Tuesday 30 December 2008

Ignorance isn't bliss

Four days in, Israel continue to blast Gaza and the international community deplores it with some reservations. America in particular has made no effort to condemn the Israelis who are acting perhaps in coordination with the last days of the Bush presidency. Obama may not be so accomodating.

Let's be clear about this. I think Israel is using an excessive amount of force. As expected, Israeli embassies around the globe were inundated with protesters, not least London which became a target for the SWP, Respect and the loony lefties brigade. One placard made me see red, and I'm not talking about the kind of red that calls for 'full nationalisation *hand wiggle*' - T. Benn. No, this was something much more deplorable.

'Stop the Holocaust in Gaza'

Comparing the military assault on Gaza, no matter how bad it is, with the systematic mechanical slaughter of an entire race of people is one of the most reprehensible things I have ever read. Not only does it stick two fingers up to 6 million murdered people and their descendants and survivors, but it completely confuses what is going on in Gaza with what we mean by the term 'Holocaust'. Any academic will tell you that this means 'burnt sacrifice' and is a very specific term used to describe the decimation of the Jewish race in Europe between 1933 and 1945. I doubt that many Arabs in Gaza would like to know that their plight is being described with the same word. Furthermore, whilst it is wrong to make a 'comparison of pain' argument, I do not feel that we are not into the realms of genocide just yet. Israeli behaviour at the moment is abhorrent - just as it is to describe it as the start of a 'Holocaust'. There is only one event in history that can be described using this word.

Sunday 28 December 2008

Bombing Gaza

I was watching the ever proficient Channel 4 news program last night. The main news story was Israel's air assault on the Gaza strip - an attack that comes at the end of a six month ceasefire (during which I was fortunate to visit the area). The presenter talked to the Israeli defence minister (I forget his name) and started by questioning his motives for the attack. He said that Hamas had been firing missiles for weeks and were a direct threat to southern Israel. Fair enough. Here's my problem..

He was then asked what Israel's future military strategy would be in the next few days. The minister did not want to reveal this for security reasons (fair enough) but also because the future military intervention depended 'on the reaction of Hamas and the Palestinians'...I'm pretty sure that this reaction is not going to be anything other than an armed retaliation.

Israel is a sovereign state entitled to defend its borders. Fact. Israel deserves to exist as a state in its own right. Fact. However, yesterday's act of brutality serves no other purpose other than to escalate the level of violence in the area. No doubt in the next few days Palestinian suicide bombers will attack Israel's major cities. Whilst I will not be able to excuse such activity I will have no problem questioning their motivation. The Israelis need to realise that you can only achieve so much diplomatically through the barrel of a gun. The genius who thinks that airstrikes will solve the problems of the Middle East needs his head looking at.

Furthermore (and this is my real 'bugbear'), when future military plans are based on the reaction of the other side you are giving tacit assumption to the fact that the other side will respond violently. This is ok during a state of war, however, the Middle Eastern countries were not 'at war' last time I heard. Israel is trying to administer a 'peace process' with F16 fighter jets. This will not work.

Tuesday 23 December 2008

2008 Round Up

In many ways, 2008 has been a hectic year for me. In short, the position I find myself in this December - living in Manchester in living in that mythical alternative universe commonly referred to by parents and, notably, Morpheus as 'the real world', bares little comparison to my status back in January.

Twelve months ago I had three weeks to run in my first teaching practice school in Keswick - heart of the Lake District. I have many fond memories of that school and remember not wanting to leave as I felt 'in my stride' and refreshed after the Christmas break. However, a return to university loomed at the end of the month and I settled in to being a 'student' for the very last time. This of course meant mid week drinking, getting up late and working when I dictated. Happy days.

So, after a couple of weeks which included an axciting excursion to Manchester for a research project on Bangladeshi migrants (this included a personal investigation into the whereabouts of a deported migrant by the name of Vinod Chauan in 1984. It was interesting to read first hand the insitutional racism which existed within tghe GMP at the time), I returned to Carlisle for my 11 week stint at the now defunct St. Aidan's Comprehensive School. Like gruelling army exercises of my youth it was one of those experiences that you didn't realise that you enjoyed until well afterwards. Although i wasn't involved directly in any confrontation, it was one of those schools where you don't feel particularly comfortable and i often took solace from the fact that it would not be my permanent vocation. I now feel for those who are struggling to run its successor The Richard Rose and Central Academies. God help them.

Speaking of God, it was about this time that, after four failed attempts, i finally secured employment at Crompton House School back in my old stomping ground of Greater Manchester. I celebrated by embarking with James on my first ever skiing adventure, courtesy of my current housemate Christian, who at the time was a chalet manager in the glamorous resort of La Rosiere in the French Alps.

Then it was back to St. Aidans for a final 7 weeks, after which the PGCE was virtually nailed. I completed the Great Manchester run, spent two weeks working at a Labour History Archive in Salford, then jetted off round the former Yugoslavia with Lehna.

Summer was an exciting time! I went to Blackpool, Berlin and Jersusalem! - and yes it was in that particular order. All offered satisfaction in there own particular way, however a special mention needs to be given to my sorjourn to Israel where I had a truly life changing experience learning about the Holocaust and how to teach it effectively in school. At the time of writing I am intending to start an MA course in Holocaust Studies from September 2010.

Finally, I have of course been 'cutting my teeth' at Crompton House School since September, and a busy 15 weeks it has been too! Next year promises to be more straightforward, now massive changes are expected. What I want to do is become a really good teacher (there's a way to go) and with breathing space before I start my MA, after Christmas it's time to 'get really good'...Aside from that, other potential highlights include a second trip to Poland, the Battlefield tour with school in July, wherever I decide to take myself for my summer holidays and a gig in Glasgow featuring the legend that is Bob Dylan.

I'm tentatively excited...a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all my readers (if any!)

:-)

Friday 19 December 2008

The 11 Plus

Philosophically, the defence of a selective Grammar school education is problematic, however, one recent report in the media isn't difficult to counter. It has been said that the 11 Plus, the aeons-old entrance exam which traditionally siphoned off the clever from the no-so-clever in Year 6 of primary school, has a success rate based merely on affluence.

I could use my own experience to counter this claim. The argument is that only richer families can afford the tutoring that is required for success in the test. However, what this neglects to acknowledge is the scores of families up and down the country who go through this revision procedure with their children for free, my own father being one of them. I remember in the three months or so before the exam being sat down regularly by him to sit practice papers while he did his best to explain to me the intricacies of decimals and fractions. I might also add that at no point did I do this under 'duress'. There was no pushy parenting involved (which may be the case if tuition is paid for) and it was fimly my decision about whether I took the exam in the first place.

Now I recognise that an equality of opportunity argument still exists. Theorists would argue that, although my family did not have an unfair wealth advantage, a child of my background benefitted from having a stable nuclear family. Many able pupils would never have the opportunity of a Grammar school education because they are unfortunate enough to be born into a family that does not offer the stable environment under which the preparation for the transition to Grammar school could be achieved (i.e., formative equality of opportunity).

I'll leave it to governments to achieve substantive equality of opportunity. In the meantime, it needs to be realised that money alone does not buy success.

Sunday 14 December 2008

A letter of admiration

Gary Cook
Chief Executive
Manchester City Football Club

Dear Mr. Cook,

Me and my housemate live a mere half a mile from the City of Manchester stadium. For the past couple of months, during our weekly sojourn to ASDA, we have felt nothing but immense pride at the sight of the slogan ‘Pride in Battle’ which is emblazoned on the side of your stadium, or should I say ‘Theatre of War’.

When battle commences we can often hear through our window the sound of the massed ranks cheering on your heroic gladiators as they engage with the enemy. It was during one such skirmish the other week (I think it was against those dastardly axis powers, Manchester United), that I found myself watching a documentary about the Second World War. Some chap was talking about his experiences at the ‘Battle’ of Iwo Jima in 1945 (I do, of course, use the term ‘Battle’ in the loosest possible sense). He was commenting of the plight of US Marines engaged in fighting with Japanese troops and I must say I felt sorry for the poor man. He was moved to tears and I thought to myself, ‘look old man, this dilly-dallying in the Pacific does not constitute what I would call a ‘battle’. He clearly has never seen your brave fellows, Robinho and the like, engaged in battle week after week with General Mark Hughes, risking life and limb for literally pennies.

This is when I realised that there is something very wrong at the heart of our ‘broken society’. Ghurkhas receive Victoria Crosses for fannying about in Malaya in the 1960s or whenever and I’m like ‘look! Who cares, the glorious troops of Manchester City football club take pride in battle week after week and it’s not as if it’s about a few palm trees in fuzzy-wuzzy land. This is football and it’s football that matters.

Take for example the recent war in Afghanistan. I read this week that if you lose an eye in ‘combat’ you are entitled to about £45,000 in compensation from the MoD. Some people have complained about this so-called ‘meagre’ sum of money compared to, for example, footballer’s wages. Again, they miss the point. The abuse from fans that your players receive, not to mention the rigorous training they need to complete (‘Pride in Battle’ requires a great deal of preparation) makes the British army’s scraps with rag-heads in Afghanistan look like a storm in a teacup.

So, all in all I just want to say that I am extremely supportive of your slogan ‘Pride in Battle’. I think it neatly encapsulates the struggles that take place both in East Manchester and during your recent offensives in Europe. I think it is time that the Great British public accepted you all for who you are - namely national heroes, the likes of which our soldiers past and present could only dream of emulating.

I am, Sir, your obedient servant,

S. A. R. Chasm

So long TIF...

On Friday, Mancunians voted by a margin or nearly 4 10 1 (0r 79%) against the proposed congestion charge for their city and, consequently against the Transport Innovation Fund of well over a billion pounds offered by the government.

Whilst the 'No' vote is clearly disappointing, it can be easily explained:

1. The successful organisation of the 'No' campaign
2. The contrasting 'slowness' of the 'Yes' campaign and its inability to properly inform the public. For many, the congestion charge was just another 'money spinner', similar to council tax as they see it.
3. The recession. At a time when people are tightening their belts, the last thing they want is another tax on car usage. This is despite the fact that the congestion charge would not have come into force until 2013, by which time the recession would have ended and the economy would, I assume, have considerably improved.
4. By this time, the improvements to Manchester's transport infrastructure would have been completed. The public would no doubt have been slightly more willing to pay for a visible improvement.

Given the overwhelming 'No' vote, 79% of the turnout now lack the moral authority to complain about congestion in Manchester ever again. Furthermore, the risible turnout demonstrates two things, namely the failure of the 'Yes' campaign to excite the public and the failure of poorer people to vote who would, in all certainty, have benefitted from the improvements outlined by the TIF.

Maybe the charging zone was too big, maybe it was bad timing. Either way, Mancunians have missed a great opportunity to improve transport in their city.

However, given that we live in a democracy I would not propose to do what the Irish have decided re: the EU constitution. No means no; you cannot ask people to vote again because you do not like the outcome!

Monday 8 December 2008

What does Barack really think about the death penalty?

Over the last week or so I've been reading Barack Obama's 'The Audacity of Hope' - his pitch to the American public, published 18 months or so before he ran for the highest office. Whilst so far it is a cracking book, I have been reading it with some degree of scepticism because I know that it was written by a man who wanted to run for preseident and therefore would not say anything that opposition parties could pounce upon. In other words, Obama's work has a very diplomatic air to it. Whilst he is of course a left leaning liberal, he professes his love for the US and, more importantly, fails to seriously crisitcise his opponents. The question is, is this the real Obama?

I found myself asking this question when I read the following quote:

"I believe that there are such crimes - mass murder, the rape and murder of a child - so heinous, so beyond the pale, that the community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage by meting out the ultimate punishment."

This standpoint contradicts everything we think we know about Obama. He was against the war in Iraq, opposes Guantanamo and all forms of torture and, in many ways, is the most left wing President-Elect since FDR. He is perhaps even further to the left. The fact that he still supports the death penalty underlines an important point about the American political system.

A talking head on Channel 4 news tonight put the point amply enough:

'You forget, this is the United States of America. You cannot run for president and be against the death penalty. The last man to do that was Michael Dukakis [1988 v Bush I] and he didn't get many votes.'

This is very true; just as Obama has had to say he supports the death penalty (a law which I suspect, deep down, he deplores), his Democratic party has courted the religious right, in both cases for the purpose of winning votes. So when an 'upstanding' Obama presents himself as a new type of politician who doesn't 'play politics' in the traditional sense (i.e., pandering to interests), he clearly does...Am I criticising Obama for this? No. In truth, he wouldn't have achieved what he has done recently has he not professed his support for the ultimate punishment.

Saturday 6 December 2008

Festive musings

This Saturday was meant to be the day where I nailed all of my Christmas shopping. However, this was all done on Tuesday and Thursday. In the first instance school was quite rightfully cancelled. After skidding my way to work and ultimately abandoning my car due to snow and ice I arrived to find out that school was closed. Further bad weather was forcast for Thursday and we found out on Wednesday afternoon that school would be cancelled the next day. I baked, I shopped and I ran - all not in any particular order. The upshot is, I had a free Saturday.

Being recently single, I find that I have a lot more time to fill So towards the end of this week when I was contemplating how to spend my Saturday, I turned to the fantastically titled 'I never knew that about England', a book that I have seldom read since it was given to me as a gift when I left St. Aidans school.

And that's how I decided to go to York. I went there on a residential trip in 1996 when I was still at primary school. To be honest I'm not sure that I've been there since. It really is a lovely place, the shambles, carol singers and brass bands playing seasonal tunes would make it difficult for the most ardent Scrooge not to feel a wee bit festive. Having left the train my first foray was into the Oxfam book shop where I managed to buy a copy of Bagehot's 'The English Constitution'. For any political historian, or political scientist, this book, published in 1872, is THE text for understanding the development of the British political system. I don't know what particular date this one was published, but it has a particularly handsome jacket and is a very easy read - so much so that it is difficult to realise that you are actually reading mid-Victorian prose.

I also bought 'Fast Cakes' by Mary Berry. My flatmate, Christian is an avid baker and I've recently taken up the hobby, making gingerbread and scones so far. Hopefully this book will give me a few more ideas.

So, having been to the bookshop I went for a pint in a pub which I forget the name of but it was recommended in my GBG (which was safely tucked in my bag). I also went to the city gallery (and saw a fantastic painting called 'Return to the Front' - or something like that. It shows soldiers in 1916 at a train station, waiting for a return to the trenches), had fish and chips and enjoyed a directionless meander round the maze-like medieval streets. A return to Manchester made me realise how great this city is, but how it does face a shortfall in terms of character. Surely this is the price that is paid for industrialisation. Prior to the 'revolution' of 1780-1820, York was the principle city of the north. However, given that it had little involvement in the spinning and weaving industry it effectively de-industrialised and retained a relatively stable population. The same can be said for Chester - another nice city, and somewhere ripe for a visit in 2009.

Sunday 30 November 2008

Grown Up!

Things I've done this weekend for which I could be regarded as middle aged:

1. Baked
2. Listened to Joni Mitchell
3. Ironed
4. Been to a school Christmas Fair
5. Hob-nobbed with parents while buying raffle ticket for prizes such as Baileys liqueur and Imperial Leather.
5. Been to an Art gallery
6. Cleaned the flat

This has to stop! Only three weeks to go until the Christmas break. Before that, party season is here, woo. This should reset the balance:

1. Advent house party on Canal Street
2. NQT night out
3. Manchester lash
4. School Xmas party
5. History/Geography party
6. Collette party
7. Christmas dinner at Alan Towers.

Right, off to go running, otherwise I will be the size of a house!!

Tuesday 25 November 2008

Where's the compassion?

I recognise that this is fast becoming a 'bash the Tories' blog, however...

The Shadow Health Secretary says that a recession has its good points because people are forced to drink and smoke less.

Yes but,

They also lose their jobs,
have their homes repossessed,
find it difficult to feed their kids,
have a greater chance of developing mental disorders,
can't refuel their car,
can't get a mortgage...

The list goes on.

Are we to be surprised? This is a government that wants tax and spending cuts when people need help most. The 'invisible hand', takes fags out of people's mouths, it's government's duty to put money back in their pockets - without sounding like a Pinko, we know that unfettered capitalism has a tendency of shitting on people.

Fin.

Monday 24 November 2008

Reflections on the PBR

If pre-budget reports generate this type of interest then god knows what will happen with next spring's budget. Will set 3 PSHE (year 8) bring it up in lesson; will my most challenging pupils question the government's fiscal stimulus?

Apart from being a rather amusing euphemism, the 'fiscal stimulus' announced by Darling today (no 'Blackadder' jokes please) and the whole PBR are significant on any number of levels.

Of course, we're in the middle of the gravest financial crisis since the end of the Second World War (when Mr. Keynes went to Washington and the country was nearly declared bankrupt). However, that said, the proposals outlined today are very interesting in ideological terms and have ensured that the battle lines are well and truly laid for the next General Election (whenever that may be).

Ideologically the most striking element of the report is the creation of a new 45% tax bracket for those earning over £150,000. For 11 years in power, New Labour has been reluctant to use Old Labour ideas re: the redistribution of wealth. Blair and co. have followed Thatcher's mantra on that one - you work hard, your earn your wage and you deserve to keep it. However, what Darling has done today is introduce some old fashioned socialism - the taxes of the rich will be redistributed to the less well off. This token gesture will do little to alleviate the inequalities of welath that have developed over the past three Labour governments. Politically, however, the Chancellor may have found the golden bullet for victory at the next Election. Old reds will, of course, say that he had hitherto failed to see the wood for the trees...either way the left is winning the argument hands down.

Most analyists agree that today Darling has taken a huge gamble. For the first time in years there is clear blue water between the two major parties. They differ on traditional policies of tax and spend and will present two very different manifestos to the public in 2009/10. The Chancellor will be praying that his prediction for an upturn in the economy (supposedly next year) actually happens, otherwise George Osborne will be sending out the bills.

The Tories have reverted to old fiscal conservative ideas - a major threat to Cameron's compassionate conservative public relations bandwagon (Est. 2005). The trouble is, conservatives can't bring themselves to stomach the projected levels of public debt that Labour plans will have generated by 2010. They have therefore shrunk from standing 'shoulder to shoulder' with the government and Brown now derides them as being perhaps the only major political party in the world which opposes the bail out plan offered by himself and other western governments. The Tories' big problem is that they fail to recognise that it isn't necessarily a disaster to run a deficit-based economy (even if those deficits, admittedly, are projected to reach £100 bn). Yes, long term, this will mean an increase in taxes - however, the Tories fail to see short term problems (that's why they're called the nasty party) - help the poor now, in part by a redistribution of wealth, allow everyone to get rich again and the economy to improve and then pay for it when 'the sun is shining' (with measured tax increases, rather than a 'bombshell' - that's old fashioned scarmongering and playing politics...)

If you think about it - 'social progress' or whatever you want to call it, requires considerable debt. You need to spend more so people will become 'better producers' and economic growth results. If you spend roughly the same amount in as you receive in tax receipts then there is a very clear danger of stagnation. Where's the incentive for growth? This is the very essence of progressive politics.

Was Brown too easy with the cash last year and the year before when the sun was shining? Maybe. That doesn't mean that present difficulties are not being solved in a sensible way.

Hurrah for socialism - back on the agenda!

Wednesday 19 November 2008

B.loody N.asty P.arty

The publication of a membership list for the BNP raises fundamental questions for civil liberties. Leader Nick Griffin has a point when he says that the banning of becoming a member of a political party is a restriction of freedoms. True, liberty is the freedom to do as you please as long as it does not infringe upon the liberty of others. This raises two issues:

1. Membership of the BNP does, in many cases, cause an infringement of the liberty of others. The party, despite what Griffin says, is not an interest group for a particular group of people (white 'British'). Rather, it incites racial hatred towards other Britons, thus infringing their liberty.

2. Teachers, doctors, lawyers and soldiers have a responsiblity towards those they work for. There is a conflict of interest if you are in the BNP and a bobbie on the beat round Oldham.

The police is right to vet applicants for membership of far right parties. I will argue for free speech for such groups for ever and ever. However, in this case, their membership needs curtailing.

Saturday 15 November 2008

Misc

Music I've been enjoying recently:

1. 'The White Album' - The Beatles
2. 'Only by the Night' - Kings of Leon
3. 'Oracular Spectacular' - MGMT
4. 'Intimacy' - Bloc Party
5. 'We are beautiful. We are doomed' - Los Campesinos

I've also seen a few films recently that deserve a mention:

1. 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' - A strange concept in that it's probably the first children's film about the Holocaust. Not quite as powerful as I would have expected, although the end cannot be faulted.

2. 'Quantum of Solace' - Let's just say that I was satisfied. This wasn't as good as Casino Royale. What made that film special was perhaps the poker game in the middle - it gave it some gravitas and anchored the film's various set pieces. Quantum, by contrast, seemed like one continuous action scene. I liked the development of Bond's character and disagree with those who moan that he doesn't seem to be having any fun. However, Bond does need to go back to basics somewhat next time. This means bringing in Moneypenny, and Q!

3. 'Goodbye Lenin' - A fantastic film about a German man who deludes his socialist mother into thinking that the GDR stills exists even though the Wall has come down while she was in a coma.

4. 'Come and See' - Part psychological horrer - part horror film from Belarus. Made in 1985, this is an extremely distubing film about the Holocaust.

Books - currently reading Marquez's 'Solitude' but I'm not giving it the attention it deserves. This is not the kind of book you can read for 10 minutes each night...

Ciao :)

Thursday 6 November 2008

Good 'ol BO

Like most people, I went into work yesterday with a spring in my step...Like most people I can safely assume that history was made on the 4th November and that date will go down in the record books (along with 9/11, perhaps?) as the two defining moments of the early 21st century. Hyperbole does not exist under these circumstances.

"Sir, did that Barack Banana person win last night?"
"Yes, Amy"

I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a small lump in my throat as Barack Obama accepted victory. Cool, calm, collected - his words chosen carefully, measured, every-inch the statesman. Obama's oratory is inspiring, the way he uses his words harks back to Dr. King and Kennedy.

In my opinion he shares another, potentially devestating characteristic with these chaps - he's a target for assassination. Bush was never going to get popped. Right wing extremists would have seen him as no more that a namby-pamby politician slipping too far towards the so-called 'left' for their liking. Obama represents change - the last young Democrat promising that had his head shot off whilst travelling in an open top car in Dallas, Texas.

When he gave his speech, Obama appeared behind bullet proof glass for the first time - I should hope it won't be the last. Two neo-Nazi skinheads were convicted last week for a plot to assassinate the President-Elect. He will have to tread carefully, for all that is required for evil to succeed is for good people to do nothing..

Tuesday 4 November 2008

The day of reckoning

My Sixth Form questioned my sanity today when I plowed on with our work on representative democracy. What was I doing when the most important and hotly contested elections was taking place 'across the pond'? I must admit that I was easily diverted onto tangents as the pupils asked me all sorts of questions about the election taking place today. The truth is that (and this is no understatement), today is potentially not the most important day in recent political history, but AMERICAN history (all US history is 'recent'). The point is simple; America stands on the cusp of electing a black man as president. I repeat; AMERICA STANDS ON THE CUSP OF ELECTING A BLACK MAN AS PRESIDENT. This is the same country where, 40 years ago, a black man could not wander round the deep South without fear of being lynched. A place where, as a black man or woman, you couldn't sit on the same seat, drink in the same bar, piss in the same toilet (!!) as a white man or woman as little as forty years ago.

The 'separate but equal' doctrine was the most deplorable addition to the US statute book in the country's short history. In WW2, black and white men fought in separate regiments. It's 40 years since King made his speech and to be honest, with the weight of all this history, it seems almost unbelievable, almost too early, for America to be electing a black president.

But here we are. I make no apologies for being excited. This isn't anorak, politics geek stuff. This is progress, a giant leap forward on the road towards equality. IF Obama is elected, everyone will be able to say where they were the day America elected its first black president. And for a country that has slipped into the shadows of criminality and misgovernment over the last 8 years, it will seem even more like a new beginning. One thing that three years of uni study of American history/politics taught me is that America, for all its plusses, has a not particularly admirable history when it comes to intolerance - from immigrants, to negroes, to communists - all have fallen victim to conservatives and reactionaries who form the backbone of the much divided American body-politic. Thankfully, the side that I agree with now appears to be in the ascendant and should elect a man who, like FDR and JFK before him, will signal change for America.

True, he will face a mammoth task, what with the financial crisis and the weight of expectation. I personally feel that he'll have to watch his own back too - he's probably going to be an even bigger assassination target than Bush - the latter didn't particularly rile the skinheads - Obama is their worst nightmare. His name sounds like Osama and his middle name is Hussein for god's sake!

Anyway, all in all I'm happy - go Obama, go!

Monday 27 October 2008

'I made a mistake'

George Osborne's words, not mine.

The Shadow Chancellor did make a mistake. He is apologising - fair enough, it certainly is a noble thing for a man to do. However, we need to be clear about what Mr. Osborne is apologising for. Not, as you may expect, for appearing to solicit a foreign donor for the Conservative party. No. What Mr. Osborne is doing is saying sorry for highlighting once more that the Tories are a party not for and of the people but an elitist organisation aimed at the betterment and presevation of the ruling and upper classes. 'Call me Dave' has spent the last three years trying to refashion the Conservative party as a centrist 'one nation' force. Disraeli can claim credit for doing this; he neither went to Eton, nor University and geniunely cared about the poor. However, when you are rubbing shoulders with the rich and powerful (and you yourself come from the same stock), who in their right minds is going to plump for anyone other than their own? Call me a pessimist.

The Labour party is less guilty (note I didn't say 'innocent'). However, what this event has done is show the Tories' true colours. Not green, regal BLUE and Osborne's apology is to Cameron; the former knows that he has done great damage to the latter's plan to swindle the Great British public.

Wednesday 22 October 2008

Where on the political spectrum you may ask?

The government announced today that it is changing its national symbol to a CONDOM because it more accurately reflects the government's political stance.
A condom allows for inflation, halts production, destroys the next generation, protects a bunch of pricks and gives you a sense of security while you are actually being screwed. It doesn't get more accurate than that!

Thursday 2 October 2008

Cameron's speech

You know, I haven't much to say about David Cameron's speech to the Tory failthful in Birmingham yesterday. I am not going to moan about the fact that old Tory spending cuts seem to be in the offing once more; nor am I going to moan about small government solutions to the financial crisis when even George W Bush has become the biggest fan of nationalisation since V. I. Lenin. No, all I'm going to moan about is this little nugget of inspiration:

"This attitude, this whole health and safety, human rights act culture, has infected every part of our life."

Quite frankly Mr. Cameron (or can I call you Dave?) I'm very happy that this 'human rights act culture" has infected my life. When my grandmother was my age, many Europeans were not only denied basic human rights, but were degreaded and stripped of every ounce of dignity which is the fundamental right of every human being. This whole "anti Human Rights" nonsense is disgraceful, it's a product of Daily Mail readers and middle England curtain twitchers, those with whom Cameron identifies and will want to rely on for the election in 2010 (?)

The Human Rights Act is arguably the most important piece of legislation passed by Westminster in its 400 year existence. The complacency shown by Cameron is nothing short of a gross insult aimed at all people who now and in the past have been denied their human rights.

Is it really surprising when the same politician says that free trips to Auschwitz for 6th formers are gimmicks? - that's certainly not how two of my pupils regarded their visit to Poland last week.

Glad I've got that off my chest, sorry for the rant!

Monday 29 September 2008

Watch da Road

As a PSHE teacher, I have to teach riveting and important topics like road safety. I'm doing this with my Year 8s and using a teaching pack called 'Street Safe'. It provides all sorts of teaching suggestions, including a rap song to force people to slow down. It gives an example 'to get the creative juices flowing'. I won't type the whole thing - the best bits are as follows:

"I know a guy called Jay and he thinks he's BIG
He liked to drink Glen's down "swig by swig"
Got hit by a Mercedes nearly split his wig
Left the logo on his face, messed his looks up kid

(Shakespeare would be proud with those rhyming couplets, no??)

Listening to loud music crossing the roads is DUMB
As well as being drunk out ya mind now son
So use ya brain, or ya life could be done
Don't be like Jay, stop 'N' look don't Run

Blazin, not payin attention
Run a old man over, who was cashing his pension,
Threw him throught the air with the power
Cos he was driving his Corsa, hundred miles per hour

Cruisin wid ma mate T all around town
He was actin too crazy; I said "turn the sounds down"
But he didn't hear, too late the car spun around,
Crahed into a pick-up truck, it made a crunch sound


- Mercury Music Prize next year - watch this space - thank god Lennon is dead - he'd be turning in his grave if he was alive...

You've gotta laugh - homeboy.

Sunday 28 September 2008

Had quite a good weekend. Lehna came on Friday and we went to 'Ning' - the oddly named but brilliant Thai and Malay restaurant in the Northern Quarter. I had Pad Thai - a traditional dish by all accounts - and it was lovely, really geniune too according to Lehna who knows a thing or two about SE Asian food. The beer which I've heard so much about - Beerlao - didn't come cheap (£3.95 a bottle), but it went down well, especially with this type of food which makes you pretty thirsty.

Saturday morning - up relatively early (no monging until 12 like last week) and off on the train to Edale in the Peak District - did a quick walk halfway up Kinder Scout and it was lovely - will definately be making a few more trips eastwards while I am in Manchester.

Came back, dropped Lehna off at Piccadilly, marked some books then went out for a few drinks with James, Chris, Rach and Heather.

Sunday - more marking (done properly it takes bloody aaaages!), then off to The Waterhouse for Sunday dinner and a reunion with the Jaffa Cakes - friends from my trip to Israel. Conversation naturally revolved around the teaching profession and the Holocaust (riveting) and it was good to see everyone on home turf. Then it was home and - guess what - more marking, and some planning.

A pretty full weekend, much fun was had - I'm doing something every weekend until half term - plenty play will keep me sane as the work keeps rolling in - I've not got Sunday night depression - things must be looking up...

Tory party conference this week.

Thursday 25 September 2008

Definately due another rant!

Not posted since 12th July and my has a lot happened since then! A few days after my last post I took myself of to Berlin for a few days and soaked up the sights, sounds and smells. Then a couple of weeks after that I went to Jerusalem. Had a fantastic time in so many respects. Since then, my life has revolved round one thing: Crompton House School - me and Chris are settled into 'Alan Towers' - the 'Pleasure Palace' - or whatever you want to call it. It certainly was disconcerting to arrive and find that, as a result of our heterosexuality, we were in the minority. In the spirit of equality, we neglected to drape a swastika out of our balcony-cum-pation (it's just not cricket) and are becoming well known amongst 'the boys' (we even had a drink on canal st. this week - I'd been to see Tony Benn but that's a different story) and of course the girls. Their favourite pastime is playing rugby.

Ah, I love the gays. Anyway CHS - as expected, my feet haven't touched the ground. All going reasonably well, a few issues here and there, PSHE lessons are a bugger for managing behaviour and I'm finding that there are so many more things to worry about when you're no longer an NQT. For a start, seeing pupils over an extended period of time, not to mention the quality of the school, means that tracking is a serious issue. I'm chasing up more pupils more than I ever have done before, not because they're crap (they've not got any competition from St. Aidans - RIP) but because I'm trying to be conscientious. Anyway, the main thing is that I'm enjoying it.

I've also enjoyed the politics - my enthusiasm hasn't yet quite rubbed off on the pupils:

AS Student - What lesson have you got now Sir?
Mr Owen - PSHE, Year 9
AS Student - I bet you wish you had us for Government and Politics...?
Mr Owen - Do I??! I could blab on about party systems all day
AS Student (under her breath) - Don't we know it...

So far so good anyway. Politically, I've been pretty active recently - went to some Labour Conference finge meetings recently (IDS, Polly Toynbee, Martin Narey, Liam Byne on Child Poverty and middle England's response and a Socialist Campaign Group Meeting with Tony Benn, John McDonnell, Diane Abbott et al.) and actually finally joined the party for a quid. Not bad! The boss is a Lib Dem councillor - I need to stop making my lessons so overtly partisan and, in particular, stop slating the Liberals for their unelectability!!!!!

So, busy busy...I'm sure it will all settle down, come half term at least!

Ciao!

Saturday 12 July 2008

The Balkans

About a day after Lehna returned from SE Asia (actually I think it was the same day) we booked three weeks in the Balkans, or former Yugoslavia, or whatever you want to call it. To be honest the thought of visiting this part of the world had never really been high on my agenda. However, a decade after the inter-ethnic conflicts which completely devastated the region, it was a perfect and interesting time to go.

We flew to Split in Croatia on 21st June with the intention of traveling down the coast before crossing into Bosnia, moving up through that country, going into Slovenia and finally ending up in Venice, Italy. The journey to Birmingham and Split airport was pretty much faultless; due to some mysterious botch up with the rail ticket booking, Lehna had to fork out another £25. However, that was soon forgotten and we ended up in Split's Old Town at about six in the evening.

It was at this point that throngs of locals tried to thrust upon us spare rooms in their own homes or 'pansions'. Although Croatia has recovered physically and politically from the events of the 1990s, the economic situation is still far from rosy. That is why at pretty much every bus and train station frequented by tourists you will see middle aged Croat women asking you to stay in their home. After a series of polite 'no thank yous' we set off to find our own pre-booked accommodation.

This, we were soon to find out, would also be in someone's house - but not before we were nearly deceived by our host's neighbour. When we thought we had found the right place he told us that there 'was no hostel here' and tried to shoo us off his property. It was only when we were 25 yards down the street that our host appeared and welcomed us in. It appears there is a certain degree of ugly competition between the pansion hosts of Split.

After an interesting couple of days in Split which included a walk up the tower of Diocletian's Palace, we set off by boat to the island of Korcula where we camped for two nights. This place was lovely - our camp was a stones throw away from the beach and about a 30 minute walk from the old town. The town was stunning - much nicer, as I would later find out, that its bigger cousin Dubrovnik, and a million times better than Venice despite the fact that the city gates are adorned with the Venetian coat of arms.

Having left Korcula we left for Dubrovnik where we spent one night, again on a campsite. Dubrovnik is one of those places you 'have to visit' when you are traveling through Dalmatia. George Bernard Shaw called it the 'pearl of the Adriatic'. I can see why, it really was beautiful, however, the amount of tourists spoiled it for me. Like Venice it is a popular cruise ship destination and the crowds didn't make for pretty sightseeing. Furthermore it was quite big and overbearing which was nothing like the pretty quaint atmosphere evoked by the Old Town in Korcula.

From Dubrovnik we got the coach up to Mostar in Bosnia and Hercegovina. Due to a strange state of affairs whereby Bosnia territory includes about 4 miles of Dalmatian coastline (the town of Neum is Bosnia's only seaside resort) we crossed into BiH, then out into Croatia before going into BiH again. Having entered the country for the second time the bus moved into the heart of the country and it was probably at this time that we both realised that what we were being presented with was a completely different kettle of fish. Take 'Pocitelj' for example, this was one of the bus stops on the way to Mostar and the first major town we came across. Apart from the obvious shell fragments and bullet holes, this town looked like a complete 'dead-end'. There was graffiti everywhere, the shops looked completely run down and the whole place seemed really sorry for itself. There Bosnia was of 1992-1995 is so difficult to explain and I can barely get my head around it. The sheer quantity of ethnic groups makes it difficult to comprehend - Bosnians, Bosnian Serbs, Muslims, Croat Muslims - the list is endless. I had a fruitless search for a book that would help explain things more clearly so will try here from a few scrappy pieces of research:

Unemployment and inflation escalated in the last 1980s in the wake of Marshal Tito's death. This alarmed countries like Slovenia and Croatia who in turn held multiparty elections and declared their independence. In Serbia, Slobodan Milosevic feared that this would threaten the 700,000-strong Serbian communities in Croatia and BiH. When Slovenia and Croatia declared independence in June 1991 civil war broke out - the first European War since 1939-1945. A series of ceasefires and UN interventions resulted in a ceasefire in January 1992. However, by this point the war had spread into BiH, regarded as a powder keg because of its volatile ethnic mix (the country is 40% muslim - ethnic divides are nowhere as visible as in Mostar where one side of the river is Christian and the other, Muslim. Plenty of Jewish people are thrown in for good measure as well). When Bosnia wanted to leave Yugoslavia the Serbs let rip with violent attacks on Mostar and Sarajevo, the former was almost completely destroyed (including, most symbolically its 500 year old bridge) and the latter was hled under siege for 3 years. Food and supplies were smuggled in through a tunnel which began at the city's airport. It was during this time that 'ethnic cleansing', a process not seen in Europe since the Holocaust, was committed by Serbs on the Muslim population. This, together with the conflict, raged on until 1995 despite UN intervention. The Dayton Agreement of that year finally brought an end to the war. The resulting situation is that BiH is roughly a decade behind. Of the three places we visited (Mostar, Sarajevo and Bihac (a heavily mined city on the Croat border) the scars of war are self evident - bombed out buildings sit uneasily next two bars and shops, ghostly reminders of a conflict still clearly in the minds of anyone above the age of 20. In cemetaries, literally every grave stone says 'died 1993' and in Sarajevo shell holes in the streets are filled with thick red paintas permanent reminders of the the terrible ordeal endured by that city.

But for all this, things are looking up for Bosnia. The tourists are starting to come back. No that they'd been away for that long. As an independent communist state freed from Moscow's interference, Westerners were free to come and go as they please. This is starting once more - as a UNESCO world heritage site, the Old Bridge area of Mostar is an absolute must for visitors and was easily our favourite place. We agreed that Bosnia is the sort of place that we would love to revisit in 10-15 years. By then, I expect (and hope) that it will be fully back on its feet once more.

After the cultural highs of Mostar and Sarajevo our trip entered a lull. For a start, the much anticipated white water rafting and Bihac didn't happen when we realised that we needed to book in advance. Then after one night in the town it was off to Zagreb where we had the most depressing and drawn out search for accommodation ever. We were just about to board a train for Llubljana when we found a 'cell' in a Youth Hostel which charged £18 a night. Bit of a con but it was somewhere to rest our heads. The following day we transferred up to Lake Bled in Slovenia for five solid days of camping, bike riding, hillwalking, rowing (?) , jogging (!) and monging by the lovely Alpine lake. I'm not going to say much more about this except vent my minor frustration with the amenities and provisions of the modern 'camper'. We carried everything we needed for camping on our backs and to be perfectly honest it was all we needed. The only thing which we agreed would have made things slightly ore comfortable would have been a small table and chairs for our meals. We did NOT need a fridge-freezer, sky television, a DOORMAT, a microwave or a wireless-enabled laptop. For people who turn up in camper-vans which are bigger than my parent's house i do not consider this camping. To be honest, I would rather stay in one of the swanky hotels nearer to the town of Bled. At least here I wouldn't be trying to be anything I wasn't.

Rant over, after five nights we had one night in Llubljana. The least said about this place the better. Don't get me wrong, I'm not criticizing the place itself - Lonely Planet calls in 'Pure Mitteleuropa, with cafes and culture galore'. All we did was clothes shopping and get drunk. As a general aside it may be worth point out some on the cocktails that were available in 'Skeleton Bar' - 'Juicy Balls', 'Blow my Woody', 'Orgas,', 'Bloody Orgasm', 'Bloody Screaming Orgasm' and (my favourite, but most definately the most un-PC) 'Sex in disabled toilets'. I didn't have 'Sex in toilets' and so will be unable to comment on the subtle differences in taste.

The bus journey to Venice was grim. I'd had more cocktails than I could count and my throat felt like I'd swallowed a cheese grate from all the Marlboros I'd smoked.

Venice itself wasn't great either but for different reasons. Our accomodation in Llubljana had been some Halls of Residence - on the whole clean and cheap. In Venice we paid three times as much for filth and the most uncomfortable bed known to mankind. If you ever find yourself in Venice, do NOT stay at the Hotel Giovanini. Venice itself was nice, but like Dubrovnik it was spoiled by the sheer numbers of tourists, only more so. The prices were horrendous too - 4 euros for a cappuccino certainly doesn't float my gondola. Personally i thi kwhen you've been in the tourist game as long as Venice, you become complacent. Prices rise without a proportional rise is the quality of service offered. So much so that in some cases everything is generally poor. In the most depreived areas of Bosnia we received the best meals and accomodation for a fraction of the cost that we did in Venice. The best pizza was in Sarajevo for £3, certainly not the 'tomata sauce on a piece of concrete' which I received in Venice. After a few tiresome days in the city we went to the airport, flew to Liverpool and then homeward.

I recognise that some parts of this tale have descended into rants. I don't want it to appear that I had a bad time because that certainly isn't the case. I'd never been on holiday for more than 9 or 10 days before and I had a wealth of new experiences and saw places that most people never really go to. I definately want to visit Bosnia again, particularly Sarajevo so I can see how the place is finally starting to pick itself up. I think we both agreed that if we go to that part of the world again we shall still firmly off the tourist trail - perhaps to places like Romania, Albania, Macedonia and Bulgaria. They all have a lot to offer and I'm looking forward to making a return trip at some point in the future!

Thursday 8 May 2008

Without rules, where would we be?

If we all follow these simple rules, our classroom will be a much friendlier place where we are more likely to learn and succeed!

1. We will raise our hands when Mr. Owen asks a question and wait to be picked (unless he asks us personally).

2. We will not shout out.

3. We will keep four chair legs on the floor at all times.

4. We will bring our basic equipment to all lessons. This means a pen, a pencil and a ruler.

5. We will wait our turn and not interrupt Mr. Owen when he is talking to other pupils.

6. Mobile phones, MP3 players and Ipods will be neither seen nor heard in Mr. Owen’s lessons.

7. We shall respect everyone else in the class.

8. We shall always try our best!

Always ask if you are struggling!

Wednesday 7 May 2008

All but over?!

Hillary Clinton's narrow victory in North Carolina and Indiana may not be enough to save her. She needed a big win to offset Senator Obama's lead and not even the so-called 'superdelegates' may be enough to avoid the inevitable. The trouble is, Clinton will not give up until the bitter end. Think about it, she's been planning this campaign for years and now with only a few months to go until the general election she's going to want to know that she fought tooth and nail - the trouble is, this will mean defeat for the Democratic party overall. I'm not the first to point out that this bitter contest is leaving the McCain team rubbing their hands with glee. At the time of writing it seems as though he is by far and away the frontrunner. His military past gives him a certain amount of credibility - and not to mention his moderate Republican policies which has made many people realise that another GOP President would not be a Bush reincarnation.

That's why liberal America has something to smile about. Whoever wins, the White House will come in from the right. Furthermore, whoever McCain faces it's going to be an interesting contest - with Clinton we of course have the first possiblity of a female President but with the more likely candidate, Obama, we have the possiblity of the first black president - perhaps even more astonishing, especially only 44 years after the end of racial segregation in the deep South. However, I don't think race will be Obama's downfall - his inexperience may be the harbinger of defeat on this occasion. I forget his exact age, but he's in his forties, was elected to the Senate only a few years ago after a stint as a legal eagle and his record cannot compare to either that of Clinton or McCain. A commentator recently said (I think it was Freedland in the Guardian) that if Obama were to be elected, the worldwide anticipation and excitement that this would create would remove the possibility of a successful presidency - quite simply, expectations would be far too high to match outcomes...He's been looking very tired recently too. Whilst he's shrugging off Clinton, McCain is preparing for the contest in November. Expect to see a Republican President in the White House this time next year!

Saturday 3 May 2008

It looks like the party's over!

The only decent thing about the recent elections was the fact that the BNP didn’t win in Carlisle. Labour lost two seats to the Tories and in the ward where I reside – St. Aidan’s – the Labour incumbent retained her seat. The BNP, despite pushing all manner of racist garbage through the letterboxes of these streets in recent weeks, were well and truly defeated. Nationally the BNP polled much worse than expected due to the relatively high turn out. The most high-profile victory was Richard Barnbrook in Dagenham. I’m sorry to say that he used to be a teacher.

Overall, the Labour party were completely annihilated on Thursday. Parties of government are expected to do badly in local elections. Blair received an electoral ‘bloody nose’ prior to the General Election of 2005. However, this defeat for Gordon Brown was worse, much worse. So bad in fact that Labour have not fared so badly since 1968. Back then Harold Wilson was in Number 10 and within two year he was defeated by the Heathite Conservatives. Brown knows his history – the man who waited his entire political life for his current job must now face the real possibility that it will come to an abrupt end in 2010, barely three years after Blair handed over the reins and hardly long enough for Brown to fulfil his potential. It also ought to be remembered that Blair never faced an election off the back of an economy in recession. Governments survive or fall by their handling of the economy and that which saved Blair may be Brown’s downfall.

Martin Kettle writes in today’s Guardian that the great New Labour experiment is over. The party which for so long wasted away in the doldrums of the left has now come ‘full circle’ and the Conservative party are once again returning to their natural role of governing party – I say ‘natural’ because history shows the Tories have held power the longest. If Labour are defeated in 2010 – and that now looks highly likely – the party will face an interesting predicament. It will undoubtedly have to reform. Steering the same path will be out of the question. Cameron has always been a big fan of Blair and his government will be the natural heir of Blairism. Even though a return to the days of 1983 would be catastrophic, I see little alternative to a leftward shift for the party. Quite clearly it will have to define itself in opposition to the new Conservative government. Thatcherism has become Blairism – the torch will soon pass to Cameron and a leftist alternative is now the only option for Labour. I’m not talking about socialism – quite simply the party needs to return to its core values of justice, equality and standing up for the working man. Recently, it has been the party’s failure to do this which has given rise to the exploitative tactics of the BNP. The white working class feel disenfranchised by Labour (the proposed abolition of the 10p tax rate was the epitome of this and the most symbolic aspect of Labour's abandonment of the working classes) – the party needs to a new reforming agenda which will reach out to its core constituency. The sooner it does this the better. Whether this can be done before 2010 is questionable. In any case, I cannot see it saving Gordon Brown who now finds himself in the same position as John Major in 1995 – two years to go as a ‘lame duck’ Prime Minister.

Thursday 24 April 2008

A morning with 8C1 - edited version

8C1 have a reputation in my B placement school for being a particularly disruptive class. There are 18 pupils, all of which are on the SEN register. They have been placed in the ‘C band’ on entry to secondary school because they failed to achieve a level 3 in the core subjects whilst in primary school. I observed these three subjects over the course of a morning with the following foci: behaviour management, provision for inclusion (one pupil is by far and away much abler than the rest – I have given him differentiated resources and I want to see if other teachers do the same) and communication. As I had suspected, whilst the class can be poorly behaved in history, it is much worse in other subjects. They are said to get a ‘good deal’ in history. They like the content, as well as its ‘narrative’ nature – the scrutiny of rigorous historical concepts is difficult with these pupils.

First stop - maths. The teacher lays their books on the desk at the front before the lesson so pupils can pick them up on their way to sit down – simple, but something that I can incorporate into my own practice. From the start it is clear that this class really needs a teaching assistant. The teacher is moving disruptive pupils from the very beginning. Four pupils arrive 15 minutes in with no excuse. The starter is still being completed and this is further disrupted. One pupil at the back claims to have finished the starter (addition - with a competitive element. Pupils win a polo if they are the first to get the right answer) and he is angry that the teacher has not acknowledged him. However he cannot do this because of the loud chatter which is taking place. There is clearly no respect for the teacher – one pupil who is asked to leave the room tells him to ‘shut up’. Overall, this was an unsuccessful lesson but I’m not sure that the teacher was completely at fault. Classes like this need a teaching assistant. Also, maths is of course a massively important subject. Not being a specialist I am not sure how this can be made more engaging. In History we can of course settle the class by telling them a good story or making the learning active. Something like this needs to be done in maths or pupils will fall further behind.

The bad behaviour spills over into science when three girls refuse to even enter the room. They are escorted away by the year head who takes them to the ‘seclusion room’. I cannot help thinking that the teacher has contributed to his the behaviour problems this time around. Of the seven benches in the science lab, all the pupils are clustered around two. One of the many things teachers can do when there is an issue with behaviour is create their own seating plan. At the very least pupils need to be well spread out. As regards communication it’s much more difficult in a science lab given the room’s sheer size. In these instances it is much more effective to use a wide range of visuals. “Pupils in this class learn by osmosis says the teacher. “There is no way I would stand up in front of them all and try to present a normal lesson because they would have none of it”. Also, pupils are eating sweets and chocolates constantly – this sugar rich diet, as well as the fact that very few have breakfast or dinner means that the pupils are very hyperactive and pale. Steps need to be taken (for a start in PSHE lessons) in order to ensure that pupils receive a proper diet.

The final lesson of the morning is English. This is by far and away the best I have seen them behave. This has partly to do with the fact that the class has been split – some pupils (incidentally the worst behaved) have gone elsewhere for intensive literacy work). Their behaviour is also much better (I believe) because the teacher maintains a consistently calm approach. Very little seems to faze him and on the one occasion he does raise his voice pupils take note! For the first time today they actually all work silently as a class and when they talk it is actually about the work in hand. One boy is sent out. He is given five minutes outside ‘to reflect’ and then let back in but only if he can give the teacher two good reasons why this should be so. Again this is good practice which I shall take forward from today. Overall, I think the main reason why behaviour was better here was because the teacher was unflinching in his use of praise. This is the teacher’s number one weapon against bad behaviour. If used appropriately and often I believe that praise can make even the most poorly behaved pupils improve.

In none of the classes I saw today was special provision made for MM. When a pupil is so clearly ahead of the rest s/he needs to be pushed. I have done this by modifying his resources so he is not actually doing more work (he would resent this!) - it is the same amount, just different (i.e, more challenging). Please see my examples of this.

Additional comments scribbled by me (but not included on the report):

  1. …managing zoo animals rather than teaching.
  2. After today I will go home and drink a pint of scotch.
  3. Most pupils seem to be oblivious to the fact that anything resembling a lesson is taking place.
  4. He bribes pupils with money!
  5. If managing pupils was an Olympic event…
  6. The whole class is working silently! I go into shock at the back of the room.
  7. The pupils are STILL working silently. I fall off my chair and try to pick myself up.

Monday 21 April 2008

Various...

Today was Monday!

Unnaccustomed as I am to blogging the following may not make a lot of sense. However, I've decided to join blogger for a number of reasons:

1. I take quite a keen interst in current affairs and occassionally I feel the need to comment on them.
2. Over the last few months I have written a note on facebook whenever something has 'rattled' me. Essentially this was a blog in itself so I decided to sign up for the real thing.
3. I like taking up new hobbies!

I see it as part diary, part me ranting about current affairs (see previous entry). Today, it will probably be the former - suffice it to say that there have been a few news items this week which deserve a mention. The Labour party has jettisoned the last pretence of being the party of the working man by opting to abolish the 10p starting rate of tax. This will benefit those earning over £19-20,000 a year (i.e., the middle class) whilst penalising the poorer sections of society. Keir Hardie will be spinning in his grave...

So, I rolled into St. Aidans this morning ready for another week of fun and frolicks. The school is shutting in July to make way for the new Richard Rose Academy (the name of the dead son of the new principal, or to use the correct language - 'Director of Learning') and plans are afoot to make the transition as smooth as possible. However last week teachers were dropped with the bombshell that they're going to have to apply for their OWN jobs for September. At roughly the same time student teachers at the University of Cumbria received an email advertising jobs going at the new Academy. Put two and two together and yes - it appears that the powers that be are using the transition as an opportunity to 'remove' some teachers quietly. This isn't a simply case of incompetance - ALL teachers at St. Aidans need to apply in writing before the end of this week. There's even talk of some having formal interviews where they 'judtify their position in the new school' to a panel.

It's not easy for me as a student teacher working in this environment. Teachers don't know whether they're coming or going - at present it isn't confirmed who will have a job in September OR whether pensions will be secured. It's a shitty situation to say the least and one the school could do without. Behaviour and attainment are a serious cause for concern - if Ofsted came in tomorrow, the headmaster believes that 'we would be in special measures'. I teach a range of classes from Years 7 to 11. In one of my year 7 classes pupils have a reading age of 7-8 and no one in my Year 11 set will achieve above a grade C. Pupils go to prison on a regular basis, teachers are often verbally and physically assaulted an I've seen them break down in tears in the staffroom on no less than three occasions.

And yet for all this I can't help liking St. Aidans. This is the third school I've spent any considerable length of time in and I can honestly say that I have never worked with a friendlier staff. It often happens that the more challenging the school, the nicer the staff and that's certainly the case here. They will always give their time up for you and for me as a trainee that's very reassuring and helpful. What's more, look very carefully and you will find some nice pupils. It's not easy but they are there!

Sunday 20 April 2008

The May Elections in Carlisle

I have in front of me a copy of ‘Voice of Freedom – The Newspaper of the British National Party’. Normally 60p – this FREE copy found itself through my letterbox because of the imminent May 1st local elections. Now, given what you could call my ‘morbid fascination’ with extremist politics I decided to give this paper a read just so I could see what these crackpots believed. It is easy to call them these names I know, but you don’t need to read for long until you realise how downright misguided their principles appear to be. Take the following quote for example – taken from the front page and designed, I suspect, to be read by the majority of people before the paper goes flying into the waste paper bin (I hope).

“Visits to local mosques are now on most school curriculums because Labour, Conservative and Lib-Dem run councils are forever pushing for the promotion of foreign religions and cultures on young British school children. They do so because the 'Old Gang' of political parties see the future of Britain as a melting pot of different nationalities with a 'cohesion' of foreign cultures.”

‘A melting pot of different nationalities’ – traditionally we have seen the USA as a ‘nation of immigrants’, however, much of the same can be said about the UK. We have been colonised by Nordic Vikings, Germans, Franks and Romans (who didn’t bother going home when the Empire ended) since the beginnings of history. Jews and Eastern Europeans were coming to this country well over a century ago, fleeing persecution. So, if anyone believes that immigration began in the Windrush years they are sorely mistaken. We perceive it to be a modern phenomenon because it was only recently that this country began to welcome ethnic minorities (i.e., visibly different). Well I say recently – we now have up to four generations living in this country, three of which were born here. Ask many young Muslims today where they were originally from and they will probably say Manchester or Glasgow. Many have only a minor appreciation of what it means to be Pakistani or Palestinian - a reflection perhaps of their visits to relatives. So, to regard Islam as a foreign religion is preposterous. Countries evolve and Islam has established itself fully as one of the country’s many faiths. The same can be said of Sikhism, Hinduism and Judaism – I think one of the reasons I haven’t really enjoyed living in Carlisle is because I miss the vibrant, interesting mix of multicultural societies. “Everyone in Carlisle is [to quote a colleague at school] the same” – they share similar hopes and fears which the BNP aims to work towards its advantage.

Carlisle is in many respects perfect hunting ground for the BNP. Predominantly white, reasonably low achievement in school and high levels of immigration create a situation which the party can easily exploit. Essentially this is what the party and its predecessor, the National Front, have done for decades – play on people’s fears and anxieties for electoral gain. I see a lot of disaffected young people on a daily basis – rich pickings for the BNP. They believe that they can do this because New Labour has supposedly abandoned the working man for the centre ground (and in doing so has supposedly left him exposed to the nasty immigrant). In reality, the party is incredibly elitist. It despises unionism and regards the rich as racially superior.

I recently had a look at the Youth BNP website which looked at the study of History in schools. The message board questioned the failure of the subject to address our country’s ‘glorious past’. Which county had the world’s biggest ever Empire? Which country supplied the world with the fruits of the first Industrial Revolution? – it asked. Feeling bellicose, I decided to ask ‘Which country founded a substantial percentage of its modern wealth on the exploitation of Africans?’ Of course, I’m dismissed as nothing more than a Marxist nut. In fact, I’m happy to say that I am mildly nationalistic and I despise the fact that the party has hijacked the Union Jack for its own ends. Like all ideologues, the most credible recognise the strengths and weaknesses of their beliefs. That is why pupils should be taught a balanced view of history.

I do agree that there is a large constituency of people in this country who have been disenfranchised by the mainstream parties – the ‘Old Gang’ as the BNP call them. The challenge is to find a workable solution to this problem before the party builds on its recent success.