Dear Mr Lee
I listened to a fantastic radio 4 programme about this poem yesterday. My students have been studying a UA Fanthorpe poem, ‘Case History: Alison (Head Injury)’ which is a wonderful depiction of brain damaged Alison reflecting on her past life and achievements. ‘Dear Mr. Lee’ really appealed to me, as many lines resonate with my role as a teacher, both in humorous and tragic ways. I recognise how tight exam constraints don’t allow me to study poetry in the way I wish with my students, and how the creative whole is compartmentalised and highlighted and annotated until all original meaning is lost. Begrudgingly, I’ll also admit I am fully familiar with awkwardly explaining Shakespeare’s highly sexualised puns to hormonally charged, and often bemused, fifteen year olds (happy 448th birthday Will S). I love the idea of students being inspired by set texts, but more realistically feel that an enforced reading habit won’t result in a burning passion for the bard, or a new found appreciation for Steinbeck’s use of language to portray Lennie. I have been lucky enough, in my first year of teaching, to break away from Mr Smart and occasionally find a way to foster pure, rich, discussion that doesn’t stick to assessment objectives, but such glimpses and opportunities are rare and precious! Consequently, I want to challenge my own teaching methods so that I can allow literature to ‘live with students’ and to see things ‘bright and strange’.
My strategies:
- Set up a monthly sixth form (and Y11) reading group, aside from A-Level study that is driven by student interests and enthusiastic discussion (tea and cake will always help). There should be no homework, no set question and no preparation. Let the students choose the material!
- Indulge in my own love of literature. Continue to expand my horizons and get stuck in a book, and remember why I am passionate about my subject. Joining a reading group set up with a group of friends has helped me to challenge my own reading interests and is incredibly valuable in allowing me to choose new books and authors that I would previously have dismissed.
- Let the students recommend their favourites. Similarly to point two, I have read some books specifically recommended by students. I have loved the books they’ve picked, and they have loved discussing them with me, in equal parts smug and delighted that I have taken their advice.
Although Mr Smart inevitably exists, especially considering we are careering at a gazillion miles an hour towards the upcoming exams, I hope I can always remember what really counts and banish Mr Smart back in his box, to be replaced by the truly dazzling Little Miss Loveoflit as often as possible.
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