Notes For All Chapters English Beehive Class 9
About the Story
- Author: Isaac Asimov
- The story is set in the future (year 2157).
- It imagines a time when schools, teachers, and books as we know them no longer exist.
- Children learn at home with mechanical teachers and computer screens instead of real books and classrooms.
- The story shows how different and lonely education could be in the future and makes us realise how lucky we are to have real schools and teachers today.
Main Characters
1. Margie Jones
- 11-year-old girl who dislikes her school and her mechanical teacher.
- Curious about how schools used to be in the past.
- Represents children of the future who miss the fun of learning together.
2.Tommy
- 13-year-old boy and Margie’s friend.
- Finds an old printed book in the attic.
- Tells Margie about how schools used to be long ago.
3.Mechanical Teacher
- A large black machine that teaches Margie through a screen.
- Gives tests, checks homework, and adjusts the lessons.
- It has no emotions and teaches every child individually.
4.County Inspector
- A friendly man who comes to fix Margie’s mechanical teacher.
- Finds that the geography sector was too fast and slows it down.
Summary of the Story
- One day, Tommy finds a real paper book in his house.
- Margie is amazed because she has never seen a real book before-she only knows “telebooks” (books read on screens).
- The book is about schools in the past where children studied together in buildings with human teachers.
- Margie can’t believe that a man could be a teacher or that students went to school together.
- She studies alone at home with her mechanical teacher, and she hates it.
- Her mother had called the County Inspector earlier because Margie was doing badly in geography.
- The inspector repairs the machine and says Margie’s progress is fine.
- When Margie goes back to her lessons, she keeps thinking about the old schools and how much fun those children must have had learning and playing together.
Main Themes
1. Education and Technology:
- The story imagines a future where learning is completely digital.
- It questions whether machines can replace real teachers.
2.Human Connection in Learning:
- Real schools offer social interaction, friendship, and teamwork.
- Margie realises that studying alone is boring.
3.Curiosity and Imagination:
- Margie’s curiosity about old schools shows how humans always long for connection and shared experiences.
4.Change and Nostalgia:
- The story shows that progress in technology doesn’t always mean happiness.
- Old-fashioned schools had warmth and joy that machines can’t provide.
Important Points
- Year in Margie’s diary: 17 May 2157.
- Book – Found by Tommy in the attic.
- Margie’s dislike for school: Because her mechanical teacher gave too many tests.
- County Inspector’s finding: The geography part was too quick.
- Old school features: Human teacher, group learning, same subjects for same age, fun and friendship.
- Margie’s school: At home, with a computer teacher.
- Lesson taught: Real learning involves emotions, friendship, and joy, not just knowledge.
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