Privileges for the Privileged

Posted on Saturday 21st June 2008 at 11:36.

I read this morning about Lord Coe’s glowing view of the legacy of the 2012 Olympic Games. He says:

I don’t see a generation out there who are lost or are hoodies, I don’t see the world like that, when I go around that’s not what I see.

I’ve taken a rather pessimistic view of sport in Britain, and that the Olympics will do little to change that. In my personal experience, sport is only pushed in the way of those that display early talent. And even then, only those that get personal attention early on have a chance of making it into the big time.

It was a gripe of mine that while at Borden Grammar, that despite years of concerns from teachers about lack of funding and teaching resources for academic studies, funding was made available for and spent on a huge astroturf pitch, a new pavilion (with impressive catering facilities) and an additional all-weather area for other sports. It felt like a betrayal, in part, that I spent time in a school supposedly encouraging academic excellence, which maintained a firm eye on improving the sports facilities. This wouldn’t have irked me so much had there not already been an astroturf pitch in Sittingbourne, and had the school not been surrounded by a park, a leisure centre, further field space and a local workers’ group recreation centre.

But despite this, during my time at university and at school, I’ve found that time is invested in you only if you are a marketable asset. If you can represent the school or university at a competitive level, you are open to all sorts of time investiture, financial investment and perks. I never felt welcome at football or cricket trials at school and was never really encouraged at all during that time. At university, participating in any sort of sporting activity requires money (and a substantial amount): that is, of course, unless you show any sort of finesse. In which case, you are not only treated to free gym membership and use of all the university’s sporting facilities (and I dare say priority in obtaining them), you are also privy to free personal attention, performance monitoring and any advice they can spare (see the CPRS site).

In essence, sport is for those that have the time invested in them. This is the kind of thing Lord Coe sees. If you have been able to build on early talent, you will never see a locked door. If you are like me and want to get into sport, I hear tiddlywinks is quite affordable.

Chop Chop

Posted on Thursday 19th June 2008 at 00:02.

I had my hair cut today. It wasn’t something I planned, so I am a little in shock now. This morning I had what appeared to be black hair: the stubborn locks that remained since dying it in December covering what lied beneath. It was also rather long, gathering at the base of my neck and swept across my eyes. Now, it is desperately pale blond, and rather short. I look rather anaemic now.

Beforehand I had been working on some freelance work. It isn’t all that easy. I had been hoping to get it done fairly quickly but the intricacies in the detail are quite amazing. I am, in fact, surprised by the additional research I’ve had to do to get the results that are required. That’ll teach me!

The final thing that affected me this week was being called a coward. It was meant in a light-hearted way and I don’t think there was too much meaning behind it, but it did get me thinking. It followed me saying how I now crave a simple and quiet life: to settle down and knuckle down. I don’t want to be under undue pressure and I don’t want to be in a job that no-one else gives two hoots about. I think I’m in the right, but does it make me a coward?

On The Move

Posted on Saturday 14th June 2008 at 13:30.

I’ve just moved geoffbrady.net to Media Temple and bought another domain while I was at it. I bought stephenbroughton.net and intend to use it as a site dedicated to me.

I wasn’t unhappy with eUKhost — in fact what they offer on their cheapest package would probably have sufficed for me — but there was always a nagging doubt about them in my mind. Media Temple certainly seem more professional.

So that is why geoffbrady.net has been up and down these past couple of days.

All Was Well

Posted on Thursday 12th June 2008 at 12:31.

Even before I had finished my exams I had started to pick up the last two Harry Potter books again. I had started reading The Half Blood Prince not too long after it had first been released, but I stopped reading it. I forget why. But for a long time I had that and The Deathly Hallows on my ‘to read’ shelf. That shelf is quite big, by the way.

I can’t describe how wonderfully it is written, for those that have not read them. And I suggest if you have read this far without having read the books and intend to, you really should stop reading this now. This is a potential plot spoiler.

I was rather enjoying the book until the moment Harry looked into the Pensieve for the last time and understood that he must pay the ultimate sacrifice: be killed for the sake of the world. I felt that was rather fitting. That really was the last thing he had to do. The fact that he was able to return to life by some "unexplained technicality" seemed a bit of a cop-out.

The fact that he survived then paved the way for him to lead the rest of his life as he could only have done in a Voldemort-free world; being able to raise a family with Ginny with three children named after his parents and Dumbledore. It felt strangely wholely unsatisfying. And it has left me feeling rather depressed.

Is that because the overall message behind the whole set of books in the series is that being able to love is life’s greatest power? Possibly.

Euro 2008 Predictions

Posted on Friday 6th June 2008 at 22:15.

This is how I reckon Euro 2008 would pan out. (Final group positions in bold.)

Group Stages

Group A

  1. Portugal (1)
  2. Czech Republic (3)
  3. Switzerland (4)
  4. Turkey (2)

Group B

  1. Germany (2)
  2. Croatia (1)
  3. Poland (4)
  4. Austria (3)

Group C

  1. Netherlands (1)
  2. Italy (2)
  3. France (4)
  4. Romania (3)

Group D

  1. Spain (1)
  2. Russia (2)
  3. Sweden (3)
  4. Greece (4)

Knock-out Stages

Quarter Final

  • Portugal beats Germany
  • Croatia beats Turkey
  • Netherlands beats Russia
  • Italy beats Spain

Semi Final

  • Croatia beats Portugal
  • Netherlands beats Italy

Final

  • Croatia beats Netherlands

I am an oddball.

All Over

Posted on Wednesday 4th June 2008 at 13:37.

Well the exams have passed. Now it’s a waiting game for the results. It wasn’t a great exam. Everything I had studied on Monday had pretty much vanished from my short term memory… perhaps occupied by recent events. I relied on my long term memory which thankfully wasn’t too shabby as usual, so I should have done enough to get a half-decent mark, though I suspect it won’t be as high as I might have expected. It’s all rather unfortunate.

But I haven’t been allowed to feel sorry myself for too long. I am getting constant reminders of what should be my current preoccupation: finding a job. And I am still being too picky. I’ve decided I won’t work or live in London. I really don’t like the place and I cannot see why so many love it so much.

I am thinking of becoming a personal tutor again: and that is no easy option. I need to seek some advice on that score. In the mean time, I do have a couple jobs that should see me through the summer at least.

Don’t Believe a Word

Posted on Tuesday 3rd June 2008 at 17:45.

Would you rather a child be taught Mathematics by someone who knows how to teach, or by someone who knows how to do Mathematics? This article describes how less than half of teachers of Mathematics in secondary schools in this country hold a degree in a relevant subject. It doesn’t make me feel any happier. £40 million over the last five years was spent to try encourage people like myself to become teachers… and they turn me away.

Value for money or what?

Exam Before the Storm

Posted on Monday 2nd June 2008 at 23:05.

I received an email from Newcastle University recently about the tickets they have allocated for my graduation. I was hoping to receive my basic allocation, plus the two seats in the TV relay room they advised we should apply for. This email told me that they have received more applications for these TV relay tickets than expected, and that they will offer me… none. This angered me: they have not set aside tickets equally for their students. So I complained, but to little avail.

Dad rang this evening, to talk about the graduation amongst other things. He seems all sorted and he will be coming. Mum doesn’t like it (at all) but thankfully she is overlooking that fact to come. However, the remaining problem was that of my maternal grandparents. My original plan was to give them the two seats I had been expecting to receive for the relay room. However, not being given these tickets meant that they would not be able to come at all. After I had spoken to Dad, Mum decided it would be the best to inform my grandparents of the news.

I’d wanted to invite them to thank them for the help they gave me in my first year. However it had always been their intention for me to show a greater gratitude by turning my father away and inviting my grandad instead. On receiving the news from Mum that Dad would be coming, I am now excommunicated from the family in their eyes, and Mum’s position isn’t all to rosy either. Even had I got those tickets, they made it clear they would have refused to come. They have made some childish threats and have effectively sought to make Mum choose between ties with me and her ties with them.

Oh… and wish me luck for my exam tomorrow.

Back With A Vengeance

Posted on Saturday 31st May 2008 at 10:50.

I have returned — I have fixed the problem I was having, which seemed more to do with my host than WordPress itself. A lot has happened since my last post.

I’ve been told that I have been rejected a place on the PGCE course, to my extreme annoyance. It seems the reason for declining my application was because I am not a teacher. The feedback suggested I ought to get experience teaching for a length of time before applying again. However, getting a decent run at teaching a class of secondary school pupils is hard to obtain: you need a teaching qualification. For much of the PGCE course, this is exactly the experience you get. So it feels like I can’t do the course because I haven’t done the course before. It’s a shame.

I guess I am a fool for applying to Newcastle University again. It seems a ridiculous reason to turn away what would have been a committed and enthusiastic student and a talented teacher. I suppose it also serves me right for chasing after a position doing a thankless task. It used to be medicine. Perhaps I ought to chase after self-glory, easy wealth and the supposed lure of the City. There seem plenty faceless, ruthlessly competitive financial jobs there, but they just don’t interest me, and as for London…

I suppose I’m too picky. I want a job with pressure I can handle; I want to be creative and to be able to apply all the skills I have collected from a wide variety of disciplines; I want to be an important member of an organisation so I can feel committed and settled. These are few and far between.

We get the Evening Chronicle every Thursday for jobs: the number of jobs available is getting lower to the tune of around 100 a week. There were less than 500 this week. Most of those were either teaching jobs or those that request a ridiculous amount of experience for the wage they offer. They aren’t even willing to buy experience; they just expect it. Every receptionist job going wants three years experience "in a similar environment". Why bother? I may as well look into self-employment.

Job Interview, Part 2

Posted on Thursday 1st May 2008 at 22:53.

Applying for a place on a PGCE course isn’t as simple as just completing an application form then popping in for an interview, as I found out this week. The application process is controlled by an arm of UCAS, the university admissions service. As such, it costs £5 just to enquire. Furthermore, any correspondence you make to any universities you apply to must pass through their hands first. That is just the first obstacle.

I was invited for an interview on Wednesday (yesterday). However, this “interview” would last from 11am until 4pm. The actual interview lasted half an hour at the end of the day. Beforehand, we were asked to present a small presentation on some rather appalling “stimuli” for starter activities for a lesson; discussed the worst piece of television journalism ever created to support private schools in the developing world; and finally writing an essay on how labelling children as problems based on their welfare is bound to inhibit their self-esteem. Two sides of A4…

That’s not to say I didn’t learn anything: the interview was rather useful. The head of maths in the education department pointed out my errors when attempting to answer his classroom-based questions. And I committed a few errors. I’m not so sure I shall get a place on this course, so I was rather hopeless (in more way than one) until today.

Today was the deadline of my written project. It’s funny, most people were very reluctant to hand it in. They were talking about asking the secretary to pull hard on the file to prise the object from the author’s hands. I’m not so sure why that is. Perhaps it is a fear of the impending scrutinising of the work inside. Perhaps it is the fact that they have spent the best part of a year working on it, and continually changing it and never truly reaching satisfaction. I was quite pleased to hand it in in the end. It isn’t perfect. I would have liked to have added more, particularly proving that the simplicial homology groups of a space make a topological invariant. But it’s not bad either.