To Miss With Love - Details

Listing ID: 2117

Title: To Miss With Love

Description: A black teacher from an inner-city school in London shares her experiences.

Category: Education & Training

Owner:

listed on: October 31, 2008 06:13:34 PM

Number Hits: 8 times

Recent Posts:

My Return - 2010-06-04 08:31:00

I have been busy. But come the end of August, I will write again - regularly. This will be in preparation for the new school year when I intend to tell my school stories as I once did. And there is news to tell. I look forward to seeing you all again very soon. Best wishes for an excellent summer. Snuffy

Worlds Apart - 2010-03-22 20:04:00

Today I’m telling one of my classes, a bunch of misfit 13-year-olds that we are going on a trip next week. They are excited. I have trouble calming them down. I explain that we’ll be taking a bus and then a train and then the tube. And then I spend some time talking about what we are going to do, why we are doing it, what money to bring, where we will eat lunch and so on. Finally I end with how we’ll return on the tube and our time of arrival back at school. As expected, when I finish talking, there are lots of questions. They cannot wait till next week. Neither can I. Dumbo, a black boy who isn’t the sharpest tool in the toolbox, raises his hand to the sky, his eyes blinking madly behind his glasses. ‘Yes, Dumbo?’ ‘MISS!’ He grins. ‘What’s the TUBE?’ The rest of the class cackles with laughter. ‘The TUBE?? What’s the TUBE??’ They double over, some falling off their chairs. ‘Don’t you know? How can you not know??’ RAH!!!’ ‘That’s enough everyone!’ I shout. Dumbo blinks, looking around at everyone, baffled by their reaction. I frown. ‘There is no such thing as a silly question! Every question is a GOOD question!’ I smile, looking at Dumbo. ‘The tube, Dumbo, well, it’s the underground, you know?’ Dumbo looks at me blankly and shakes his head. The rest of the class can barely contain their amazement. ‘RAH!! How can you not know! How can you not know?? It’s a train Dumbo! It’s a train that goes underground!’ ‘Yes, Dumbo, that’s right,’ I say, smiling, ‘it’s a train that goes under the ground.’ Dumbo looks frightened. ‘Under theground?’ I nod, moving towards him. ‘Uh, huh, that’s right… under the ground. But it’s perfectly safe. You don’t have to worry. We’ll all be fine in it.’ I smile. ‘Have you never been on the underground before Dumbo?’ Dumbo smacks his forehead. ‘Oh yeah! Oh yeah! Once on a school activity, I think maybe I went on it then!’ He laughs. My eyes open wide. ‘You see? That’s great Dumbo! I don’t want you to drop out on me now! Remember what I said at lunch! I need you on this trip! You’re going to be my assistant!’ While the others are packing up their things, I whisper in Dumbo’s ear. ‘I’m counting on you Dumbo! I need you to help with organising everyone - telling them what to do. Do you think you can do that?’ Dumbo grins. ‘Yes, Miss! Don’t worry Miss, I won’t let you down!’ ‘Good.’ I pat him on the shoulder. ‘I knew I could count on you.’ ‘But Miss,’ he whispers back, ‘why did you call it the TUBE?’ I shrug my shoulders. ‘I don’t know Dumbo, I guess that’s just what people call it.’ As Dumbo packs his things away, I begin to wonder… How is it possible that this boy and I live only a few streets from each other? Everyday, we spend our days in the confines of the same buildings, talking to the same people, hearing the same sounds, smelling the same smells, breathing the same air, and yet, we inhabit completely different worlds.

Khyra Ishaq - 2010-02-25 19:07:00

Who is this man saying that Angela Gordon's primary concern should have been her children? Who is saying how dreadful it is that only manslaughter was the verdict when it should have been murder? Who is saying that because Social Services never carried out an investigation, Khyra is now dead? Who is this man claiming that the Local Authority was irresponsible? Khyra's father. And what of HIS responsibility? What of his role as herfather? She was starved for MONTHS! Where on earth was HE? He didn't even know that his ex-wife was living (as was his daughter) with a man who he knew from his mosque! Incidentally, this man used to beat poor little Khyra with a stick and pour cold water over her when she searched for food. So where was her father when all of this was happening? Where was he when his child was literallydying? ABROAD!! He had to fly home when he discovered she was dead! And he dares to take the moral high ground and criticise the perfect strangers who took more interest in his child (by being in the country and visiting the house) than he did himself? Don't get me wrong: clearly Social Services did not fulfil their duties. Clearly there is much wrongdoing in this story from various parties. And Khyra's father does admit to having 'failed' her. But when one overlooks one's child so fundamentally as to fail to keep them alive, does this not humble one to a position where one would not dare be critical of others? Apparently not. Not in sense-of-entitlement, 21st-century Britain anyway. The man is scum. Mr Delroy Frances, oops, I mean Mr Ishaq Abu Zaire. No doubt a bored, useless, waste-of-space 2nd generation Caribbean twit who found salvation in converting to Islam. Too bad the great prophet Mohammed was unable to teach him the importance of family, personal responsibility and love of one's children. Delroy Frances brought a child into this world and left her to a madwoman, expecting an unknown governmental body to protect and raise his child while he went gallivanting around the world. Does the media question him? No. Does the judge ask 'But where was her father in all of this?' No. All anyone has to say is that Social Services is at fault - which they are of course - in part. But what baffles me is how people don't instinctively know that first and foremost, a child is her parents' responsibility and all of us who are charged with the upbringing of children should not shirk that responsibility, however many 'state services' claim that they can do a better job than we can, at raising them. The most important people in a child's life are, after all, her parents. Isn't that obvious? May the lovely little Khyra Ishaq who lived such a short and very sad life, finally rest in peace.