Comments on: Three Myths For Teachers

By: Harperchild

Harperchild — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 15:46:06 +0000

I was told myth 3 sometime, but the first one was given us on the PGCE course as fact, and was printed in the NUT handbook. I think.
Have to say about dyslexia – intelligent dyslexics find other ways around problems then come a cropper in year 10 [like my daughter] or even later [friend I met at university] and the diagnosis comes as a huge relief. Like discovering you’re short sighted [me at 12] and realising that’s why everything is such a goddamn struggle. Anxious kids cover the difficulties and life can get very difficult. I’m not sure how severe Chenneth’s dyslexia is, but it’s probably relative to all sorts of other factors, including self-esteem and other expectations.
I love the Blog, always makes me laugh. And makes me glad I teach in Special Ed, with sensible back up.

By: oldandrew

oldandrew — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 15:44:39 +0000

One of my preoccupations recently has been stories like that Flat Earth myth where something is published in the 19th century, a time where the distinction between research and opinion were somewhat fuzzy, repeated here and there, and finally given a whole new lease of life on the internet. Most of the stories, like the one you mentioned, seem to be myths about how primitive and superstitious people were compared with the enlightened and rational scientists of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, eg. claims that the use of anasthesia in childbirth ws widely opposed by religious groups, or a claim that Giordano Bruno was executed for saying the earth went around the Sun. (The first of these examples has apparently been taught in history lessons, the second of these I read in a perfectly mainstream book about Action Research in education.)

By: Crucifer

Crucifer — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:38:27 +0000

This is pretty much the same as Flat Earth Mythology, where “facts” are used to back up spurious reasoning.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_Earth_mythology

By: Lisa H

Lisa H — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 19:32:41 +0000

I second that Sarah B, I’m an RE teacher and I think I used that text book in my last school – can’t remember that it was credited, do remember clarifying oldandrew’s point that it couldn’t be an original writing of Socrates

By: Sarah B

Sarah B — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:39:23 +0000

Fantastic to see the thrid myth. I remember being taught that in RE at school in the 1990s. It was in a text book as being someone from Ancient Greece or Rome. Sadly I can’t remember to whom it was attributed. I remember tryign to find it to use later in life and being very frustrated that I couldn’t. I’m rather glad I didn’t now as it would have been inaccurate.

By: oldandrew

oldandrew — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 20:31:37 +0000

We can be absolutely certain it didn’t come from Socrates as, famously, he left no written works.

(Unless they meant the footballer.)

By: Ranting Teacher

Ranting Teacher — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 20:10:00 +0000

Ahhhh well a classics teacher many years ago showed us, her students, the Socrates quotation from source 3 and I’m sure it had come from some classics reader. I think this is a topic needing further investigation!

By: oldandrew

oldandrew — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 17:02:51 +0000

I have to say I’m left doubting his claim about the empirical evidence of improving SES (and worried that in the US SES is actually a proxy for race).

But more seriously he seems to suggest that the problem is that the education provided to the poor is too middle class. My view is that the education provided to the poor isn’t middle class enough. I’m all for “compensatory” education but it must be based on wiping out the “no aspirations” culture, not institutionalising it.

By: oldandrew

oldandrew — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:49:20 +0000

A little bit off topic for this post, but probably on topic for the blog That's what I set up the Battleground Forum for really, but I'll have a look anyway.

By: Mr G

Mr G — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:36:22 +0000

Greeting from the Antipodes, OldAndrew.

A little bit off topic for this post, but probably on topic for the blog, but I was wondering if you read D-Edreckoning at all – Ken DeRosa has an interesting post up currently on his position on educational failure – and the relationship to misbehaviour/ disruption -

http://d-edreckoning.blogspot.com/2008/06/my-syllogism-for-improving-student.html

I’d be interested in your take – and to see if you agree more with Ken DeRosa than the Josephine of Ship of Fools…