I have just experienced three of the most stressful days of my young life. What with lesson observations, my timetable being increased to 70 per cent, no lunches or break-times- either due to my excess generosity detention-wise or my frantic attempts to get all my college tasks done- I have not even had time to realise I might faint from exhaustion at any moment. Add to this very little sleep, four lesson observations this week, a department meeting leading to a two-hour journey home and the completion of two of the Qualified Teacher Status Skills Tests this very afternoon and you are fortunate to find me awake and relatively coherent. (Watch it!)
On the QTS skills tests front, there is good news. I passed the first two and I’m pretty certain there wasn’t much I got wrong. In fact, the ICT test, which was meant to take 35 minutes, crashed at the end of my first attempt and I had to take it again. My second attempt took under 6 minutes and that was with checking everything at the end. Oh yeah.
During one of my lesson observations this week, I had the pleasure of attempting to prepare my Year 10 for their end of year, pre-released materials exam. This involved two very nice articles about Mozambican floods and a humorous cartoon. The second article was entitled ‘Flood baby born in tree’ or something along those lines. When I asked them what affect the headline would likely have on a reader, I was greeted with a sea of blank faces. I pressed the point. What did the title make them think about? Do babies get born during floods and in trees everyday? Nothing. Did they not think that giving birth under those circumstances would be very difficult? Bear in mind that I am being observed by my mentor who had never seen me with this class before. One lad raised his hand. Knowing him as I do, I gingerly gestured that he should articulate his ideas.
“Well, miss, bein’ in a tree and that. You’d fink the gravity might make the baby come out quicker, so it might not be as difficult as it sounds.”
I do not remember what I said at this point. The lesson is somewhat of a blur. My mentor only commented that using that amount of sarcasm was not really appropriate, especially since the boy had been attempting a serious answer. Humph. Come out with that nonsense in one of my lessons and I can’t even be sarcastic. What is the world coming to?
On the QTS skills tests front, there is good news. I passed the first two and I’m pretty certain there wasn’t much I got wrong. In fact, the ICT test, which was meant to take 35 minutes, crashed at the end of my first attempt and I had to take it again. My second attempt took under 6 minutes and that was with checking everything at the end. Oh yeah.
During one of my lesson observations this week, I had the pleasure of attempting to prepare my Year 10 for their end of year, pre-released materials exam. This involved two very nice articles about Mozambican floods and a humorous cartoon. The second article was entitled ‘Flood baby born in tree’ or something along those lines. When I asked them what affect the headline would likely have on a reader, I was greeted with a sea of blank faces. I pressed the point. What did the title make them think about? Do babies get born during floods and in trees everyday? Nothing. Did they not think that giving birth under those circumstances would be very difficult? Bear in mind that I am being observed by my mentor who had never seen me with this class before. One lad raised his hand. Knowing him as I do, I gingerly gestured that he should articulate his ideas.
“Well, miss, bein’ in a tree and that. You’d fink the gravity might make the baby come out quicker, so it might not be as difficult as it sounds.”
I do not remember what I said at this point. The lesson is somewhat of a blur. My mentor only commented that using that amount of sarcasm was not really appropriate, especially since the boy had been attempting a serious answer. Humph. Come out with that nonsense in one of my lessons and I can’t even be sarcastic. What is the world coming to?
posted by Danielle @ 8:10 pm
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