Doing History and Politics A Level
I went to a "bog Standard' Comprehensive". In fact, it was made a failing school the year I left, so it was much worse than bog-standard.

It was financially inefficient to teach some A level subjects and the school had to stop offering them. Despite this, the History Department (three middle aged ladies), insisted on carrying on teaching the courses for the 4-5 people per Year who wanted to take them. I did both History and Politics, so I saw them a lot.

Mrs C was the Head of Department and taught both History and Politics. She was an old Communist whose husband was banned from entering America due to his political activities in the Sixties. Her lessons were less like rote learning, and much more like political debate. She'd happily pick apart our arguments and let the lessons run over into break times so we wouldn't cut conversations short. Despite her dogmatic belief in the inevitability of Proletarian revolution, she never browbeat any of us, and would always treat us with patience and respect. When we finished A-levels, she took us round her house for a nice meal and her husband and her got us quite comprehensively drunk on the finest vodka he'd brought back from his travels.

Mrs N was the main teacher for Politics. She had done some fairly serious post-grad study, and God knows why she was happy to spend her career dealing with snotty teenagers like us. She was equally passionate as Mrs C about tutoring us in the ways of righteousness (i.e., being a Leftie). Again, though, she did this through long conversations and patience, rather than telling us we were wrong. She'd quiz us on current events. Challenge us on what we'd do if we were an MP. Always make us justify our opinions rather than just accepting what we were told. The school didn't have any up to date Politics text books, so she bought them, and gave us to them to take home so we'd read them properly (I still have a few).

Mrs S was the second History teacher. She had a high opinion of her subject and taught us as if we were University students rather than Sixth Formers. When we were interested in a subject, she'd encourage us to go off and read more. On bits of the syllabus we didn't like, she'd teach us what we needed to do well in the exam, then let us spend more time on other things. It was exhilarating for kids used to being sat in a room with 30 other kids, so we didn't take advantage - we studied lots.

In a school in one of the poorest Education Authorities in Britain, which was (as I said before) declared a failing school by OFSTED, the History and Politics A Level students used to get A grade after A grade, year after year. There were kids who'd chosen the subjects not really giving a shit about them, and ended up studying hard and going on to read them at University. They were fantastic individuals with a genuine passion for their subjects and their charges, and they did it all in difficult circumstances. I always remember them when people moan about how how terrible Comprehensive Schools are...
(SnowyTheWereRabbit the Leporid from Hell, Thu 17 Mar 2011, 15:49, 3 replies)

I clicked I Like This!
And I do.
(SpangoTheWonderBadger is brewing beer, Thu 17 Mar 2011, 16:15, closed)

Thanks!

(SnowyTheWereRabbit the Leporid from Hell, Thu 17 Mar 2011, 16:22, closed)

Y'Welcome
(wife is a teacher)
(SpangoTheWonderBadger is brewing beer, Thu 17 Mar 2011, 16:24, closed)