Could Do Better...

[major_clanger]

Another small battle in the War Against Junk today, this time sorting through bags of old school-related stuff that spent years in my Mum's attic before being flung in my direction, and has now followed us through at least one house move.

In the course of this I found a pile of my old school reports. It seemed unfair not to share some of them...



1974, Primary School "He spends much of his time day dreaming... I feel that it is important that he should learn to conform..."

1975, Primary School "...likes to exercise his imagination on space fantasies..."

1978, Middle School "A thinker, he must put more effort into his work..."

1981, Grammar School 2nd Form, Spring
Maths: "...spends too much time day-dreaming"
French: "Learning a language effectively is largely a matter of attention to detail - an activity S___ does not seem to find congenial."
Chemistry: "I appreciate too the reports he gives me of the proceedings of the GUILDFORD ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY" (Teacher's capitals!)

1981, 2nd Form, Summer
French: "Although S___'s presentation is dreadfully inaccurate and his attention sporadic, he has shown competence in understanding and an occasional remarkable insight into the processes of language. I now rather enjoy teaching him."
PE/Games: "He continues to adopt his own particularly idiosyncratic style to this subject, which is a constant source of inspiration to us all! He is always smart."

1982, 3rd Form, Spring
English: "...I wish the accuracy of his written English matched his fund of ideas."

1982, 3rd Form, Summer
RE: "He thinks very fast and needs to slow down and concentrate more..."

1983, 4th Form, Spring
English: "S___'s sentences and paragraphs are sustained, but his output so great that undetected errors remain to pull down the final mark."
PE/Games: "His perseverance during gymnastics to complete a straddle vault does him credit."
Headmaster's Summary: "In his own special way, S___ is obviously developing well."

1983, 4th Form, Summer
French: "S___ is not a natural linguist..."

1984, 5th Form, Spring
Chemistry: "...only one wrong solution in sixty multiple choice questions!" Swot!

1985, Lower 6th Form, Spring
Physics: "S___ certainly keeps me on my toes..."
House Master: "As a senior member of Austen house, S___ must try and become more involved in the various inter-house competitions." But they didn't have one for computer gaming!

Comments

[hawkida.livejournal.com]

My reports make for very dull reading. I was consistently reasonably good at most things and terribly well behaved.

[major-clanger.livejournal.com]

The same for most of mine - the above is the very edited highlights. The common themes in my early reports seem to be a tendancy for my attention to wander and messy presentation. As I focussed more on subjects I really enjoyed and was good at, the reports were usually very positive but did sometimes note that I had to remember to be more thorough in written work - I was inclined just to put down what I knew was the right answer without explaining it.

MC

[maureenkspeller.livejournal.com]

I presume my mother has the school reports squirrelled away somewhere. So far as I can recollect, I was bad at PE, bad at art, average to extremely good in everything else. Came top of the class most terms during secondary school, except the times when I came second. Being top of the class would produce the famous remark 'couldn't you let someone else have a turn this time.' Coming second usually produced 'why didn't you come top.'

M.

[bugshaw.livejournal.com]

These comments were hilarious when we read them out of the report books yesterday - they haven't translated at all well. Maybe it's all in the intonation as your translate What Teachers Say into What Teachers Really Mean...

PE/Games "He continues to adopt his own particularly idiosyncratic style to this subject, which is a constant source of inspiration to us all! He is always smart."

And being neatly turned out is one of the more important things to learn in Games...

Bug

[hawkida.livejournal.com]

I did laugh, they are funny on screen too.