Week two has started and I am proud to say that I have almost completed this weeks workload! Yay me! Aside from some reading and a web conference tomorrow night at 7pm I am almost there.
The subjects I have taken on this semester are Foundations of Teaching - which as a requirement means I have to undertake a 4 week placement in a birth to two years class environment. This means juggling work, childcare and my placement which will no doubt be difficult. I work from 4.30pm-8.30pm weeknights and 1pm-5pm on weekends. If I happen to get a placement (which I will not find out until two weeks prior) that requires me to be there past 4pm I will only be able to work weekends which will result in little money and me being a very tired soul. Four weeks placement full time for the days and working weekends will also mean I will not have much time left for my (supportive) husband and (mummy loving) children. The childcare side of it works out well as placement starts soon after my Mum retires, which means she has volunteered to look after the boys and my husband will be taking a week of holidays to give her some relief. Although he is home by lunchtime most days so if Mum decides she has had enough of her darling grandsons she can bring them home for hubby to take over. If I happen to fail this subject though placement will not happen and I will be taking a massive step backwards. Failure is NOT an option!
The second subject I have taken on is Personal and Professional Numeracy. People that know me will know that Mathematics was never a strong point for me. This subject sees me re-exploring the mathematical world and all the joyful aspects of it. I seem to have a grasp on what has been put infront of me so far but I can only assume the subject matter will get harder. I am hoping to complete and pass this unit as it was one that I dropped last year during first semester. The reason I dropped it was because I had just started on my path towards my degree and I was overwhelmed with the work load whilst trying to plan our wedding and knowing that we were going to be away for a couple of weeks, didn't want to get too far behind in my studies.
And lastly the third subject for semester one is Early Childhood Theories of Teaching and Learning. This is an elective but a requirement for my degree. It explores the theories of educators and theorists throughout history and how it is still relevant today. Whilst completing this weeks lectures and readings I was amused and amazed to see what rules were put in place for teachers in the 1800's and even 1915. Here is what was required of Female Victorian Teachers in 1915:
* Must be single.
* Are not to keep company with males.
* Must be home between the hours of 8pm and 6am unless attending a school function.
* Are not permitted to loiter downtown or in icecream parlours (What the?)
* May not travel beyond city limits without permission from the education board.
* May not travel in the car with a male unless it is her father or brother.
* May not smoke cigarettes.
* May not dress in bright colours.
* Under no circumstances to dye their hair.
* Must wear two petticoats and dresses to be no shorter than two inches above the ankle.
Thankgod I don't live during these times. My career would be over before it began! How strange to have such restrictions, most of which are applied outside school hours.
So the ball is rolling and it's only going to get more full on from here. I am still of the mind set that my 5 year plan is in action and once qualified a world of opportunities will await me! I will get my weekends back, I will have a steady income and we will be in a position to do the things in life we want to do. There is light at the end of the tunnel, at the moment it seems like a firefly in the distance but regardless it is ahead and waiting for me to reach it! :)
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