Division 42

In the past few weeks Bender & I have been bringing ourselves up to speed with the X-Files and the ol’ cogs have been turning.

Mulder’s passionate quest for the “truth” begs the question whether or not his “passion” is just a cover for the real reason behind his presence in the X-Files, he is obsessed with searching for his long lost sister.

I wonder if Mulder’s obsession will be leading him towards his ultimate demise no matter what the cost. Similar to Ahab’s obsession in finding the white whale. Both men can no longer enjoy simple pleasures in life for they’re both completely consumed by their obsessions.

What about any modern day Ahab’s? Can you recognise them?

I’d say John Howard’s obsession with destroying the unions which lead to the development of the work choices legislation, a contributing factor to the end of his reign would be classified as a modern day Ahab.

I wonder if when someone is struck with an obsession the rest of humanity can benefit from it in an indirect way? I’ll leave it to you readers to answer that question.

I have two articles from recent news today for your brief discussion before you turn to youtube clips and talking about trivia and the weekend (PS mattrim - no-one needs an invite to trivia - you just turn up - Terminatrix can help you with directions etc since I don’t read blogs during the day )

The first one is the Mt Isa debacle

You may wish to discuss:
- the “inappropriateness” of the mayor’s comments,
- whether ugly people have to settle for less or have a swathe of eligible suitors swimming around them (as the people protesting seem to imply),
- whether Mt Isa women have just as much a sense of entitlement to relationships behavioural standards and express as little to offer as a 25yo blonde hottie from Bondi (that mattrim posted yesterday),
- why would these men not put much effort in even when the odds are stacked against them 5:1 or
- any other issue you can wring out of the article

The second one is something written by Roseanne Barr about Brangelina

You may wish the discuss her thoughts about Brangelina, the futility of their actions, bourgeois lip-service philanthropy or the celebrity circus surrounding Hollywood kids/pregnancies

Have fun and if you don’t like the gender war thingy you can always provide overwhelming direct evidence to the usual line of thought hehehe

[This time I know the links work haha]

As we’ve previously discussed here, those with the most valuable input are not necessarily those with the most direct experience ;)… besides, we’ve all been to school and had teachers… some crappy and, hopefully, many more fantastic ones. Opening it up for public discussion also means that *I* get to learn me a thing or two :).

This first part, copied below, is in answer to her initial query re classroom management. These are quick and incomplete thoughts and I have plenty more to say, but lacking the time just this second {as promised, I will come back to it later tonight}

“Be yourself… everybody else is taken.

By that I mean, find your own groove. You have probably seen/experienced teachers that you admire yeah? People that seem to flawlessly engage an entire classroom? It’s not magic. There is no secret ingredient to that. It’s simple - They do that through being themselves. If *you* do that, then you are half way there to “controlling the class”… allow a self depreciating joke; if you don’t know the answer to a question say so and let the student know that you will have the answer by the next class {better yet, you research some of the inquiry and ask them to find out the rest of the answer}; show your human side; refer to your own life when discussing the topic {if appropriate}. If you are a silly bugger in real life, then be a {professional} silly bugger in front of the class too. Just be yourself.

Are you taking classes straight away, or observing for a week or so? Does the teacher have a teaching plan for the coming month so you know what each grade will be covering?? Do they have a lesson by lesson plan {listing resources and teaching strategies to be used as well as the time allocated for each topic to be covered}? All of this information, if available to you, will help with your preparation.

If you are observing each group/class for the first week {and I assume this would be the case, as it is normal practice} then take the opportunity to really get stuck in. Regarding the current teacher, ask yourself a bunch of questions… For example: What works? Which students seem to respond?? Identify why that is. Which children don’t respond? Same kids every class for each grade, or random? Where are they seated in the classroom?? Where are the engaged children seated? Does the teacher apply constructivist methods of learning {including the application of lessons that appeal to multiple intelligences?}. If you were the teacher, how would YOU present that particular lesson? And so on… the questions are endless. Don’t be afraid to be critical in your private observations.

Also, when you’ve reflected on the class, ask the teacher why they elected to teach a particular segment in the way that they did. I realise that it may be scary for you to do that {cause teachers can be weird scary freaks} BUT him being your ‘guy’ means he is at least interested in training new teachers – you equal extra work for him, and he wouldn’t have agreed to take you if he wasn’t interested in fostering and facilitating your own learning. Depending on the atmosphere & willingness, you may like to take advantage of being there and sit in on other teachers in you specific teaching areas in order to gain a broader observational experience.

When it comes time to having your own lessons, besides being yourself, the next key elements you need to bring to the room are meaningful and relevant lessons… I cannot overstate the importance of those two words.

Whaddya reckon?

I was absolutely amazed to read about this article; it’s brief, so I’ve copied it in full below:

A Japanese woman and her six-month-old baby escaped unhurt from a knife-wielding thief this week after the mother calmed him down with a cup of tea and a chat.

Police rushed to the scene, but the thief had fled and is still being sought.

It made me wonder a few things:

* Is tea really the cure-all for life’s ills (and, if so, why am I drinking coffee)?
* In what way would we react under a similar pressure?
* What’s the most scary/pressure-filled/terrifying experience you’ve had to deal with, and what did you do to cope?

And, the one that really stuck out for me: how lonely must that would-be robber have been, to sit down and pour his life of woes out to a perfect stranger he was threatening for money?

Guest Writer - Moet etc Blue

This is inspired by The Olympics which I have no interest in watching and a brief chat late one night on Div 42 with Miss Really who I do find interesting ……….From my observation of people it seems to me that mostly all people are competitive in nature - they want to win or be the best at something, everything if possible…
- to be the fastest, strongest, most skillful in sport
- to be the smartest wittiest most educated
- to be the richest most successful
- to be the most liked, popular, respected
- to be the best looking, sexiest, hottest most desirable
-and on it goes….

And to be publicly recognised for winning these ‘contests’ in life.

I notice this competitive behaviour on the other blogs, certain people trying to outdo each other by bragging about achievements and of course how hot they are, etc…it puzzles and amuses me.

On TV people compete to be next top model, next idol, next farmers wife, Tila Tequila or Brett Michaels’ next lover , best chef, best designer, best hairdresser , most beautiful girl in the Universe (hahahaha seriously hilarious) , all being judged by so called experts or the public…..I mean what the??? I just don’t relate to it at all…

People often ask (Miss Really this is what you asked if I remember right) why I do not compete in my chosen sport, they don’t see why I would train like a bodybuilder for 21 years and not want to compete. …

To me life is not a competition, I do the best I can do or the best I am prepared to do to make my life pleasant and enjoyable. That is it…as long as I am satisfied with what I have, what I know and what I look like, I am happy. I don’t care at all what anyone else thinks or if they know I have a particular quality/talent/wisdom.

There will always be someone who is smarter, younger, hotter and more talented than me, I don’t need to enter a competition to know where I fit in generally in society in any of those categories. I know what I look like, I know what I know and I know who I am and I don’t need reassurance or recognition or a trophy to make me feel special.

Questions:
Are you competitive? If so, why is it so important to win or be better at something/smarter than others? How does winning make you feel?