Question 1 : What difference do you see between the schools of the future and that of the past?
Answer : The schools of the past would be a common building where there would be gathering of all the kids from the neighbourhood. All of them would be taught by a human teacher and they would receive the same kind of teaching. The kids would be able to help one another with their homework. They would come to that common place and they would have fun there. Learning together is just fun and the old kind of schools were the one that provide them such fun. There used to be a bond of love and association between the fellow students. They remain helpful to each other. Sharing things have another joy which can only be felt in the old kinds of school. In contrast, the schools of the future would have no building but were established in the houses of the kids. Also, the teacher would be mechanical and there would be no classmates of those kids. The mechanised school doesn’t have human consideration. Machine won’t have sympathy for the kids. It is not that much compassionate. Hence, we can day that there is a lot of difference between the two kinds of school. There is no human touch in this type of schooling.
Question 2 : What problem fif Margie have with her mechanical teacher? Did she have a liking for her teacher? Why or why not?
Answer : Margie hated her school. The reason behind her disliking the school was her mechanical teacher. Her teacher used to give her tests in geography and she was not performing well in these tests. This was enough to raise worries for her mother and as a result her aversion for mechanical teacher was immense. Another problem with Margie related to her mechanical teacher was asking for the test and homework.
As a kid, Margie’s anticipation with her teacher was high. She thought why her teacher couldn’t forget asking about the homework and tests even for a single day. When the mechanical teacher was suffering from a problem then Margie thought that it would be taken away for some time but it was not so.
The teacher was put in order in almost no time. This was disappointing for the girl. It raised her disliking for the mechanical teacher. Therefore, we can say that Margie had no liking for the teacher.
Question 3 : The school in the story was not lovable to the kids. What should be done in order to make it lovable?
Answer : The school in the story was monotonous. There was no place for joy, pleasure and playfulness. Every kid had his school in his house only and there were no other kids to give them company. They were taught by a mechanical teacher. All those things made the school boring. To make the schools lovable, there must be a common building where all the kids from the neighbourhood come and sit together. They must be able to help one another with their homework. They should enjoy the things a school can provide. Moreover, they should be taught by a human teacher.
A human teacher will be able to appreciate the things and surroundings. He has human consideration unlike to that of mechanical teacher. He would participate in the learning process with the students and listen to what they have to say. Therefore, schools can be made lovable if the interaction between teacher and students is available there. There must be an environment of pleasure, joy and fun which the kids love to have.
Question 4 : What did the County Inspector say to Mrs Jones about the progress of Margie? Why was his arrival not appreciated by Margie?
Answer : The County Inspector was called to see why Margie was performing poorly in the tests. When he came, he took the teacher apart and repaired it by lowering the level of the geography sector to that of an average ten-year old girl. Margie had anticipated that the teacher would be taken away for some days, but it was not so. Therefore, she was disappointed with his arrival. But, the County Inspector pacified Mrs Jones by saying that the overall performance of her girl was satisfactory and there was a gearing-up in the geography sector that had an effect on her performance. There was nothing to worry about. She was perfectly okay with her studies. But, his arrival was not appreciated by Margie because he was not going to take the teacher away from there. He did the repair work there only and that was all. Margie’s anticipation was different for she thought that her teacher would be taken away like that of Tommy’s. When this didn’t take place, she was unable to appreciate his arrival.
Question 5 : How would you assess a mechanical teacher in comparison to a human teacher?
Answer : A teacher should be assessed on the basis of his ability to interact with the children and to handle their queries well. A teacher must be capable of reading the psyche of his student. Now, about the mechanical teacher, it can be said that it is neither able to interact well with the children and nor is it able to read the psyche of the students. On the other hand, a human teacher is able to perform both the tasks well and he is also able to deal with the psyche of the kids. A human teacher knows how to teach the kids with keeping in mind their interests so that they don’t feel like boredom in studying the things. Also, a human teacher can explain and interpret the things and which is desirable.
Hence, it can be said that a human teacher is far better than a mechanical teacher.