Let's talk about it...

"A teacher who is attempting to teach without inspiring the pupil with a desire to learn is hammering on cold iron" (Horace Mann).

"Hello...can you see me over here...in the corner...that's right the woman that wants to learn?"

*pause*

"Yes you can, so why do you keep shutting me down then every time I talk?"

That's the conversation I should have had with my psychology teacher last night. 

It's so frustrating at times, in many ways the woman is fascinating and I find the whole subject of psychology really interesting. What I do not appreciate are teachers, that ask a question to the room and then fail to appreciate or even listen to the response. What is the point in asking a question if you are not remotely interested in the answer? Unless you enjoy the sound of your own voice so much that the act of asking a question is merely a spring board for you to continue talking? 

Maybe I am being a little harsh but for me learning is an interactive experience. I cannot be talked at, this will teach me nothing other than how to switch off and lose interest! 

I am the same at home, Gavin will quite often become extremely impassioned about a subject. When in the throes of one of these impassioned moments the conversation will very quickly turn from a conversation to a lecture, at which point I shut down because I just feel like I am being 'talked at'. I appreciate that we all feel the need to stand on our soap box from time to time but I am much more of a debater then a public speaker, if you get my gist.

Consequently I am finding it harder and harder to concentrate when in psychology class, last night I just felt myself becoming despondent and restless. So this poses a dilemma, do I broach the subject with my teacher or not? As a teenager I would not have dared question an educators methods, I would have just put up and shut up but that didn't work out so well for me did it?!

I just don't enjoy confrontation at any level, so I may have to work my way up to this one. I'm sure Freud would say that my superego is too controlling and I should let the id take over just for a little while...well at least something is sticking!

You either have 'it' or you don't!

Hallelujah (i think I might actually be having something of a religious moment here), it is done! 

Biology assignment numero uno is complete, done, printed and ready to hand in tonight. I have slaved tireless over the retched thing for the last 4 weeks. Trying desperately to grab every available moment that I could find, even if it meant I was just one sentence further on than I had been the day before. 

We had a few minor setbacks along the way, for example last week when my tutor told me the work I had completed so far was not even of a level 3 pass standard. Well actually, come to think of it, that may have been something of a major setback, I think I nearly gave up on the whole thing. However I am not so easily defeated. 

More detail you want, well than more detail you shall have! Except how to inject more detail into an essay whilst sticking to a word limit? Tricky, tricky! So I have revised said piece at least 15 times. Each time removing more words, whilst desperately trying to keep the detail required to pass the damn thing! Truly an obscenely difficult task, something that requires a certain something, my sister seems to think, you either have or you don't! She inparted this knowledge to me whilst referring to an essay her boyfriend has complied as, and I quote, 'a work of art'. He obviously has 'it', whatever 'it' is?! I wonder if he could teach 'it' to me? Or better still if he could just use 'it' to write my next assignment for me? 

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Oh and just as an after thought. You may want to carefully consider adult learning when the level of support you receive from your tutor, upon asking them how to inject more detail without effecting the word count is (direct quote),

"Do diagrams and tables, they are not included in the word count." 


A woman of few words (well outside the classroom anyway). She clearly has 'it' as well...*sigh*