Oh bugger... I thought this thread was for a "kitesurfing disco".

Me thinks me had better clean me glasses.

Charl dv said...


can someone PLEASE give me a clear cut definition of what discourse is because this assaignment is confusing the hell out of me!

the assaignment is:

evaluate through investigation the discourse of a sport, the family, buisness, politics, the law, medicine, a hobby, religion or the media. present your findings in your investigation notebook in atleast three different written forms. The discourse for investigation must be negotiated with your teacher and a suitable and manageable topic chosen. Present your findings in the form of an analytical essay.

Charl, so far as I understand, discourse is the process of presenting or discussing a topic. So the things of interest are the terms used, the varying points of view or the varying facts and evidence. Presenting one view/piece of evidence/conclusion is not necessarily discourse, but presenting several views/pieces of contrasting evidence/conclusions is discourse. through discourse, a more balanced conclusion can be drawn.

Hope that helps, and if I am completely wrong, let me know, 'cause it is a term that was not used when I went to school.

Kitehard said...

Gees they teach a load of crap in school these days! WTF?

No offence to the kids, it's the system and the teachers that are the problem.

<rant over>

The teachers are the problem? Most teachers are extremely dedicated to the profession and do a fantastic job. Of course, there will always be a few exceptions as there are in any industry or profession. Kite Instructors for example, I certainly have come across some who should not be teaching, especially considering the dangerous aspects of this sport. However, I will not blindly categorize all instructors as being incompetent as that simply is not the truth.

As to your "Gees they teach a load of crap in school these days! WTF?" is obviously based on your clear understanding of the unit taught, subject matter, assessment items and most importantly the global outcomes of that unit and not just sheer ignorance.

You certainly have a right to express your opinion. However, I am disappointed that you of all people have made such a derogatory statement as I have always believed that you are one of the true ambassadors of this sport. Comments like this can only divide members of this community and cannot contribute positively in any form.

Please keep in mind the amount of teachers that participate in our great pastime and also frequent this forum.

<rant over>

I don't think that you can entirely blame teachers for the standards of kids these days: parents are surely just as responsible for the outcome. After all, you can't polish a turd (but you could always try rolling it in glitter).

Capt.Gumby said...

Kitehard said...

Gees they teach a load of crap in school these days! WTF?

No offence to the kids, it's the system and the teachers that are the problem.

<rant over>

The teachers are the problem? Most teachers are extremely dedicated to the profession and do a fantastic job. Of course, there will always be a few exceptions as there are in any industry or profession. Kite Instructors for example, I certainly have come across some who should not be teaching, especially considering the dangerous aspects of this sport. However, I will not blindly categorize all instructors as being incompetent as that simply is not the truth.

As to your "Gees they teach a load of crap in school these days! WTF?" is obviously based on your clear understanding of the unit taught, subject matter, assessment items and most importantly the global outcomes of that unit and not just sheer ignorance.

You certainly have a right to express your opinion. However, I am disappointed that you of all people have made such a derogatory statement as I have always believed that you are one of the true ambassadors of this sport. Comments like this can only divide members of this community and cannot contribute positively in any form.

Please keep in mind the amount of teachers that participate in our great pastime and also frequent this forum.

<rant over>

Hey Capt Gumby,

I am not knocking teachers dedication and you are right. Some of my best friends are teachers, I have even thought of becoming a teacher myself. I may have been a little harsh on the teachers, it is not the teachers who dictate the syllabus is it?

I do stand by my comments that a lot of teachers I have met and read from, cannot spell or use grammer correctly. How is it that so many high school students and graduates, cannot do simple arithmatic without the aid of a calculator, and cannot write a sentence correctly without spell check. These are my own personal experiences, I am not even going to start calling in on the statistics that back my argument.

I see this everyday in my life and am not asking for students to be geniuses, or teachers for that matter, but surely to simply add subtract, multiply and divide without a calculator is not a big ask, nor is basic spelling, use of correct tenses, or words such as "there, their & they're". Simple stuff which happens to be the fundamental building blocks of the way we communicate in society.

It just freaks me out that some kids are better spellers than their teachers. I also whole heartedly agree that a good portion of the blame rests on the shoulders of the parents who are too busy working to spend time helping educate their kids.

There are so many aspects to this problem that it is a pointless task at best to try and figure out an answer here. I just wonder if Charl and many other students would have been better off learning more constructive things than discourse?

I hope not too have upset too many of the good teachers with my "off-the-cuff" comments, those of you who know me know where I'm coming from. I do however, truly have concern for the future if things don't change and we go back to basics before worrying about "discourse" FFS.

Good winds,



<written without the aid of spell check>