As I just finished my first A2 Maths homework about the modulus function, I felt that would be an appropriate title. Good evening!
My life is a bit of a mish-mash of things happening at the moment. The Babble Summer CDs arrived on Tuesday and are so beautifully presented I’m quite speechless in gratitude for Pingu for putting in so much work. Great job guys! 
For those unaware, Babble members prepared a summery CD of their favourite tracks and sent them to Pingu to be duplicated, labelled and delivered.
I’m also reading for the first time in far too long. Specifically, In Defence of History which, I was told, is the book to read if you want to study History at Cambridge. It is rather good though! [Wary eyes if any future admissions people watch this] I’ll reserve judgement till the end, however, on whether History is an art or a science. For the moment – I’ll say either, both and neither, OK? And talking of History, I have decided to do my Individual Assignment on… *drumroll* the French Revolution!
Oh, and we started to watch All Quiet on the Western Front in English and were amused by the very dodgy American accents of the ‘German’ soldiers. Sorry. Horror of war and all that.
Happy Birthday Me 
I’m still tired after RaVe on Saturday at Nic’s house – a brilliant event, and very well managed too – where I got approximately no sleep. Joshua and Fabio enjoyed themselves too, though… and while I could publish all sorts of gossip, I’ll hold off for now. (Not of out discretion, I’m just tired and busy. 
) A2s started today, but at a nice and easy pace, which is lucky.
Happy Birthday to Hanan, too 
The Church of England wants all faith schools exempted from a planned ban on discrimination against homosexuals
(BBC News)
“Jody was not the first man to be killed, or terrorised, or beaten, or humiliated for being homosexual”
(BBC News)
Something is desperately wrong when those in charge of our children’s education are still trying to wrangle and squirm their way out of true tolerance and respect as if it was all a big game they can drag out for eternity. It isn’t. People still die because institutions like the Church have contributed, over many many years, to a homophobic culture that persists even in this relatively liberal society. I hope those many good men and women in the Church will examine their consciences and pressure their leaders to live up to their public face of inclusion.
No not the 1950s TV show… just thought I should fill my loyal blog readers in with the fact I’m going out with Lucy. Since… yeah, OK, since 17:37:03. Of the 25th of February. OK so maybe this was a bit late in blogging, and I might lose my reputation for bringing you breaking news 
, but I did pledge not to turn this into a teenage-love-life-yawnathon and I won’t. Promise.
Anyway! Went to ‘Camden’ with Joshua today. So called because I am (still) convinced Camden isn’t a real place but a state of mind on some other plane of existence or something. But they do sell very nice crepes and I do rather like it, so let’s go back. You can come too Clare, since you asked so nicely. Oooh – and we broke Joshua’s record for being offered weed by drug dealers in Camden, which I am rather proud in being a part of. 
Joshua is coming along with Fabio and I to Birmingham tomorrow for Nic’s RaVe, and I might just bump into Lucy too, you never know. 
54% of the top 100 newspaper editors, columnists, broadcasters and executives were educated privately, despite fee-paying schools catering for 7% of the school population
Source: MediaGuardian
I don’t know about you, Nic, but I’d take that as a challenge
There’s a whole raft of interesting education-related stories out at the moment, as a matter of fact. Demands to cut the National Curriculum, always a thorny issue, although I usually come down in favour of retaining it. It’s all very well to say you want a curriculum that is not ‘carved up into subjects’ – but they have the focus to actually deliver a planned programme of learning. It’s true that you don’t learn Macbeth because of any actual practical application from that specific text, it’s the skills and broad understanding which it gives, but that doesn’t mean you don’t teach Macbeth in an English lesson as part of a national curriculem.
Meanwhile, the Tories are asking for more history lessons. It’s interesting, because at Eton (summer school, I’m not part of that elite ) our history teacher told us to watch out for the almost-yearly demand for more British History from the Conservative Party – so it appears to be one of the few things left unscathed by Cameron’s regime. Of course, I’d like to have done ‘more history’ but that reflects my bias, since I’d also like to have done ‘less PE’, ‘less RE’ and ‘less pointless assemblies’ which would hardly be championed by any politican. To be fair, however, it does seem that at the moment there’s an over-reliance on teaching a few periods (WW2, American Civil Rights, ur, WW2…) in great detail but relative isolation, and that should change.
Finally! Do young children learn homophobia? Yes, yes they do. And schools should show absolutely no mercy in cracking down on it with compulsory sex-education (not the silly ones that parents can opt their children out of because it might hurt their poor ickle ears) which explicitly endorses homosexuality as a positive orientation, with gay role models and couples from an early age. It’s utterly unacceptable that “schools had asked homosexual pupils to leave as they were unable to cope with homophobic bullying” – clearly, the bullies should have been the ones to leave. Any complaints? Bring it on
Rob Bell on Baby’s first blog: “Congratulations! Sounds like you are really enjoying the first few weeks which is great. Time flies!” Oct 13, 12:59
