Thursday 14^th November, 2019 1730

I have already said I hate Thursdays this term. Now I positively loathe them.

The first class of the day at 0800 is the worst, the brain dead, the detritus of academia. The class I have to expend twice as much effort in than any other.

This is the class that Dean Liu spied on through the door window two weeks ago, saw many playing on their sodding phones and came in during the break to remonstrate. That hacked me off a trifle as it shone a bad light on me but to be honest, short of purchasing a signal blocker I would spend most of the lesson confiscating the damned things. I let that slide, foolishly thinking a ticking off from their Dean would have the desired effect.

Today after the class she called me to find out where I was. I was outside sitting in the watery sunlight having a smoke before my next class. What did she want to talk to me about? She had spied again through the window and seen some students on their phones and others asleep at their desks during the film I showed in the second period. On this occasion I was otherwise occupied at the front of the classroom and so never policed it. When after I had left she questioned them and they told her they couldn't understand the film. It was Ice Age, a cartoon. What is there not to understand about a cartoon regardless of language? Blame the teacher, in China it works every time.

Suffice to say I restrained my response to her remarks. I never mentioned that her little “pep talk” hadn't worked and that my carrot and stick approach to lessons had worked perfectly well until she poked her hooter in. And much else I could have but didn't say. I defended my methods and resisted the urge to tell her to stuff that particular class up her backside. She then proceeded to go to my next class before it started to give them a bollocking when they had done nothing wrong! That class and the subsequent one entreated me to still show them films because they were learning and enjoying them and I will not change my style now after nine years. If I need to, I will contact the Agricultural uni!

Except for one class. The first one on Thursdays.

Am I angry? You bet. Will I work harder on them? Don't be daft. They've had the last bit of light entertainment, at least from me, ever. And oh boy, are they going to work! If they think for a second that I will be doing all the talking for an hour and a half they are much mistaken. They will now be given twenty minutes in period two to write on a topic I give them and prepare a talk for the class and I will choose random students to deliver said talks.

I'll give them “blame the teacher”.