Gove kills the mockingbird with ban on US classic novels ...what do you think?

[mrz]

www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/article1414764.ece?CMP=OTH-gnws-standard-2014_05_24

That's 15 mins a day IF you don't do any reading at all in school bluestrawhat

What's the difference between qualified and highly qualified? And when can we all start quoting our qualifications to see who gets to be right?

Under the current spec we have slightly less than half a term for each of the set texts. The time gained by losing the controlled assessments would be lost by the addition of more set texts and the much more demanding English Language exam. So your notion of taking a term to read the novel in 15 minutes a night is beyond ridiculous.

mrz, you realize as well that reading the damned thing is only the beginning. You've got to get them ready for the exam.

2 English Language papers are replacing the single one at the moment. They are much more demanding. one of them isn't really Eng Lang at all, it's a response to an unseen literary text.

So you've also got to build in a huge amount of unseen practice. Just doing a timed exam practice would take 2 and a half lessons.

Isn't reading the whole text a good start to getting them ready for the exam?

and what's the best way to extend childrens language? reading perhaps?

mrz, you might have missed the bit where I said spending a whole lesson reading would not pass muster with OFSTED or SMT or the kids themselves.

I've not started putting a course outline together but I would reckon you've got no more than 5 or 6 weeks per set text. THat means to teach to the point of being exam ready and not to read it.

'Isn't reading the whole text a good start to getting them ready for the exam?'

Bless your naivete, mrz.

There are going to be 4 exams. 3 set texts + set poetry + unseen poetry + speaking and listening x 3 + the very demanding language exams which are going to need a significant amount of practice including unseen literary texts.

YOu have to teach them all the AOs (different not only for each exam but for each question), how to write the different responses, basic literacy in some cases, sophistication in others. You clearly have no idea.

Have you asked OFSTED?

3 set texts in 2 years of study bluestrawhat?

'and what's the best way to extend childrens language? reading perhaps?'

Blimy. So all you have to do is turn up with a book like in the 60s. So that's what I should have been doing all these years

Seriously, you need to go and shadow an English teacher for a few hours.

Your attitude is naive to the point of insulting.

'Have you asked OFSTED?'

Asked them what? Whether it's acceptable to read for a whole lesson.

You are joking.

Do you have any idea what a lesson plan even looks like?

'3 set texts in 2 years of study bluestrawhat?'

See above.

Read the specifications and the exams.

English doesn't just consist of sitting around and reading any more.

Perhaps you should give it a try bluestrawhat read a whole book and discuss the vocabulary

Can anyone explain why when there is so much English to get through, loads of kids were being entered early?

noble, exams were modular so were designed to be taken unit by unit. There was also pressure from league tables to get the magic number of A-Cs.

So you could get kids to resit until they passed.

English doesn't just consist of sitting around and reading any more.

It never did but if you are studying literature it's the best way to get to know your subject.

'Perhaps you should give it a try bluestrawhat read a whole book and discuss the vocabulary'

OK. I'll spend 18 hours reading a book with my students. They will love it. SMT and OFSTED will love it.

I will completely ignore speaking and listening, English language, essay writing and all the other things I do.

Because the only thing that English teachers should be doing is reading books and talking about vocabulary. And the only things that kids should be doing in English is reading books and talking about vocabulary.

Thanks for your insight mrz.

Anyway, these kids aren't going to be reading Great Expectations anyway are they? (I reckon I could knock it off in a weekend or so, and I'm a maths teacher). Teachers are going to opt for a shorter, easier novel, the closest equivalent to OMAM on the spec, and churn it out to all kids regardless of their reading speed, aren't they?

Here is the current English language spec which I will ignore filestore.aqa.org.uk/subjects/AQA-4705-W-SP-14.PDF

Here is the Eng Lit spec which I will ignore filestore.aqa.org.uk/subjects/AQA-9710-W-SP.PDF

I will not bother studying the 15 poems anymore or any unseen poems. I will not bother studying 2 texts by Shakespeare in order to write a 4 hour controlled assessment.

I will not bother writing to describe, inform, persuade or argue. I will not do the spoken language study (thank GOd) or any creative writing. I will not teach sentence variety or formal letter writing. I will not teach comparison skills or inference and deduction or context or even paragraphing and capital letters.

I will just sit and read books and talk about the vocabulary with my students.

www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/teacher-blog/2014/may/30/english-curriculum-missed-opportunity-gove

The bit about practising for the exam is what I really don't understand. Why? This whole training how to pass the exam is such a blight on the education system. It totally stands in the way of actual teaching.

When you study your 2 Shakespeare texts do you actually read them?