More about modern education

« The sparrow | An inquiry into Iraq war will happen »

More about modern education

by ranfuchs ^Pro @ 24/01/2008 – 22:29:54

Allow me to ramble again about education. But let’s first start with a poem:

Rats racing,
Cats Chasing.
Birds flying,
Cats crying.
Child calling,
Milk warming.
Cats lapping,
Birds tapping,
but
Cats napping.

This is not my poem, but rather my nine year old son’s homework. He was very proud of himself and was even awarded the HP award.

What a wonderful inspiration it is. So what am I whinging about, you must be wondering. Well, he wanted to read his poem to the class. His teacher, on the other hand, refused, as she felt it would hurt the feelings of those who did not do so well.

Is this some new trend in education?
Options:
Tags:
- poetry
- english
- school
- éducation

40 Comments to More about modern education

Hide subcomments

- deleted user (Visitor)
- 24/01/2008 @ 22:35:08
political correctness going too far. My youngest wanted to sing in music lessons, but the music teacher said no, cos some children don't like singing!
Not exactly the way to prepare kids for the real world is it.
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 24/01/2008 @ 22:52:35
  but it's the real world that is wrong
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- tylluanpenry
- 24/01/2008 @ 22:42:40
This is a worrying trend - I've heard several people mention it. Nobody must win, basically. Nobody must be better than anyone else.

Unfortunately, this is not what education is all about. Education doesn't give a pair of fetid dingoes' kidneys for hurt feelings. But the problem nowadays is that education is more concerned with social experiments than it is with learning.

Well done to your son by the way! And tell him from me that Coleridge said that while prose was words in the best order, poetry was the BEST words in the BEST order!
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 24/01/2008 @ 22:54:22
  thanks. I wish I could write poems like that
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- eggbod
- http://wordworld.blog.co.uk
- 25/01/2008 @ 00:45:04
Madness utter madness.

I'm afraid to say that "no" unfortunately this is not a new trend.

We seem to think that "competition" or excelling in anything really is rather crude. And best not to be encouraged.

Life is tough and whether we except it or not, life is indeed a competition. Just look around at the wonder of nature. But we humnans think we have transcended such crudities. And should know better.

Perhaps if a few more feelings had been hurt we wouldn't have so many feckless wasters believing themselves to be moral, politicians with integrity.

Here endeth the ranteth on the mount!
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 25/01/2008 @ 00:47:18
  or maybe they just want to eliminate everyone else competing with them?
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- Znethru ^Pro
- http://www.febland.net/
- 25/01/2008 @ 01:29:34
The "HP" award, eh? Is it connected with this product ~

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP_Sauce
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 25/01/2008 @ 01:31:35
  not at all. They have all kind of awards (mostly stickers) and this is the highest sticker you can get
  - - Znethru ^Pro
    - http://www.febland.net/
    - 25/01/2008 @ 01:34:22
    I give stickers to my students. The top one is a dolphin sticker!
    - - ranfuchs ^Pro
      - 25/01/2008 @ 01:43:42
      he got an HP sticker actually it's not a sticker, it's a stamp, but he likes it just as well
      - Reply to comment
      - Permalink
- skip2468
- 25/01/2008 @ 10:26:26
Congratulations to your son for his winning poem.

It seems that your political trends are in line with ours in Helen's nanny nation(NZ).

Spoil, and accept the consequences no matter how bad they are sure to be!

Here the slightest smack is a serious criminal offence - the foundation of Helen's nanny nation!
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 25/01/2008 @ 20:58:57
  if you are bad, we'll give you a cake, maybe you will not be if you think that we love you. If you are good, go away, we don't want people to remind us how bad we are
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- sallyontour ^Pro
- 25/01/2008 @ 13:14:12
Children are not allowed to fail at anything anymore, which is why they all think they're entitled to win X-Factor whether or not they have even a smidgeon of talent.

Don't talk to me about teachers. I'm still angry about:

1. Being wrongly accused of plagiarism at the age of six.
2. Having my copy of 'Under Milk Wood' confiscated on the grounds that I wouldn't understand it at the age of 11.
3. Being told that since I was a Girl I could aspire to be an air hostess or a nurse, or even a secretary, but I couldn't be an archaeologist because I would be getting married and having babies.

Bastards.
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 25/01/2008 @ 21:07:17
  so if you had to go through school today
  
  1. there is no plagiarism, as everything is copied and paste from the internet
  2. Noone will confiscate any book you have, because the teachers don't know what they are about
  3. as part of striving for equality, you'd been told that since you are human, you could never become a scientist or archaeologist. Just go to work and stop aspiring.
  
  not sure which is better
  - - sallyontour ^Pro
    - 25/01/2008 @ 21:31:43
    Exactly why if I had kids they would've gone through the Steiner system or been home educated.
    
    As I wish I had been. Self-education has served me better than anything I received from the state.
    - Reply to comment
    - Permalink
- - funkdifino ^Pro
  - 09/02/2008 @ 16:58:43
  shit- you too ?
  - - sallyontour ^Pro
    - 10/02/2008 @ 21:45:51
    There was a lot of it about I believe xx
    - - ranfuchs ^Pro
      - 10/02/2008 @ 22:11:38
      same belief held here
      - Reply to comment
      - Permalink
- deleted user (Visitor)
- 25/01/2008 @ 20:21:02
That`s a smashing poem....perhaps the teacher felt disappointed too because she hadn`t written it?
Sounds like a similar thing to what i have experienced with my daughter and her school...they always seem to play down her achievements, yet have time galore to spend with the under achievers.
My daughter quietly sits in a corner and is expected to `get on with it`......
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 25/01/2008 @ 20:55:59
  yes, lets promote the weak and demote the strong. Are we back to communism?
  - - deleted user (Visitor)
    - 25/01/2008 @ 21:32:09
    Well i do sometimes wonder if we are heading in that direction....
    Standards are definately changing, and not for the better in my opinion.
    - - ranfuchs ^Pro
      - 25/01/2008 @ 21:33:53
      time for the east to rise
      - Reply to comment
      - Permalink
- louidog
- 25/01/2008 @ 22:22:38
What a lovely poem!
Had your son been in my class he would have got the chance to read it out to everyone....the poem is something to be proud of!
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 25/01/2008 @ 22:25:24
  I agree. I took him out for dinner as a prize and read it to the family
  - Reply to comment
  - Permalink
- Grayling
- 28/01/2008 @ 09:14:42
I find the teacher's reaction very odd. Surely such a delightful poem written by a class member could be used as an example, an inspiration to pass on to the rest, a chance to discover what makes it a satisfying poem.
Where does this idea of 'competition is bad for a person' come from? What is its origin?
AND Ranfuchs, what on earth has it got to do with Communism? Russian Communists were the worst kind of elitists.

Graham (in Moscow!)
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 28/01/2008 @ 09:20:38
  Odd? Maybe, but it seems to hit a cord, so I was not the only one with this impression.
  Why communism? The original idea was to eliminate competition. Then it developed differently
  - - Grayling
    - 28/01/2008 @ 10:51:23
    Eliminate competition only in the economic, anti-capitalist sense. Striving for personal excellence was always on the agenda.
    I think that the attitude shown by the teacher could not be attributed to any of the political extremes, but was a sit on the fence, misplaced liberalism, 'Let's all be nice to each other and the world will be a better place' attitude. What I find dangerous is the attempt to shield the primary classroom from the harsh realities of this world.
    Not a good preparation for the future.
    - - ranfuchs ^Pro
      - 28/01/2008 @ 22:37:36
      but I am not sure that preparing children to the future is still on our school agenda, is it?
      - Reply to comment
      - Permalink
- Prettyintelligentprincess ^Pro
- 30/01/2008 @ 00:08:57
Oh for gods sake! The bloody teacher was probably in the middle of a lesson or had to start the next unit of work. Maybe the teacher was being assessed...observed..ofsteded...

Maybe it was asked at an inappropriate time.
Maybe the teacher was trying to be inclusive.
Maybe...just maybe...the teacher judged the situation in his or her professional capacity and made the decision to not to listen to the poem...because, you then get 29 others (oops...sorry you're private so that'll be less then...)wanting to read out their poems...then you get nothing done that you originally planned to do!

Why don't you go in and ask the bloody teacher before ripping them and education in England to shreds.

I suspect not a single person who has heartily agreed...ie most..I'm not a scientist or a mathematician so apologies for no percentages...has any clue about what happens in the classroom today. Education evolves and the responses you have above really do remind me of the mentality of tabloid newspaper readers and believers.

This is what I think...and as I still live in a democracy, I do hope people will allow me my view.

Now...I will probably need a change of identity, so must dash...x
- - Prettyintelligentprincess ^Pro
  - 30/01/2008 @ 00:12:11
  And...it is a lovely poem...he has done well and he has been rewarded for that, so good for him. I do mean that very sincerely. It's lovely to see boys create as well as girls when writing, as often they seem to find writing creatively less comfortable than girls.
  - - ranfuchs ^Pro
    - 30/01/2008 @ 00:16:43
    trying to soften your previous remark. Don't you
    - - Prettyintelligentprincess ^Pro
      - 30/01/2008 @ 00:26:09
      Absolutely not softening it!!!!!
      But felt the poor boy was being completely overlooked...by all the comments here!
      So there!!
      - ranfuchs ^Pro
        
        30/01/2008 @ 00:27:31
        
        thanks
        
        Reply to comment
        
        Permalink
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 30/01/2008 @ 00:15:53
  actually I did. I couldn't have known the reaon otherwise, could I?
  - - Prettyintelligentprincess ^Pro
    - 30/01/2008 @ 00:23:32
    I apologise then for that part...
    but, you keep saying 'this is the real world' and I have to say back, yes it is the real world but...children are cushioned from it within private education...
    
    And yes it's your choice of course
    and yes it is probable there may be more 'consistency' if you have travelled very much...
    
    But...I feel so angry Ran when people just appear so blinkered...they are narrow...and I do not wish to argue...
    but..there it is...and I need to calm down and try and sleep now....night night..it's lovely to read you though...missed it.xYou do get me all reacting.....(Very bad grammar...never copy that!)
    - - ranfuchs ^Pro
      - 30/01/2008 @ 00:27:02
      Welcome back.
      btw, I don't send my kids to private education.
      - Reply to comment
      - Permalink
- kiki2u
- http://www.kikita.blog.co.uk
- 30/01/2008 @ 08:31:17
The poem is really good!
- - ranfuchs ^Pro
  - 30/01/2008 @ 10:17:05
  I am glad you think so. I am no poet myself, but I love it
  - - kiki2u
    - http://www.kikita.blog.co.uk
    - 30/01/2008 @ 15:02:06
    Yes Ran. you must be proud of it, i would! Your son really wrote and writes very well indeed.
    I don't know about the teacher,and or why behaves like that!!! But i think teachers should and must let the/a kid know that did it very well...in this case: your son.
    It is very good for a child know that did it well, or wrong! Because ,in my oppinion, I think it helps to improve and develop his/her confidence, character and so...you know what i mean
    Anyway you can let him know that, and tell him He will love it!
    - - ranfuchs ^Pro
      - 31/01/2008 @ 00:07:18
      I told him and even got him a treat
      - Reply to comment
      - Permalink