Monday, April 7, 2008

Ring Out The Old

Another academic year has come to an end.The board students have been led through the exams and sent off into the world.The week before my exam was a nightmare of drilling as we,teachers shuttled between our new batch of tenth and twelfth and the old ones that came to clear doubts and revise. Julius Caesar and ode to the west wind were coming out of my ears after days of going over and over the lessons with groups of students who landed in school during the study holidays.The Salmans and the Murtuzas cursed Shelley and Coleridge in colourful language, with genuine feeling and correcting sheet after sheet of exercises, I found myself cursing CBSE just as vehemently.

Some of the questions they include are incredibly dumb and I feel foolish teaching students to write telegrams and messages.... imagine in this age of mobile phones!! Then there are the jumbled sentences designed with the sole purpose of torturing children.What is being tested is beyond my understanding.English in its functional avatar is unattractive. Creativity takes backseat as children turn into mark machines.

So my 7th standard was a delight to teach. At that age the students don't have airs and attitude. They actually take English seriously and are eager to learn. Inhibitions they don't have. Real teaching-learning happens. I'll miss them.

The new set of students are already occupying my mind. The tenth and twelfth students have completed a month of class. This year I teach class 5 also and that is going to be an adventure. Right now they are enjoying the novelty of using pens for the 1st time.I'll see what life has in store for me in the months to come

7 comments:

cm chap said...

Yeah I knw this one... Right now they are enjoying the novelty of using pens for the 1st time - great Pleasure. I still rem that first time.

the3daymonk said...

Ah this reminds me of the Rat race... Hope they can get out of the increasingly boring, creative threatening, thought blocking rat race...

AtomicGitten said...

I still remember my first pen- it was a Hero, black, a leftover return gift. Started my life long love afari with fountain pens. Fifth is a lovely age. Glad you're getting to teach them- but you'll need lots of glucose to get you through. I'll help massage your feet when you return. :D

anusha said...

its so different to hear the teacher's side of the story .... m so glad to know its not just us who feel that its really not very important to learn writing telegrams .... :D

Materialmom said...

Hi cm-c
True. I used the same pen for a long time and cherished it. My students have a variety of pens.

mr.p
What to do? Those are the ways of the world.At least they'll be ready for the stampede outside.

Atom
More than the feet, it is the throat- Iv been shouting myself hoarse. And my patience is threadbare- the fellows always want to go to the rest room.

Anusha
the teacher's side of the story would be a saga of grievances, believe me.

VaishKan said...

Sighh 5th standard... sounds like a dream in this big bad world around me. And about the telegram, tell me about it! When I had to do that at school (I was in CBSE) I had no idea I was not gonna use it EVER in my life. But still, believe it or not, 10th CBSE English was the thing I enjoyed the most at schoo and in a lot of ways, it kept me sane too.

Materialmom said...

that says a lot about all the other subjects,doesn't it? Actually 10th isn't too bad, it was 12th eng that had jai Hind as its theme rather excessively. It has changed, thankfully.