Just the job?

 

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Man:  Ah Miss Muircheartaigh  – do have  a seat. We’re sorry to have kept you waiting so long but as you are probably aware, there are a number of candidates for this position in our school. But you are very welcome. As a state school we are of course open to pupils of all denominations and the same applies to our teachers….Now. Can you tell us a little about your background.

Miss Muircheartaigh:  Well, I graduated from Queen’s three years ago with a degree in History.

Man:  And what grade did you achieve?

Miss Muircheartaigh: I got  a First Class Honours.  After that I studied for the Post-Graduate Certificate in Education at  the University of Ulster.

Man:  Very good. And I see your PGCE tutor speaks highly of you in his reference – your serious approach to your studies, your confident and organised work in the classroom. And since then you’ve been providing cover as a substitute teacher in a number of schools.

Miss Muircheartaigh: That’s right.

Man: Well that looks very good, I must say. Anybody else on the panel got questions?

Woman:  Why do you want to teach?

Miss Muircheartaigh: It’s something I’ve always been interested in. I enjoy the company of young people and I get a real satisfaction in working with them in History, which is an area I find fascinating.

Man: Good. Any other questions…No?…Well it just remains for me to ask you if there’s anything you’d like to tell us, Miss Muircheartaigh.  Anything in your background that would have bearing on your work here?

Miss Muircheartaigh: I don’t think so.

Man: Oh come, Miss Muircheartaigh.

Miss Muircheartaigh: Sorry?

Man:  Isn’t there a small matter that you haven’t shared with us?

Miss Muircheartaigh: I’m not sure I know what you’re getting at.

Man: (sighs) It would have been better if you had been frank with us from the first, Miss Muircheartaigh, and included it in your application…Let me ask you a question. Are you now or have you ever been a member of Sinn Féin?

Miss Muircheartaigh: Yes.

Man:  And yet you didn’t think of making this fact part of  your letter of application.

Miss Muircheartaigh: I didn’t think it had anything to do with my job.

Man: But of course it does. And to be frank, I really think it’s most unfortunate that this should only emerge under questioning from us.

Miss Muircheartaigh: How do you mean, ‘emerge’?  I wasn’t trying to hide anything. Saying it has ‘emerged’ makes it sound as though I was delberately concealing it or smuggling myself in or something.

Man: Well there I must differ with you, Miss Muircheartaigh. The word ‘emerge’ seems to me a perfectly fine word. One that’scommonly used. Why, only the other evening on the news, the newsreader spoke of a similar case, where a teacher received loyalist threats “after it emerged she is also a Sinn Féin councillor” – those are the exact words used by the newsreader, Miss Muircheartaigh. ‘After it emerged’.

Miss Muircheartaigh: Well I think the TV or radio people or whoever shouldn’t have used that term either. Emerged. It makes it sound as if I were a spy or something.

Man:  I don’t think any of us said you were a spy, Miss Muircheartaigh. But we do like our applicants and teachers to be frank with us and not present themselves as one thing when in fact they are something very different. It could have serious repercussions for us and pupils and everyone in the community.

Miss Muircheartaigh: I -I really don’t think you…I..

Man: Now, Miss Muircheartaigh, we have no wish to upset you. It’s just that were we to hire you and were it – as in the case I’ve just mentioned – were it to emerge  later on that you were a member of Sinn Féin, it would have unfortunate repercussions for the school – and for you yourself, Miss Muircheartaigh. I hope you can see where I’m coming from…Now – any other questions.

Miss Muircheartaigh: No.

Man: Very well. We will be in touch with, as with all the other candidates, in the near future. Thank you for coming.

Woman: You probably wouldn’t have felt comfortable here anyway, Miss Muircheartaigh.

Exit Miss Muircheartaigh, a handkerchief pressed to her face. The door closes behind her.

Man: (sighs deeply): Well. That was a near thing…Who’s next?

Secretary: A Miss Trotsky.

 

 

 

 

 

 

37 Responses to Just the job?

  1. neill February 12, 2014 at 9:53 am #

    Complete and utter Bollocks I `m afraid.

    No interview panel would ever behave in that manner you should know afterall I am sure you sat on enough of them

    The real question is did she tell the Principle that she was going to accept the position as a councilor?

    I would presume she did that being the case the school should have come out and defended her to the last.

    If however she had been employed in the private sector it would have been demanded that she tell her employer as being a councilor does take you away from your work quite a lot and many companies dont want to deal with the annoyances this causes.

    • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 11:45 am #

      Oh dear. Well, (i) Alan in Belfast is right – it is fiction. Anyone who doesn’t see that should see a psychiatrist; (ii) I have never sat on a panel for the appointment of a teacher – not even once; (iii) My fictional teacher was not a Sinn Féin Councillor, she was a Sinn Féin member; (iv) I notice you don’t say ‘A teacher’s politics is none of the school’s business’; (v) If you’re talking about the non-fictional Catherine Seeley, I don’t know if she told the school or not. I suspect you don’t either. (vi) I understood that councillors had day-jobs and that meetings etc were not called during working time. Have I got that wrong ? (vii) I know it’s my inner teacher talking but ‘principal’ has no capital P and has an ‘a’ – i.e., ‘principal’…

      • neill February 12, 2014 at 12:03 pm #

        Jude I assumed your work was fiction however some of your previous essays could have confused a mere mortal…

        Its a very difficult job to sit on an interview panel and to follow every rule to the letter very easy to get tripped up

        A persons politics are his or her own business fairly obviously!

        I dont know if she she told her principal or not I would image if she was professional she would have.

        Apparently many of the council meetings take place during the day in many ways its almost a full job.

        As for your inner teacher you are quite correct even the best make mistakes!

      • Factory girl February 15, 2014 at 9:51 pm #

        Did your inner teacher miss the Americanised spelling of councilor?

  2. Alan in Belfast (@alaninbelfast) February 12, 2014 at 11:24 am #

    Good fiction, but not the style of interviewing used to appoint teachers.

    > In order to assess each candidate’s performance, questions should be linked to the job description and the criteria contained in the Personnel Specification, eg for the post of Teacher under Personal Qualities the essential criterion may state: ‘Ability to work as part of a team’. Therefore, a suitable question might be: ‘Good relationships are paramount within the school. How might you contribute to the promotion of good relationships between pupils and teachers, both inside and outside the classroom?’

    • neill February 12, 2014 at 11:45 am #

      Spot on Alan

    • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 11:51 am #

      Thank you for calling my fiction ‘good’, Alan. I think in the example you give, however, you’re bundling together two criteria: ability to work as part of a team and a willingness to promote good relationships within the school. Both are valid and commendable criteria but the core question is whether a school has a right to know someone’s politics when they apply for a job. I don’t think they have, any more than they have a right to know if a person is living with their partner, has a hobby of breeding ferrets and/or has a brother who was convicted of child abuse.

      • Alan in Belfast (@alaninbelfast) February 12, 2014 at 11:57 am #

        The example was from a SEELB interview guidance document.

        They have no right to know someone’s politics, no more than they should consider their religion, sexuality, address, or love of country and western. If someone’s ferret breeding hobby adversely affects their teaching, that can be dealt with by the existing disciplinary process.

        A school might have a right to know if you’ve paid employment outside of school – that’s something in many people’s contracts (certainly in my private sector contract) so that line management can be comfortable that there’s no commercial conflict of interest and no effect on ability to work the hours you’re being paid to.

        Diversity – in the classroom as well as every other occupation – in my opinion leads to a much better workplace.

        • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 1:14 pm #

          That’s interesting, Alan. Not having been a full-time private worker – or at least not for a long long long time – I didn’t realise they could put in clauses about your doing other work. Bloody cheek I’d say, if you’re doing the job for them as you’re employed to do. I say that as someone who’s done freelance writing and broadcasting for decades. No one has ever raised it as a problem. And I think your last sentence goes to the heart of things: I’ve always argued that people with a hinterland are far more interesting and effective people than those who cling to the narrow borders of their little job and spend the rest of the time staring at the telly (instead of breeding ferrets, etc)

        • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 1:16 pm #

          PS The example was taken from an SEELB pamphlet? Well that pretty much guarantees it’s all mixed up…

  3. giordanobruno February 12, 2014 at 12:44 pm #

    Jude
    I fail to see the point you are making.
    Do you think something like this happened in the Seeley case? Has it happened elsewhere?
    Are you hoping it will happen to prevent any further intermingling of pure Irish blood with tainted planter blood?

    • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 1:09 pm #

      Gio – you’re a good laff. Such a big question: what is fiction for? I was just having a bit of fun while at the same time touching on some aspects of the Seeley case (but repeat repeat REPEAT this is not the Seeley case). And no, as fiction, it would be an astonishing coincidence if this happened in the real world as well. In fact totally unnerving. What would make you think I was trying to keep Irish blood and planter blood from mingling? I strongly suspect – in fact I half-know – that I’m a mixture of both bloods myself, so if you think I’m going to drain out and separate my own life-source, no, I don’t think I’ll do that. In fact, that notion of genetic apartheid never crossed my mind until this moment. You really do have a fertile imagination, gio….

      • giordanobruno February 12, 2014 at 3:49 pm #

        Jude
        The world needs laffs! Happy to oblige.
        The problems in the Seeley case clearly arose from the idiots who put pressure on the school and her, leading to her having to leave. Nothing to do with any interview procedure. Your satirical arrow was aimed at the wrong target, it seems to me.
        On the other point I know you are quite happy to see children educated separately, based on whether their parents believe God has a beard or just a moustache, or some other equally important distinction.

        • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 6:38 pm #

          Oh Gio (sounds like a song) – I’m definitely going to have to get you booked into a theology course. You sound like Edwin Poots. My blog was just a bit of fun with the odd truth laced in. As to education, I have this silly notion that parents should be allowed to decide where their children are educated and how. Daft of me, I know, but whatchagonnado?

          • giordanobruno February 12, 2014 at 7:12 pm #

            Jude
            No theology for me thanks. If I want far fetched fiction I will just read your blog!
            Of course the real differences in these faiths are much more sensible really; biscuits turning into the body of Christ and so on.
            So which bits of that effort were supposed to be truth then?
            As to education I agree parents should be able to choose, but I would prefer to see them choose integrated education (which ought to be the norm, not the exception) with their children mixing with those of other religions. Wouldn’t you?

          • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 7:22 pm #

            Gio – I’m the product of separate education and I can’t imagine anyone better adjusted than me – can you? Except of course yourself. I’m assuming you MUST be the product of integrated education. Now stop distracting me – I’m bloody busy…

  4. paddykool February 12, 2014 at 12:57 pm #

    Jude: God’s holey trousers!!!! This really is the land of the pedant. You set up a little piece of theatre to make a very important point about perception in Northern Ireland and immediately the grizzling dogs carp over the bloody bones of your humourous little script!

    It’s obviously never going to be a possibility in this place to separate the skills being brought to a job from the backwash of identity,personal education and political or social choices that each potential job candidate carries with them. It sounds awfully like “digging with the wrong foot ” all over again, doesn’t it. It’s not as if we should care if a brilliant English teacher was a muslim or an atheist, a marxist or a Moonie. The brilliance and ability to teach well l[as opposed to badly, would be the only criteria]I can remember some very good teachers with some very odd personal habits.

    If we continue to pursue this backward -looking line of thinking to it’s logical conclusion, we’ll be forced to import untarnished teachers from further afield…say Europe.We wouldn’t want our little darlings to be corrupted by the impure thoughts emanating from their teachers of local political origin or suspect virtue after all..

  5. willow February 12, 2014 at 2:19 pm #

    Are you making the point that Catholic schools have the right to discriminate against applicants on account of their religion?

  6. Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 2:38 pm #

    Ha ha, Willow – where did that one come from? I guess a faith school would keener on having those with that faith working in it; but I do know that Catholic schools welcome non-Catholic children and I know of several non-Catholic teachers working in Catholic schools. That said – isn’t this a rather gear-grinding subject change?

    • pretzellogic February 12, 2014 at 4:08 pm #

      Ha ha, Jude, now that was an interesting way to drive around the valid point Willow made in his gear-grinding subject change. And it’s so reassuring to know that Catholic schools welcome non-Catholic children and even more reassuring that you know of several non-Catholic teachers working in Catholic schools. Now, let’s move up another gear. Is the person who wrote this piece of fiction today mad or just pretending to be mad and are the people responding to it mad or just pretending to be mad?

      • paddykool February 12, 2014 at 4:20 pm #

        Now..there I was , thinking that “Willow” was a female, pretz…why did you think otherwise?

        • paddykool February 12, 2014 at 5:08 pm #

          My mind works like this…”pretzelogic”… name of album by …Steely Dan…origin…….William Burroughs beat writer…Naked lunch his book.. mention of ….a not too pleasant sounding.large steel dildo called a “Steely Dan”…???!

          Ergo….”Willow”…usually a girl’s name… female character in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.. …and then there’s that cute little pussycat avatar….? i wonder have I got it right?….meanwhile , back at the ranch….if you get the reference….

          • pretzellogic February 12, 2014 at 7:20 pm #

            paddykool, well hell, for all your Steely Dan knowledge that’s a hell of a way to spell pretzellogic.

      • Jude Collins February 12, 2014 at 7:24 pm #

        It’s not ‘or’, pretz. It’s ‘and’…

        • paddykool February 12, 2014 at 7:44 pm #

          Hi pretz… this is fun ..two words , right?…Aren’t typos wonderful? No harm done….

          • pretzellogic February 12, 2014 at 9:28 pm #

            paddykool, typos? that’s all Concorde to me I’m afraid

        • pretzellogic February 12, 2014 at 9:12 pm #

          Sorry Jude, but that’s the word I wanted to use. I purposely used it for fear of libel. Anyhow it got you talking to me again as opposed to the gushers you send to devour my bones.

  7. ANOTHER JUDE February 12, 2014 at 4:20 pm #

    Point is, a teacher`s political views should have zero bearing on his/ her suitability for the post. However in this horrible little sectarian statelet Unionists/Loyalists are so offended that anyone should have Nationalist/Republican tendencies they acquiesce as the knuckle draggers force them out. Make no mistake about it, the so called leaders of the two main Unionist parties will not come to the aid of any uppity taig. As for smiler Allister, I await his campaign for justice for Cathy, as he obviously hates injustice, as witnessed by his sterling help for Ms Travers.

  8. Cal February 12, 2014 at 6:45 pm #

    Surprised Peter Robinson didn’t lead from the front on the Catherine Seeley case, he is after all, a champion for integrated education. Or does his integrated education utopia not include teachers with republican political beliefs ?

    Now that I think more on it, I’m not in the least surprised Peter said sweet FA in defending Catherine.

  9. ANOTHER JUDE February 12, 2014 at 8:33 pm #

    The Unionist logic, Catholic/Nationalist/Republican……bad
    Protestant/Unionist/Loyalist…………good.

    • pretzellogic February 12, 2014 at 10:48 pm #

      ah come on now, ANOTHER JUDE….. we’ve already established that a long time ago on planet Jude

      • ANOTHER JUDE February 13, 2014 at 10:52 am #

        No narrative just facts pretzellogic, as a wise (?} man once said.

  10. Ceannaire February 12, 2014 at 11:24 pm #

    No pretzellogic, we’ll all, no doubt, be reminded tomorrow (the usual 13th February justification of violence) of a similar type of thinking:

    British violence good, Irish violence bad.

  11. Pointis February 13, 2014 at 8:42 am #

    It is not only State schools that people who have Republican leanings might have problems in securing employment! It is a widely help perception in the Nationalist community that the Boards of governors of most Catholic schools are dominated by members of the SDLP and the Catholic Church! Just ask any teacher in the Catholic sector and they would advise not to mention involvement with Sinn Fein if you would like to secure a long term position in a Catholic school.

    • giordanobruno February 13, 2014 at 9:31 am #

      Pointis
      It’s a miracle that Catherine Seeley ever got a job in the first place, given that everybody is conspiring against Sinn Fein.
      As Alan in Belfast has already pointed out it is no business of the interviewing panel what a person’s politcs is, so why would the candidate mention it?

  12. paddykool February 13, 2014 at 1:45 pm #

    Jude: Members of the awkward squad , really have very little chance of employment in any of these establishments on either side of this mad divide when their potential employers decide to dive into their colourful backgrounds .

    What hope for the now happily married, well-educated, gay teacher who believes in neither gods nor demons and has spent his/her scrambling teenage years blasted on e- tabs at various raves, afraid of telling himself/herself the truth in such an unfriendly and unbending society; : who thinks that most politicians he sees on television are mostly unworldly, cretinous opportunists out for a fast buck or are shallow un-intellectual political or religious bigots, who do not appear to have read any books outside of their narrow parochial world view.So much for educating our children ….

    That person could be any of our sons or daughters in this brave new world.They really don’t have much of a chance , do they?

  13. Virginia February 14, 2014 at 2:26 am #

    State school teaching contracts can specify that all outside employment is to be vetted and the principal can disallow secondary employment if they choose.