Classes for 2011

… and so begins the school year for 2011.

This year I am teaching Physics in Years 10 through 12 (well, the Physics unit of Science in year 10), Maths A in Years 11 and 12, and Christian Foundations in Year 12. This is a lovely mix, to which I would only for preference have added Year 10 Maths, but that's on at the same time as Year 12 Physics, so I can't (and besides, then I'd be teaching far too much!).

I have rewritten the Year 10 Physics unit because the new timetable allocates more time to Science in Year 10 than last year, and also every student in Year 10 will this year have a laptop with access to the school network. This is a good thing, because it means (a) I can set up a “virtual classroom” with all the planning, notes, worksheets and other resources the students need, and (b) I can run more interesting software-based interactive activities during lessons. But of course, the students won't actually receive their laptops until week 4! So now I've had to make copies of a whole lot of things for them for the next few weeks. Sigh.

The new timetable has only 60 and 90 minute lessons for Years 9-12, where last year it was a mix of 40, 45 and 90. Longer lessons for the older students is a really good thing!

My Year 12 classes are lovely—because they're the same classes I had in Year 11 last year. My Year 11 Maths A class is too big. Poor things, they're seeing my strict and grumpy side. I have little choice, given the number of students. Ah well, learning a little self-discipline now will only help them in the future.

And let me just say (along, I think, with most school teachers in Australia) how much I appreciated having the Australia Day holiday in the middle of the first week.

TC Hamish

Yes, I know it's been a while since I posted anything here. So perhaps the passing-by of a cyclone is a good stimulus to get me going again.

Cyclone Hamish looked for a bit like it might make a direct hit on the north or central Queensland coast, but then veered south-east just in time. A day spent cleaning up the yard, tying the bins to a tree, moving pot plants into the foyer; a nervous day on cyclone warning; gusty but not dangerous winds, squally but patchy rain; a storm surge on top of a 6m tide causing only minor flooding in low-lying parts of Mackay. And then a clearing sky and cooler air in the wake, as the cyclone moved off down the coast.

For a while there Hamish was at category 5, with 300km/h winds near the eye and a central air pressure around 925hPa. That's pretty serious stuff! I did some research and learnt quite a bit about tropical cyclones. Apparently they are normally surrounded by a layer of very high cirrus, the result of the net outflow of damp air from the middle of the cyclone at the very top of the troposphere. Last night (Tuesday night) I observed a beautiful side-effect of this. The full moon was surrounded by a lunar corona, a band of rainbow colours. As the high-level cloud drifted past, the ring distorted gently as different sections shifted in and out. It was so beautiful!

Mathematics and science—different from other subjects?

Below is a copy of a letter I have written to the editor of The Independent Voice, a newspaper for QIEU members. I responded to an article written by Chris Seymour; you can read the full document on which his article was based (my letter is in response to section 3.4 starting on page 5).

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Dear IV Editor,

Chris Seymour writes in part (IV Nov 2007, p.6) that ‘demonstrationg “knowledge, [sic] and understanding of concepts, facts and procedures, and applications of processes” [is] a narrow skill set … valuable for mathematics and science but prejudicial to English’ (and presumably other humanities subjects). Without denying the value of these criteria for mathematics and science, I would argue that in both mathematics and science, as in English, ‘visual literacy, affective and attitudinal domains and values’ are equally important.

Indeed, as a high school mathematics and science teacher, I have seen many students fail to gain knowledge and understanding of ‘concepts, facts, procedures and processes’ directly because of affective and attitudinal factors. Some cannot learn these concepts because, for example, they lack confidence in their own ability. Others do not learn the concepts because they choose not to (attitude). Yet others fail entirely to engage with the subject (particularly in mathematics) because they simply do not value such knowledge.

Certainly mathematics and science involve ‘aspects of visual literacy’, in the form of symbols and technical terms which need to be recognised and used appropriately. “Positive dispositions towards mathematics learning and active engagement with mathematical tasks are integral to thinking, reasoning and working mathematically.” (Mathematics: Years 1 to 10 Syllabus, QSA, 2004, p.1)

Please do not single out mathematics and science as different from other subjects because they supposedly lack any affective, attitudinal or value-related factors. We need to remember that we are actually teaching students, not subjects.

Yours faithfully,
Ian Bailey-Mortimer
(Teacher, Mackay Christian College)