Student parents support thread

[Lenni]

I used to come on this topic a year or so ago and post on the general hand holding support thread but it seems to have gone so I'm hoping there might be enough of us to start a new one.

I'm in my final leg of a M.Ed in Education and am currently writing my thesis which is going very slowly okay but am struggling to find time, motivation or energy to study. It would be nice to know others are in the same boat and have a place to handhold, moan, swap tips and motivate each other.

I have finally started some uni work.

I now have an essay plan and written the first 500 words of a 3000 words essay. It is not much but considering I haven't done anything for weeks it's a start

I'm aiming to write 500 words on each of my free days so should have a first draft completed by the end of next week.

On days when I'm not writing I'll be aiming to conduct research for my dissertation. Hopefully will be carrying out some classroom observations tomorrow.

Hope everyone else is doing well!

Hi,
Hope I'm not too late in asking if I can join in.
I am currently an OU student with 2 LO's (5 and 3). I am in my third year with 2 years to go and to be honest it seems never ending.
I have no idea what I want to do next? I have been think of doing a PGCE but reading the TES has put me off. It would however fit around the kids better than any other option I have thought up.
Sorry if this doesn't make sense as I am on my phone.

Well done Mia!

Hello LB

I've no idea what to do career-wise either (I'm also an OU student, graduating next summer). I'm 42 though, and have a horrible feeling that the economic climate + my age = not much in the way of prospects. Feeling a bit down about this at the moment tbh.

Welcome LB.

I start my PGCE in September. I try to avoid the TES forum, it freaks me out. It's full of negative experiences and people dropping out.

What have I let myself in for?

Thanks for replying.

Apart from teaching I don't really know what prospects I would have at the moment. I live just outside of Lincoln and the major employers seem to be moving slowly abroad. Plus I have no experience in anything I think I would like to do.

What are you studying with the OU Molesworth?

At least I'm not the only one feeling put off by the TES. Can I ask where you are doing your PGCE Mia?

mia, well done! you've inspired me now!

lb, i've been avoiding teaching for the best part of 22 years... i started doing a qts degree straight after my a levels (i lasted 2 terms and loathed every minute) but it has been hanging around my neck since like an albatross - as the 'sensible choice'. it took a part time stint as a TA/ LSA (whilst studying something else lol) to finally bury it for good though. i CAN do it, i just don't want to.

that said, if you WANT to, then ignore the wails of despair and teeth gnashing (and lack of jobs etc) and set your sights on what you believe in.

well, i've just got back from the hospital with dd2 (who now has 1 less tooth and two giant stainless steel caps - she looks like 'jaws' lol) and i'm wiped. she gets really miserable after anaesthesia, so has spent about 8 hours sobbing. roll on dh getting home. (we got a cancellation appointment for some dental work lol, i didn't beat her up). i took some work with me thinking i would get an hour or two whilst she was being sorted, but oh no, i had to go in with her... weird.

(my necklace broke just as she started to wail and come round - i'm scrabbling all over the floor trying to pick up a million teeny tiny beads, whilst a dental nurse is trying to stop dd2 falling off the bed... hilarious)

so the tooth fairy is visiting dd2 for the first time tonight. aw.

right, back to work, slackers.

LB - I'll be going the early years PGCE at Exeter

Hope your dd is feeling better today madwoman.

Just off to school to get some observations done

Molesworth - I'm not in audiovisual translation (faking it )
I'm studying Translation Studies and it's an area I enjoyed studying and inspired me to focus on it for my dissertation. I do sometimes wonder if I am biting off more than I can chew though!

It is hard to figure out what to work for career-wise (glad i' not the only one). It seems like a lot of people 'fall into' their careers and it's hard to know what to work for exactly until you've had a bit of experience so you can only study in the vague sort of area that you think you'd like to work in (at least how I see it).

Mia - you've inspired me too. Have some coursework to hand in next week, so will do a bit of work on that while the children are watching Thomas quiet.

lol at inspiring people on this thread. Yesterday was the first time I did work in weeks

I managed to get two playground observations completed today. I've also had my parent questionnaires back. Back in school on Thursday to do some classroom observations and hopefully a couple more playgrounds obs.

Want all the data collected by the end of the month so I can spend the Easter coding.

Will spend tomorrow writing another 500 words for my essay.

Starting to feel like I'm getting back in the swing of things. Just hope it's not too late

madwoman- I think I'm a bit like you. Teaching has never been something I have wanted to do but it seems like a sensible option. I would be teaching either maths or physics at secondary level so there are lots of jobs available. Apart from teaching I have only really looked in to medical physics with the NHS and PhDs in maths or physics.

Right I'm off to do a few hours on a TMA then I think I'll watch some TV and ignore the ironing pile lol.

Mia, you're inspiring because you had been in the study doldrums for ages and managed to haul yourself out of it (and it sounds like you've been spectacularly productive too!)

I can't bear the idea of teaching children

Adults would be OK. I'll certainly try to get into OU tutoring (not so many opportunities nowadays and the pay is terrible, but I'd enjoy it). I like the idea of teaching at HE level but suspect this is not a very realistic ambition at my age and in this climate.

(I'm studying sociology/media/politics btw LB)

I taught for 4 years, secondary Physics. Enjoyed it on balance but it isn't an easy career. I think a lot depends on the school though, even in the hardest areas it can be a really great job if the ethos is right.

Funnily enough before I started my Pgce I had a place to train as a medical physicist, strange coincidence.

Mia- so glad you found your study mojo again, sounds like you have achieved a lot this week. You've inspired me to go back to my partially coded dataset and stop analysing on an adhoc basis. I have more and more data arriving at the moment, not what I want 6 weeks away from my deadline. I need to find some extra study hours somewhere.

Madwoman - hope your dd is better today, poor mite.

dd2 is much better today - thanks for all good wishes. she had a lovely note from dh the tooth fairy (whose name is willow in case anyone was interested - i do worry about dh sometimes) and has been full of beans all day. and this evening at parent's evening (deep joy) her homeroom teacher said she wants her to skip a grade and start g3 in september. haven't decided how i feel about that tbh - would have been much better if they had done it this year for g1 but i'll mull it over and make an appointment with the principal. it's going to make ds1 livid i suspect.

i am really struggling to schedule study time at the moment. it just struck me that none of this is going to change, so i need to really make a conscious effort to fit it in. somewhere. i'm sure we started this blooming thread like this - i feel like i've gone full circle! i'd better go back to the beginning and read it again! deja vu.

Awwww madwoman your dh sounds very sweet. Willow is a lovely name for a tooth fairy

Had another productive day. I've written another 500 words of my essay. 1000 words down 2000 to go.

I've also typed up my two playground observations.

It doesn't sound like a huge amount but I'm hoping to chip away with it day at a time. I find it far easier to just do an hour or two a day rather than plan to do eight hours and avoid doing any.

Where has everyone gone?

Are you all too busy working to post?

nope - went away for the weekend to see some friends we haven't seen for over a year. back now, and eating breakfast wondering whether to clean the house (it is a pit) or get the books out... have 5 hours child-free (not working today) so think i might get some of both in... got lots of reading done this w/e as dh drove so need to get thoughts on paper before they leak out of my ears lol...

Hiya can I join too, I am an OU student, with 2 ds's, the youngest is 6 months! I started my first level 3 course this year, I normally do 60-90 points a year, but am just doing 30-40 due to the wee one. I want to go into teaching and stress about it all too, but have decided to get the degree then stress about the PGCE.
LB29 what courses are you doing, I'm doing MT365, and want to be a maths teacher. I'm also doing an open degree as I started off doing some science courses then switched to maths as there is a shortage of maths teachers and an abundance of biololgy ones, aparently, and I don't want to do all this hard work for nothing.

Wow sounded a bit abrupt there, didn't mean to be

Well I've had yet another week full of delays and family related issues eating into what is left of my 6 weeks to deadline. So much for handing in before our holiday. Think it is going to be a working holiday instead Can't get hold of two of my interviewees and need verification from them - am making endless phonecalls and getting absolutely nowhere. My data analysis has majorly stalled as I am bored with it and I'm procrastinating like crazy. Plus we're all ill again and that means no sleep. Gah. Right, that's me unloaded, feel better. I think the stress of waiting on this funding is getting to me you know.

Welcome VJay, nice to have you onboard. I used to teach Physics, can relate to wanting to stick to the shortage subjects.

Hope you got plenty done today madwoman, what did you decide re: your PhD/MRes application? I am sorry, I have still not looked at the university website, I am terminally crap at the moment. I can't even MN properly I will be so glad when this damn thing is submitted! Argh!

it's pending. i suspect it will be put off until next year whilst we work out where we're going to be living ... i'm still gutted that my 'perfect' idea isn't workable here, and that i might not get to do it now. weirdly feels a bit like grieving as it was sooooo right. and pretty much sorted.

today i mned and cleaned... but got a lot of planning work done for an essay on the medicalisation of childbirth lol (largely because i have book club tonight and the book is 'the birth house' by ami mckay) so i got sidetracked and started digging up academic references (and dusting off all the prep work i did before). haven't yet got down the stuff from the weekend, but can sort of recall the salient points...

if you still fancy a look at u of c i'd appreciate an opinion - no urgency, as i suspect the application is going to have to get majorly tweaked and rewritten before it would work over here. a toronto academic implied that this province was fairly conservative (with a small c) and whilst u of c has a niche department amidst the redneck conservative masses, she didn't know a single uk academic working in the area...

vjay- i am currently studying mst209 and s282 and will be going on the summer school msxr209 in july. I really wish I had swapped to maths when I had the chance. I have 2 years to go after this as I am planning on taking some 'extra' maths courses. This is so I can teaching maths and because I want to do the masters that the OU offer. How are your level 3 courses going?

Hi all - can I join?

I am doing my masters part-time and have just found out that I am pregnant with baby number 2. Hasn't come at a very good time, as baby will be born (all going well) mid-november - bang in the middle of my specialisation year. Joy.

I'm meeting the school secretary to discuss deferring for a year, but am terrified that they won't think that my grades are good enough to defer then carry on.

I've had a raw deal with this course. It's a new one and it's in Creative Writing (already have my English degree) but we have had to take Theory in Humanities courses which make up the masters element of the degree. These are mainly philosophy based and very difficult - I am not a philosopher! No have I studied it before - and this is all based at a post-grad level. As I am a part-time student I have suffered because their structuring meant that I wouldn't have been able to do the course I wanted to do - so in order to do it I have had to do all of my theory work first and am still waiting to do what I wanted to do all along; Creative Writing.

Gutted is not the word.

Now I have to wait a whole other year to do the Creative Writing element. IF they let me go back to do it.

I will be very angry if they won't. Very very angry.

I am so scared right now.

LB29, I did MST209 last year, found it quite hard going as was pg at the time and so tired, I gave birth 6 weeks before the exam, but did ok, the past paper where so helpful. This level 3 course is going well thanks, I was worried I wouldn't be able to cope, but it's ok so far.

Threelittleducks, I do feel for you, I was so scared as to how I would manage everything with a baby, but I have decreased the workload and so far so good.

can you change institutions to get more appropriate modules? (or look at OU?) there a few places that offer creative writing now, and i'm pretty sure a few distance options. if you've got credits already it is normally (unless transferring in to OU on english courses grrr) easy to arrange credit-transfer? it might make it less stressful than worrying about pg and course?

congrats on pg btw! i had dd1 whilst i was writing my dissertation - she was about 8 mos for grad ceremony and is tucked under my arm in lots of grad pics lol.

LB29 are you doing a named degree or an open degree?