....Walking to the sound of my favourite tune

I thought it would be appropriate to explain my recent name change, and as to why my current blog name, and previous for that matter, are related to the band Oasis.
Needless to say for those that know me well, Oasis is, in my opinion, the greatest band of all time. Despite their split last year, they can do no wrong in my eyes. Noel’s effortless song writing, Liam’s singing and their unrivalled stage presence add up to this magical formula that for me is just quite spectacular.

When I found out they had split last summer, only a few days after I had returned from Spain having seen them play at the Spanish Benicassim festival, I could honestly have cried. I was in a public place so stopped myself for fear of worried onlookers. Not because it meant they may never make another album, because in all honesty their older stuff is probably better, but because it meant I would never get to see them play live again.

Seeing Oasis play live is unbelievably euphoric. There is no better word that can describe it other than simple and unadulterated elation. Hearing live the songs you have grown up to, having a memory attached to each song, knowing every single word and singing so sally can wait along with 50,000 other people just to me seems like the most magical thing on earth.

I first saw Oasis live at the tender age of fourteen. It was the first gig I had ever been to and was quite an experience. But watching the sun set behind Liam and Noel, whilst listening to Live Forever, remains so clear in my mind as one of the most amazing nights of my life.
Oasis lyrics are so simple and often so nonsensical, that they are just brilliant. The words “you and I are gunna live forever” are so effortless but mean so much to so many people. If you said the words “please don’t put your life in the hands of a rock and roll band” I would instantly think of my best friend Robyn, who is as equally nuts about Oasis and with whom I’ve shared many a night dancing and singing around her living room to the tune of Don’t Look Back In Anger. Oasis songs affect people all over the world so much, and will always continue to do so whether they make another record or not.

So although this blog will remain largely political, I felt that in honour of Liam, Noel, Gem and Andy, I should give a little background to my name choice, and as to why I think Oasis are so bloody brilliant!

Incompetent teachers? What about incompetent supply teachers?

BBC’s Panorama recently revealed that only 18 UK teachers have been fired for incompetency over the last forty years, despite estimates that 17,000 teachers are not up to the job. Rather than stopping teaching altogether, some bad teachers instead move between schools.

But what does it mean to be an ‘incompetent teacher’? Lack of control over the classroom, poor results and a lack of understanding of the subject are the most likely candidates. Speaking from experience of my own schooling at a standard comprehensive, there were certainly teachers falling short because of these typical problems. There were indeed an awful lot of very uninspiring teachers with little to no passion to teach.

Incompetent teaching is something we should be extremely concerned by. We wouldn’t want to be treated by an incompetent doctor so why should children be taught by incompetent teachers? Children are, essentially, putting their futures into the hands of this profession and good teaching is fundamental to their continuation of education and future career path. Although of course it is a two-way relationship, as children must want to be taught in order to be taught well; a sign of a good teacher is one that can teach even those that don’t want to be there.

Of course, whilst bad teachers are apparently wide spread, they are still a minority in comparison to most teachers who are incredibly talented and able to control the classroom despite the obvious obstacle that a lot of children simply don’t want to be taught.

However a different problem with teaching that may often be swept under the carpet, is the poor standard of substitute teachers. Whilst I can understand the difficulty a school faces when teachers call in sick and there is a classroom full of kids waiting to be taught, supply teachers are often drafted in for much longer than a couple of days, and often provide substitute teaching for months. Lack of experience coupled with minimal training and subject knowledge means children are often being taught by extremely substandard supply teachers. Schools with major staff shortage issues often set supply teachers with the task of simply keeping a class busy, which if prolonged, can lead to deterioration of behaviour and grades, with the supply teacher essentially being just an adult in the room in order to meet statutory requirements.

Again speaking from experience, supply teachers were a very common feature of my school, and the “keep them busy” method was frequently used. A years’ worth of supply teachers for Science during my GCSE year was a great hindrance to my class with many of us resorting to a self-taught method. Whilst I must admit supply teachers did indeed at times face very unruly classes and much ridicule, they never seemed to have any real knowledge of the subject they were covering and usually tended to chuck a few worksheets our way just to keep us busy for an hour.

Children deserve quality teaching and expert knowledge from a permanent fully qualified teacher rather than weeks on end of supply teaching. Whilst schools do of course suffer major shortages, and often face no choice but to employ supply teachers, long-term methods must be looked at in order to combat this shortage, without cutting corners and short changing children of their deserved education.

"Bored to Death" In Parliament

Last week it came out that Mrs Caroline Nokes, MP for Romsey and Southampton North, had had extra marital sexual relations with Tory councillor, James Dinsdale, ten years her junior. Dubbed one of “Cameron’s Cuties”, Mrs Nokes took the seat from long standing Liberal Democrat Sandra Gidley and was alleged to have been planning to make her maiden speech the day the story came out. Having already taken the Westminster 2010 Declaration of Christian conscience, many local residents were upset and appalled at the affair, in part because Mrs Nokes had fought her election campaign, personally supported by the Prime Minister, on the basis of maintaining strong family values.

Whilst this media flurry does of course come with the job of being an MP, to me this actually seems a private and personal issue. Yet, the aspect of this story that I found most appalling is the alleged text Mrs Nokes had sent Mr Dinsdale, whilst sitting in the Commons in a debate on political reform. The text read that she was “bored to death in Parliament”.

This is literally one of the most shocking things I have ever heard in my life. Nokes gained a 6.6% Conservative swing and over a 4,000 majority and yes she has a degree in Political Science and a history of politics in her family. But how anyone whom has fought long and hard to win an election, can within only a few weeks into her term claim they are “bored” whilst in a political reform debate is completely beyond my understanding. Local residents have gone out of their way to canvass for her, whether just displaying a small poster or helping her with door-stopping, and the most political spirit she can muster up is boredom.

Frankly, there are people in the constituency that would be absolutely delighted at the thought of being able to sit in on a Commons debate on political reform. What kind of an example is she setting to Romsey and Southampton teenagers? Her text certainly sounds like something a fifteen year old might send to a friend in a school assembly. In fact there are a few fifteen year olds in the town that I’m sure would relish sitting in on that debate and would do it a hundred times less half-heartedly than Nokes.