Annual conference is unpredictable. Sometimes delegates think they are due to speak right up to the last minute and then "next business" is moved so they miss their chance. I know. This happened to me last year.
There is a reason why reps are in the firing line. If I were called to speak on the amendment to resolution 74 - which seeks to protect reps by collective action as well as casework support - this is what I would say:
An old steelworker was on his last legs, poor guy. With his ante-penultimate breath he said to his wife "I want the union branch to carry my coffin at the funeral.”
“Jack” she said (I think his name was Jack) “you were never a member of the union.”
“That’s right. They carried me when I were alive. They can carry me when I’m dead.”
It is an attitude we are familiar with.
I run a helpline for stressed teachers in West Sussex (I don’t get out much) and I receive calls from people who are not in the union asking for advice. Frankly the best advice I can give them is to join the NUT.
When you are in trouble; when the Ofsted Inspector hits the fan
• who is your friend?
• who is unconditionally on your side?
• who is going to fight your corner?
And in every case it is the union rep.
The key words of this amendment are:
“Bullying is best challenged by a collective and organised response.” (The amendment to resolution 74)
Some of you will have heard this story and I will certainly go on telling it until the day I die.
The union rep at a school “somewhere in Sussex” was targeted for redundancy by the head teacher. There were a lot of issues at the school and the union reps of all three unions were at the storm centre of the demands arising from the staff involving allegations of bullying by the head.
It is possible that the head surmised that removing the union rep would remove the problem.
The regional office intervened and all three unions held a meeting to agree a form of words to present to the governors. Teachers had been forbidden by the head to talk to governors. Since the NUT rep was married to a governor this didn’t make things straightforward.
There was a petition signed by all of the staff except senior management who were forbidden to sign it – one of them did anyway. Good for him.
There was a proposal from the meeting to hold a ballot for action the following week….when OFSTED would be on the premises and the eyes of the local press focussed on the school.
The head decided that discretion was the better part of valour and perhaps the financial circumstances of the school were not all that bad and, as the NUT had suggested at the outset, the reserves could take the strain.
The net result was that not only was the rep’s job saved – for which he is eternally grateful – but the head was then unable to make anybody else redundant either and the NUT remains the largest union in the school to this day.
This is not just trade union solidarity. This is NUT trade union solidarity.
It is what built this union in the past. It is what will build it in the future.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Guided Imagery
Guided Imagery
This is for my friends from the Expert Patients Program. I hope you like it.
What follows is taken from memory. I have the book, but I am deliberately not using it.:
I am one of those people who cannot close their eyes and relax in a group – I tend to go to sleep. However closing your eyes, taking three deep breaths and relaxing, feeling the chair or the bed supporting your body and feeling safe are the suggested preconditions for this:
You are walking along a road in the countryside. The sun is shining and there are birds singing. Try to hear the birdsong in your mind. By the side of the road is a box. Into the box you can put whatever is worrying you. It can stay there until you collect it later.
You open a gate and go into a field someone has sewn with wild flowers. Visualise and imagine the different colours of the flowers and try to imagine the scent as you walk along the path at the side of the field by the fence.
You come to a wooded area and you can walk along a path through the trees in the sunshine and try to think of how the trees would look in the sunshine, the shape of the trees, the feel of the bark, the leaves and how they move in the breeze.
You come to a waterfall and sit by the waterfall and relax watching the water and listening to the sound of the waterfall. You can stay as long as you like.
In time you realise it is time to go so you walk back through the woods enjoying the trees; through the field enjoying the flowers and back to the road. You now know you can come back here again and again.
As a suggestion you can record this and play it back through an MP3 player.
I believe in guided imagery and I believe I can make it work for me. It is not easy because lots of little niggling thoughts and sidetracks keep coming into my mind. Practice and more practice will enable me to minimise them.
Misguided imagery
This is just for fun. It is an illustration of how my mind just goes astray and the little problems I have to overcome in winning this battle. It is the most important battle there is. Nietzsche said that the will to power was the most important human endeavour but he was often misinterpreted on this – he said the power over yourself was the only power worth having.
I will persevere.
You are walking along a road in the countryside. The sun is shining and there are birds singing. Try to hear the birdsong in your mind. There’s that blackbird again. What a range of calls those cheeky little blighters have. The one in our front garden is continually teasing the cat by pretending to be wounded or ill and sitting on the grass then hopping off just out of reach….(diversion detected back to the narrative)
By the side of the road is a box. Into the box you can put whatever is worrying you. It can stay there until you collect it later. I can’t get it all in. It is a rather nice carved wooden box and it is going to be ruined if it rains. I just can’t fit all this stuff into it (diversion detected back to the narrative)
You open a gate and go into a field someone (I wonder who and why) has sewn with wild flowers. Visualise and imagine the different colours of the flowers and try to imagine the scent as you walk along the path at the side of the field by the fence. (I am getting good at this part although I am colour blind…)
You come to a wooded area and you can walk along a path through the trees in the sunshine and try to think of how the trees would look in the sunshine, the shape of the trees, the feel of the bark, the leaves and how they move in the breeze. There are shadows. Things among the trees. Try as I might I can’t help from looking round. And I feel such a fool calling out “Who’s there?” (diversion detected back to the narrative)
You come to a waterfall and sit by the waterfall and relax watching the water and listening to the sound of the waterfall. You can stay as long as you like. Why do they advise me to take diuretics and drink lots of water. Are they trying to make me into a sprinter or what…..
In time you realise it is time to go so you walk back through the woods enjoying the trees; through the field enjoying the flowers and back to the road. You now know you can come back here again and again.
I will persevere.
This is for my friends from the Expert Patients Program. I hope you like it.
What follows is taken from memory. I have the book, but I am deliberately not using it.:
I am one of those people who cannot close their eyes and relax in a group – I tend to go to sleep. However closing your eyes, taking three deep breaths and relaxing, feeling the chair or the bed supporting your body and feeling safe are the suggested preconditions for this:
You are walking along a road in the countryside. The sun is shining and there are birds singing. Try to hear the birdsong in your mind. By the side of the road is a box. Into the box you can put whatever is worrying you. It can stay there until you collect it later.
You open a gate and go into a field someone has sewn with wild flowers. Visualise and imagine the different colours of the flowers and try to imagine the scent as you walk along the path at the side of the field by the fence.
You come to a wooded area and you can walk along a path through the trees in the sunshine and try to think of how the trees would look in the sunshine, the shape of the trees, the feel of the bark, the leaves and how they move in the breeze.
You come to a waterfall and sit by the waterfall and relax watching the water and listening to the sound of the waterfall. You can stay as long as you like.
In time you realise it is time to go so you walk back through the woods enjoying the trees; through the field enjoying the flowers and back to the road. You now know you can come back here again and again.
As a suggestion you can record this and play it back through an MP3 player.
I believe in guided imagery and I believe I can make it work for me. It is not easy because lots of little niggling thoughts and sidetracks keep coming into my mind. Practice and more practice will enable me to minimise them.
Misguided imagery
This is just for fun. It is an illustration of how my mind just goes astray and the little problems I have to overcome in winning this battle. It is the most important battle there is. Nietzsche said that the will to power was the most important human endeavour but he was often misinterpreted on this – he said the power over yourself was the only power worth having.
I will persevere.
You are walking along a road in the countryside. The sun is shining and there are birds singing. Try to hear the birdsong in your mind. There’s that blackbird again. What a range of calls those cheeky little blighters have. The one in our front garden is continually teasing the cat by pretending to be wounded or ill and sitting on the grass then hopping off just out of reach….(diversion detected back to the narrative)
By the side of the road is a box. Into the box you can put whatever is worrying you. It can stay there until you collect it later. I can’t get it all in. It is a rather nice carved wooden box and it is going to be ruined if it rains. I just can’t fit all this stuff into it (diversion detected back to the narrative)
You open a gate and go into a field someone (I wonder who and why) has sewn with wild flowers. Visualise and imagine the different colours of the flowers and try to imagine the scent as you walk along the path at the side of the field by the fence. (I am getting good at this part although I am colour blind…)
You come to a wooded area and you can walk along a path through the trees in the sunshine and try to think of how the trees would look in the sunshine, the shape of the trees, the feel of the bark, the leaves and how they move in the breeze. There are shadows. Things among the trees. Try as I might I can’t help from looking round. And I feel such a fool calling out “Who’s there?” (diversion detected back to the narrative)
You come to a waterfall and sit by the waterfall and relax watching the water and listening to the sound of the waterfall. You can stay as long as you like. Why do they advise me to take diuretics and drink lots of water. Are they trying to make me into a sprinter or what…..
In time you realise it is time to go so you walk back through the woods enjoying the trees; through the field enjoying the flowers and back to the road. You now know you can come back here again and again.
I will persevere.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
BBC lose 9/11 coverage
The BBC have lost their coverage of 9/11
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/theeditors/2007/02/part_of_the_conspiracy.html
The head of BBC news claims on the BBC website that is a cock-up not a conspiracy. If it is a cock-up it is a monumental one. The phrase "heads will roll" springs to mind. When they refer to Richard Porter as the head of news...it is still attached to his body is it?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/theeditors/2007/02/part_of_the_conspiracy.html
The head of BBC news claims on the BBC website that is a cock-up not a conspiracy. If it is a cock-up it is a monumental one. The phrase "heads will roll" springs to mind. When they refer to Richard Porter as the head of news...it is still attached to his body is it?
Reading My Arse! By Ricky Tomlinson
Reading My Arse! By Ricky Tomlinson
Quick Read series publishes by Sphere
ISBN 978-0-7515-3953-0
“Searching for the Rock Island Line” is the subtitle of the book and really a more apt title because the one thing which comes across in this is Ricky Tomlinson’s love of reading.
He explains in the intro that when he was wrongfully imprisoned (he was one of the Shrewsbury Two imprisoned trade union organisers – many older readers will remember demonstrations and petitions calling for their release) he found reading was the one way in which he could "escape."
The story is about a young man’s search for the Rock Island line, both the railway line and the origins of the Lonnie Donniegan song. It is a positive paean of praise for the power of reading and its ability to transform people’s lives, to keep them from depression and even to help them in impressing their girlfriends.
Its combination of simple vocabulary and humour makes it a quick read, as the cover promises. Ricky Tomlinson comes across as a down-to-earth no-nonsense character capable of poking fun at himself and producing a highly readable book.
Quick Read series publishes by Sphere
ISBN 978-0-7515-3953-0
“Searching for the Rock Island Line” is the subtitle of the book and really a more apt title because the one thing which comes across in this is Ricky Tomlinson’s love of reading.
He explains in the intro that when he was wrongfully imprisoned (he was one of the Shrewsbury Two imprisoned trade union organisers – many older readers will remember demonstrations and petitions calling for their release) he found reading was the one way in which he could "escape."
The story is about a young man’s search for the Rock Island line, both the railway line and the origins of the Lonnie Donniegan song. It is a positive paean of praise for the power of reading and its ability to transform people’s lives, to keep them from depression and even to help them in impressing their girlfriends.
Its combination of simple vocabulary and humour makes it a quick read, as the cover promises. Ricky Tomlinson comes across as a down-to-earth no-nonsense character capable of poking fun at himself and producing a highly readable book.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
G8 summit in June in Germany
Once a year the leaders of the 8 richest nations meet behind closed doors in secret with no publicized agenda or published minutes, to discuss the fate of the world. They’ve been making empty promises for decades about improving the environment, poverty in Africa, and lots more, but the fact is that the G8 is not the solution to these ills, it is the problem!
They have been arrogantly proclaiming that privatisation and massive cuts in services to the public are a global agenda every country in the world must adopt. Trade unionists across Germany will be involved in protests against this when the G8 meets in June this year.
They have been arrogantly proclaiming that privatisation and massive cuts in services to the public are a global agenda every country in the world must adopt. Trade unionists across Germany will be involved in protests against this when the G8 meets in June this year.
Friday, March 02, 2007
ROFLAWM
In Cyberspace Nobody can hear you ROFL
ASL= what age sex and location are you pretending to be today?
BOOK = cool from textspeak predictive text in which if you type “cool” you get “book”
AUNT = see the reference to S****horpe elsewhere.
BRB= I am going away and may never return – boy are you boring!
LOL Lots of love or Laughs out Loud. An important area of cyberpsychology is the research into whether people who write this actually do laugh out loud.
Newb = a term I really hate. We were all newcomers once and people made us welcome. Newb is a term of abuse for newcomers and no civilised person uses it.
ROFL= Rolls on the Floor Laughing. You just said something mildly amusing and your interlocutor likes you or you said something really newb and they hate you.
ROFLAWM = I leave you to work this one out yourself. Or Google it.
A review of Sherry Turkle's "Life on the Screen" is available here
Hamlet
A chatroom
somewhere in Elsinore
Examine Room:
The battlements of Elsinore Castle
In the room are:
Hamlet
Ophelia
Hamlet Hi
Ophelia That’s what I was going to say. You stole my opening gambit.
Hamlet Tell me O, (I can call you O?) Are you still shagging that guy Toby?
Ophelia Believe me H, I just don’t know where you got that from. Toby is just so over.
Hamlet Really?
Ophelia Yes really. He is history man. Put him right out of your mind?
Hamlet Out of my mind!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ophelia Well yes I wasn’t being personal but you do take things to heart you know, you need to lighten up H baby.
Hamlet well bad things happen O, I can’t just ignore them. People
(time passes)
Ophelia People?
Hamlet They just can’t be trusted. Is there anyone else there with you?
Ophelia Why do you ask?
Hamlet Do you always answer a Q with a Q?
Ophelia Why do you ask?
Hamlet because I think you open your lovely person to every guy who comes along – Toby or not Toby.
Ophelia No really “lovely person”?
Hamlet Yes look I wrote lovely person and the chat system changed it to lovely person.
Ophelia How weird.
Hamlet I was thinking of going to Slovelypersonorpe at the weekend.
Ophelia LOL
Hamlet I still think you’re a bit of a nun.
Ophelia You wrote nun and it changed it to nun?
Hamlet Yes
Ophelia You really are a lovely person.
somewhere in Elsinore
Examine Room:
The battlements of Elsinore Castle
In the room are:
Hamlet
Ophelia
Hamlet Hi
Ophelia That’s what I was going to say. You stole my opening gambit.
Hamlet Tell me O, (I can call you O?) Are you still shagging that guy Toby?
Ophelia Believe me H, I just don’t know where you got that from. Toby is just so over.
Hamlet Really?
Ophelia Yes really. He is history man. Put him right out of your mind?
Hamlet Out of my mind!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ophelia Well yes I wasn’t being personal but you do take things to heart you know, you need to lighten up H baby.
Hamlet well bad things happen O, I can’t just ignore them. People
(time passes)
Ophelia People?
Hamlet They just can’t be trusted. Is there anyone else there with you?
Ophelia Why do you ask?
Hamlet Do you always answer a Q with a Q?
Ophelia Why do you ask?
Hamlet because I think you open your lovely person to every guy who comes along – Toby or not Toby.
Ophelia No really “lovely person”?
Hamlet Yes look I wrote lovely person and the chat system changed it to lovely person.
Ophelia How weird.
Hamlet I was thinking of going to Slovelypersonorpe at the weekend.
Ophelia LOL
Hamlet I still think you’re a bit of a nun.
Ophelia You wrote nun and it changed it to nun?
Hamlet Yes
Ophelia You really are a lovely person.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Professional Unity
Most teachers think we should have one union but still we don't.
The best members of NASUWT and ATL, disgusted at the behaviour of their leaders who they think have betrayed them (well it's a point of view!) come over to the NUT.
However this leaves the other unions bereft of the kind of people who could lead them into a united organisation.
We should be urging people who want to change unions to stay in the union they are in and change *that*.
The best members of NASUWT and ATL, disgusted at the behaviour of their leaders who they think have betrayed them (well it's a point of view!) come over to the NUT.
However this leaves the other unions bereft of the kind of people who could lead them into a united organisation.
We should be urging people who want to change unions to stay in the union they are in and change *that*.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Phil Clarke is standing as a young teacher representative
All NUT members under the age of 35 are entitled to vote for the representatives of young teachers. I miss that target by 20 years but I hope Phil Clarke gets elected.
The following is Phil Clarke's statement:
I am seeking election as a recently qualified teacher who believes that the NUT has a vital role to play in defendingyoung teachers and the future of the comprehensive education system.
The main issues I want the union to campaign on for young teachers are:
* excessive workload
* the threat of performance related pay
* housing costs (especially in the South East)
The government seems determined to further divide and privatise the education system with the use of PFI schemes, trusts and academies. In contrast, we need publicly funded and accountable schools which co-operate not compete.
I am a Socialist and an active member of a hospital anti-cuts campaign group. I believe that it is only with a willingness to campaign and fight that the NUT will be able to play its vital role in securing an education system which meets the needs of all pupils.
The following is Phil Clarke's statement:
I am seeking election as a recently qualified teacher who believes that the NUT has a vital role to play in defendingyoung teachers and the future of the comprehensive education system.
The main issues I want the union to campaign on for young teachers are:
* excessive workload
* the threat of performance related pay
* housing costs (especially in the South East)
The government seems determined to further divide and privatise the education system with the use of PFI schemes, trusts and academies. In contrast, we need publicly funded and accountable schools which co-operate not compete.
I am a Socialist and an active member of a hospital anti-cuts campaign group. I believe that it is only with a willingness to campaign and fight that the NUT will be able to play its vital role in securing an education system which meets the needs of all pupils.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Expert Patients Program
I have got involved with the Expert Patients Program which is for people with long-term illnesses and is basically like a rehab course. It is very good which is why I mention it.
Some of it is schadenfreude of course: there are people who are so much worse off than I am that it makes me feel mysteriously better.
And there is the opposite of schadenfreude where we support each other and make jokes.
And the main point of the program is the mass of information and experience of other people with long-term illness, for example the people who run the course.
They even have a website and an online version of the course http://test.nhsepp.org/public/default.aspx
Some of it is schadenfreude of course: there are people who are so much worse off than I am that it makes me feel mysteriously better.
And there is the opposite of schadenfreude where we support each other and make jokes.
And the main point of the program is the mass of information and experience of other people with long-term illness, for example the people who run the course.
They even have a website and an online version of the course http://test.nhsepp.org/public/default.aspx
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Brighton to London - another short story
(short means short)
As the train pulled out of the station, Poi settled himself comfortably into a corner seat. The carriage was empty but a girl, who gave her name as Lucy came and sat down opposite him.
The predominant theme of her clothes was magenta. She had a magenta t shirt, a matching magenta skirt, gloves, leather jacket, thong (well this detail came out later) tights and shiny shoes.
And a magenta belly button ring.
They chatted of this and that, Big Brother came up, so did George Orwell who Poi played cards with. Various other people got into the carriage and she confided to Poi.
“You know I can’t stand the way they look at me as if I were a tart.”
There was a silence.
“I suppose it is my own fault for having my work clothes on.”
“What do you do?”
She gave him what can only be described as “a look”.
She leaned closer, “I am an actress.”
There was a pause
“and a psychotherapist and a spiritual healer”
There was another pause
“and a masseuse.”
“Oh I see.”
“And, if you must use the word, a tart.”
Derek McMillan
As the train pulled out of the station, Poi settled himself comfortably into a corner seat. The carriage was empty but a girl, who gave her name as Lucy came and sat down opposite him.
The predominant theme of her clothes was magenta. She had a magenta t shirt, a matching magenta skirt, gloves, leather jacket, thong (well this detail came out later) tights and shiny shoes.
And a magenta belly button ring.
They chatted of this and that, Big Brother came up, so did George Orwell who Poi played cards with. Various other people got into the carriage and she confided to Poi.
“You know I can’t stand the way they look at me as if I were a tart.”
There was a silence.
“I suppose it is my own fault for having my work clothes on.”
“What do you do?”
She gave him what can only be described as “a look”.
She leaned closer, “I am an actress.”
There was a pause
“and a psychotherapist and a spiritual healer”
There was another pause
“and a masseuse.”
“Oh I see.”
“And, if you must use the word, a tart.”
Derek McMillan
London to Brighton Short Story
(and I do mean short - this is a blog not a book)..
As the train pulled out of the station, Poi settled himself comfortably into a corner seat. His hair was unfashionably long and in dreadlocks. His clothes smelt slightly of Nag Champa. He could pass without comment in London or Brighton but the train passed through Ridicule, Distrust, Suspicion and the little halt at Abuse.
On the train it was safe and the other passengers were art students.
To begin with he was content to listen to the conversation but when it turned to a Dadaist exhibition in Paris, he had to smile and comment,
“Of course you know why they drive on the right over there.”
They didn’t
“Well back in the day,” he said relaxing into the story, “everyone in Europe drove on the left. So they were all patiently driving on the left when Napoleon decreed that his tanks were going to drive on the right. They would overtake anyone on the left and anyone coming towards them would have to get out of the way. There was a lot of ill feeling about this among the peasants but soon people realised they could drive on the right too so that was what happened.”
There was a silence in the carriage.
The conversation reverted to the Dadaist exhibition and again Poi was just content to listen, until the train was nearing Brighton he interjected,
“Of course there was that scandal.”
And they looked at him.
“There was that big scandal about Dada because he used to go around stealing kittens.”
As the train pulled in to the station one student leaned close to Poi and confided.
“There wasn’t a person called Dada.
“It’s just a meaningless word.”
As the train pulled out of the station, Poi settled himself comfortably into a corner seat. His hair was unfashionably long and in dreadlocks. His clothes smelt slightly of Nag Champa. He could pass without comment in London or Brighton but the train passed through Ridicule, Distrust, Suspicion and the little halt at Abuse.
On the train it was safe and the other passengers were art students.
To begin with he was content to listen to the conversation but when it turned to a Dadaist exhibition in Paris, he had to smile and comment,
“Of course you know why they drive on the right over there.”
They didn’t
“Well back in the day,” he said relaxing into the story, “everyone in Europe drove on the left. So they were all patiently driving on the left when Napoleon decreed that his tanks were going to drive on the right. They would overtake anyone on the left and anyone coming towards them would have to get out of the way. There was a lot of ill feeling about this among the peasants but soon people realised they could drive on the right too so that was what happened.”
There was a silence in the carriage.
The conversation reverted to the Dadaist exhibition and again Poi was just content to listen, until the train was nearing Brighton he interjected,
“Of course there was that scandal.”
And they looked at him.
“There was that big scandal about Dada because he used to go around stealing kittens.”
As the train pulled in to the station one student leaned close to Poi and confided.
“There wasn’t a person called Dada.
“It’s just a meaningless word.”
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Obama
"America, it's time to start bringing our troops home. It's time to admit that no amount of American lives can resolve the political disagreement that lies at the heart of someone else's civil war," Obama said. "That's why I have a plan that will bring our combat troops home by March of 2008. Letting the Iraqis know that we will not be there forever is our last, best hope to pressure the Sunni and Shia to come to the table and find peace."
Barack Obama speaking in Springfield.
I have no idea whether Obama is for real but it is interesting he thinks that is a vote-winning position. It is an indication that there is a groundswell of oppositon to to the war and that the American electorate are not happy with vague promises of eventual troop withdrawal - even the most Hawkish Republican can promise that "when the time is right" - Obama feels the need to name the date.
Barack Obama speaking in Springfield.
I have no idea whether Obama is for real but it is interesting he thinks that is a vote-winning position. It is an indication that there is a groundswell of oppositon to to the war and that the American electorate are not happy with vague promises of eventual troop withdrawal - even the most Hawkish Republican can promise that "when the time is right" - Obama feels the need to name the date.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Censorship in West Sussex
Here is a funny thing.
West Sussex teachers have a blog on http://westsussexteachersassociation.blogspot.com and their employers have blocked them from viewing the site at school. WSTA represents about 4000 teachers in West Sussex.
This is extraordinary because the site has links to inservice training and ICT training courses teachers can take and their employers are just being heavy-handed.
Annoyingly they have also blocked this blog which has quizzes for pupils but I can post them elsewhere.
They have also blocked
http://socialistteachers.blogspot.com
http://stopperformancepay.blogspot.com
If you have any thoughts on this you might like to email ictinschools@westsussex.gov.uk and give them your uncensored opinion on this!
West Sussex teachers have a blog on http://westsussexteachersassociation.blogspot.com and their employers have blocked them from viewing the site at school. WSTA represents about 4000 teachers in West Sussex.
This is extraordinary because the site has links to inservice training and ICT training courses teachers can take and their employers are just being heavy-handed.
Annoyingly they have also blocked this blog which has quizzes for pupils but I can post them elsewhere.
They have also blocked
http://socialistteachers.blogspot.com
http://stopperformancepay.blogspot.com
If you have any thoughts on this you might like to email ictinschools@westsussex.gov.uk and give them your uncensored opinion on this!
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Endemol cry all the way to the bank
You would have to be stuck in the Antarctic or adrift in an open boat (lucky you) to have missed the row over the bullying and abuse of one of the contestants in the strangely named Celebrity Big Brother.
Following criticism of the "celebrity" credentials of the participants, a couple of genuine celebrities Leo Sayer and Ken Russell (who were just a little past their sell-by date) deserted the house.
Then a way of boosting the ratings seemed to fall into Endemol's lap with the ignorant racist abuse directed at Shilpa Shetty by multi-millionairess Jade Goody.
It will be remembered that Endermol swore to ensure George Galloway did not use the Big Brother house as a platform for anti-war sentiments. They used the situation to make George Galloway appear foolish - aided and abetted by George Galloway of course.
In contrast, they have continued to defend their broadcasting of racist abuse on the grounds that it is not really racist as such.
In the past there was a term "racialism" which was applied to distrust and hostility towards other races based on ignorance. This was differentiated from "racism" which they defined as the manipulation of racialism to stir up hatred. It seems clear that Jade Goody's abuse is an example of the former rather than the latter.
Under pressure, Endemol have muttered about donating a fraction of their obscene profits from this imbroglio to charity but the set-up of Big Brother ensures they continue to profit whatever happens.
One wonders how long it will be before one of the housemates murders another under the artificial strains imposed on them by the situation and whether that will prove a money-spinner for Endemol as well.
Following criticism of the "celebrity" credentials of the participants, a couple of genuine celebrities Leo Sayer and Ken Russell (who were just a little past their sell-by date) deserted the house.
Then a way of boosting the ratings seemed to fall into Endemol's lap with the ignorant racist abuse directed at Shilpa Shetty by multi-millionairess Jade Goody.
It will be remembered that Endermol swore to ensure George Galloway did not use the Big Brother house as a platform for anti-war sentiments. They used the situation to make George Galloway appear foolish - aided and abetted by George Galloway of course.
In contrast, they have continued to defend their broadcasting of racist abuse on the grounds that it is not really racist as such.
In the past there was a term "racialism" which was applied to distrust and hostility towards other races based on ignorance. This was differentiated from "racism" which they defined as the manipulation of racialism to stir up hatred. It seems clear that Jade Goody's abuse is an example of the former rather than the latter.
Under pressure, Endemol have muttered about donating a fraction of their obscene profits from this imbroglio to charity but the set-up of Big Brother ensures they continue to profit whatever happens.
One wonders how long it will be before one of the housemates murders another under the artificial strains imposed on them by the situation and whether that will prove a money-spinner for Endemol as well.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Online quizzes for pupils doing ICT
Here are some quizzes for pupils doing ICT: They are self-marking and use the *free* hot potatoes software
http://uk1.hotpotatoes.net/ex/17391/PEUAPLWC.php
and
http://uk1.hotpotatoes.net/ex/17391/RGODATNX.php
And for anyone who is interested, I have posted the one I wrote for West Sussex Teachers' Association about the benefits of NUT membership.
http://uk1.hotpotatoes.net/ex/17391/PYXMRNYE.php
Which also works.
People on the TES website were very complimentary about them.
http://uk1.hotpotatoes.net/ex/17391/PEUAPLWC.php
and
http://uk1.hotpotatoes.net/ex/17391/RGODATNX.php
And for anyone who is interested, I have posted the one I wrote for West Sussex Teachers' Association about the benefits of NUT membership.
http://uk1.hotpotatoes.net/ex/17391/PYXMRNYE.php
Which also works.
People on the TES website were very complimentary about them.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Epals
I am taking the plunge and using http://www.epals.com/
I started using email exhanges with a Canadian teacher and his class about 15 years ago when I had to take home text files of my pupils' emails and send them from there. I still like using email interchange although I have fought shy of using epals because it does not integrate well with our email system. You have to use theirs. They have a premium rate system which costs an arm and a leg (and I have a budget of 0) but I have started this year to experiment with using their system with my year 7 class. I have set up 27 accounts (the maximum number of free accounts is 35) and we will see how it goes.
I have found email exchanges with pupils overseas to be a "consciousness-raising" experience for pupils and it also raises enthusiasm and excitement. They find out a lot about the globalisation of culture (the Japanese pupils watching "The Simpsons") as well as finding about the many differences in culture. (The school I have linked up with is a strongly Catholic school in America)
I have used http://www.iecc.org but on the whole I had a lot of frustration with schools not following up so pupils spend a lot of time writing emails and then get no replies.
Does anyone else who has used email exchange have any comments?
I started using email exhanges with a Canadian teacher and his class about 15 years ago when I had to take home text files of my pupils' emails and send them from there. I still like using email interchange although I have fought shy of using epals because it does not integrate well with our email system. You have to use theirs. They have a premium rate system which costs an arm and a leg (and I have a budget of 0) but I have started this year to experiment with using their system with my year 7 class. I have set up 27 accounts (the maximum number of free accounts is 35) and we will see how it goes.
I have found email exchanges with pupils overseas to be a "consciousness-raising" experience for pupils and it also raises enthusiasm and excitement. They find out a lot about the globalisation of culture (the Japanese pupils watching "The Simpsons") as well as finding about the many differences in culture. (The school I have linked up with is a strongly Catholic school in America)
I have used http://www.iecc.org but on the whole I had a lot of frustration with schools not following up so pupils spend a lot of time writing emails and then get no replies.
Does anyone else who has used email exchange have any comments?
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Rumsfeld and Saddam
Saddam Hussein and his co-defendants were convicted for crimes committed in the town of Dujail in 1982.
Saddam shaking hands with a beaming Donald Rumsfeld in Iraq on December 20, 1983. Is it possible that Rumsfeld and his friends were unaware of Saddam's acts the previous year? Not really.
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Eyes Wide Shut (contains spoilers)
I can honestly say this is the most unusual Christmas film I have seen. However I watched it on Christmas Eve and the action all takes place during advent. There are some jolly characters in red cloaks but no beards but they are taking part in a somewhat satanic prelude to an orgy and they soon drop the cloaks to reveal that is all they are wearing apart from the occasional thong.
And the viewer/voyeur is sometimes invited to see the nudity through the eyes of a doctor – Dr Bill Harford – first the naked body of an unconscious woman whose life he saves and the naked body of an apparent suicide victim
And for all the nudity, Bill Harford’s sexual encounters are all unfulfilled. His initial encounter with Domino (a name which presages the “fancy dress” masked orgy he later attends – is interrupted by a telephone call from his wife (curse these mobile phones!) He himself turns down the offers of his deceased patient’s daughter and a fancy dress shop owner who offers him his underage daughter “for anything the doctor orders!” And at the satanic fancy dress orgy he sneaks into, he is teased and then caught and sent off with a warning.
The film is also a thriller in the more traditional Hitchcock sense of the term. There seem to be two murders but the good Doctor drops all his investigations and accepts the unlikely explanations of his rich client who turns out to have been behind one of the masks. In the end he is content to go back to his beautiful wife and keep his eyes wide shut.
The dialogue transcript is available here http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/e/eyes-wide-shut-script-transcript.html
And the viewer/voyeur is sometimes invited to see the nudity through the eyes of a doctor – Dr Bill Harford – first the naked body of an unconscious woman whose life he saves and the naked body of an apparent suicide victim
And for all the nudity, Bill Harford’s sexual encounters are all unfulfilled. His initial encounter with Domino (a name which presages the “fancy dress” masked orgy he later attends – is interrupted by a telephone call from his wife (curse these mobile phones!) He himself turns down the offers of his deceased patient’s daughter and a fancy dress shop owner who offers him his underage daughter “for anything the doctor orders!” And at the satanic fancy dress orgy he sneaks into, he is teased and then caught and sent off with a warning.
The film is also a thriller in the more traditional Hitchcock sense of the term. There seem to be two murders but the good Doctor drops all his investigations and accepts the unlikely explanations of his rich client who turns out to have been behind one of the masks. In the end he is content to go back to his beautiful wife and keep his eyes wide shut.
The dialogue transcript is available here http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/e/eyes-wide-shut-script-transcript.html
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Tories name the 12 who shaped our nation.
The Conservative education spokesman, David Willetts has announced his “nation building” History curriculum. In place of the study of history, he prefers the narrative approach (telling children little stories) about 12 chosen great people.
The list has 11 white men, three of them wearing crowns, and one white woman. It seems the black and ethnic minorities in the UK made no contribution to its history if we believe the Conservative party; and men made 11 times as great a contribution as women.
Some of the choices – based on the contribution to creation of British institutions and structures are surprising. The inclusion of Oliver Cromwell probably has Prince Charles feeling his collar – one of Cromwell’s “memorable structures” was the scaffold on which King Charles was executed.
Although there are three kings, King Henry 8th is excluded. It is unusual for the Conservative Party to assert that the Church of England is not a significant institution.
Other omissions are less surprising. The Tolpuddle Martyrs are not there – trade unions are an institution the Conservative Party would sooner forget about.
And the whole concept is cockeyed. History is not made by individuals “great” or otherwise. Nye Bevan did not single-handedly create the NHS any more than Millicent Fawcett single-handedly brought about votes for women and neither of them was stupid enough to believe they did.
It is convenient to reduce history to stories about individuals – and then pick and choose which individuals constitute “history” but the events which really shaped these islands, like the Chartist movement, involved the participation of the working class and the poor.
History is made by millions. And so is the future. As David Willetts and his merry men will find out.
Derek McMillan
The list is:
Saint Columba, 521-597 (Christianity in Britain)
Alfred the Great, 849-899 (the Kingdom of England)
Henry II, 1133-1189 (Common law)
Simon de Montfort, 1208-1265 (Parliament)
James IV of Scotland, 1443-1513 (the Kingdom of Scotland)
Thomas Gresham, 1519 -1579 (the stock market)
Oliver Cromwell, 1599 -1658 (the British Army)
Isaac Newton, 1643-1727 (the Royal Society)
Robert Clive, 1725-1774 (the British Empire)
Sir Robert Peel, 1778-1850 (the police)
Millicent Fawcett, 1847-1929 (universal suffrage)
Nye Bevan, 1897-1960 (the National Health Service)
The list has 11 white men, three of them wearing crowns, and one white woman. It seems the black and ethnic minorities in the UK made no contribution to its history if we believe the Conservative party; and men made 11 times as great a contribution as women.
Some of the choices – based on the contribution to creation of British institutions and structures are surprising. The inclusion of Oliver Cromwell probably has Prince Charles feeling his collar – one of Cromwell’s “memorable structures” was the scaffold on which King Charles was executed.
Although there are three kings, King Henry 8th is excluded. It is unusual for the Conservative Party to assert that the Church of England is not a significant institution.
Other omissions are less surprising. The Tolpuddle Martyrs are not there – trade unions are an institution the Conservative Party would sooner forget about.
And the whole concept is cockeyed. History is not made by individuals “great” or otherwise. Nye Bevan did not single-handedly create the NHS any more than Millicent Fawcett single-handedly brought about votes for women and neither of them was stupid enough to believe they did.
It is convenient to reduce history to stories about individuals – and then pick and choose which individuals constitute “history” but the events which really shaped these islands, like the Chartist movement, involved the participation of the working class and the poor.
History is made by millions. And so is the future. As David Willetts and his merry men will find out.
Derek McMillan
The list is:
Saint Columba, 521-597 (Christianity in Britain)
Alfred the Great, 849-899 (the Kingdom of England)
Henry II, 1133-1189 (Common law)
Simon de Montfort, 1208-1265 (Parliament)
James IV of Scotland, 1443-1513 (the Kingdom of Scotland)
Thomas Gresham, 1519 -1579 (the stock market)
Oliver Cromwell, 1599 -1658 (the British Army)
Isaac Newton, 1643-1727 (the Royal Society)
Robert Clive, 1725-1774 (the British Empire)
Sir Robert Peel, 1778-1850 (the police)
Millicent Fawcett, 1847-1929 (universal suffrage)
Nye Bevan, 1897-1960 (the National Health Service)
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