Saturday, December 01, 2007
Telling the Inconvenient TruthCynic or sceptic? I’ve come under attack in the TES Staffroom as the former. For the record I’ve never had any time for teachers who just whinge, in my time as a teacher I’ve always tried to ‘walk the walk and talk the talk’. If you want to judge my record – read the book.
It’s just that I don’t think I have to justify myself with reams of planning and to me testing children to death is a waste of time and effort. I didn’t come into teaching to ‘fill the pail’ but to ‘light the fire’.
As ever the TES Staffroom is the home for tedious pedants, one of them picked holes in my writing. Well I don’t profess to be the greatest writer and by its nature blogging doesn’t always give you the time to reflect, revise and edit. Strange though, they never offer any pearls of wisdom themselves.
If people want to correct me on factual errors that’s fine (thanks for the correction – it’s Higher Level not Higher Learning Teaching Assistants) and challenge me on ideas any time, that’s part of the process of genuine debate.
And while I’m on genuine debate, thanks to the Teaching Assistants Forum posters for their constructive comments. To mention the TES Staffroom again, most of the longer threads involve two people exchanging insults – haven’t they got anything better to do with their time, like marking tests?
Thanks for a great comment from Beckton Boy about my post on CPD, he’s written a tremendous piece on ‘training’, more please.
This is all coming round to this announcement - I’m suspending the blog for a few months, I’m involved in another project that will take all of my time, no it isn’t illegal and I haven’t been sacked… well, not yet anyway.
So let’s hope more primary teacher bloggers will pick up their pens and tell the ‘Inconvenient Truth’.
Labels: Writing
Comments:
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I agree with you that it's a shame that some people have to resort to personal insults to help put their point across.
You are entitled to your opinion that you do not have to plan or assess but I really do think that you need to see what other people are saying and not resort to dismissing their views just because they do not match your own.
As for not liking being told about your writing errors, I believe you did the same thing in your bog on November 26th.
I enjoy reading your blog and it's a shame you are on another project. See you soon.
You are entitled to your opinion that you do not have to plan or assess but I really do think that you need to see what other people are saying and not resort to dismissing their views just because they do not match your own.
As for not liking being told about your writing errors, I believe you did the same thing in your bog on November 26th.
I enjoy reading your blog and it's a shame you are on another project. See you soon.
# posted by 
: 10:29 pm
: 10:29 pm 
It's a shame there aren't more secondary teachers currently blogging too - I'm taking up the typepad again after a short break, and have been looking for current UK secondary teacher blogs out there. Then again, I guess secondary teachers have more on their plates than their primary colleagues, the latter spending their four hour working day sprinkling glitter around during those inconvenient gaps between breaks...
;-)
;-)
"If you want to judge my record – read the book. It’s just that I don’t think I have to justify myself with reams of planning and to me testing children to death is a waste of time and effort."
?????
I'll tell you how good I am, and don't try to check up on me?
If it wasn't for some "inconvenient" results, Steve McClaren would be telling us all what a great England manager he was, while HMRC would be telling us all that their data handling and security was top class except for an "inconvenient" lapse. Without external scrutiny, self-evaluation/congratulation is worthless.
?????
I'll tell you how good I am, and don't try to check up on me?
If it wasn't for some "inconvenient" results, Steve McClaren would be telling us all what a great England manager he was, while HMRC would be telling us all that their data handling and security was top class except for an "inconvenient" lapse. Without external scrutiny, self-evaluation/congratulation is worthless.
# posted by : 4:57 pm
: 4:57 pm
I've enjoyed reading your blog, though I don't read as often as I'd like. Hence, I've only just seen this post. I'm sorry to see it too. I quite often agree with what you say.
I'm a primary school teacher myself, on long term maternity leave and finding it difficult to make myself go back to work.
I hope your project is fulfilling.
Take care.
I'm a primary school teacher myself, on long term maternity leave and finding it difficult to make myself go back to work.
I hope your project is fulfilling.
Take care.
# posted by : 11:06 pm
: 11:06 pm
"I'm taking up the typepad again after a short break, and have been looking for current UK secondary teacher blogs out there."
I'm here:
www.oldandrew.edublogs.org
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I'm here:
www.oldandrew.edublogs.org
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