The year nines were doing a business, enterprise learning activity... day... thing. I would have been teaching my class third lesson of the day but instead was in the sports hall 'invigilating' a session. It was quite sweet because they had to get dressed up all smart in shirts and ties, unfortunately for me this meant I blended in.
There were two blokes running the day. They had this slightly strange good cop, bad cop thing going on, with one the amiable smiling kind and the other looking more like a typical cut-and-thrust businessman. He shook my hand when I went in to the room, rather too firmly I think. They were talking about interview techniques later in the session and how it's important to have a strong handshake. Okay, yeah, sure, but I think if someone's handshake is too firm it's because they've been practising gripping something else with the hand a little too much. They gave examples of good things to do and bad things by making up two people - the obviously unemployable one was called Lesley and the guy used the phrase 'don't be a Lesley' - cue childish giggling from several year nines. And me.
I think the day was quite good over all - I was only there for an hour but the kids seemed to be enjoying it. Though I was a little concerned when they were talking about puncutality and how time = money. This clearly doesn't apply in my job so I wonder what my time equals? Learning? Development? Bugger all? I also don't like them giving the idea to the pupils that things are only worth doing if there's some material reward at the end of it - as if it weren't hard enough to motivate a bunch of fourteen year olds.
If nothing else it served to remind me why I like teaching - it's a job where the rewards are actualyl meaningful. And so I can feel smug about doing something that's supposedly worthwhile and condescendingly look down my nose at people earning twice as much as me. Why else?
2007-05-25 @ 20:09