Quimby's Journal

In anticipation of what is yet to come in a few hours, here is a teaser of my book titled "Social Media Detox: The new luxury is being offline." Some of my readers are already curious and asking what this book entails for them. Besides reading this piece for mere relaxation pruposes, it also provides information and education on social media issues that, as individuals, would not only add to our knowledge hub, but also improve on our lives. Without much hesitation, here is an introductory chapter to my book. Do take a read and leave a review on Amazon. Introduction: Most of us wouldn’t acknowledge how much social media affects us because we hate to be separated from the only thing that seems to provide us with a way out of this world. We wake up each morning and the first thing we are most likely to do is to check for messages, tweets notifications and likes. We deceive ourselves about how much an effect social media has on us and yet when we don’t get as much likes as we wou

Being confined in a limited space over a period without exercising your thinking faculty can leave you dull and rusty over time. This has become a great concern for educators and heads of educational institutions hence, their dependence on the virtual learning possibilities which enables institutions reach out to their learners remotely during this school shutdown period. I, for instance, am welcome to the vast possibilities a virtual learning environment can provide for me as an educator. The VLE refers to "a system that offers educators digitally-based solutions aimed at creating an interactive, active learning environment." Better still, "it helps educators create, store and disseminate content, plan courses and lessons and foster communication" between the learner and the educator. Simply put, it's like learning using the web whether via audio, video or visual content. You only need a mobile phone, laptop or tablet and a good source of internet connec

After lazing😴 around for a couple of weeks thinking what I should write in this lockdown season, I finaly got off my lazy butt and scribbled something down. It's not about a nose mask though.😀 First of all, I never thought I would be saying this but "Damn! I miss school". I miss the noise of kids running after each other, slamming doors, spilling drinks, babies crying, stumping of boots during morning assembly march, shouts of teachers trying to get pupil's attention, drumming of tables, pupils shouting their notes during music lessons, pupils cheering their team mates during games... I could go on and on.  "Sometimes you will never know the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory" - unknown. Now more than ever, I feel the void anytime I wake up and I can't go to work because school has been shutdown indefinitely. There were days I would dread going to school. All I thought was "this teacher life isn't for me". Today, the

I was very skeptical about writing this particular article. When it comes to discipline,  I try so hard not to sound cliché. Everybody got their own style of discipline and more often, this is as a result of the kind of upbringing one had when growing up. The Christian religion believe that "He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly" - Proverbs 13:24 NKJV. So if i grew up in a Christian home, I would probably be more inclined to this ideology in the Bible. However, not every parent or teacher is a christian believer, so why would this rule apply to them? Discipline is the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behaviour, using punishment to correct disobedience. The first part of the aforementioned is usually widely accepted while the latter part brings a lot of controversy when touched on. Why is it so? Let's just presume that people hate punishment as much as I do hence, the uproar against it. However

Back in the days when I was in Basic school, I’d always prefer to be seated either in front or in the middle of the class. The back seat or a seat by the window was a NO! NO! for me. I would flinch when my sitting position was changed. It usually did affect my behavior in class and also my general interest in school. But then, have we, as teachers or lecturers, really taken a consideration into seating and sitting arrangements in the classroom or anything goes? Before I proceed, let’s get the distinction between seating arrangement and sitting arrangement. The former has to do with how the seats are arranged - circular fashion, theatre fashion, horse-shoe fashion, etc. The latter refers to positions allocated to people to sit. That cleared, do sitting arrangements really matter in a classroom setting? Can a scholar just desire a particular spot in the classroom without any hindrance? I am a student who preferred to sit at the back even though I had bad eye sight. My teacher would

As a teacher, I probably can't start my year without making sure I'm fully prepared. That is, having the essential stationery or tools to do my work. A teacher's work tool may vary from person to person or from subject-teacher to subject-teacher. The tools a Science teacher may need to teach may differ from that of a Math Teacher. However, there are some basic stationery that runs across from the head teacher down to the classroom teacher - not compulsory but a must have. This is not to say whatever you have as a teacher listed or not listed here is non-essential. It's just a guide preferably for teachers new to the profession. There is no general rule that you should have all of the stuff mentioned below yet, it would do you great good if you do have them. Most of these stationery are less costly and easy to get. My most important tool of all is the pen. A teacher can't do without writing. Like they say, a pen is mightier than the sword. Writing has more

Modern day educational institutions are gradually getting rid of the staffroom, if not entirely. Office spaces have now become more private than public spaces. Teachers would prefer to have their own office space to suit their style and personality than a common room where everybody is welcomed. I, personally, would prefer a private office as compared to a staff common room. Imagine having your quiet time and another colleague walks into the staffroom, puts on the radio to listen to the morning talk show while you just prefer to be in an absolutely solemn environment? You really can't complain can you? After all, its a staff room so I would just have to bare with such "crap".  However, in as much as I would prefer my private office space, there are some interesting facts about the staff room I wouldn't want to miss out on. Talk about the staff room diaries. The staff room allows the teacher to flow easily with colleagues, provides the platform for discussi