Act 2 Scenes 3 & 4

In these scenes Rita appears quite different from the beginning of the play. She enters Frank's office speaking completely differently. She explains she wants to talk "properly" from now onwards and as her friend Trish suggested, she needs to do it all the time in order to practice. I

I think from the educational point of view, this is another way of feeling a sense of belonging and behaving as the rest of the students. Frank critizices Rita on not being herself when talking in such a way. However, she seems to like it, even more at this stage when she feels capable of doing so because she feels she is much more prepared and self confident.

On the other hand, she also tells Frank she 's been on the grass talking to the other students at college, which makes him feel quite jealous. Rita's attitude is differnet now. She has become much more conscious of her capacities and has grown and learnt a lot, these things make it possible for her to relate with other classmates and even confront Frank when discussing his point of view on her essays.

Generally speaking, our students sometimes need to develop self confidence in order to grow as students themselves. Once they realize they are able to do so nothing stopps them. Sometimes, unconsciously we, teachers, stop them from their growth and self development, because of not being aware of their needs , because we do not how to help them or simply it happens as Frank who unconsciously does not want Rita to change because he feels she is losing her essence.

Educating Rita Act 2 Scene 1

I think that the fact that "the window won't bludge " can be compared with Frank's attitude taking into account what follows in the scene. He won't change his position towards drinking or improve himself although , according to Rita , he has "a lot going for him". I guess by this, Rita means all his knowlwdge and his job at university which is what she admires.

From the educational poit of view, sometimes this concept of "the window which won't bludge" can be reflected in different ways: for instance, a teacher who does not modify his or her position towards new or different methodologies to be applied in order to improve her or his task. Or else, the attitude of some students who would not cooperate although they see some teachers really make the effort to insert them in an activity or a class or society...

On the other hand Frank feels, as it happened with Julia, that Rita will go away some day and he has nothing or nobody to fight for. It is not worth changing for him because he cannot see any purpose in doing that. It might happen to teachers as well as to students that sometimes it is not worth making the effort either to help or to accept some help as the world won't change because of our actions. However, they cannot see the results beyond the actions.

As regards Rita's comment " you don't do Blake without doing innocence and experience", shows a turning point in this students who has bloomed and grown. And Frank saying "of course" as an answer shows he has realized Rita was able to change and grow in education as she wanted. Frank's reaction does not seem to be a satisfactory to me, his comment seems to be sort of melancholic, as if he did not really want Rita to change....

Might it happen that sometimes teachers conscious or unconsciously do not want our own students to grow....?????

Educating Rita Scene 1 Act 7 & 8

I think Rita didn't go to the party because she might have felt very nervous at the moment she got to Frank's place. Sharing the evening with those people might have meant a sort of test for her and she did not feel very self confident to take it. Also, because she thought she would not feel at ease and on the other hand she probably compared herself with the guests and she felt she was not up to standard, she was not like them and she would not have anything in common either to share or talk about with them. From the educational point of view, this reminds me of the fear sometimes students feel when they have to face the moment of evaluation. Lots of feelings and fears lurk inside them which make them paralize when they have to sit for a test.

On the other hand I think her mother's words had an underlying message. I guess her mother probably has felt the same Rita feels right now about the challenge of learning at some moment of her life but she might have not tried or succeeded in doing so (we really do not know up to now). This comment from her mother's must have given Rita the strenght to go on and try harder so as not to end up regretting not having at least made the effort to make a change in her life, to improve, to feel a better person... Sometimes, when we are in the role of a student or a techer, the idea of not achieving a goal or having difficulties in our learning process or facilitating knowledge gives us the strengh to go on and overcome obstacles. At times, these difficulties can cause the opposite effect: frustration and giving up our aims.

As regards Fank's comment on Rita's essay I think what he meant was that a student would write just to pass a test and probaly Rita's essay does not have the required academic level for a passing mark. However, Frank recognizes how valuable it is, for the essay shows up her uniqueness and passion while writing and he does not want to change that "trade mark" Rita has. Anyway, Rita does not feel flattered with Frank's opinion because although he says he does not want to change the way she writes for he would be changing her, she reminds him of the change she is looking for.

In my opinion, this episode tells us a lot about who sets parameters when testing students and how these are set. At times there is not a unified criterium to set parameters and it depend on each teacher to be able to test a student taking into account lots of factors which are part of the evaluation. For example: the student's background, social and emotional situation, effort, dedication ... also what do we appreciate of our students ???? Can we see beyond their school work as Frank did with Rita....?

Educating Rita Act 1 Scene 6

Rita rushes in Frank's office , she wants to tell someone who understands about plays that she thinks Mcbeth was " bloody great and dead good" . She uses these expressions, one would not normally use in a conventional, formal essay to express how she felt about it. She expresses her thoughts this ways because this is the way she knows how to do so. I do not think if in an essay written by Rita, these expressions would be wrong, they show her inner being...

On the other hand when Frank tells her about the interpretation of Mcbeth, she feels all the enthusiasm with which she entered the room at the beginning of the scene vanished into thin air.

She felt she did not really know how to understand the play as she imagined she did and she expresses this by saying: " All they out there, they know all about that sort of thing don't they", referring to all the students at college, meaning she was not like the rest and she was not able to interpret the play the way Franf talk about it.

When it comes to teaching, sometimes we sort of impose a point of view or a way of doing things, which might cause some students who do not work or analize things in the same way to think what they do is wrong because they just do not follow the same pattern.

I thing we, as teachers should create the right atmosphere so that students may feel at ease to express their ideas and share different points of view, after all I believe the more diversity a class has, the richer....