Possumblog

I'm sorry she had a rough day. I told one of my daughters almost the exact thing about another situation: "He's like that to EVERYBODY," and it does seem to help that it's not personal. Knowing that YOU support her will help; I'll bet she doesn't cry today.

Most of these coaches/driving instructors/history teachers are the scum of the earth. The guy I had in high school used the time when he was supposed to be teaching us to drive for running personal errands. Going to the cleaners, video store, post office, etc. I think I actually drove the car once. Yeah ONE BLOODY TIME. Then, because driver's ed was only a half course, I had to take PE again for another half year. I was not lucky enough to get a teacher's aide position. Mostly because I did not have breasts

Don't let this guy bully your daughter. They are just the blockheads who used to pick on weaker kids in school all grown up. Just try to remember some of the bully types you knew in school. Would you want them teaching your children? Would you even want them with 50 yards of your kids? I thought not.

I am not against coaches as a rule, but most coaches are only in that position only because they could not succeed at anything else. They are a bitter lot and take out their hate for others' successes on kids. It's worse on the kids that obviously have a bright future. Sadly, public schools always get the worst of the lot because the quality coaches/teachers are working at a higher level.

Sorry about the rant.

Yikes! The bad thing about all this is I really do admire people who enjoy teaching and who are good at their jobs, and just like any other job they get tarred with a broad brush due to the actions of a few less-than-stellar co-workers. Hey, I'm a bureaucrat, I know stereotyping. But for all the talk from certain quarters ::cough::Alabama Education Association::cough:: about how much they care for The Children (tm), we do seem to tolerate an awfully high level of these kinds of blowhards in positions of authority.

Hey Shadowhelm, everyone has breasts, it's just that some are bigger than others.

It makes you wonder if they force teachers to cover Drivers Ed. as a punishment or just for being low man on the totem pole. I can slightly understand the fear of sweaty-palmed teenage strangers driving a car that you happen to be in. I can't understand the yelling/swearing.

I suppose you could report this to the school administration, where it will languish in the circular file. Our tax dollars at work.

Well, it's like I told Reba, Marc, if I--of all people on this planet--can spend five or six hours in a car with her and not ONCE yell, I figure he should be able to go for thirty minutes.

It's funny how the schools always put the incompetent coaches as teachers of history and drivers' ed. Is history that unimportant? As a result of that, I have very little knowledge of history, government or economics other than what I have learned on my own. (My first history course in college, History of Europe, was the most difficult course I took because I was so unprepared for it, and I squeaked by with a B because I got special help and rewrote several papers.)

In high school, I was unaware of why one particular coach always was out to get me in trouble. I received a week's detention for being late to class (sitting down in my seat as the bell was ringing). His own kids were lazy and stupid. I'd love to have the chance to rip on his sorry career to his face.

Maybe it's just me--I might be expecting too much based on my own driver's ed teacher, who was VERY good. She took no guff from people, but she was knowledgeable and fair, and didn't feel the need to belittle her students.

She also made her husband shave his armpits, but that it another story entirely.

Very little knowledge of history, Sugah? Heck, I got to take Alabama history TWICE! Once in second grade and then again in fourth grade to make sure I remembered what the state bird was.

The state history course should take no longer than two weeks to teach. That information does no good in college history courses. I remember taking that course in 9th grade from a COACH - he could not have done any better teaching five year olds how to count to ten.

One of the teachers I used to work with (a HIGHLY competent math teacher) always got really offended when one of the kids called him "Coach." They just assumed that ALL of the male teachers were coaches. I don't think any of them called him "coach" more than once, though.

Well, it might not do you any good in college, but it's still good to know more about anything. The trouble is finding someone who can make learning more about Alabama interesting and worth something.

Heh--Kathy, that's funny, because one of the things teachers are big on now is developing their "coaching skills." I imagine your math teacher wouldn't find that pleasant.

Not to get too far off subject, but history in most high schools is a joke. No matter if it is taught by a coach or not. I should know because I have a BA in history and I learned none of that in HS. In my SENIOR history class in high school were were graded on things like crossword puzzles and word finds. That is stuff you give to 4th graders not high school seniors. It was a pointless exercise in multiple point test tactics. I never had to write a paper or do any thinking at all.

When I got to college I discovered that history is not so much about dates and events as it is about what makes up who we are. Why our society is the way it is, etc. If you don't know where you have been how do you know where you are going? Kids get none of these ideas in high school. Pity.

Let's not get started on how bad history is taught. It's a miracle I made it through anything in college given my poor in-school education.

I had the misfortune of seeing a high-school european history textbook a few years back, and they gave Magna Carta a single sentence. I tried explaining to the poor kid who showed me the book that he didn't understand because his book was a piece of crap, but I don't think it helped.

I guess I got lucky in a couple of ways. First of all, I was already a pretty good driver before I ever took driver's ed. Second of all, our driver's ed teacher (and yes, he was a P.E. coach) was very calm and reasonable.

Of course, since my parents had already given me lots of instruction and road-time, I only drove the car twice for class before the coach said, "You already know this, let's let somebody else get behind the wheel." I spent the rest of the semester sitting in back seat, reading and enjoying the sunshine.

Just remember: her instructor's bad attitude should make her appreciate your patience all the more. Still, once she's done with the class, I imagine you'll want to give him a piece of your mind. I know I would.

Bad history, taught badly, eh, Dan? Was Magna Carta Jimmy's brother?

And Dougal, I hope you're right about her appreciating me a bit more--I suppose she just didn't realize all those boring circles and stuff were much preferrable to getting yelled at.

Sorry her experience was rotten. My son and his friends had pretty good drivers ed. teachers. They all tended to be fat, balding and very calm. Not a coach in the bunch.

It will be interesting to hear how it went today...