Inappropriate Prelim Listening task (1 Viewer)

[Nightsarah]

It was an interview with a couple of child welfare workers.
I honestly found it really inappropriate for an exam. It talked about all the horrible effects of all kinds of abuse, including not wanting to be touched or being overly affectionate to strangers. It talked about how a two year old was malnourished and had never been fed solids, so when you hugged her she was just in a catatonic state.
It talked about abusive parents and how the affects of alcohol tear up the home. It just talked about a lot of really bad things that I really found unnecessary to do for an exam.
Whatever happened to the boring political speeches?
It was an extremely touchy subject, I think it was a poor choice.
My question is, would the board of studies ever chose such a thing for the HSC? With so many people being victims of child abuse, how are you meant to concentrate on exam after hearing such a thing?
Have there EVER been touchy subjects addressed in the hsc about this?....is there even an a listening task required in the hsc? :S

 

[squeenie]

The Shoe-Horn Sonata by John Misto is one of the prescribed texts for the Close Study of Text module. Its about the women prisoners of war in WWII.

It's not as bad as the example you have there, but it still has some descriptions of abuse (plus, some of the sound effect cues are of prisoners getting hit).

I don't know what possessed your teachers to give you a listening task like that, but they really shouldn't have done it. I'm pretty sure the Board of Studies would have rules about this kind of stuff...

 

[Nightsarah]

Is there somewhere I can listen to that to compare it?

I just feel it was really insensetive. I know for a fact there have been girls in my year with parents who have had drug and alcohol problems, as well as being abused. I can't imagine what it would be like having that interviewed played over the speakers with all your peers listening to it, as well as people analysing it and having to sit there and concerntrate on giving educated and objective responses. Even I was shaken up by the content and found it hard to concerntrate. My thoughts kept on lingering on the reality of "frozen watchfulness" and children who are overly affectionate to strangers as the result of being abused.

 

[post-it-notes]

So this is why Isabelle asked me if I thought our listening task was inappropriate this morning. I didn't know it made you so passionate about this but I guess the school's dissenting against the boring political speeches =P

Found anything that you're passionate enough to write about for eex1 exam?

 

[squeenie]

Is there somewhere I can listen to that to compare it?

I just feel it was really insensetive. I know for a fact there have been girls in my year with parents who have had drug and alcohol problems, as well as being abused. I can't imagine what it would be like having that interviewed played over the speakers with all your peers listening to it, as well as people analysing it and having to sit there and concerntrate on giving educated and objective responses. Even I was shaken up by the content and found it hard to concerntrate. My thoughts kept on lingering on the reality of "frozen watchfulness" and children who are overly affectionate to strangers as the result of being abused.

The Shoe-Horn Sonata sounds pretty tame compared to the task you described. It's a stage play. While there are no scenes from the POW camps, there are some photographs and sound effect cues that re-enact scenes from the camps.

Since its a prescribed text, someone at BOS would have made sure that it was appropriate for year 12 students. It may be slightly disturbing at some scenes (such as the voiceover re-enactment of one of the characters getting hit by a guard in the POW camp), but its pretty mild.

Normally, I don't approve of political correctness, but there are limits to what they can expose you to. Have you asked your teachers about this?

 

[domefome]

You should write a letter expressing your inner rage