Wobbly Bits

The negativity is starting to creep in. I’ve been in school this past week and have been chatting with current teachers, getting their opinions on their jobs and some advice.

Mostly it’s been a lot of ‘it’s hard work, but if you’re serious about teaching, you’ll deal with it’ kind of thing. That’s great. I am serious about teaching. I am preparing myself for the workload. But mixed in with the warnings is a kind of resignation. All of them seem disillusioned with the mountain of paperwork/red tape they have to manage, in addition to lesson prep and marking. Even the best teachers, the ones that are so passionate about what they do, are rolling their eyes at the paperwork. They say it’s really dragging them down. They almost seem defeated by the paperwork. At the same time I’ve been reading articles online, and in other blogs, and they’re all focussing on the same problem: the paperwork. Just today, I read this thread which highlights the current problem of just getting a job, after completing the PGCE.

Now, I know I can be a bit of a dreamer, but the reality of seeing so many fantastic teachers suffering under paperwork is really striking home. I’m going into teaching to teach. I understand that there will be paperwork, and there will be long hours; but right now (from what I’m seeing and hearing) it’s bordering on the ridiculous. And it seems like a problem that’s set to get worse before it gets better. If it gets better. 

I guess this is just a bit of wobble because it seems that all the negative aspects of teaching are presenting themselves to me en masse right now! Of course I was aware of the issues, just not the full extent of them. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still 100% up for it, only now I’m realising the true size of the hill that I’ve got to climb.

On a cheerier note, I’ve been given some advice to pass the time until I can get stuck into the PGCE. Anyone wanting to teach English, take note. I have been told that, yes, while the course is demanding, you can save yourself a lot of hassle by reading lots of teenage fiction before the course starts: even if, like me, you haven’t received your course reading list yet. By getting the reading in now a) you might, accidentally, read something that’s on the list. Wonderful. One less thing to read from scratch in the midst of essays and planning and researching; and b) you’ll have a better grounding in what your students will be reading. You’ll be able to suggest books for them to read, and you’ll be able to relate the set texts to something.

I’m using libraries to read teenage fiction, partly because I don’t want to be buying books just to read them once (I’ll buy them later if I love them), and partly because the librarians know what’s good teenage fiction and what’s best to avoid. Librarians are true fonts of knowledge. Oh, and, supporting my local library! I’d miss it if it closed. Really.

So I’ve just read Once, which is the first in Morris Gleitzman’s tetralogy (looked up that word especially for this blog. See, it’s educational.), Once/Now/Then/After.  Once tells the story of Felix, a young Jewish boy in war-time Europe. It’s comparable to The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas especially with regards to the narrator, with both stories being told from the point of view of a young boy. It’s also pretty short- I read it in two hours- and, as it’s aimed at children, it’s not a difficult read. Saying that, it is really well written: I’m definitely going to read the following three books, more for pleasure than for the course.

Next up is Kevin Brook’s Naked, set in London’s punk scene of the 1970s. This was recommended to me as an example of modern, gritty teenage fiction. I’m only a few pages in, so I’ll review the recommendation later. However, I am slightly dissuaded by the Guardian’s review. Nevermind, I shall continue.  

Still, I think reading teenage fiction is sound advice, and- so far at least- is quite an enjoyable task. If anyone has any recommendations for good teenage fiction please place them in the comments and I’ll give ‘em a whizz.