I started reading science fiction in my teens. Occasionally, there were features that puzzled me. So what better than to ask my Physics teacher for clarification?
“Sir, if a spaceship travels at light speed with a spotlight on its prow, how fast does the light emerging from the spotlight travel?” I held my breath waiting for a different type of illumination.
Flustered and angry, he snarled, “Stupid boy. Get on with (something to do with focal lengths of curved mirrors).”
Sometime later, I asked if the syllabus covered plasma.
Eyes rolling, he said, “Stupid boy. Blood plasma is Biology.”
“No, sir. I meant plasma. The state of existence between liquid and gas.”
Guess what? After a few seconds of hateful staring and pursed lips, he replied, “Stupid boy! Get on with (whatever boring project he’d given us that day).” He had no clue about 20th century physics and the whole class now knew it.
I stopped asking him questions and lost interest in school-level Physics but gained a long-lasting hatred from a man who should have loved his subject, kept up with it, and encouraged enquiring minds.
Yes, teachers DO shape a pupil’s future life.
I must say I had some great teachers during my school years, though others were folk I would never employ.
Educate, don’t suffocate!
Andy McKell, Speculative Fiction Author 