SCHOOL PLACEMENT: SECONDARY SCHOOL

The secondary that I had to go to for the placement was in Dumfries a three hour train journey from Edinburgh. The school was Dumfries Academy, a well know school in Dumfries the town where Robert Burns was buried.

Because of the distance I could not travel daily so I had to spend two nights in Dumfries. I left on Wednesday morning by taking two train journeys; Edinburgh to Glasgow and from Glasgow to Dumfries. Upon reaching, the first thing was to look for accommodation; a B & B was most convenient. Together with Bala, a colleague, we wandered from one lodging to another. As we had not made any prior reservation, we had great difficulty finding one. Finally with the kind and friendly owner of a hotel, we managed to locate a room in a B & B; the name was Galowa’ View which overlooked the Dumfries River.

Dumfries River

Dumfries River

Mrs Cameron, the owner was really kind and helpful indeed. After checking in, we dressed and reported at the academy. It was a ten-minute walk from the B & B. we met the assistant head teacher Mr. Douglas and he directed us to Mr Howard Kelly, the head of the English department. We were given the time table for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. After the day was over, we returned to the B&B, changed and wandered around the town, looking at the various shops and to decide the place for dinner. We decided to have a Chinese meal for the first night and an Indian dinner for the second and final night in Dumfries.

The visit to Dumfries Academy was a hectic one as two days were not enough to gather so much information that was required of the module or assignment. I collected a lot of handouts, asked around for facts and information, took plenty of photographs, and observed classes; English and modern languages like French and German. It was a wonderful experience and if I had the opportunity I would definitely spend more time here.

The Town Centre

Friday finally arrived and we left Dumfries after a lunch paid for by Mr. Kelly. We boarded the 3.30 pm train at Dumfries and reached Edinburgh at 6.30 pm.

The Bridge over Dumfries River to Robert Burns Centre

Just for information, the Robert Burns Centre is located in Dumfries. Robert Burns was a famous Scottish writer who penned many patriotic poems and stories about the struggles of the Scottish then. This was where he spent his last few years and he was buried at the mausoleum not far away. At the centre one can see artifacts and a fine display of his famous works like poems, and short stories.

The only disappointment was the rather bad weather; not the snow but the rain and sleet that made our tour of the town rather uncomfortable. Life in Dumfries ended around 6.30 pm and we had to retire to bed early after watching some TV programmes in the room.

On the other hand breakfast provided by Mrs Cameron was sumptuous and delicious and I thoroughly enjoyed the hospitality. There was tea and coffee in the room itself so I had plenty of refreshment.

SCHOOL PLACEMENT: PRIMARY SCHOOL

Apart from the lectures, I had to spend one week or five days at a primary school as part of the course requirement. The primary school was Balgreen Primary which was a 30 minute bus ride from the halls.

The first day at the school was rather exciting and I was also uncertain as to what should be done and how to go about gathering data and information that was specified in a booklet given to me.

Initially I carried out casual observation and taking notes of whatever I could find in the class. The class that I was given was P5A under the guidance of the class teacher Ms Lesley Reid. She was always busy and in total control of the class. I was sure she was a good teacher; dedicated and successful too, as she planned her lessons well. This was reflected in the pupils in the class as they knew what to do and how to go about doing the tasks given.

The greatest difference between this class and that of schools in Malaysia was lessons were or are integrated around a central theme. When I was there, the theme was “Vikings – life in the middle ages”. Other subjects like language, Maths, History, Arts and Environmental Studies were integrated around the theme.

Teaching aids and reading materials were readily available either found in the resource centre of the school or on loan from the resource centre in Edinburgh. This enabled learning and teaching to progress well.

By the second day till Friday, the last day of the placement, I had adapted and got to know the staff and most of the pupils.

I was happy that my presence was welcomed and was in no way an obstacle to their daily chore of teaching and learning. The pupils were a delighted lot. I really liked them although I did not have a lot of time to spend there as the lessons were packed with work and short recess.

School hours were from 8.50 am till 3.30 pm except on Wednesday from 8.50 am till 12.45 pm because of the weekly staff meetings.

Honestly I was really happy to be placed here because of the casual and friendly atmosphere. I had come to know the head teacher, Miss Catherine Douglas, Deputy head teacher, Mrs Jalloway, Assistant head teacher, Mr. Head and Mrs McDonald who at one time spent quite a number of years in Malaya before independence. She had toured and stayed in Ipoh, Kota Bahru and several places due to the nature of her belated husband’s work as a geologist.

Then there was Mrs Allen, a learning support teacher who was most helpful and gentle to her pupils; being slow in academic subjects like English and Mathematics.

In a nutshell, I had no regrets being placed in Balgreen Primary as I loved the school, staff and especially the pupils.

See the following photographs as testimony.

THE SECOND TERM 1994

10 January 1994 to 25 March 1994

During the first term, life was free and less hectic. There was plenty of free time to dwell in leisure activities and assignments were few. I finished all the assignments long before the due date as I went to college as usual during the term break and worked on them either in the library or at the computer room

The others always wondered how I could manage to find time to finish my work and relax every night during the movies in the halls. It was just my determination and inspiration to finish work earlier and not to procrastinate. I hate last minute work when I have to rush and frantically search for time to complete any task.

The quality of my work may not be up to the highest level but what I believe is to be able to complete and hand in the work required. Gaining knowledge without sacrificing other aspects of life is more important. I prefer an all round development rather than enclosing and restricting myself to only one aspect.

Since having been given the chance to be there, I intended to make full use of everything to the best of my knowledge and learn as much as possible. I truly believe the saying ‘all work and no play make Jack a dull boy’.

Now, into the second term, lectures and assignments were built to the maximum

WINTER PARTIES

There were:

1.    Christmas Eve party

2.    Christmas Party (Malaysians only)

3.    New Year Party

4.    Last Party of the term holiday

During all these parties, there were lots of food, drinks and good music. At most of these parties, Jayan, Zainuddin and I would end up clearing and cleaning up until 4 am. I had my share of food and drinks and a few dances to while away the loneliness being away from the family.

MOVIES IN THE HALLS

Apart from the tours and visits, there were also video screening in the Conference Room in Darroch Hall and a few parties. The videos were screened every night except Saturdays and Sundays and when there were parties. There were two movies each night, all chosen by the entertainment committee. There were also refreshment like coffee, tea and biscuits. I was always there during the sessions preparing hot water for the drinks and after the shows had ended I would lend a hand cleaning up the place, switching off the TV and the video player.

In fact I had already seen the movies prior to going to Scotland so I just passed the time watching the re-runs. I also had the opportunity of having coffee, biscuits and chatting with friends. I remember very clearly two guys who were practically there every night. They were Mariozzo and Wang. Mariozzo was from Italy and Wang was from China. They were doing a short English course at the Language Institute. I can still picture Mariozzo because he had a bad case of flu and he was taking all sorts of medication. Wang was more reserved and spoke very little.

The Malaysian ladies were always absent except on two occasions where the movies involved love and sad stories.

I would say that I totally enjoyed the sessions and I would have a hand later in the second year. I shall come to that later.

3. Newcastle

This third trip was a lucky one as one of the participants pulled out the day before.She was Zainab; my senior. There was some fuss about some people who could not go. As she wanted to avoid being criticised, she asked me to take her place and enjoy the trip. Together with Zainuddin and Jayan, we boarded the mini bus; courtesy of Moray House, and left for Newcastle.

On the way we stopped at Holy Island. The narrow road connecting the place to the main road reminded me of Bagan Pasir Laut and Sungai Burung in Perak, where it would be flooded during high tide. The same happens here. We went to an old building up a hill overlooking the calm sea. Then we visited the small town on Hold Island which sold souvenirs and foodstuff. I did not buy anything because there was nothing special to me.

As we were crossing the narrow road to reach the main road, the tide was coming up and certain stretches were covered with water. We were lucky in fact or else we could have been stranded on Holy Island.

We reached Newcastle, parked the van in town and we went wandering around. Like any other town in the United Kingdom, the buildings are old and gray. Apart from the more modern shops and shopping complexes, everything was the same. Incidentally Newcastle is in England and not in Scotland. This means we had crossed the border into England.

At the shopping centre I had my lunch of hot soup, pie and salad. It was nice to fill the cold and empty stomach. After that we wandered around the shopping centre. It was huge and there were many people milling around various departments.

Next we wandered around town and took some photographs. We then visited a castle or part of what was left of it. We left Newcastle at 4.00 pm and reached the halls at 7.00 pm.

After a nice warm shower and a cold late dinner, I slept due to tiredness.

2. The Borders

During this break each student was only allowed two outings. The second trip was to the borders; the area around the border between Scotland and England. This time I joined 12 others in a van or rather mini bus provided by the college. It was another long journey. There was snow everywhere, along the sides of the roads, on the fields, farms and even the trees. It was a sight to remember, as everything was white. The drive was smooth except for the snow that slowed us. We managed to visit Peebles, and Melrose. Unfortunately as it was winter, many of the tourists spots like castles and farms were closed. I bought a Scottish cap and took a few photographs with the snow capped mountains as the background.

1. Aviemore

It is a hill resort in Northern Scotland. The journey was a three hour trip by bus. On the way we stopped to visit a factory that produces paper weights and glasses of all kinds; wine and ordinary glasses. The paper weights were beautiful and of various sizes. The glasses too were beautiful and hand crafted. All these were rather expensive so I did not buy anything. Anyway I was not really interested in them but I was more attracted in the skill of the craftsmen going about in the process

of making their products. It was a real experience watching them handling equipment and producing paper weights of real quality. I took a few photographs there.

The journey up the hill to reach the resort in Aviemore was terrible, with turns and windings, snow bellowing down due to the wind, thus making the coaches crawling up the way. There were two coaches because everyone from the two campuses were allowed to go along this trip.

At the hill resort we were only allowed about an hour to enjoy ourselves. I walked about in the thick snow covered ground. We watched people skiing along the slope. Some of my friends wanted to try the skis but due to the time limit, they gave up the idea.

I had my lunch of packed breakfast cum lunch, with a flask of hot chocolate. I had bought the thermos flask the day earlier. The restaurant was packed with skiers and visitors. Anyway I enjoyed my meal and left. Later I took more photographs to remind me of this visit.

I met many Chinese tourists, probably from Hong Kong because I recognised the Cantonese accent and Malaysians who were from London.

Leaving the resort, we went to the town of Aviemore, a small town at the foot of the hill. There were some shops and pubs and B and B along the one road that goes right through it. I bought a few postcards of the beautiful scenery around Aviemore. We left the town at 3.30 pm and reached the halls at 6.30 pm just in time for a nice dinner.

18 December 1993 to 9 January 1994

This was the first term break of three weeks. It was also the winter break. The local students have gone home. Parents and guardians came to fetch their children. It was fun to see them carrying everything; books, clothes, shoes, boxes and other stuff and loading them into cars and vans.

The foreign students were left on their own in the halls. I went to college as usual to work and to read in the library. It was lonely and quiet as there were very few students. The only ones left were the foreign students who could not afford to go home or go travelling.

Anyway, the college with the collaboration of the Halls of Residence (Newington and Crammond) organized a few visits to various places in and around Scotland.

Walking on Snow

From that day onwards, snow fell regularly and I had to walk to college in the snow. There were patches of snow here and there but in the city centre, there was none, probably due to the heat from the buildings and the vehicles.

The fields along the road to college was covered with a thin layer. The bushes were also covered too. From my observation, the layer of snow was thicker in the outskirts of the city. The field at the halls of residence was frequently covered with a thin layer of snow.

Each morning the pavements were covered with a thin layer of grit or sand so that the pedestrians would not slip while walking to and fro. The workers would sprinkle grit or sand early in the morning. The sand provided grip or friction when walking on the pavements.

If there was no snow, there would be frost; a thin layer of solid ice which was hard and slippery. I had to be very careful while walking on the pavements. It was fine on level ground and uphill paths but was very risky and dangerous while going downhill or on slopes.

I could still remember once when I nearly slipped while going downhill at the slopes alone the Pleasance near college. Luckily the pair of boots; Dr. Martens was new and provided me some grip. From that day onwards I avoided the pavements when there was snow or frost. I walked on the road which was rougher.

The Lessons in Detail

1. Phonology of English

In the Phonology of English lessons, I was able to learn more about the correct pronunciation of English. I was corrected and praised at times and I felt that I had learned a lot under Dorothea.

Each time we met, there would be a short lecture on the different aspect of phonology. It would be followed by group work based on a handout. We would practice as a group before having individual practices on the self-recording and monitoring system. Dorothea would listen to me practicing the dialogue or sentences or phrases. We would also listen to our own recording on the tapes.

2. Systems of English

After years of using and learning, Rosemary Douglas really made us dig deep into our thoughts, ideas and books into understanding the various aspects of grammar of English. Now I come to understand that there is no such thing as future tense. It is just a term to express events that will happen in the future. I believe that there are still many things to learn.

3. Information Technology

During the Study Skills, I had the opportunity to use the computers in Demonstration School Room 11. The computers there were the Elonox which were based on the IBM format. At that time, I was really getting into the feel of computers and its usefulness.

During the first term in 1993, I had to attend tutorials and workshops so that I could handle and use other computers like the Apple Macintosh. These were the better and up-to-date versions. They were easier to work with because they have been installed with Claris Work; a software similar to Microsoft Office now. I did not have any problem switching between these computers. Mike Quickfall was indeed a nice and helpful lecturer. He was ever ready to give us a hand when we needed help. I really had a wonderful time attending the lessons.

4. Reflections on Classroom Practice

This was another topic or module that really brought me out of my shell, of assumptions and ideas to the world of reflecting upon all those ideas and make criticisms. From here I was guided to evaluate ideas, hypotheses and views of others.

5. Understanding Organisations

Bob McNie, the lecturer of this module provided us with a lot of facts, figures and information about schools in Scotland; both primary and secondary. All these information were given to prepare us to meet and accept the system of education here. Besides that it wa also to help us in assignments based on facts and information gathered during the visit to the schools.

7. Sports Elective

Every Friday mornings and Monday evenings I chose to attend sports as en elective.

On Monday there was a session on badminton from 3.00 pm till 5.00 pm; usually ending at 4.30 pm. It was really fun knowledgeable learning and experiencing coaching techniques and skills under Alistair Wilson. It was tiring though but it was worth it as a form of exercise/

The Friday session of basketball under Bill; another lecturer was another hectic and tiring session. Skills were imparted and we practiced and played games with the local Scottish students. Chasing, marking and competing with these young local students was really exhausting. But they were always friendly and nice to us. During rest time and in the changing room, there were always chats and friendly exchanges. We would be looking forward to meeting one another in the next session.

The worst part after a module; usually after 4 to 5 weeks was a written assignment or folio. We had to put our ideas about coaching techniques and skills into these assignments. It was a totally new experience. Anyway we created quite an impression by producing wonderful essays with lots of graphics. Here scanning and pasting pictures with the aid of computers were a breeze.