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Hugh Reilly: The CT gravy train may be about to hit the buffers



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Published Date: 18 June 2008
By Hugh Reilly
A Class Act
HONK your horn if you think striking oil tanker drivers should receive the £36,000 salary they are demanding. Not a single toot.
To be fair to Shell oil shifters, it is clearly an outrage that they are paid the derogatory sum of £32,000. Goodness me, classroom teachers are paid the same money for simply standing in front of a class and passing on some useless nuggets of knowle...



The full article contains 666 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 17 June 2008 8:09 PM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
  • Related Topics: Teaching
 
1

lovina roe,

Perth 18/06/2008 10:24:57
I noticed the £36,000 salary claim, too and frankly I cn think of many days when I'd have changed place with the tanker drivers: a couple of days with some classes would havae them beggging to reteurn to their driving even on a reduced salary.

As for CTs don't ge me started. The teaching profession and consequently the education of Scotttish children has been ruined by years of political interference and forcing total nonsense down the throats of teachers. When I started teaching English I was told that teaching grammar and punctuation was "teaching malpractice" because it interfered with children's "creative flow". I and countless others said at the time, and were proved right, that that would mean that univesities and colleges would be filled with intelligent illiterates.

In order to ensure that such stupid ideas wre put into practice an army of toadies, incompetents who, as you rightly say couldn't control their bowel movements never mind a class of excitable youngsters, were promoted and the only way they could work (if that's what you could acall what they do and did) was by bullying teachers, backed up by weak rectors and see no evil education authorities.

The result has not only been that many really good teachers have left the profession, many through stress, but classroom discipline, children 's respect for themselves and teachers has declined and educational standards have fallen.

And the CT courses? As you rightly say they're far too expensive, too time consuming for most busy, committed teachers. Of course many teachers try to go through the course to get themselves a decent salary which takes us back to the tanker drivers, doesn't it?
2

lovina roe,

Perth 20/06/2008 14:42:47
Further to the above. Have you ever considered running a competition to decide the most stupid piece of inservice training? I'm spoiled for choice but perhaps it's the finale to a compulsory half day training of games and other bonding experiences. We each drew names out of a hat to find partners. We had to promise to seek each other out every day, give each other a smile and tell each other a joke. Then a parting gift: a small empty bottle. The idea was when things became stressful in the classroom we had to take out the bottle, sniff and boundless joy would come pouring out of it and make us feel better.

I shared this experience with my 4th year class of behaviourally challenged boys period 1 the next day. They simply couldn't believe it and fell about laughing. Needless to say for ages afterwards when things became "stressful" they'd call out, "Get oot that bottle, Miss".

On another occasion, we were exhorted to respond to "a challenge" by saying something like, "Would you care to rephrase that remark? I find it rather hurtful." Same kind of class, same me, sharing the experience, same response from my pupils. They loved me saying it (I have a poshy voice) and would engineer occasions when they'd "challenged" me, saying , "Say it, Miss, gaun say it, please". I did encores on request.

I'm sure my experiences are not unique and would very much enjoy reading about other teachers' "advice".


 

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