photocopies and a firm idea of what I was going to do I looked forward to a “fun-filled” couple of hours.

So much for an experienced teacher’s expectations!  I had, as usual not counted on the selfish, egotistical bloody mindedness of smug, self-satisfied, pampered, inadequate, adolescents.  Or the lessons were wrong.  But one child said thank you, how often does that happen!

In spite of my years of experience and the thousands of pupils that I have taught, I still find it difficult to believe that the things that I find interesting do not fascinate all pupils.  And therein lies the central problem in all my teaching (I mean apart from the arrogance inherent in what I have said): if any individual pupil is not taken with what I am doing then I cannot count the lesson a success.  And even though, logically, I know that to “capture” a whole class is difficult to impossible it is still what I want.  Or need rather.

In a six-class day, one should not take the last two hours of a long, long day as the key point.  But I did and I remain dissatisfied with what I did.  Back to the drawing board.  The ideas, at least, were good they just need a little more work.  As always!

I talked to two more colleagues from Primary and Infants and they are just as much mystified about the sacking at the end of last term as I am.  The more responses I get the more unhappy I am with what has happened.  But things must take their course and I hope that the situation will be a little clearer in the near future.

In the nearer future I am looking forward to revisiting the Goya exhibition with Irene on Saturday, but before then in the even nearer future I have to stay in school to support a colleague who helps organize an International Literary Competition based in the school by staying for the prize giving. 

So Thursday is going to be another school day extending into the night.  But the counting down to the end of the teaching part of term continues.