Got a few things done.
Morning spent teaching as usual. Managed to speak to class about next September (my students no longer have a class to go to, but I am going to continue to teach them privately).
Explained that Government entirely responsible for pushing out the Pensioners from Adult Education. They are only interested in them if they are illiterate in some way (computer illiterate included) and consequently can take an exam and bump up the successful Education figures. It's pathetic.
When I started teaching, my classes were filled with happy people keen to improve their skills at watercolour and painting. But over the years the paperwork increased (for both me and them) - more evaluations than would fill a rain forest - and then came the burden of PROOF.! I had to prove that I had taught them something, so I had to fill in minute by minute lesson plans and initial assessments and schemes of work and course informations sheets and lesson evaluations/assessments and give them individual "certificates" so on. And because I had to complete all this garbage, the administration team at the college became immense - I think there are nearly 3 times the admin staff than there are actual teachers. And still the Admin Army continues to grow - with administration for the Administrator's Adminstrators (I'm not joking). And don't get me started on Risk Assessments and Health and Bloody Safety and Compulsory Day Courses and Equal Opportunities. And yet it gets worse. The students are no longer students, but have become "learners". They can no longer learn, they have to be seen to have learned. So they all have to produce set course work with final portfolios or take exams. All the Improvers were completely screwed because they can't jump in and take a stage 3 - they have to go back to stage 1.
So I rode the system and encouraged some of my ladies and gentlemen to take GCSE art and very well they did too. I am currently taking a few of them through A level. I now teach the others privately and will have even more in September.
But the sad truth is that my teaching days with the college (sorry, "Adult Learning") are numbered. My lessons are now very few and the hours of paperwork involved for each of them is simply not worth the wage. My private lessons are paper free and enjoyable relaxed sessions where I teach and the students learn. It's the way forward. I understand that several other tutors in Adult Ed are also starting up. I wonder how long it will be before all the disillusioned teachers and pupils get together and start their own college - with no crappy paperwork - just good teaching.
And Good Teaching, let's face it, doesn't have to be monitored - IT SPEAKS FOR ITSELF. Happy students stay with the teacher and enjoy their lessons - if they don't like it, they speak with their feet. Most of my students have been with me for years - not a loyalty born of familiarity, but one of achievement.
So who is to blame for all this silliness? The key word, I am told, is funding. But funding is just another way of saying it's the Government's fault and we voted them in, so we are to blame - aren't we? Actually, I can smile knowlingly at this point because I didn't vote the bar stewards in. Tee hee.
Am currently about to start directing Die Fledermaus for Operatic Society. Having read through script it was abundantly clear to me that this was a first rate farce and could easily be set in the Brian Rix school of Comedy. But the Company I'm directing would not cope with the 60s costumes I wanted and the grey rinse brigade (sorry - the audience) would be disappointed if the girls didn't wear the pretty sparkley frocks. Pooh.
So I am laboriously typing up the libretto, so that I can do my stage direction book and the cast can have an online copy (so much easier) of my rewrites and directions.
So day spent teaching and typing and doing the week's shopping and sorting out GCSE drama for next Sept and cooking dinner (latter, with help from beloved). I really need to get a life, this one is far too complicated.
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