| The following email messages (printed in reverse | | | | ----- Original Message ----- |
| chronological order) offer a quick insight into the | | | | From: M.O.Hart |
| deleterious effects associated with educational | | | | To: *** |
| conditioning of primary teachers, based on my | | | | Subject: Last recourse of the desperate. |
| personal observations of ***. | | | | Dear ***, |
| ----- Original Message ----- | | | | It seems that what you believe is of little consequence, |
| Sent: Saturday, June 10, 2006 11:05 PM | | | | the fact is that I have a better degree that you, and I |
| Subject: Re: printers/Meg | | | | wrote about your behavioural management issues. As |
| Dear ****, | | | | a direct result, an educational psychologist carrying out |
| I'm beginning to feel that helping Meg is a forlorn hope. I | | | | a programme of research, wrote back confirming |
| just had a brief encounter with her, she was inspecting | | | | what I believed to be true. |
| Mum’s priory, when I came back from getting | | | | Well, he got back to me, after I annotated and |
| coffee with Dave, and well, she seems to have no | | | | published your "reply" (below), but I’m not going |
| intention of talking to me on any level other then that | | | | to tell you what he wrote. It included some interesting |
| of an impertinent school child. How to I dismantle this | | | | phraseology such as "last recourse of the desperate". |
| world she has created in her imagination? | | | | He is going to use all this in his thesis as "anecdotal |
| I wasn’t trying to dominate the discourse in the | | | | evidence based on others' personal observations". |
| way in which she does, I was making a polite | | | | This was written in ink, in the top margin of the |
| interjection here & there, but if I said it was black | | | | following hand delivered reply, "I am writing you a hand |
| she would have said it was white and would have | | | | reply as the computer would not send this". |
| ignored me. | | | | Dear Michael |
| I said it, therefore it must be ‘wrong’ and | | | | I find your discussion of my supposed cute (awful |
| she will then say anything to make it sound | | | | word) inferiority complex in e-mails an infringement of |
| ‘wrong’. The logic seems to be one of | | | | my privacy. I also wonder if you equate modesty with |
| "break the weakest link", characteristically this is done | | | | inferiority. And when I saw the comments by an Ed |
| by changing the context of what I said or by being | | | | Psych |
| deliberately obtuse. | | | | I'm afraid my credulity (sig) was seriously undermined. I |
| I believe this to be a self defence mechanism, which | | | | have had dealings with many Ed. Pcshs (sig) over the |
| during ‘normal’ interaction, could be a valid | | | | years and in that time I only met two who had any |
| reaction but she seems to be desperately avoiding | | | | connection with reality. |
| ANY communication that might may ,in some | | | | I must also add that I don't know where he found his |
| unspecified way, end in her being seen to be stupid , | | | | subjects, I assume it was in the plural, but in his findings |
| god forbid. Regardless of the environment, this is a | | | | I don't recognise any of the hundreds of teachers I |
| typical Meg style reaction. | | | | have worked with and met over the last thirty years. |
| What hope in hell ' s chance of being able to do any | | | | The language above is interesting: |
| good do I really have when the result is that I wish I | | | | 1) "The computer would not send this": I'm not overly |
| hadn’t bothered. I get this feeling every time I | | | | impressed, surely a case of a poor workwoman |
| attempt any level of communication with her, except in | | | | blaming her tools in a laughable attempt to refute |
| a state of affairs in which she wants something. :-) | | | | responsibility. |
| With kind regards, | | | | 2) "Cute (awful word)": This is a classic avoidance |
| Michael Hart | | | | tactic, to dodge conversation, where given the choice |
| ----- Original Message ----- | | | | between dealing with a problem and ignoring it, a |
| To: Michael | | | | typical response is to answer any side issue and |
| Sent: Saturday, June 10, 2006 01:17 PM | | | | refuseing to acknowledge the real problem, thus |
| Subject: Re: printers/Meg | | | | creating the illusion of action. |
| Michael | | | | 3) "Infringement of my privacy": Email is not necessarily |
| Thanks for keeping me in the loop | | | | subject to protection by intellectual property rights. |
| I guess the good news is, Is that she is trying to reach | | | | Even if this were not the case (the content in question |
| you in her own way but as an ex school teacher I can | | | | is not hers to control), there are exceptions that allow |
| only assume she is having difficulty like most of them | | | | use of copyrighted works of others because they are |
| do | | | | not considered copying. For example, reproduction of |
| However you did make me chuckle with the | | | | others' work where it is felt that some more important |
| correction of Teachers grammer !!!!!and you were kind | | | | social principles would be violated otherwise. |
| with your last sentance " .......with grace and beauty. Its | | | | 4) "My credulity (sig) was seriously undermined": This is |
| good to see you can rise above it and someone has | | | | where the real problem arises, a case of "do as I say, |
| to be the grown up one and I'm pleased to see it is | | | | not as I do". How many times have we all heard that |
| you | | | | expression, never a particularly inspiring credo, this |
| Best regards | | | | doesn't work well. In fact, there's not more than a 50% |
| ----- Original Message ----- | | | | chance of it ever working. |
| From: Muchael | | | | 5) "Teachers I have worked with": An unintelligent |
| Sent: Saturday, June 10, 2006 9:06 AM | | | | argument, obviously another avoidance tactic. By |
| Subject: Fw: printers/Meg | | | | definition, the study relates to retired teachers. |
| Dear ****, | | | | 6) "I only met two who had any connection with |
| Below is my reply to an email I received from Meg | | | | reality": If you don't like a theory but can't acknowledge |
| yesterday, needless to say, I'm not overly impressed! | | | | that the evidence exists, then the most sensible thing is |
| Note that I can’t reasonably see anything less | | | | to provide a plausible alternative explanation. She is |
| than 12pt, she is well aware of my sight issues but has | | | | attempting to deride the social principle by attacking the |
| selected a serif typeface in 10pt, (the worst possible | | | | credibility of the person conducting the research and its |
| thing you can do)! | | | | subjects! The lady protests too much, methinks . |
| Why can’t she just get over her ego instead of | | | | Dear ***, |
| making poor pretenses, I’ve given her several | | | | I am copying this message to your classicfm address, |
| opportunities to do something, now two weeks later, | | | | as it looks like you may have stopped downloading |
| she only now makes an effort and then only after | | | | from your blueyonder address and just not told |
| direct instruction! | | | | anyone, but I happen to know that this is not the case, |
| Why is it that I make the effort, she makes things | | | | you just never acknowledge the emails I send you. |
| needlessly difficult, but I’m expected to forgive | | | | This is most likely a mentality issue, I bet you don't |
| forget her antisocial behavior/recklessness/inferiority | | | | respond to any messages, except when people phone |
| complex! | | | | up and ask about them! |
| That said, if she can accept me as an equal, and not | | | | I often send you emails I feel you may find interesting |
| just because she wants/needs something & | | | | or helpful. If you dislike the things I send you, please just |
| I’m not going to just take her word for it (I now | | | | ask me to stop sending them, instead of ignoring them |
| assume everything she says is a lie until proven | | | | in the hope that they’ll just stop. 'Ignoring' email |
| otherwise), I don’t see any problems, but as | | | | messages is discourteous and confusing to the sender |
| evidenced by this sign business, she is still under the | | | | and will not help much. |
| delusion that she is a law unto herself. | | | | With kind regards, |
| With kind regards, | | | | Michael Hart |
| Michael Hart | | | | ----- Original Message ----- |
| ----- Original Message ----- | | | | From: M.O.Hart |
| From: Michael | | | | To: *** |
| To: M.P. THOMAS | | | | Subject: Power over others for its own sake is by |
| Sent: Friday, June 09, 2006 08:34 PM | | | | definition evil. |
| Subject: Re: printers | | | | Dear ***, |
| Dear Meg, | | | | An educational psychologist (PhD), found the article I |
| The following sentence fragment looks like a | | | | published last week about your cute little inferiority |
| dependent clause with a comma splice, you’re | | | | complex (An Interesting Letter - A Theosophical |
| also missing a conjunction or two. | | | | Article). He liked my "surrogate school children" analogy |
| "...that would be smashing, Wednesday 'cos I will be at | | | | saying "the situation between you sounds like a typical |
| the museum." | | | | response to her displacement". |
| Mixed construction notwithstanding, I assume this is | | | | He is studying behavioural management and is |
| supposed to be something like: | | | | presently conducting research into the deleterious |
| "...smashing, not Wednesday..." (incomplete verb)as | | | | effects associated with educational conditioning in |
| opposed to: | | | | primary teachers. |
| "...smashing. Wednesday cos I will not be at the | | | | His research shows that female teachers whom are |
| museum...". | | | | unable to discard their conditioning after retirement can |
| Whatever the case, I have no immediate plans for | | | | become maladjusted and self-centered introverts. He |
| anything serious next week, so any time should be fine. | | | | believes that the ability to successfully manage |
| In addition to looking at your new printer. Here are | | | | teaching related behavioural issues is critical if they are |
| some other things worth consideration: | | | | to survive outside the classroom in a socially |
| 1) Internet connection sharing - Possibly the best way | | | | acceptable way. |
| to use your laptop and printer; | | | | His basic premise is a perversion of the |
| 2) Using MS Word functionality - "Worster (sic) and | | | | teacher-student relationship. In the normal course of |
| Birmingham canal"; | | | | events, the teacher's goal is to empower the student, |
| 3) Your Outlook message rules - I wager that you | | | | where the effect is to create a bond of affection |
| won’t see mail from ‘michaelohart’; | | | | between them which gives both the power "over" |
| 4) Your WIM responsibilities list - I think your email was | | | | ("for") each other that arises from love. |
| coerced; | | | | The research shows that, in a minority of cases |
| I look forward to working with you to create a bit of | | | | involving middle aged female primary teachers, the |
| grace and beauty. | | | | relationship becomes closer to that of master-slave, |
| With kind regards, | | | | where the master does everything possible to keep |
| Michael Hart | | | | the slave powerless. (If the slave's power increases, |
| ----- Original Message ----- | | | | the master's power decreases by an equal factor.) |
| From: M.P. THOMAS | | | | This seems to be the teachers defence mechanism |
| To: Michael | | | | against becoming attached i.e. A teacher allowing |
| Sent: Friday, May 26, 2006 05:28 PM | | | | herself to love her children gives them power over her |
| Subject: printers | | | | insomuch as the children now have the power to hurt |
| Dear Michael | | | | her by growing up and leaving. |
| I haven't forgotten your kind offer to show me what | | | | If primary teachers are unable to "de-programme" |
| my new printer can do, but things have been a little | | | | these rude, insensitive and unapproachable behaviours, |
| hectic this last week. If you can come round one day | | | | it will ultimately lead to alienation due to them being |
| next week that would be smashing, Wednesday 'cos I | | | | 'maladjusted', because they will be unable to interact |
| will be at the museum. | | | | with "young people" in a socially acceptable way after |
| Meg | | | | retirement. |