h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hallo Coelacanth,

Just thought IO'd keep in touch. Have you been watching the Channel 4 programmes about The Plague and the Fire of London?

I was fascinated to see the explanation that the Fire could have been a dust exploion. I usually cover dust explosions as part of kinetics/effect of particle size. The example quote is of the Lusitania which was torpedoed in WW1, and the effect astonished even the U-boat commander. However, I think now I'll alsio include the Fire. Wish I'd video'd it!

I haven't yet read up the references you sent me about the London Stone, but will do so.

Thank you for keeping in touch!

I wish I'd taped it too. I was helping a friend move house and I missed it.

That's an interesting theory about the dust explosion. Would there have been a loud noise? Did any one say they had heard anything at the time of the Fire?

I have another link for you. There's a Guide Entry about the Monument: A1105426 This was the second ever Guide Entry to contain a video clip. (The London Stone was the first!)

Couldn't quite discern from your reply whether or not you'd actually watched the prog. about The Fire. In case you didn't, they said that the baker may well, as part of his preparation for the next day, kept his flour warm by the still-hot embers. Also, there is a technique called 'bolting' (I think; I'll have to look this up) where the flour is separated from the chaff. During this process, great clouds of dust would be created and, although there is no documentary evidence that 17th C. Londoners were aware of dust explosions, they probably were aware because the bolting was performed in a separate room.

I think I could do with a holiday in London to do some exploring. The last time I went was for a long weekend to see the Vermeer exhibition (because I'm interested in his use of a Camera obscura) and to take in a theatre trip to see 'The Buddy Holly Story', for my wife's benefit - but I enjoyed it too.

Sorry about the typo's in my earlier message . I was to see 'The Elgin Marbles'programme - I've checked this one a bit more carefully!

I missed the programme and I didn't tape it either. However I did tape the Elgin Marbles programme which I shall watch this afternoon. Why not make a London weekend soon and bring your wife to the h2g2 meet on 10th July?

Your h2g2 page is looking good! Reading your journals about posting coursework to the moderators etc I realise we do the same job. A Level Science teaching. My subject is Psychology.

Yes, I realised we do the same job when I say some 'A' Level Revision Pages on 'Your Space' I'm quite pleaseD with how 'My Space' is coming along, although it seems to be more serious than most other researchers that I've looked at so far.

You might be interested in this thread, F135418?thread=438319 which is a spin off from another one about whether or not kids suffer if their parents take them on holiday during term time.

Someone there said that if teachers don't like it they should go and get a "proper job" and I questioned what they meant. To avoid topic drift on the original thread, a new one was started. I've read it all but not really had time to post until today and now I seem to have killed the conversation!

Your space is your own. Make it as serious or flippant as you like!

I will look at that thread. However, I've got problems with my PC at home - it's telling me that I don't have a mouse connected. I suspect I may have a virus. Also, my PC is very old - about 6 years, so I may just go and buy a new one. Meanwhile, using the computers at school. Got an interview tomorrow, so preparing for that at present.

I've added more to the thread so do pop by and add your if you can.

How did you get on at the interview?

Hi Coelacanth,

Haven't heard the result of the interview yet. It was at a selective independent girls' boarding school.

I had to teach a 35 minute demo lesson to 6th formers. The person watching said she thoroughly enjoyed my lesson, thought it was the best she'd seen and that she really hoped that I would be appointed.

However, I don't think I performed very uell at the formal interview with H/Mistress and H/Chemistry. I don't think I gave a totally satisfactory answer as to whuy I applied to that specific school. This was partly because I hadn';t rec'd a school brochure and also the school server was 'down' the day B4 my interview and so I couldn't access the school website. I also watched the Tim Henman match the previous night instead of focussing on my interview preparation.

Also, I was too heavy on my'A' Level teaching credentials, wheras the post issfor KS3 and KS4 as well.

I forgot to ask when they would be in a position to make a decision, so I'm on tenterhooks now.

Did you find out yet? Their term must have been almost ending when you went for the interview?

I spent 2 years in an independent boarding school. Hell. In the end I handed in my notice with nothing lined up. (I'm a single parent with 2 teeenagers to support so this was an incredibly risky thing to do.) I spent the next 2 years getting over it. If you're an ATL member their latest magazine had an article about the pressures of boarding schools in general. None were named but it was a very accurate account of my own findings.

Not that I'm trying to put you off or anything!

Hello Coelacanth,

Thanks for your interest. No, I didn't get that post. Neither was I able to receive any feedback as to possible reasons. The 1st 2 times I phoned the Head was unavailable; the final time the school were on holiday!

I've had several interviews recently and in all cases mty demo lesson was deemed to be very good and enjoyed by the students, but no job offer.

I do have experience of teaching in the INDEPENDENT sECTOR. my first post was an Independent Preparatory Boarding School, and the duties were horrendous!
My immediate past post was in a specialist independent school for dyslexics. Because it was a small school and English and Maths were deemed to be the highest priority (mistake I think!). E an M were taught a.m. and other subjects p.m. Hence if one wanted a full-time post one had to teach either E or M as well. So I taught M - without proper training, especially for dyslexics. I'M QUITE HAPPY TEACHING IT IN AN ABSTRACT WAY, but for dyslexics one needs to use a variety of kinaesthetic techniques, with which I was unfamiliar.

Anyway, I felt I needed to be teaching 'A' Level; and the longer I remained away from it the more difficult it would be to access.

Until the end of this term I had 2 part-time posts: 0.4 post teaching A/AS chemistry and another 0.4 teaching KS3 Science. The latter is not being renewed due to financial constraints within the school, so I've been trying to find either an additional p/t post (pref. A Level) or to replace my current 0.4 with f/t. Not easy!

I would prefer also to be in FE but such posts are few and far between. My local college are in financial difficulties and gave all staff opportunity to apply for VPR. H/Chemistry and H/Physics applied and received it. LATER THE biology lecturer resigned as she had a post elsewhere. Hence the College has no sciences to offer next year!

Obviosly, I'm very concerned now, income wise. However, my current school thinks they'll be able to 'top me up' with 'Supply'. This would not be my favoured option as there are behaviour problems in the lower school!

I feel verty bitter about my career since I came into teaching 11 years ago. i RECEIVED SEVERAL 000'S OF £ Busrasy for training to teach a shortage subject but, despite having trained at one of the top institutions in the country for chemistry teachers, I APPLIED FOR 50 POSTS IN STATE SECTOR, BUT WITH NO INTERVIEWES! Hence my first post was in Independent sector. Since then it has been a constant struggle; partly, I think,because i am at top of standard pay scale. I can't even get over the Threshold. Problems with discipline and mANAGEMENT & cONTROL ARE WHAT IS CITED BUT i look around and see plenty of teachers worse than myself.

I've been trying to think of a route out but, despite teacher's complaints about pay, it is very dificult to find an alternartive that pays as well.
S#oorry about frequent changes between Upper and Case Lower Case. Sticky keyboard!

I'm sure the lack of an offer isn't personal. It's just that you're going to be expensive - even without any allowances or threshold. NQTs are cheap and GTPs are cheaper. Or it maybe that your employment history looks on paper to be a little erratic. There must be some reason for sending 50 applications and never being called. You're in a shortage subject!

Time to revamp your CV and write a really good covering letter especially to explain the erratic work history. Maybe change the names you are giving as references? Have you actually seen what has been written on them? If they are flawed then 50 applications will get the same reference. Personally (and sssh, don't tell anyone) I don't actually have a CV. It is my intention to retire without ever having done one. I just have a letter which I alter to suit the post I'm applying for, do my homework about the school and be as impressive as I can at interview. I was very honest about my reasons for chucking my last job and I think that was for the best. I was prepared to reloacte anywhere but that's not always possible.

I'm not sure what I'd do in your position. I've been exclusively A level teaching for 13 years and I love it, so I can understand why you'd like to do that but then again if it's a choice between no work or lower school, financially I'd have to take what there was.
I bet all teachers think of a route out from time to time. I jokingly say I'm going to retrain as a plumber. I've seen one or two people go into teaching PGCE students at the local uni. Maybe you could investigate that? If there's a shortage of teachers, maybe they need more people to train them. Also I can't imagine people would make that move unless it was financially worth it, because of the effect it would have on their pension.

In fact, when I first entered teaching, my employment history was anything but erratic; I had been 23 years with the same employer, albeit at progressive grades achieved by experience/qualifications.

Indeed it took me 12 years of part-time day release to obtain all my qualifications up to Master's level (Retrieve relevant 'O' Levels, ONC, HNC, Grad.RSC and MSc). Hence I enjoyed being in an academic environment, but also appreciated the benefits of obtaining quals. by the conventional route, i.e. work much harder at school.

i THOUGHT i coul;d bring the benefit of these ideas into school teaching. Also, I thought my direct experience of studying vocational quals would be of benefit in the F.E. sector.

For this reasion, I studied and obtained the City & Guilds Adult (F.E.) Teachers' Certificate a good 10 years before I left my employment. The place I worked was a Govt institute which had been under threat of closure for a number of years, so I didn't want to leave a year before I could've rec'd a redundancy payout. The end result was that I stayed too long!

There are 3 interesting and informative vignettes to tell you:

1. When I first decided to train as a 2-ary school teacher, I applied to an advert in New Scientist which asked for 'Highly Qualified Scientists from Industry'. Applicants wishing to teaching chemistry, physics or maths had to have an Upper 2nd Honours or above plus Chartered Membership of the relevant Institute. Biologists had to have 1st class Honours + ditto. This was for a school-based PGCE in the West Country. I received an interview which was a whole day assessment in a school with children present. The whole day, I felt, went very well and I answered all Q's fully with breadth and depth. In fact, I still feel it was one of the best performances I've given. However, in the end I didn't get appointed. In feedback, they said that they'd had 2000 applicants for which they'd selected 200 (imncl. myself) for interview. So, ebverybody present were extremely high-calibre candidates. However, they could only appointy 20 to PGCE training, so they were having to deselect on nuances. In my case they felt that I would not be able to cope with non-motivated pupuils. To this day I can't see how they picked this up - although it is true! - because not one of the Q's asjked impinged on motivation. I can only assume that they looked at how I achied my quals and assumed that only s'one highly motivated could achieve this.

2. After I obtained my PGCE elsewhere and had applied for 50 posts to no avail, I sent my CV and a sdample application letter to a (well-known) Educational Recruitment Consultancy. Their response was that both documents were "First Class" and that I had 3 problems: (i) By law I had to enter the profession at the top of the teacher's pay scale, and the school couldn't afford it (ii) Because of a strong military presence where I live - and Army spouses are frequerntly trained teachers - there was no shortage where I live (iii) My Quals and experience would be intimidating not only to a H/Science but also to a Head Teacher.

3. The 3rd vignette is that the Headmaster of my first school said (rather eloquently) that, "with your subject knowledge, language register and stylwe of teaching you should really be in F.E. or H.E. and not in a school at all".

4. Oh! There's a 4th vignette which I'd almost forgotten. About the time I was applying forr my first post I was in the reference section of the local library and some (obviously) grammar school 6th formers were talking. iT WAS University level chemistry, much of which I felt I'd forgotten, and it somewhat sapped my confidence. Hence, in my early years of teaching I didn't apply for 'A' Level teaching posts at all and, in retrospect, this was a HUGE mistake.

I should add at this point that, although my academic quals were all in chemistry, my research experience was in the field of virology.


Also, when I first qualifified as a Science teacher, it was amazing how many people I came across of similar age/background with similar experience. It appeared that the propaganda being bandied by Govt (about a shortage of Science teachers) was not being reflected by the schools in terms of recruitment. I very much fear that the same is true today with the 'golden handshakes'. It will vbe wasted money for people above a certain age.

I would very much like to become an AST or a an LEA Science Adviser. However, my reputation for (lack of )Management and Control would mitigate against both. Furthermore being an LEA Science Adviser seems to be less about knowing any science and more about knowing Govt aims, targets and strategies.

As you can probably tell, I'm feeling highly disillusioned at present.

BIGAL