At the chalkface
News
Irrelevant? To what?
THE TOP 11th year. We’re holding all four close together, as
Green thinking inspires pupils
“doing” a poem, an exam text. It’s if anything at all were possible”
terrific – Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s “Not though is it? ‘As if’ is
Two Scavengers in a Truck! I read crucial!”
it in my best American “beat” “Conditional tense ‘cos you
by Chris Parr
voice, lost on some of the flock. I want it to happen!”
tell them I met Ferlinghetti at the “A metaphor for the American Budding manufacturers with a
International Poetry Incarnation dream. That Obama thing. Yes we passion for saving the planet have
in 1965. A fabulous, if silly time. can. No we haven’t!” been trying out some of the green
Another age. It made me want to “Very red”, “cos they have to jobs of the future at the Skills
want to teach English. I drone on stop. Compulsory! They don’t NorthWest careers show.
about the importance of want to be there! It goes Bolton Arena played host to
poetry in the thrilling green, they’re all gone to three days of demonstrations and
‘60s. their separate worlds!” exhibitions by some of the region’s
“You get paid for “Two worlds, man biggest employers, many of
this, sir?” says a – Holland Park meets which were showcasing their envi-
tedious wag. the Grove!” ronmentally friendly approaches to
My musings are “Dudes think they’re industry.
surplus to Assessment in a Calvin Klein advert!” The youngsters tested mini-
Objectives. Irrelevant! “My brother’s a bin wind turbines, created models of
“Shut up, you man for the borough!” electric buses, and had the chance
barbarous swot!” I don’t “Does he smell of to engineer their own robotics as
say. cabbage?” part of the event. They even had the
Some pupils are “The poet’s ambivalent.” chance drive the world’s first low-
worse than Ofsted. Still, “No way – ‘elegant’ is carbon rally car.
most really like the poem. negative, ironic, subversive.” One of the most popular sections
Time for the group “Anyway, we’re all was the Make It zone, operated by
discussions, always scintillating scavengers!” the Manufacturing Institute.
and how they learn best. But “Not if we get this exam!” The charity, which aims to
these days it’s a bit risky. I panic. Splendid stuff, fizzing with inform youngsters about the ben-
I can’t always defend them to the insight, suss, pretentiousness efits of working in manufacturing,
Teacher Police. They say they like and, yes, irrelevance. So I panic. facilitated a range of interactive
them, but they don’t. They call They’re a bit too fast for those activities from the likes of BAE
them “interactive, differentiating, exam board fools with their Systems, Jaguar Land Rover, and Careers taking off? Youngsters from All Saints
learning events” and then that shrinking targets. So I bottle it. engineering research and develop- Catholic College in Cheshire test-pilot paper
they’re “too loud, incoherent and I dish out some dull answers. ment company Oaktec. aeroplanes in wind tunnels at the NorthWest
sometimes off topic”. Dull, parrot Eng Lit stuff, but Nicola Eagleton-Crowther, careers show, while (inset) youngsters from
Irrelevant! To what? terrifically relevant to the GCSE the Institute’s Make It campaign Merchant Taylors’ School in Crosby test out a
Well, the Teacher Police exam. Their answers were much manager, said: “The govern- water-pump
aren’t in today. So let’s go. Let’s better, but mine will get them ment predicts that more than one
listen to Electra’s group. The that A grade. We’re doing league million people will work in the encouraging for future recruitment,” mills, are about 30 years out of demonstrations, and asking plenty
poem – about a chance meeting tables here – not literature. low-carbon economy by 2015 and she explained. date.” of questions about what we do, and
of two garbagemen and a rich that the top jobs of the future will “Our aim was to show the teen- Karl Taylor, from BAE Systems, about Apprenticeships,” he added.
“elegant couple” at a red traffic • Ian Whitwham is a former be in advanced manufacturing and agers the exciting reality of working said he had received a great response For more information on
light – excites them. They’ve teacher. A book of his best ever engineering. in industry and prove that their per- from the youngsters taking part in the Make It campaign, visit
stopped at these lines: “And columns is out now. For details, “The Make It Zone was com- ceptions of people standing on pro- the show. “It was great to see such www.makeit.org.uk and for
the very red light for an instant, email editor@sec-ed.co.uk pletely mobbed during the three duction lines sticking cherries on enthusiasm from the students. They Apprenticeships information, see
days of the show, which is very Bakewell tarts, and of dark satanic were all getting involved in the www.apprenticeships.org.uk
Kent is bringing learning to life
Teachers
Great teachers know how to keep children from staring into space.
They use their own imagination to engage with their students. At Kent, we encourage
you to do exactly that. One of the largest authorities in the country, we offer a
huge range of schools, subjects and age groups to choose
between. You’ll also have plenty of opportunity to move
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Visit www.kent-teach.com
20 SecEd • February 25 2010
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