Grrr

[Episcopus]

Today I was skipping some lessons because they were doing some pointless careers activity. Building Windchimes I hear. I was with 2 other boys also of the same opinion. Walking down the coridoor the seriously fat annoying arrogant teacher (it has some kind of special post as a head of some age group) came past us. "Why aren't you in your lessons?"
"What's that? Yeah...we're going now" continuing to walk past the pile of flab. She told us to come back, in hindsight we should have run I know.
"It's half way into the lesson. What are you doing? I asked why you weren't in lessons."
"There's some stupid careers thing. We think it's pointless," not offensively at all.
"You are not at the AGE to have any choice! You do what we tell you! You do not have any choice! Get to your lessons!"
I just evil stared it and thought, if I argued she would have made a fuss and we needed to remain quiet that we might remain out of the lessons. So sensibly we just turned and walked. Then we ran out of the school and jumped over the fence to walk on the black hill of burned foliage to throw stones thence on to the road graffiti of "TIN-TIN", "BAGGSY" and "DECKY"
below whilst bellowing "feck!"
I was thinking, she must be very retarded to think my opinion to be worthless. Any intelligent person respects me. I'm not typically so immature, it's just whenever I be angry or bored.
I could have caused great offense to that old bag. I am 16 anyhow, and even if I were not it would not matter. My mind despite my retarded doings during school time is on another level, she is very stupid and sad. She has no personal strength or the capability hold forth any restraint whatsoever, eating plates full of fries and pizza every day; she is simply unintelligent and is sad to such an extent that yelling at children who are powerless to stop her unless they have the energy to argue with all of the staff just so that she might convince her own mind that she is not worthless herself.
I know that they are not worth it and I have refrained this year from major disputes, partially due to other commitments and fatigue, but anger will not leave. I hope every one does not hold the same mentality as that of the teachers. I have a hitlist of teachers. I will return. I will do to them harm. They will not know where or when but I will cause that they experience the same amount of fury as I. My main personal principle is to do to nobody what I would not like them to do to me, also that nature should do natural justice, therefore one day that loser and others will realise that they are so and they will be unhappy but not as any result of my doings. Perhaps I will hold myself to this but at the moment I am enraged.

I just thought that I should tell you since textkit threads are a bit sucky of late. Not that this one is any different!

[klewlis]

I didn't vote because you missed what I would pick:

wait it out, do nothing. highschool will be over soon and it is not the end of the world. :)

[Emma_85]

Some times it feels like the end of the world though... well more like a cage. My geography lesson was so boring, I thought I might jump out of the window (we were on the third floor). First my teacher was late, because the classroom we were in was just about to have an internet connection put in... and he had to coordinate the drilling or something like that. Then half of the class (I say class, actually we are two seperate classes, but we have one geography lesson a week together, because there aren't enought teachers or rooms to have two seperate geography classes on wednesday) had to carry 'new' tables around the school, which were in fact ancient things that SAP had given our school, so they wouldn't have to pay to have them disposed of at the dump, then we had to read a complicated text on some wind currents and the teacher didn't explain it at all, so most people didn't get it and I spent the rest of the lesson trying to explain wind currents to Laura...
The window was only a few steps away... but it was snowing and cold and we'd been advised not to open the window, and not to breath because of toxic fumes in the air from a fire at Goodyears... But I really would have loved to through the teacher out there .

[Lex]

If I understand correctly, she didn't cause you any realworld inconvenience like suspension, or making you whitewash Aunt Polly's fence, or whatever it is that schoolteachers are allowed to do to punish students these days. All she did was say something that you perceived as an insult. I hate to say it, but it seems to me that she went easy on you, since she didn't rat you out. If you do something to get back at her, and she finds out it was you who did it (or even suspects that it was you who did it), then she'll be less likely to be so forgiving the next time. If I were you, I wouldn't do anything, except be more stealthy the next time I cut class.

[Kalailan]

I didn't vote either - my choice wasn't there.
i would leave school...
it is indeed offensive.

[Mongoose42]

What about respect?
You said you were mature enough to decide what classes to go to.
What is more mature than submitting to someone in authority when you do not agree with them on an issue that does not affect your core beliefs?

[Emma_85]

Well, maybe it is like one of his core beliefs ... I get so angry and cross because of the school system, and I hate to admitt it, but if you go to my school it is for the most part of the day your world. And if you don't agree with some of the things happening in that world you just get so worked up about them, just like others do about national politics, you get worked up about school policies.
I wouldn't have gone back to class, no way, but I don't think you should really do anything, Lex is right, she didn't actually try to give you detention (which is what we got if we were caught skipping lessons). But I do understand your anger...
I think we're both in need of a school holiday - a long one... then we could calm down a bit.

[MDS]

While I understand your anger, I do have to agree that she went easy on you.

I suggest numerous deep breaths and a bit of D'Ooge.

But really, I think you'll feel better about yourself in the long run if you drop it and dont plot her demise.

[Bert]

If parents tell their children that they don't have a choice as to when their bed time is, are they saying that the childrens' opnions are worthless?

If a police officer says that it is not up to us whether or not we want to obey the traffic rules, should we feel insulted?

Your issue is whether or not you are willing to submitt to authority!

maybe you are not as mature as you claim to be. (ouch.)

So my vote would be: "Apologize for skipping class and go to class next time even if you feel it is useless"

Believe it or not, I have skipped class before. It is just that now I know that it was not the right thing to do.

Ps. Is the fact that this teacher is overweight relevant to the discussion?

[mariek]

I didn't like any of the choices available. So far, I like Bert's vote the best: "Apologize for skipping class and go to class next time even if you feel it is useless".

It seems like you're blowing this way out of proportion. School is rough, eh? So you don't always agree with the rules or their "curriculum". Well, it probably won't change when you move on to the working world. You'll probably have a beef about you manager too! You just need to deal with these types of situations with a bit more maturity. You'll probably enjoy the University life better. Nobody will force you to go to class, it's all up to you whether you want to go.

[chad]

i think these maturity criticisms are unfair. episcopus and emma are obviously bright teenagers who are discussing their problems rationally here, rather than lashing out at their teachers.

[Geoff]

You believe that the teacher underestimates you. Perhaps the teacher is incompetent and idiotic, but you could still learn from her mistake. Don't underestimate her or others who come across as "stupid" I know a lot of individuals who are some of the most brilliant people in the world and "play the fool" in order to put people around them at ease for one reason or another. So learn something.

Another thing is that you found the project pointless so you spent your time doing something far more useful in the grand scheme of life, ditching class and throwing rocks. You could have stayed in class and observed how other people deal with pointless situations. You had a sociology lab at your fingertips. Along these lines, much of maturity (as Bert suggests) is realizing that all through our lives we are subject to the will of others to some degree. Whether it be due to age or something else our opinions will hold less weight than we desire.

My choice is to both learn and teach. Make a game of studying the teacher to see exactly what she is. Don't intentionally hurt her feelings or embarrass her (publicly), but express to her the truth that you SHOULD have been in class and tell her that you appreciate her going easy on you, but you would have preferred detention to the belittling statents and underestimation of your ability to be reasoned with. (She did seem to assume that you could not be reasoned with) Then sit back and watch to see what happens.

There are always going to be "stupid" people we should help them, teach them, and learn not to be like them.

[Raya]

I know a lot of individuals who are some of the most brilliant people in the world and "play the fool" in order to put people around them at ease for one reason or another.

Indeed...
I have met a few geniuses in my time, and the one problem they all seem to share is in dealing with people less intelligent than them (which, unfortunately for them, is the vast majority of people they'll ever encounter!)

It can be incredibly frustrating, working with people who simply do not have the capacity to see things the way you do. Others can't <i>make</i> themselves understand you at your level, so it falls on you to put things at their level - which can make you feel incredibly alienated, because there is a certain realm of thought which you just can't share with anyone.
Some take refuge from this alienation in the idea that their greater intelligence makes them superior. It's a trap that's very easy to fall into - and it can make life even more difficult. Firstly, it increases the alienation. Secondly, geniuses make mistakes like any other human being, but when they have this idea that they are superior, it can make coping with those mistakes a nightmare...

I think the geniuses who make it are those who understand that being a genius isn't all it's cracked up to be; it has benefits to take advantage of and pitfalls to be wary of, just like any other way of being.

[Raya]

i think these maturity criticisms are unfair. episcopus and emma are obviously bright teenagers who are discussing their problems rationally here, rather than lashing out at their teachers.

Just wanted to say - amen to that!

[Geoff]

Chad Wrote:

i think these maturity criticisms are unfair. episcopus and emma are obviously bright teenagers who are discussing their problems rationally here, rather than lashing out at their teachers.

Yes, props to Emma and Episcopus who are indeed bright and in difficult situations and dealing with them rationally rather than rashly.

If its any comfort, it will be over before you know it and then you'll reflect upon that time still hating some of it, but longing to go back and make better use of the time you had. This is true in almost everything we do. Hindsight is not only 20/20 but its also in Technicolor

[Episcopus]

I have not done anything foolish. I have forgotten about it. She is not worth it. That's what I always think afterwards.

Often for the child there is no other option but breaking out of the premises to waste one's life. It is a trap to metamorphose latin scholars into apparent nuts lobbing stones from hills. In reality I am not so puerile but there is nothing else that one can do. It's hard to judge unless you have lived it here. I was considering a trip to the french teacher who thinks me to be an extremely talented linguist and scholar despite my shamelessly poor effort (the teachers do confound effort with ability) begging for refuge and a french novel perhaps. Since she were a teacher, though one of the humbler, I did not trust her.

I did this careers lesson before. It's pathetic. It is colouring pictures of various products, composing "Company X makes K product". So I do know that it is an absolute waste of life. Perhaps it may be unfamiliar to some of you, such an unproductive loss of time. Nothing is gained, give or take NOTHING!

I only want not to waste life; it's quite difficult here however. Hence my learning latin. My judgement is well. I know wastes. I am only in school for an improved 50% of the time. It does not hamper progress at all, I basically teach myself anyhow whether I be in school or not. In German I sit next to an astoundingly idiosyncratic chinese boy Zhi Hao Li and we write chinese. All over the German sheets. Yet in the exams somehow I take relatively insane marks like 99% in the big assessment exams even though I gave up on German 2 months into the awful course. The teacher thinks that I study German at home eagerly and that I always work hard and do my homework. They have not dealt with any one who is in any other way, they are narrow minded. In the oral exams I say that my German is really bad and she just laughs and says on the contrary, that I be doing the wrong qualification.

I don't know about your countries of former teachers but here they can not do anything. They only appear slightly intelligent because the multitude thereof wears formal attire and yells at random retards whom the average pigeon could surpass in the respect of wit. Causing that any slightly clever person who should argue well be thrown in to a small room full of crazy addicts is the reason wherefore most refrain. I abstain from major disputes nowadays because I have matured and realised that the teachers are in fact inferior, scared of any child challenging the supreme command, and are not worth any strain. Indeed I have many a commitment out of school which require time and self discipline, physical strength also. Here if one dispute however humbly one will be reprimanded by any teacher you please - last year I came across random teachers who began to bellow rather personal insults at me subsequent to a great argument with one teacher. I was hurled about and they tried to corrode my strength. I did not want to call on my mother for this was what I had to do alone. At the end due to the counsel one nice actually intelligent teacher (seldom seen here, but 1 or 2 do exist) I apologized though I did not mean it. Although knowing me to be insincere the teacher accepted proudly glad of stamping out my initial belligerence and fire. He had won a dispute officially. That is what I call immature, formally disguised, as they do.

I do not regret my 'poor' attendance at all. I never will. I regret that in the early years I did not see anything fair such as Latin. I am angry at so many for a waste of life. Here it is a prison. I must learn about Jews and Sikhs and read books that I hate if I am to be considered intelligent on paper. Anything to keep us imprisoned for the day.

It's not actually because of this individual happening which is, I am aware, minor; but a result of the general situation. Teachers usually do not shout at me any longer if I just stare at them angrily, they pretty much fear the truth. e.g. "Aramick why aren't you doing any work [like]?" -Stare, continue doing nothing- And they do nothing when usually they would love to bellow and demonstrate their authority to the entire class.

As for learning what others do in a wasteful situation, I've pretty much mastered the common tongue of the crazy and their amusing customs. I translated some Nut language passages into latin and vice versa whilst talking to Steven. He likes the language.

mariek watch me maturely resist. You can ask your other moderator Steven on how many occasions I have done this.

Many thanks to all those judging less ignorantly; I realise that I am not very reticent compared even to Emma but you don't have to read my ramblings.

[Emma_85]

I read you're ramblings .

I think you probably did they best thing in not doing anything like insulting her or something because of it, but it helps to rant about her here doesn't it - get rid of all your aggressions like...

That's terrible, that all the teachers ran you down like that! (though I don't know what that row with that other teacher was about of course so I can't really judge their reactions), but still... it seems very wrong to me indeed. Teachers shouldn't be bullying pupils at all.
Some teachers probably do realise that most of these lessons are useless, they probably curse the system too sometimes, but it wasn't their idea to have career advice lessons or other such stupid projects, normally that's something decided higher up.

Most people here now read books (often French or English ones) during extremely boring classes (e.g. Zombie rambling on about how much he hates all other Latin and Greek teachers, no, wait... all other teachers... no, make that all other humans). Before we used to be very loud, and I was sent out of class sometimes by this wretched English teacher, who refused to let me help her in class and just ignored me because of course my English was better than hers... so I dropped that subject.
We never had career advice classes, only drug-prevention classes... believe me - they are much worse than career advice classes, at least you get to colour in pretty pictures in those. Such a waste of time, they know everyone in my year takes drugs, and if they have even one brain cell left they should come to the conclusion that nothing the teachers say will stop us, it's not the schools job to do this and they can't anyway- it's down to the parents. We had to sit there and listen to this teacher tell us that well... he's here to tell us not to smoke, drink or take xtc or whatever, but he smokes himself and drinks (we have a video of some of our teachers stripping and dancing on the tables of a bar we often went to with them during our school skiing trip) .

But probably you have to endure such lessons too , though when I was at school in England the drugs prevention lesson there was miles better.

As for complaining about the language standards of classes in the UK - they are indeed abysmal, not because the students are stupid, they just don't care because the teachers don't seem to care either. Languages have 'no value' is the attitude, and so the ones who bother to even take a look at a text written in a foreign language are at once miles better than everyone else, because they all do zero. I'm not sure if you were saying you thought the others in your class were stupid, because they're all crap at German, but I just think that they're not interested in it, because basically everyone is telling them they don't need to know any German, the curriculum, the teachers, their parents...

I wonder who wanted you to beat her with a stick...

[Bert]

i think these maturity criticisms are unfair. episcopus and emma are obviously bright teenagers who are discussing their problems rationally here, rather than lashing out at their teachers.

I am not questioning that they are bright.
Episcopus appear to know a lot of Latin and Emma sure know a lot more Greek than I do.
I am not convinced though that the options given in the poll are evidence of maturity and a rational way of dealing with a problem.
But, Episcopus, I am sure that you can handle that my opinion differs from yours. Hang in there.

[Raya]

I am not convinced though that the options given in the poll are evidence of maturity and a rational way of dealing with a problem.

If Episcopus meant them literally, I'd have agreed with you!
But surely you don't think he was really intending to carry out any of that stuff...

[Raya]

My way of dealing with school was to stop trusting teachers with my academic development (well... with a few exceptions) and to take the attitude that these were my true school subjects:

1. Playing The System
How to jump through the hoops of exam and coursework requirements -
the idea being, to get the bureaucratic nonsense out of the way quickly, giving more time to real (academic) learning.

2. Teaching
How to teach oneself.
Someone once told me: "Teaching is an illusion; others can only show you how to teach yourself."
Paying attention to what teaching methods worked for me - or failed to work - was very valuable indeed! Now, left to my own devices to learn something, I usually know how to set about it.
Resourcefulness is crucial (cf. Creative Coursework): I cannot stress enough the usefulness of being able to improvise and make the best out of what one has.

3. Dealing with Irate Superiors
How to diplomatically handle problems with school staff.
Teachers are people too. As such, my first recourse would be a polite talk with the person in question about my concerns. In many cases, it did wonders; sometimes the person just needed the problem brought to their attention!
But in many other cases, it had no effect at all (and once or twice, things actually became worse). Such necessitates further action. I found it worth becoming familiar with the hierarchy at school - knowing who works under whom, who is responsible over what areas, etc - so as to know whom to take my complaints to.
Of course, it's also important to find out what it involves to be taken seriously. Some people will listen to you directly... some want a formal complaint in writing... some want you to provide evidence of the incident or practice you're complaining about... and some just don't take students seriously, forcing you to go through another member of staff or your parents.
Other times, complaining isn't worth it: it's just as important to learn to recognise when you're wasting of time and energy that is better spent on working around the problem as best as one can.

4. Creative Coursework
How to make boring tasks appealing.
In a nutshell: bending the rules without breaking them.

Lengthy example:
Back in 1999, there was a speech competition that everyone in my English class had to enter. I wasn't keen on it at all, because everyone's speech had to be on the same terrifically dull subject:

My Hopes For The New Millenium
Then one night I realised: it doesn't specify whom my refers to...

So I wrote my speech from the perspective of Count Magpyr (a vampire - one of Terry Pratchett's Discworld characters). It was even more effective when we came to the actual competition - it seemed to be a hilarious satire of everyone else's we want world peace, less pollution, tolerance all around speeches - and I made it to the final round for my school.

At the finalist event: we did our bit, and then the judges left the hall to deliberate...
My English teacher told me that the argument went as follows:

A: I think she deserves first place for that original presentation...
B: She should be disqualified!!! This is a speech competition! - that was a dramatic monologue!
A: A dramatic monologue is a speech...
B: Not the kind of speech we were soliciting!
A: The rules don't prohibit dramatic monologues...
B: Yes, because it's so obvious that's not what we were after!
A: Obviously not!

In the end I didn't make it to the prize rankings (just got an Honourable Mention) - but causing that stir was enough of a reward!

Ah, schooldays...

[MDS]

A: I think she deserves first place for that original presentation...
B: She should be disqualified!!! This is a speech competition! - that was a dramatic monologue!
A: A dramatic monologue is a speech...
B: Not the kind of speech we were soliciting!
A: The rules don't prohibit dramatic monologues...
B: Yes, because it's so obvious that's not what we were after!
A: Obviously not!

LOL ah Raya, thats fantastic. Couldn't agree more with your entire post actually.

Guess I'm just a fan of bending the rules You can't beat the system entirely, just don't let it beat you entirely either.

It's more of the same in university I find, which Episcopus you will enjoy so much more as if you do not attend class...well...frankly no one cares. It leaves extra time for you do self-learn. Of course, you will also be wasting mucho denarios so...

[N30F15H]

give her a pie and call her horizontally challenged

[Raya]

give her a pie

This on the list of voting options too, and I thought it peculiar...
Am I correct to assume that this is not meant literally, but as some slang phrase? (If so, what does it refer to?)

[Eureka]

give her a pie

This on the list of voting options too, and I thought it peculiar...
Am I correct to assume that this is not meant literally, but as some slang phrase? (If so, what does it refer to?)

How ate all the pies!?!!
Et cetera...

If you don't know what I'm talking about, I can complete the chant.

[Raya]

I'm afraid I shall have to ask you to complete the chant!
However, if it contains any... shall we say, questionable content, might I ask you to PM it to me?

[Eureka]

I don't think it should offend too many people (cultural differences aside).

So here it is:

"Who ate all the pies?
Who ate all the pies?
You fat bastard! (pointing at someone)
You fat bastard!
You ate all the pies!!!"


Ah, poetry.

[Raya]

I... see.

Was this chant inspired by weebl and bob, by any chance?

[Eureka]

I didn't make it up, so I can't say where it came from originally. But I don't think it had anything to do with those talking eggs. (Or are they canadians from South Park? )





Still, I think the chant was the best possible answer to the original question of this thread.

[rimon-jad]

disdain...
scort...
slight...
snub...
pooh-pooh...
Try reading Nietzsche.