A reflection:There is no covid in Malta during the electoral campaign

 Maltese society thrives on showing different facets to people, depending on who they are and also depending on what is occurring in the country.

Covid cases are on the increase again, especially since mass gatherings have been allowed again due to Malta being in a short electoral campaign. The party leaders and political candidates held mass rallies, and threw parties, dinners and shows, depending on the candidate's pocket. Photos are strewn on social media of people next to each other, crammed in places, with no masks, and touching each other, posing for photos.  An alien from Mars  would surely think that Covid does not exist on this tiny island. However, this is far from the truth. Covid exists here and the cases are going up again.

The only place where Covid remains is in schools. That is the laughable matter in this whole saga. In schools we are forced to wear masked all the time, students have to stick to their bubbles and all the protocols are applied. It is no wonder that students are at the end of their tether and that parents are frustrated. A  parent phoned to ask why her child was punished because she had changed places with her friend. Upon hearing my stock reply that it was covid protocol, she immediately protested, saying that outside, in the weekends, everybody was having fun. How does one convince such a parent that schools are different?

Will Covid be the talk of the town again, now that the election has passed? Only time will tell. It is a sure fact that Covid is here to stay, but all precautions should be everywhere the same, for the sake of fairness- if not for anything else.

KidVenture: Twelve Weeks to Midnight Blue

 
This book is a useful tool to persuade young children to become entrepreneurs. It teaches that everybody is capable and that mistakes can be done. The book teaches the reader about new ventures and to be bold, think and to never give up, even when the going gets hard.

The plot of the story centres around Chance and his family, with the mostly mentioned characters being his dad and his sister Addie, who then becomes Chance’s business partner in the pool cleaning business. The story takes us through the 12 weeks of summer and how their pool cleaning business,  evolves. It guides us through the mistakes, like when Chance had to clean Old Man Lee very dirty pool (as he had not asked about the state of the pool) or when he asked Francine for 30 dollars to clean her pool, and she turned down his offer. There are also the jubilant points in the kids’ venture, like when Chance went to Sir Larry’s home for the first time.  Chance was very happy when he felt the 20 dollar note in his hand. He felt encouraged and satisfied to do this work. Another high point was when the kids  got new customers, thus increasing their revenue.
 
The book also looks at friendships and how such friendships are impacted when business is involved. An example is when Amit started working for Chance, and he turned up late for Luisa’s first cleaning appointment. It also looks into how one can negotiate, and that one must not expect to have his way all the time. There are also examples of how the relationship between Chance and Addie works; the business partnership was built on trust, they had business meetings together and discussed their course of actions.

The books is a gold mine for jargon used in the business world. It introduces the young readers to such words as leverage, marketing, profit and expenses. I strongly urge that students read this book as it is very inspirational.

 

The Lucky Diamond by Valinora Troy

 

The Lucky Diamond is a story which leaves adults and children enthralled. It has a plot which is difficult to leave. Once you start the story, you feel the need to finish it  as soon as possible. The plot is engrossing, there are severe twists to the story and lots of sub plots which makes one very curious about what will happen next.

 

The story takes place in Nirvam and is about five siblings and their adventures with the lucky diamond. The story immediately puts you in the context, it starts five years earlier when the children's Uncle Matt was sentenced for treason against the state of Lowdar. Instead of being executed, Uncle Matt was thrown out into the great forest, where those who are left there, are never seen or heard of again.

 

Five years later, one of the siblings encounters a diamond which can talk. In reality, the diamond is a princess. The five children start their adventures persuaded by lucky the diamond to take her back to her diamond kingdom up Mount Slate. Along the way, the children have all sorts of adventures, they meet various types of monsters, the short people  'Nelkins’, witches and a flying canoe.

 

The five children and lucky the diamond are the main characters of the story. Then there is paul the king of Kyle, who starts off as bossy and arrogant, but who then becomes more humble and down to earth. One can relate a lot to Yvonne, the eldest of the five siblings who acts also as a mother to her younger sisters and brother. She is responsible and caring. It is through these adventures that we learn about the importance of loyalty, being kind and empathic to other people’s feelings.

 

This book is truly an enjoyable book and I highly recommend it

Covid and how it has affected youths

 In my job as assistant head of school, I am lucky enough to work closely with young people. I love my job, I get to know about the latest fashion trends, songs and popular slang words.

This year, I am in charge of year 9 students and these past two months since I have started caring for them have shown that Covid has left a dreadful impact on these young people's mental health. This year, I am seeing more depressed youths. When I talk to them to try and find why they are like this, one thing emerges. This is the fact that they were cut off from their friends at the beginning of the pandemic when schools closed abruptly at the beginning of March 2020. Many have been complaining of loneliness, others say that they have developed OCD conditions, still others are despairing that life can ever be the same again. This has caused great anxiety, with these 13 year olds asking me whether they will ever get to enjoy their youth without any restrictions whatsoever.

Students' mental health and well-being are very important as they also impact the students academic performance. I am grateful that I am being supported all around, I have had meetings with parents, and students are being looked after by guidance teachers. Next week, class interventions will be done in those classes which have the most number of depressed and anxious students. These interventions have been timed to happen before schools break up for the Christmas recess, to help cushion the effect that students might have if they are at home alone during the holidays. This is one small step in my journey with this cohort of students - as a school we care for their holistic development and that with time, slowly but surely, they will feel better,

Schools in Malta amid the pandemic

Six months after the first case of covid-19 appeared in Malta, schools are still closed for pupils. With Malta placing the third in the EU for deaths pro rata, the situation looks very bleak.  While schools opened last Monday for educators, students will start coming in to school in a staggered way starting from October 7th till the 14th.

The situation was under control at the beginning of July, but after airport was opened, and a series of mass events were held, the situation relapsed and the number of those infected started increasing daily. There have now been registered 35 deaths related to Covid 19, and more than 700 people are infected with the virus.

Schools closed immediately in March after the first few cases were diagnosed. Online teaching was implemented. However, now it is essential that schools open as students cannot remain cooped at home. They need to socialise and even though they will be in bubbles, there is nothing better than meeting one's friends face to face. This also goes for the learning. It is better to teach students when they are in  front of you and you can monitor their behaviour.

Looking forward to this scholastic year, with all the problems and obstacles it will offer!

Malta scores low in PIsa results

Once again, Malta has scored abysmally in the Pisa results. What is of particular concern to me is the fact that state schools still rank behind church and independent schools. This is an injustice to the majority of students on the Maltese Islands who attend state schools.

More needs to be done. Whilst one cannot deny that a lot is being done structure wise, with new schools being built, and older ones being refurbished, unfortunately, this is not the way to go.

Social justice for these children can be gotten by raising standards and expectations of all students, once again instilling discipline in schools, and putting importance on kindness, and respect, both towards authority, towards each other and also towards the environment.  Being smart is also a value which has gone with the wind.

Letting students come to school with their tracksuits, or letting boys wear earrings is not the way forward. Whilst I have nothing against equality, schools should be allowed to set their own policies and not have them imposed upon by the Education Department. Giving students everything they want is strictly not on. In life, one cannot get everything one wants. A rethinking of the way that Maltese state schools are heading is to be urgently done.

The full details about the Pisa results can be found in this link:

https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/education-system-in-the-dock-as-students-score-low-in-major-survey.

SAB POSTU F’AMBJENT TA’ TAGĦLIM ADDATTAT GĦALIH

A student speaking about his experiences at a vocational school. He says that he is very happy as this is the ideal place for him to learn and thrive.

This school is found in the central town of Paola and caters for students aged 15 to 18 years.