RM May 5 - Three weeks and counting

Just catching up on a few columns here, bear with me. This is from the start of May when the countdown to the Junior Cert stepped up a notch.

Three weeks and counting

Three weeks and counting, no, not the election, the dum dum dummmmm Junior Cert. There have been deadlines for projects, art exams, last minute preparations, stress (mostly from me) and studying, thank God.

There has also been some last minute expenses, such as paying to register for the exam and more than a little snottiness from the school.

Apparently the Young Wan asked me sometime ago to get the past papers for History. I promptly forgot. When she has asked me to get stuff, I always tell her to remind me when I am in work, because I will and have forgotten.

Apparently her teacher threw a wobbler on Monday and herself and a gang of non-History past paper holders were told to leave the class.

The school then phoned my home, despite constantly being told if they want to talk to me to use my mobile, where they talked to Nanny.

Well they actually scolded Nanny like a bold child, why do teachers adopt this tone? It is not as if I am going to ignore what they say and reward herself for bad behaviour. If she is in the wrong I will and do take the necessary action.

So I do not appreciate ever having a teacher give out to me for the Young Wan’s alleged bad behaviour.

To make matters worse Nanny then phoned the Young Wan who was now in her next class setting off her mobile phone, a hanging offence in her school.

Course when the school phoned and said she had been put out of class Nanny thought she was put out for the day so she called her. While her phone was on vibrate, the Young Wan was caught frantically trying to turn it off.

So now the Young Wan’s phone has been confiscated as she was caught trying to turn iut off and if we are to get it back I must fork out €20. I am refusing. While she shouldn’t have had the phone on, the incident was preceded by the school’s behaviour.

When I phoned up they told me she was texting, I said she wasn’t texting but I didn’t have the full information of what happened until I got home.

So when I eventually got back onto them and told them so they stuck to their guns, so I told them to check the phone logs and they can find out for themselves.

I also complained about the tone the teacher used when talking to my Mum and again the school saw nothing wrong with this.

Well I do, I am not a bold child, my Mum is not a bold child and if the school wants parents on their side they should drop the patronising and ‘you’ve been very naughty’ tone.

Notice the way I haven’t yet ranted about the wisdom of barring a child from your class weeks before their first major exam, way to go to be supportive Teacher!

Now this is where I lost the plot with the Young Wan. When I was told of the incidents there was no mention of ‘Mum you HAVE to get me those papers’, I thought it concerned something she had already and didn’t bring to class. Nothing to this effect was said when I told her at this stage she really needs to be more organised.

No I was clueless until she was put out of class again two days later. Seriously. That’ll teach her, not.

Once again way to go Teacher.

I know it was my fault she didn’t have them and this has now been rectified but I still feel this was way too heavy handed, petty and frustrating.

The sooner this Junior Cert ordeal is over, the better.