Moving Pictures

My classes are nothing if not honest. I say that in a good way, as it can be quite revealing as to what goes on in other people's classrooms.

I am lucky (!) enough to teach in most subject areas and think I have learnt well from other subjects and improved my teaching at least a little. I love using little snippets of video in my lessons, usually funny and memorable, and always related to the objective (even if sometimes the pupils have to think carefully to make the link).

Twice last week, with different classes from different year groups I got "We never do this elsewhere". This got me thinking, why don't other people use video?

I soon found out why. I needed to get a video file to work one morning, so at 8am duly did my testing. Windows Media Player hated it. OK, try Quicktime. Hated it. VLC? Nope. OK redownload... blocked. Update Quicktime? sticks at 99% due to lockdown. Convert it on zamzar.com? Page loads but upload doesn't due to internet filter.

Unless you are a level 20 net ninja at home, using video is actually very hard. Next time I hear the comment from a pupil, I will use my anecdote to apologise and explain.

Why Learn a Language? Yr 7 activities

European Day of Languages time... Enjoy!

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Networked teacher Wed 13 Aug 08 by jjpadvis

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Grade me... grade me!

During a teacher strike, Lisa Simpson utters these words in such a pleading way. Dan Meyer has just sort of done the same in this post.

I have left a reply, but it may seem a little ambiguous. I, like Lisa love evaluation. Like my students I also love it to be clear and simple. Should teachers' progress based on their perceived performance? Should our annual uplift be performance related?

The answer is I don't know. I have worked in the private sector and love the pay for what you get attitude. I also hated it. Should teachers be paid according to results? Who would decide it?

Can of worms now opened. Please comment.

The end is nigh!

A very strange title for my first post of the academic year! What could it refer to? Is it all over?

Well no, firstly it refers to the end of the first week of the new academic year. I've met all the new (and old) students. Expectations are on the table, new systems in place. It has flown by. It has been tiring and very enjoyable, and the weekend will be gladly welcomed like a warm duvet!

Secondly it refers to a strange thing asked by one of my year 10 tutor group. "Is it true the world is going to end in a few days?". Hmmm how do you answer that one?

Terribly Delicious

I am an avid delicious user. I stalk people online, steal their best stuff and then forget it.

Hence my title. I am a terrible delicious user. I am close to 400 beautifully tagged bookmarks. Great, but I wouldn't have a clue what each one was unless I actually saw the page.

The big thing is the notes field. It would let me know exactly what I was looking at before I clicked - that great French listening about weather, the amazing presentation about right angles. The problem is it is a free text field, and I tend to wibble...

I really don't want to add yet more tags (they seem to grow 2-3 a week) so I need to think about how to fill in the notes field. Any ideas? Perhaps Year, Term, Topic? Input appreciated.

Construction Time Again

One week to go until the joys of a new school year. The holidays have been very kind to me, allowing me to relax and get things done in equal amounts.

Amazingly I have done lots of jobs normally reserved for the first week back! I have my class lists, timetable, calendar; I have moved stationary and resources with the help of my co-chief. The only job I have put off is the copying of some placement tests - I know I shouldn't do copying, but it will take me longer to explain what I want to someone else!

I have been thwarted in my plans for world domination by delicious being blocked at school. As a quick fix I'll have to export all my bookmarks out (luckily I can get them on my iphone as well).

Next week brings the joy of furniture arrangement and locating a room for one class (23 does not fit into a room designed for 12, although I did consider stacking!), photocopying, and making sure the glorious soldiers of the People's Republic of CORE (Olympic medals 0) have everything they need for the first couple of weeks back.

I have even started the paperwork for a trip in Week 3. Such efficiency can only mean one thing - it's the end of the holidays and I'm bored.

P.S. Congratulations to anyone spotting the early 80's cultural reference in the title.