Any teachers on this board?

[Michelle]

Hi

Just wondering if there are any other teachers on this board? How do you find working with spoilt, arrogant, rude, nasty teenagers? A breath of fresh air? Or do you lose all faith in humanity?

Silvertusk

Although I myself am not a teacher, my friend is, and tonight we were discussing exactly what you are asking. She has just gotten back into secondary teaching in the past few years. Anyway, she was talking about how teachers now have to be social workers as well. She has a student who behaved in the manner you are describing above, however it turns out that the student concerned has been the victim of violent abuse from his family. He has attempted suicide a number of times and has also run away from home.

[Silvertusk]

Yes this is true of a lot of cases and i appreciate that. However a lot of kids in Britain are just plain lazy.

Anyway - apart from one year 9 class it is getting better because I am getting more bullet proof. But then I am turning into a person I dont like by becoming more nastier in the classroom. Oh well - the summer holidays are nearly here.

[zoegirl]

Yes this is true of a lot of cases and i appreciate that. However a lot of kids in Britain are just plain lazy.

Anyway - apart from one year 9 class it is getting better because I am getting more bullet proof. But then I am turning into a person I dont like by becoming more nastier in the classroom. Oh well - the summer holidays are nearly here.

I am a high school science teacher (of course, on summer break, I can get my perspective back with the students). Many times I come home shaking me head at their lack of study skills. TOTAL EMPATHY HERE

How many years have you been teaching....this will be my...hmmm losing track, my 13th year

[Silvertusk]

Well second year in, finished my NQT year. Had a summer holiday and things are a lot better.

To be honest i couldn't go back to a job where I didn't have a month and half off during the summer. I still worry about the changing attitude of kids though. I do believe that family breakdown is causing more and more problems for the children and their resulting behaviour. It seems that this country is spiralling down in that respect. Because of increasing secularisation Christian Family values are being lost - there are no boundaries any more. There are more single parent familes with out a father figure, there are more abuse relationships with the family unit. The way some kids are, they really didn't stand a chance being anything else. It is very sad.

Silvertusk.

[zoegirl]

Well second year in, finished my NQT year. Had a summer holiday and things are a lot better.

To be honest i couldn't go back to a job where I didn't have a month and half off during the summer. I still worry about the changing attitude of kids though. I do believe that family breakdown is causing more and more problems for the children and their resulting behaviour. It seems that this country is spiralling down in that respect. Because of increasing secularisation Christian Family values are being lost - there are no boundaries any more. There are more single parent familes with out a father figure, there are more abuse relationships with the family unit. The way some kids are, they really didn't stand a chance being anything else. It is very sad.

Silvertusk.

In a related question....When I was watching some youtube videos of the currect Doctor Who, I noticed that some people had posted interviews of the actors on some of the British TV shows. FOr instance, I noticed a Graham Norton (am I remebering right?) and a Friday Night Project. I was amazed at how little they censor the shows!! What is your opinion on the quality of British TV with respect to the morality? I am sure I am only getting snippets...but the blatantly sexual overtones and free cursing rather shocked me. Maybe it was simply the shows that people choose to post, but....do you think this is reflective of the culture you are seeing?

(Not that American TV is so virtuous, mind you , and there are PLENTY of examples of filth here. But to get uncensored stuff, you generally have to either stay up late or be on cable TV that you have to pay for....I don't know how the British TV system works, so it could be that I was watching stuff that would normally be censored)

COngrats on finishing and yes, I agree with you about the vacation....On an encouraging note, it only gets better and better the more experience you have. (btw, what is NQT?) .

Keep up the good work....May God give you strength!!

[Furstentum Liechtenstein]

Hi

Just wondering if there are any other teachers on this board? How do you find working with spoilt, arrogant, rude, nasty teenagers? A breath of fresh air? Or do you lose all faith in humanity?

Silvertusk

Yeah...

I'm a teacher, of sorts. I drive a truck and my helpers are always ex-cons doing their last 6-to-8 months of time with me before they are let out of the slammer. I've had murderers (mostly) and some narco-traficants. I teach these men by example, mostly...sometimes, I use the Bible. Some have been saved while "inside."

To answer your question quoted above: After your spoilt, arrogant, rude, nasty teenagers have spent 10-25 years in jail, they are a lot nicer...

FL

[Silvertusk]

Hi Zoegirl.

British TV is funny. You do have certain channels who have no morals - e.g. Channel 4. I personally dont mind sex or violence on TV as long as it is relevant and not gratuitious. With some late night C4 programs,however, it is basically just offensive. However, I would not start a campaign to ban it because I believe in freedom of expression and speech. I just choose not to watch. It does sadden me however that British TV has forgotten our Christian Heritage by bothering to show next to no religious programs on our religious holidays. Except on Christmas day you get programs from Channel 4 like "Who really Wrote the Bible" and "The Tomb of Jesus" and "The Root of Evil". British TV loves to use Christianity as a target and jumps at the chance to mock it at any time.

Thanks for your kind words about teaching. Half term soon - can't wait.

God Bless

Silvertusk.

[Silvertusk]

Hi

Just wondering if there are any other teachers on this board? How do you find working with spoilt, arrogant, rude, nasty teenagers? A breath of fresh air? Or do you lose all faith in humanity?

Silvertusk

Yeah...

I'm a teacher, of sorts. I drive a truck and my helpers are always ex-cons doing their last 6-to-8 months of time with me before they are let out of the slammer. I've had murderers (mostly) and some narco-traficants. I teach these men by example, mostly...sometimes, I use the Bible. Some have been saved while "inside."

To answer your question quoted above: After your spoilt, arrogant, rude, nasty teenagers have spent 10-25 years in jail, they are a lot nicer...

FL

I bet they are. Fair play mate that is some real serious witnessing you are doing there. It is pretty amazing and may god grant you the strenght to keep going.

Silvertusk.

[FFC]

Silvertusk, we are still waiting patiently to hear what NQT means.

[zoegirl]

Hi Zoegirl.

British TV is funny. You do have certain channels who have no morals - e.g. Channel 4. I personally dont mind sex or violence on TV as long as it is relevant and not gratuitious. With some late night C4 programs,however, it is basically just offensive. However, I would not start a campaign to ban it because I believe in freedom of expression and speech. I just choose not to watch. It does sadden me however that British TV has forgotten our Christian Heritage by bothering to show next to no religious programs on our religious holidays. Except on Christmas day you get programs from Channel 4 like "Who really Wrote the Bible" and "The Tomb of Jesus" and "The Root of Evil". British TV loves to use Christianity as a target and jumps at the chance to mock it at any time.

Thanks for your kind words about teaching. Half term soon - can't wait.

God Bless

Silvertusk.

For the record, I love British wit....I love the British sitcoms, Doctor Who, and the scenes I have seen from Blackpool are intriguing. (I've even watched coupling and though I don't like the topics, the writing is so clever and witty that I still find something to take away)

The shows I guess I was seeing was the Friday Night Project and the Graham Norton show. Very explicitly homosexual and gratuitous language. Bit of a shock.

But yes, I love British TV....you guys beat us for wit and humor every time....wish I got BBC America

zoegirl

[Silvertusk]

Silvertusk, we are still waiting patiently to hear what NQT means.

Whoops.

NQT means Newly Qualified Teacher.

Basically I have done a degree (in computing) and then a PGCE - which is a part masters and stands for Post Graduate Certificate of Education which basically teaches you how to teach your specialised subject. Once you have completed your PGCE and you are lucky to get a post you then go through your NQT year. Through that year you are basically monitored to see if you can make it, i.e. with classroom observations and training meetings and mentoring. Once you have finished that year you are a fully qualified teacher, which is what I am now. Been a weird few years, thats for certain.



Silvertusk

[Silvertusk]

Hi Zoegirl.

British TV is funny. You do have certain channels who have no morals - e.g. Channel 4. I personally dont mind sex or violence on TV as long as it is relevant and not gratuitious. With some late night C4 programs,however, it is basically just offensive. However, I would not start a campaign to ban it because I believe in freedom of expression and speech. I just choose not to watch. It does sadden me however that British TV has forgotten our Christian Heritage by bothering to show next to no religious programs on our religious holidays. Except on Christmas day you get programs from Channel 4 like "Who really Wrote the Bible" and "The Tomb of Jesus" and "The Root of Evil". British TV loves to use Christianity as a target and jumps at the chance to mock it at any time.

Thanks for your kind words about teaching. Half term soon - can't wait.

God Bless

Silvertusk.

For the record, I love British wit....I love the British sitcoms, Doctor Who, and the scenes I have seen from Blackpool are intriguing. (I've even watched coupling and though I don't like the topics, the writing is so clever and witty that I still find something to take away)

The shows I guess I was seeing was the Friday Night Project and the Graham Norton show. Very explicitly homosexual and gratuitous language. Bit of a shock.

But yes, I love British TV....you guys beat us for wit and humor every time....wish I got BBC America

zoegirl

Yeah i agree with you totally on Graham Norton and Friday Night Project - awful programs. But British Comedy is quite good. I love Doctor who and sitcoms like Blackadder, Red Dwarf, Fawlty Towers, Only fools and Horses. However I do really like some of the American series as well. For instance I thing West Wing is once of the best series ever made. I love Buffy, Angel, Smallville, Friends, Scrubs (one of the funniest programs on tv IMHO), Studio 60, Heroes. Such great TV with excellent production values. Not to mention all the best biblical epics came form the States.

God Bless

Silvertusk

[FFC]

There is a British show starring Robbie Coltrane called "Cracker" that I love. I watched a few of them via Netflix. It's about a drinking and carousing acid witted crime pschologist who is often rude but the best at what he does. I compare him to Hugh Laurie of "House" who is also British... which I also love.

I'm not sure what this has to do with teaching but Silvertusk started it. :p

[zoegirl]

I think I technically drifted off the subject

I am amazed at Hugh Laurie's talent, although I am getting tired of some of the repetition in House.

I do like the humor in scrubs...

Been liking this new show called Chuck....

Hope the teaching is continuing to do well....I have lots of tests to grade The end of our first grading quarter is almost upon us....so guess what I'll be doing tonight....

[zoegirl]

So tired of grading....

I dislike grading .....