Supply teaching in a primary school and at a college

This week was more of the same, although I had one success at a primary school in a place called, Kitts Green. A dire area, looks-wise- just a sea of second-rate housing for the poor- a snooker hall, a GREGS, a chippy ('Open All Day'). Very depressing, but inside the primary school a delightful black woman who was taking the children through a series of 'tests'- literacy, and numeracy, even, some 'science', well, it was food technology, really. She did it like in a Bingo hall, and, the school hall was used, and the kids sat at round tables armed with pencils. I'd seen a similar thing done in Ryazan at the 'Free Litse' (a private school I taught at). After that, I had to teach the children how to write poems- which was easy, and it played to my strengths, and I had to talk to them about the story of Noah's Arc, and, I had to read to them a short extract and ask them to identify the adjectives, verbs in it. Finally, I had to get them to write up their poems on computers in the ICT suite. The kids were really good at this and listened and were, remarkably good. I have to admit I did have the help of a powerful, 'TA' (teaching assistant) to back me up. She had bleached hair that was short and shaved, and wore black nail varnish....but she had a laugh and a smile. The black woman who did the 'Bingo' with the pupils I was very impressed by, too. Instead of saying to them, 'No, that's wrong', she would say, 'Hold that thought there!' So it sounded like a compliment. Very impressive lady, although, I don't think she, even, knew how good she was. She had a contagious, hearty laugh which sounded mad, but I thought, really assisted her.

Anyway, that was Thursday. They cancelled by job at N. College re-directed me to one primary school, and then another, all in the space of about 20 minutes. And I had no A-Z and had to, in the end, ring up Okcana- disturb her 'beauty sleep'- and get her to look at the A-Z and tell me left or right, over the phone. The only way.

Friday, I was at a less effective primary school in Handsworth. Handsworth, is infamous as a 'ghetto' area with a high ethnic population and...problems. The school reflected that, despite some good efforts on the part of the council to house the school in very handsome accomodation with a large playground and one or two good teachers. There was even a visit from a 'mad scientist' who tried to interest the kids in science by burning different substances in front of them, using a hair-dryer to propel a ping-pong ball in mid-air, and a dustbin with a hole in the bottom, with stretching elastic over the top, he pulled the elastic and was able to show how air moved, at quite a distance with girls with long hair....

I had to teach the kids numeracy for the first hour and it was clear that their numeracy was very backward. They didn't even, clearly, understand what +, -, divide and multiply meant.....I did a lively lesson with them with the use of a triangle. They each had a personal whiteboard and marker pen. I had to say that if the bottom two numbers, added together were the top number, on the triangle, what would it be? They had to then calculate it and show me, without calling out. This was very effective and quick, which they, and I, liked. But, trying to get them to understand that if a + b = c, then c-b=a was impossible.

After that, I had to 'hold the fort', by just administering them a test of their literacy skills- just- no fun- rewriting sentences, putting capital letters in, or commas. They were O.K. for about 45 minutes, then they began to get fractious... Later on I had them out in the playground doing 'tennis'. This was successful for a while, but they began to muck about, even out there. The teacher, who was their permanent teacher, was there, but she said she was leaving at Easter and she warned me they were a difficult class. The man down the corridor, who had obviously been teaching since the year dot, a brummie, and obviously, nearly reached the end.

I got a tram back from there, which I never really knew existed before. Expensive, but a good service. On the way to work I had to get a taxi.

Monday, I was ill and had the day off and applied for two jobs. Tuesday, Wednesday I worked at N_______ College with a like-mind, Nigel. I managed to infuriate one group of college students, though, by critically marking their work and trying to get them to change seats, to work in groups, to peer-mark their work. They were in uproar over this. One girl found it offensive that I’d not ‘properly marked’ her work and written, ‘a bit slow’ on it! She was full on in her wrath at my ‘unconstructive criticism’. I began to lose my cool, myself, and even lost it, a bit, with one girl (the other girl’s ‘best mate’). Earlier on in the day I had told a student that drinking in the lesson was forbidden and got a tirade of objection from one, it has to be said, black girl who seemed to take this as a personal attack and stormed at me in crusader style! I calmly told her that we were here to learn about Law, not the college rules! Victory to me, I think. Nevertheless, after that final lesson, with kids everywhere virtually refusing to do any work and only a few doing any, and other kids objecting, fiercely to my demands I felt like throwing in the towel. I came home and told Okcana (my wife) all about my feelings to which she replied that I was ‘spoilt’ and that I couldn’t endlessly moan about my life, my job, etc. because we were all in the same boat, etc. etc. Later on, I drank a gin & tonic and two glasses of wine to calm myself down. I was, in a way, relieved not to have to return to said college the next day. Despite this, that college haven’t, so far paid me for a single day. And I worked there five days in total.