Maybe I shouldn't have started this blog now, not with everything that's been going on.

Well, it seems the newly appointed Student Welfare Commissioner is already doing his job, even though he’s not supposed to take office until the end of the term.

Thankfully, the students have come up to him to complain about the two teachers involved in dubious practices that I’ve mentioned recently, and he’s going to the Dean about it.

At the very least, I told him, in cases where he couldn’t vouch for the truthfulness of the claim himself, he should be able to provide witnesses willing to repeat their statement to the Dean, even if we don’t think yet about any formal hearing or testimony.

So it was a big relief when the directors were finally talking openly about it, although it was to pass on the responsibility of who gets to talk to the people concerned about their actions.

In the case of Mr. Buy My Printouts And Be Exempted From The Finals*, the sanction involved having another teacher finish his classes for him in the remaining weeks.

Of course, perennially positive Sir Joel marveled at his entrepreneurial drive, and since he was the one who recommended the guy for employment, did remind us that it was the first time that person taught.

Still, can’t he put himself in the students’ place like he once was and determine which requirements they would be likely to protest as unfair or more for personal gain than the educational purposes? And as Sir Joel said, primers are supposed to be free.

Not that calling it something else would make the situation any better.

Besides, there are legal ways around it, such as publishing a textbook, where the benefits would be greater because even students he doesn’t teach in other schools may buy it.

In fact, making a workbook would be better, because students enrolled in the subject are forced to buy a new one each term instead of relying on potential recyclable hand me downs, or coming up with lame yearly updated editions with just a few cosmetic changes that barely justify the revision.

But back to the subject at hand. It also seems that other students have approached Miss Marge the Guidance Counselor about it, which is good, that they know what to do the next time something like this comes up – but hopefully that will be scarce or nonexistent.

This will probably not be the last I’ve talked about this matter, but the rest will have to wait until developments arise. For now, class dismissed.

*It’s worse than I first heard, apparently. They also have a quiz other than the finals, and it’s topic is the “handout”. So the students arms are twisted to buy it if they want to pass the test. I don’t even know how he can prevent the students from just photocopying it after buying only one – threaten to fail them? Charge them with intellectual property rights violation? Talk about Mr. Pot nicknaming Mr. Kettle Sooty.