Wednesday 16 May 2012

The Blogging Cherry...

Welcome to my first ever blog post. Exciting so far, isn't it? I thought I'd start my blog today as this morning, I took part in an event that allowed me to realise the impact good teaching can have on young people, as well as the legacy it creates.

Today I attended the funeral of a close friend. Ollie Clark died at just nineteen years old, and he was the most amazingly intelligent and inquisitive young man I have ever met. His love of all things poetic was almost as unusual as mine, and our shared love of expensive alcohol gave us even more to talk about. At his funeral there were dozens of Ollie's peers, friends and family, all of whom were there to celebrate his life. Also at the church were some of Ollie's teachers, who had come to remember one of their most favourite students. Ollie of course didn't disappoint, his funeral was filled with poetry he had loved whilst at school, not to mention LMFAO's 'I'm sexy and I know it'. Ollie had made it clear that it was these teachers that had given him the confidence to overcome his dyslexia and to engage with a love of literature and writing that made him one of his school's finest achievements. Ollie's legacy to aspiring teachers like myself is that not only can an education give young people the keys to their future, but that it can also give young people the keys to understanding who they really are, and allows them to take their place in the world that we have created for them.

This post may not be what you were necessarily expecting. There are no nuggets of information or insights into the world of a PGCE, it should however give each of us the hope that our efforts to enlighten young people are seldom forgot, and that what we do each and every day will stay with our students for the rest of their lives.

Mr James

1 comment:

  1. Mr James,

    What a lovely first blog. I have enjoyed the tone of your other few blogs, also: frank, honest and interesting.

    Good luck with your year 9s and your goal of not smiling for a year!

    When I used to teach I had a myriad of prizes and competitions which I tried to use to encourage my students to behave. I found that peer-pressure was much more effective than anything I could do (ie. If one student was misbehaving then punishing a group/class/the "cool group" achieved great results).

    I often used punishments such the last group had to put the tables away after class:-)

    I look forward to reading more...

    From Miss Newbie

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