Compare the characters of Mrs Kay and Mr Briggs from Willy Russell’s our day out. Whose style of teaching do you think is best for the progress class?
The character Mrs Kay is a kind caring little old lady who cares alot for the progress class that she takes on the trip. She wants them to have fun rather than learning. She acts more like a mother to them then a teacher. The children seem to like Mrs Kay a lot. Reilly says about Mrs Kay “your ace Miss”. The head teacher says “I get the impression she sees education as one long game”. The character Mr Briggs is a very authoritarian teacher who is the total opposite to Mrs Kay he wants the trip to be educational for the children. The children respect him but they don’t actually like him because he spoils there fun. Les the lollypop man says “Arrogant get, that one is” about Mr Briggs.
Firstly I am going to describe Mrs Kay’s and Mr Brigg’s relationship with the pupils. Mrs Kay gets on very well with the pupils she is like a mother character to them. “Mrs Kay has taken off her shoes and has her stocking feet curled up under her. Carol has her arm linked through Mrs Kay’s and is snuggled up to her – they look more like mother and daughter then teacher and pupil”. The children feel warm to Mrs Kay’s nice happy personality “Mrs Kay smiles at her and links her arm”. She gets involved with the children she likes to join in with the fun “Mrs Kay is paddling, dress held above her knees…” Mr Briggs doesn’t get on as well with the pupils as Mrs Kay does, he is always shouting at them “sit down now, come on, move!” When Mr Briggs is with the children they feel bored as if they can’t have any fun or they will be told off “At the back the kids are all stifled and bored by Briggs presence” He is very strict with the pupils he shouts at them for any little reason. Don’t you ‘what’ me, young lady”. All of this doesn’t do him any favours because the children have no respect for him, when he asks Linda where her school uniform is, she blatantly ignores him and is very cheeky towards him. Mrs Kay is very sympathetic towards the pupils she understands their needs and difficulties “it’s a shame isn’t it, eh? You know, we bring them to a crumbling pile of bricks and mortar and they think there in the fields of heaven”Mr Briggs doesn’t understand the difficult lives the children lead he doesn’t take an interest in the children’s lives “Your father goes out to sea, does he?” “Briggs starts to walk away. The two girls link his arms, one on either side. He stops…taking their arms away.” He doesn’t show the children any warmth love or affection he just treats them bad. When they are in the zoo Mr Briggs tells Mrs Kay that he didn’t realise that he kids were interested in animals and he gets very enthusiastic about bringing some slides in for them. I think he finds out her that the kids are actually good children. Mrs Kay doesn’t have hardly any rules she just wants the children to have fun “the only rule we have today: think of yourselves but think of others as well”. Mr Briggs enforces a lot of rules on the children “but a lot of you haven’t been on a school trip before so you won’t know how to behave. So I’ll tell you” he doesn’t spare their feelings at all.
