Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, Crepes in this petty pace from day to day

[CointreauVersial]

Anything but the C-word!

Dr F son had Lego hair, like brothers Miliband.

Herbs .

UCL sounds fab and exciting Hatty. It had a perfect course for dd but she wouldn't consider London. I suspect most students have a good time wherever they are city/campus-wise, if the friends they make are good and the course suits them and is well run.

MI, whats happened? How did yesterday go?

Herbs.

MI - I am sure you are coming across loads better than you think you are. I do think teaching requires a certain amount of acting though.

Some of yesterday went OK but I’m sure they were laughing at me for some of it. I have this outline, from the regular tutor who’s on maternity leave, and I don’t know how to make it work. Then I have notes and materials from someone else who does it a bit differently; and my own notes from when I’ve taught before, but as these are all much better journalists than I am I’m sure I should be doing it their way. I can’t spend all week on it, I’m not being paid enough. I can’t do this. I really think I should chuck it in.

And they haven’t looked up the course on the intranet system or read any of the reading list. I found one student (who hadn’t turned up in the first week) reading her way through a powerpoint which was different from the one I was using, which she’d found somewhere on the university site. I can’t do this. I just can’t. And other journalists say ‘just get them to write a feature’ – how can I? I have to fill hours of the day. I can’t do it.

Ah, the wonderful world of teaching. I reckon it takes three times as long to plan a lesson as to deliver it.

Can't you just re-use the lesson plans/resources from this time last year?

I don't have this tutor's resources. I do have some from another tutor but she does the course differently from the outline I've been given to follow. Both of them do it differently from the way I would.

Oh dear MI

DD is on the other side of the coin - rollercoaster on a down today as she is struggling to keep up with all the work they keep giving them and tutors who are saying things like "the marks for these essays are terrible. If you put in effort and still got a bad mark, then you should think seriously if you should be taking the subject" to a whole class (who had to get GCSE A/A* to get on it). She hasn't got her marks back yet...

MI first off, do it your way. I can't work off someone else's notes although I might nick the best of them and assimilate them in to mine...(suitably referenced....) secondly, the students have to take responsibility for their own learning. If they haven't done the prep....well, I would send the out actually. Then do lots of small group work after you've delivered a bit...there will be some knowledge in the room already. Don't take the laughing personally. My foundation degree students are really badly behaved. I ignor it and concentrate on being charismatic and fun. The ones who don't work and keep looking at their phones soon come to heel, because they realise they're missing out.

Feel free to tell me I don't know what I'm taking about...I'm sure I haven't got the whole picture and of course I don't know your area of expertise at all but my teaching epiphany came when I handed over the responsibility for learning to the punters. Is this the Norf London Uni? Shall I come and loiter outside with gin and doughnuts and big hugs? nil desperandum. Xx

tilly I'm sure this will settle. DS was manic in his first term in year 12. Having said that I don't like it that they're saying stuff about essay grades and thinking seriously about doing the subject. gCSE doesn't teach them to write essays. Poor DD.

Fankoo, as DD1 used to say when small.

I have got a grip and am using a fair amount of material that's been drawn up already but also by me, and arranged to meet a friend who lectures (elsewhere) tomorrow for a soothing coffee. Am going to see friends in the midlands this weekend.

Thanks Rose She's finding some of the teachers a wee bit unsupportive and maybe spending too long on social media and moaning

Loving the poetry on R4 right now.

"The boy stood on the burning deck ..." sob.

Btm - just lost a long post about how I wish I could sent my children to nurturing British schools. They're so mean here - still I expect even in the UK they need a kick from time to time.

hatty, as you know, some British schools are more nurturing than others. But actually, they need to develop independence too

I love that you are listening to radio 4, while I am listening to Fip, Hatty!

MI, I have done quite a bit of training in my time and CANNOT work from someone else's notes at all.

MI, I agree, skin the cat your own damn way . Can they do practical exercises (I've done a couple of courses with them on over the years - interview each other and write feature outline and then bicker gently over whose is best/write headline and 1st para from one or two written sources and bicker ditto - we were all sort of in the game already tho)? I think if they don't do prep that is their problem. I also think it is very hard to juggle a project that isn't what you normally do time-wise because it just doesn't fit into your normal systems and requires extra mental energy, and that can be very frustrating and soul-destroying.

Gosh, BTM, I can't really see how that is helpful rather than just anxiety-inducing (for the ones that have put effort in).

Mrs S - R4 is my lifeline.

MrsS, your dinner party experiences take the biscuit!

I currently have a vat of MrsS's groundnut curry bubbling away on the hob, awaiting the return of DH (from giving blood), DD1 (from gymnastics) and DS (from football). I did play rather fast and loose with the recipe, so instead of chicken breast, cannillini beans and birdseye chilli I used thigh, chickpeas and double quantities of ordinary chillies, but it tastes bloody fantastic!

CV - can you taste the peanut butter though? Mine tasted good but I was not sure how it was supposted to taste and I think I expected the peanut butter (as the exotic ingredient) to come through more.

Excellent, CV. The recipe is meant to be played fast and loose with - I often vary the beans too, leave the meat out, or use pork instead of chicken. And keep tasting, and add more chillies, peanut butter, salt and pepper, as required.

I just add stuff until it tastes right, Hatty. And it does depend on the brand of peanut butter - sometimes you need more, sometimes less. It needs to be a thickish consistency, but not so thick that you can stand a spoon up in it.

I made the DCs play "guess the mystery ingredient" - they couldn't guess, but everyone agreed they could taste the PB once they knew it was there. A resounding success. Yum.

Thanks Mrs S - just wasn't sure what I was aiming for. It probably didn't help that I could only find M&S peanut butter with pecans and maple syrup. I have since sourced bog standard crunchy.