Chapter 9 & 10: The Water Is Wide

“The one great knave that I hunted was boredom, and if I caught him lurking anywhere in the room, in the corners, by blackboards, behind the covers of books, or in glazed, anesthetized eyes, we went to something else quickly, shifted in mainstream, danced, sang, fought, or milked rats”.

 Conroy always wanted the students engaged in something. Unlike Mrs. Brown who insisted on “teaching the books”, he wanted the children on the island to remember the things that he taught them. He would have different people come in the classroom so that the students would know something about the outside world. One of the speakers was Conroy’s sister Carol that told about her childhood but the thing that the students enjoyed the most was when acted like a witch. The students thought that she was really a witch and asked all sorts of questions. The students learned a lot from the visitors that came in during the year. They were introduced to soccer and to a musician that had a hit song. I feel that this was the best thing that Conroy could do for the students because they hadn’t been learning anything before he became their teacher. Throwing out information and expecting them to grasp concept after concept isn’t going to work for them. Also in the reading the girls from the class stayed at Conroy’s house for Valentine’s Day. Conroy wanted to prepare these students for when they would leave the island and become part of life outside the island. The students were able to take a trip to the nation’s capital where they visited the monuments and museums that they had never seen before. This trip was a chance for them to experience what life was off the island. The trip was a success and all the students were able to go and live this experience.