The Teacher Beep Test: how fit are the departments?
By Morisa Wong and Bethany Lam
After weeks of planning, the RCHK Truth hosted its first Teacher Beep Test, organized by Bethany Lam and Morisa Wong. The idea was first conceived when some Truth writers ran out of ideas and needed something light to fill the pages of what looked to be a particularly sparse month of school news.
To our surprise, it was a success, filled with enthusiastic teachers and eager students. The teachers loved it; “Oh, I think it's awesome to see how teachers are putting themselves out there… really great activity,” commented Ms. Thompson.
The 6 teachers running the beep test are Mr Miller from the science department, Mr Louis from the Math department, Mr Burns from the PE department, Ms Naz from the I&S department, Ms Laughton, also from the I&S department, and finally, Ms Turner from the English department.
Before the beep test, the people of RCHK - students and teachers - recorded their predictions on who they thought would get the highest score. Here are the results after 91 voters:
The Predictions
| Name | Percentage | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Mr Burns | 71.7% | 66 |
| Mr Miller | 7.6% | 7 |
| Mr Lewis | 7.6% | 7 |
| Ms Laughton | 5.4% | 5 |
| Ms Naz | 4.3% | 5 |
| Ms Turner | 3.3% | 3 |
The most obvious answer was, of course, the PE teacher, which is what the majority voted for. But would he really be able to achieve the highest score and live up to the expectations? Had age wearied him? Could the other faculties hide a secret athlete, a bursting fitness freak who hides in plain sight? We needed to find out.
So, after much (hard) encouragement, on Wednesday, the 26th of March, all 6 teachers gathered together in the gym. They weren’t the only ones; plenty of students and staff gathered to watch and support the runners. Furthermore, some unexpected guests even put themselves out there to run along with them. Some were there, like Ms Thompson and Mr Thomas, to support their co-workers, while others came to witness the ordeal that so many students have to endure every year.
Surprisingly, some unexpected guests entered in a last minute act of communal solidarity. Mr Nicholson decided to join in on the ‘fun’, along with some other students.
Teachers had felt nervous for most of the week leading to this event, and it showed “... it was good, it felt like I was pushing myself…” announced Ms Laughton. Not only did the teachers enjoy it, but also the students.
“It was very very fun.” commented some students.
After a lot of cheering, supporting, and running, these were the results:
The Scores
| Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Mr Lewis | 14.1 |
| Mr Miller | 12.10 |
| Mr Burns | 12.4 |
| Ms Laughton | 12.1 |
| Ms Naz | 9.5 |
| Ms Turner | 4.5 |
The results were far from the preliminary predictions. Congratulations to the Maths teacher, Mr Lewis, for getting the highest score even though only 7.6% of the people voted in his favour. His score was surprisingly high, too. After the run, breathy but lucid, Mr. Lewis claimed that “It was good fun, I haven't done that since I was like 16 years old.” And about his victory, “I didn’t know that I would beat a PE teacher. It's quite pleasing to do so.” So humble. It seems that you shouldn’t underestimate Maths teachers.
The audience were particularly pleased: “It was very, very entertaining. They should do it three times a year, just like us.”
After a tremendous amount of planning and running, the event finally came to an end, with votes from 93 students and teachers, surprising results, and positive comments from everyone. Being the first to organize this successful event, it is wonderful that so many people enjoyed it. Maybe the next time it will be the teachers doing the exams with us!
