No Wonder They Are So Bad



From my page a day calendar:

After finding no qualified candidates for the position of principal, the school department is extremely pleased to announce the appointment of David Steele to the post.

Barrington, Rhode Island, school superintendent Philip Streifer

This guy probably didn't mean the words to come out this way but it certainly is the way the people like Meryl Tisch on the Board of Regents and NYC administrators are chosen.  Let us not forget the former superintendent Cathy Black and  current one Dennis Walcott.

Teachers: You Better Not Accept Those Gifts

Teachers are warned not to accept gifts that have any value.  Pearson does it with NYS officials.

Gotcha Day



Since tomorrow is the last day before vacation and the kids might be slightly wacko and unwilling to work, make sure you work them anyway, or give a test.  There is bound to be an administrator lurking around with a computer, just itching to do an observation.  The day before a holiday is their favorite time.  And, the later in the day your class meets, the better your chances are of getting this unexpected visit.

Admins don't think there is any problem with doing this.  One said he liked to observe this time to see what stuff teachers are really made of.  I said, if he doesn't know he is not much of an administrator.

Have a great vacation and good luck tomorrow.  I know from experience it will be rough.

Trained Chinchilla

I misread the title and thought this video was a trained chihuahua.  But, I should have known better.  You can't train chihuahuas.

Rate My Teacher Revisited



It still amazes me that this post, written on March 28, 2010 is still getting hits.  I wanted to share #119

Ok. After I posted my last comment, I started to get curious about WHO runs RMT? Interesting that it is anonymous, yes? Here is the link to the info I found on its IP address - http://www.ip-adress.com/reverse_ip/174.120.49.148 - but no info on who actually owns the site. (Yes, I used to be a public librarian and now I'm VERY curious). Why don't they name themselves? And how do we find out who runs it? (You know they're in it for the advertising money). Anyone else want to investigate?

and #120

Personally, I have a hard time taking RMT seriously. I actually think it fits in perfectly with the Neo-Con agenda of undermining civil servants and wouldn't be surprised if it were sponsored by folks who support the privatization of education (and everything else for that matter) and reducing teachers to clerical staff rather than trained professionals. For a good laugh, read those anonymous comments from teenagers whose frontal lobes are not fully developed (according to the brain research I've read) and who reside in a state of narcissism and are therefore somewhat incapable of contextualizing their educational experiences or taking FULL responsibility for their own contribution to their learning (and no, I was no different at their age, but I am from a different generation where my parents reminded me of my responsibility rather than believing and enabling all of my self centred adolescent narrative). The comments say as much about the writers themselves as their teachers.
On another note, I've emailed the RMT people 4times to get my name removed (I no longer teach at the school I'm listed at and have in fact changed my teaching area) and have had no response. Does anyone actually work there? Has anyone been able to delist themselves? (The school I was at now lists Principal Skinner and Chuck Norris among others as illustrious instructors - it's a very well taken care of website!! ;)

I know what #120 means.  Several months ago I found myself lumped together with a secretary and a language teacher.   It is obvious to me, from reading the comments many belong to the others.  I've written to RMT to make the change, but they did nothing.  No one should take this site seriously but sensitive people can't help but be hurt by some of the comments.  There has got to be a better way.

Duh



The boy who didn't take three exams because he didn't feel ready for them, who got grades of 77 and 74 on the two exams he took and got a 59 on the final informed me that he registered for pre-calculus during the winter session.  He needs it to be able to graduate on time.

I think this kid needs more than that.  I wonder if he will be surprised when he sees his F.

I Had To Be Disloyal



My second best friend because I don't have my best friend around.  (Sorry, Mrs. Tsouris but right now you are third on the list.)

Avoidance



I felt like a thief, walking quickly past the people at the door and making my way to the room in the corner. I knew it was near an exit and down a hallway not taken by many.  I wanted to fill out the recommendation and get out before anyone saw me.

I got lucky.  The class was being taught by someone new, someone I don't know and who doesn't know me.  Except for a few kids, I got in and out, unnoticed.

Overworked and Underpaid



Yesterday, on his way to the post office, my dad fell.  Thankfully, he is living in Co-op City, one of the best places in the city, and people were around immediately to help him.  A security guard called me twice, once to tell me what happened and that he called an ambulance and a second time to give me the name of the hospital.  The construction workers around stopped what they were doing to care for him.  The Bronx, and particularly places like Co-op City, aren't touted as good places to live, but as long as my dad can live alone, I wouldn't want him anywhere else.

The ambulance took him to Einstein Hospital, the hospital I credit with finding his cancer and saving his life.  And, while I will say thank you to the doctors for fixing him up, I will say BAH HUMBUG when it came to patient care.  We waited hours to see a doctor and even longer (almost two hours) for the nurse to bring the pain killer he ordered.  There was a machine behind my dad that beeped non stop and no one bothered to turn it off for more than a few minutes at a time.  Before we left a patient advocate let us know all we had to do was hit a yellow button and it was a shame we weren't told this.  My dad missed his turn at x-ray because no one came to pick him up and even when we were told we could leave, it took another hour and a half to get tubes removed and papers signed.

I had a long conversation with the patient advocate as we waited to depart and let her know all my concerns.  She listened, upset at what I told her and said to say something earlier next time.  The truth of the matter is I would have except I watched the poor staff run around, like chickens without heads, doing their best to take care of everyone.  No one was sitting around shooting the breeze or having a leisurely cup of coffee.  These nurses, techs and aids were providing the best care they could.  There just was not enough personnel to handle the patient load.  The PA that took care of my dad was a fine young man who was running in a hundred directions at once.  By the end of the night, I wanted to tell him to lay down in the bed my dad was vacating. (He looked like he needed it.)

ER's take care of sick people.  They save lives.  The people that work their deserve decent paychecks and the utmost respect from everyone.  Hospital administrators need to see how overworked and overwhelmed these people get and they need to do something to alleviate these working conditions because, unless these conditions are improved, lives will be lost.  But hey, ERs like this take care of us 99%ers and the people in charge don't much care.

Again

I am only a writer in my own mind, but still, I got a letter posted in the paper again today.  Link is here for those who have access to the other blog.

Freedom



It finally hit me.  I don't have to worry Sunday about what I will do on Monday.  There are no lessons to write, no papers to mark, FREEDOM!!!!!!

To celebrate, I decided to visit the Jewish Museum today.  The Radical Camera:  New York's Photo League, 1936-1951 is my kind of exhibit.  These wonderful photographers were really photo journalist from the era mentioned until the Communist witch hunts of the 1950's put many on black lists and ultimately led to the demise of this institution.  Anyone interested in history will love this exhibit.  Anyone following OWS will frown at the same issues photographed in the 30'.  No photo are allowed in the exhibit so you'll just have to go see it yourself.  (I did see lots of similar subjects to the kind I usually take.  Who knows, maybe one day I can have an exhibit somewhere as well.--my bathroom walls!)   In addition to this exhibit, there is one on Ezra Jack Keats.  I learned that he was the first to illustrate a book with an African American child, a child like any other who just happened to be Black.  He didn't see why race should enter into a book about a child and he never mentioned race.  His art work is exceptional and this exhibit alone would have made the trip worth while.    There is also a great menorah exhibit, menorahs picked out by Maurice Sendak.

In the past, a Sunday afternoon excursion would have ended early, but not today and not ever again.  I then headed to the Guggenheim to see the Maurizio Cattelan exhibit.  The line to get in wrapped around the block, but thanks to my husband's previous employer's sponsorship, I got in immediately and at no cost.  Time Out NY didn't particularly like this exhibit, but I did.  These strange sculptures, from Kennedy in a coffin, to the Pope being struck by a meteorite, hang from the ceiling and as you walk around the rotunda and get a close up look, you will not be sorry you came here.  Cameras were allowed and I was glad I had mine.  Pictures here. 

The day was cold but sunny.  Still, in no great hurry, I walked through Central Park and ended up at 57th and 6th.  I saw parts of the park I never saw before. 

Yeah!!!!  No more weekends spent getting ready for the week to come!

Shoe Making Is A worthy Occupation



It is impossible for colleges to teach in one semester what should have been taught in  12  previous years of  school.  Anyone who things otherwise, is kidding themselves.

Oh, it might seem like the student is grasping the information, and he might be able to regurgitate some of it on an exam, but usually there is no retention and little understanding.



Remediation corrects something bad or defective.  It can't take the place of a missing life time of learning.

More kids might be graduating high school than ever before but their lack of knowledge is greater than anything anyone has ever seen.  A college professor I recently spoke to had no idea that an 80 on a regents exam meant the child barely got 64% of the exam correct.

I don't have answers, but I sometimes knowing something is wrong is the first step in finding a solution.  Sending students to college who cannot do arithmetic, simple algebra, read or write is wrong.  They won't get it in one term and they won't get it by repeating this one term over and over again.  We are wasting their time, their money (and ours if they are in school on tax payer supported financial aid) and we are destroying their self esteem. 

I recently finished reading Songs For The Butcher's Daughter by Peter Manseau and one paragraph stood out:"

Kishinev needs cobblers as well as scholars," the teacher would say as he sent the expelled boys to his cousin the shoemaker. "soon we will all leave here, and without proper soles beneath us where Will  the Torah be?"

Not everyone is meant for college.  Those who have the desire and the latent ability will find a way.

A Bronx Student Thanks Mayor Bloomberg For The Education He Has Received

A Bronx Student Thanks Mayor Bloomberg For The Education He Has Received

Technology



(It doesn't do much for education either.)

Thanks to my friend at etc, etc, etc.

Washington Square Park

Too beautiful for words.

Never Ending Phone Call

A problem using my Continental vouchers online led to a two and a half hour phone call to straighten out the problem.  With so many airlines merging and going under, consumers have fewer and fewer choices.  The airlines can heap on abuse that cannot be avoided.

My head hurts, but I finally got my tickets.  The woman I dealt with was wonderful.  The problem was with their Internet support.  I would complain to the airline but I would hate to do anything that will reflect poorly on her.

Sign Of Appreciation

I decided I didn't want to work so hard and told one of the colleges I won't be back in the spring.  I was only there one semester and still, I got this e-mail:

Dear POd,

Thank you for the  XX file, your service to our department this semester, and also for the gifts for Bette and her daughter.

If I don't see you... happy Hanukkah and happy 2012!  It was a pleasure having you as a colleague.  Please keep in touch and let us know if you wish to teach again at YYY College in the future.

Take Care - Dept Supervisor

I left Packemin after 27 years and got this:













Don't see anything?  Neither do I.

No More Alarm Clocks



It is 6:00 AM.  I roll over, look at he clock and close my eyes again.  Now it is 7:00 and the activity repeats.  In fact it repeats over and over until the mood hits and I decide to start my day. 

I think I might actually enjoy not working.

To Talk To A Real Person



Use Money To Help Keep Tuition Affordable

James and Marilyn Simon just gave Stonybrook University a gift of $150,000,000 but one of the conditions of the gift is increased tuition.  (I heard them say this on the news,but it wasn't in the article online.)

Many students today cannot pay the increased costs.  How about using some of this grant to help them?  These two got their starts because of a relatively inexpensive education, an education they now want to deprive others of.

Stop Cuny-Suny Tuition Hikes

Shout Out To Bloomberg



Lydia spends 2 hours a week in the math lab getting extra help but her tests don't show this at all.  I couldn't understand why someone who seemingly put in so much got so little in return so I asked her how many hours a week she studies at home. 

"Ms, I don't do anything at home.  I can't do this stuff alone and I shouldn't have to.  Sometimes I look at it in my car."

Lydia is a recent graduate from a NYC high school. 

"Mr. Education Mayor, you did a great job here.  Keep up the good work!"

Greatest Card Trick Ever

Boycott Lowe's



One of the things I loved the best about teaching in Queens was getting to know people of different cultures, nationalities and religions.  I learned to experience the world from my own backyard.  Because of this experience, I have learned to see people as they are, flesh and blood, with mothers, fathers, children and with hopes and dreams no different than mine or the ones I was brought up with.

Okay, the reason for this post.  Several weeks ago, The Learning Channel starting airing The All American Muslim.  Out of curiosity, I began watching and found I really liked the show.  I loved listening to the little conversations between the participants and seeing how people, even those who observed differently got along.  I found, what I knew, I was watching people just like the ones I grew up with and are neighbors and friends with now, living their daily lives.

Here is the thing I found disturbing.  It is hard to understand why, in the twenty first century, we need a show to portray one religion as being just as American as every other one.  I don't understand why anyone would think a woman with a hijab is dangerous or not as good a person as a Christian or any other person.  But, listening to people around me, people I thought were open minded, I get it, but I still don't like it.

And now, Lowe's is withdrawing as a sponsor of this great television show because of pressure from an Evangelistic Christian Group.  The group is claiming the show is just propaganda and is forcing religion down the throats of viewers which is baloney.  Anyone who watched would see this is far from the purpose of the show.  And talking about religion and television, it is impossible to turn on the set without seeing a Christmas theme right now.  I wouldn't expect non-Christians to start a petition for sponsors to drop these shows.  Seeing a Christmas tree does not make me want to convert to Christianity and I don't think the writers and actors expect me to.  Religious freedom belongs to all, even Muslims (note the sarcasm here!) 

Lowe's bowed to pressure and pulled their advertisements.  I am joining the group who will now boycott Lowe's.   We cannot allow a bigoted group like this stop a show because they don't like Muslims.

Pelham Parkway Decorations



The most amazing Christmas house I have ever seen is on Pelham Parkway, in the Bronx.  If it wasn't for TLC and Invasion of the Christmas Light Shows, I would never have known to go look.  It is amazing what lengths some people will go to in order to share the things they love.

If you live anywhere near, go look.  It is on Pelham Parkway, just east of Eastchester Rd.  If you can't, I put some more pictures here.  Unfortunately, the fence got in the way of many.

There Are Lies, Damn Lies and Then There Are Statistics--Mark Twain



While waiting on line to eat, my dad struck up a conversation with the mom behind us.  My dad tells everyone that I am a math teacher (fatherly pride) and the woman told me how happy she was that her son got a 75 on his algebra regents.  It hurt, but I had to do it.  I told her that the 75 meant the child only had about 42 out of 87 problems correct, which was less than 50% of the exam.  She looked crushed.  She had no idea the grade was so meaningless.

These inflated grades are hurting children, giving parents a  false sense of what their child knows and leaving them totally unprepared for college.  My students, some who got A's in high school, can barely squeak through an algebra-trig class in college.  They only want to do multiple choice questions, where guess and check is a skill they have perfected.  They only know how to regurgitate exactly what they have been taught, that which requires no thinking.

I don't know why I even bother writing this stuff.  No one seems to care enough to change anything.  When the kids don't do well, the test is just given again with more test prep and less teaching.  As Zulma just said: 

The relationship of course grades to regents scores is obvious to everyone except the principals, who want to keep their jobs, and the students who think that they have acquired the necessary skills. When they get to college, they see that their diploma can be used as scrap paper. Reparation from this damage will take longer than the damage from the 1974/75 lay off of 15,000 teachers.

And This Graduated High School



It took four sides to write up answers to the review sheets I gave my students to help them study for the final.  I accidentally put them in the scanner upside down and didn't bother to rotate them before I put them in an e-mail figuring when printed orientation wouldn't matter.

I just got this e-mail:  The pictures all all upside down.

I give up!

My Kind Of News Show



I get a lot of my news from Jon Stewart on the Daily Show so when a friend got tickets, I jumped at the opportunity to see him live.  I was not disappointed.



Growing up in NYC, I used to go to taping of television game shows all the time.  It was a cheap (free) way to spend an afternoon and see celebrities.  I even got to a dress rehearsal of the Ed Sullivan Show once.  As a child, I got to be on Bozo the Clown and Wonderama.  My own children were on Romper Room.  (I know all you youngsters reading this have no idea what shows I am talking about.)  Not working gives me time again to enjoy the activity I used to love.  It was fun seeing how computers have changed the way these shows are produced. 

Now, to get tickets to see my second love, Stephen Colbert.

Just Pass Me So I Can Get On With My Life

Mitchell has been failing the class all semester.  He did a some homework, paid little attention and was quite nasty at times.  He doesn't want to be in school and plans on leaving to join the armed forces.  But, he wants to leave with a passing grade so when he returns to college he will never need a math class again. 

Out of the goodness of my heart, I told him if he manages to get a C+ on the final, I will pass him.  He doesn't think this is possible (neither do I, but I didn't tell him) and sent an e-mail asking what else he can do to pass.  I am ignoring this request. Hopefully he will get the message.

He probably graduated high school because teachers granted him extra favors.  What a generation we have created!  By the time anyone wakes up and sees what has been done, it will be to late to save the thousands, just  like Mitchell.

Another College Supervisor Speaks

I got this in answer to e-mail I sent supervisor #2.

Mr AP's email was very interesting.  I assume that he realizes that students need to complete three years of regents level math through Integrated Intermediate Algebra and Trigonometry in addition to getting an 80 on one of the three regent exams.

He seems to think an 80 on one regents is enough.  It is only enough to help him.

Under Pressure To Perform



How will chihuahua be able to do it?  Everyone knows she is full of the stuff that doggie owners put in those little green baggies.  Will the pressure cause her to make a mess in front of everyone?  Will she yelp in fear?

Explaining To Colleges Why Johnny Can't Add

I forwarded Mr. AP's last memo here and here to the supervisors in both colleges I work in.  I thought they should see first hand why the kids come in knowing nothing.

Supervisor I saw nothing wrong with kids getting 80's until I forwarded him the regents conversion chart.  His comment: 

geez ... now I see ...

When we spoke today he was appalled at the percentage of the exams that were multiple choice.  He said, not me, that kids can figure out the answers without knowing any math. 

More From Memo 121



I have asked many times but I have not seen the exams of some teachers.  Please make sure I see your exams before you give it to your students.  We have talked about not putting 40 points of worth of long problems where students could receive partial credits.  I saw at least two exams with that.  Please make sure the part II/III of your exam contains no more than 32 points worth of questions so that we are on the same grade scale.

Teachers are supposed to do item analysis after every exam to see which questions students are still struggling with.  It is so much better to actually see the work they did.  This way, their strengths and deficiencies are obvious.  Marking a  geometry exam, for example, an incorrect multiple choice response will not show whether the problem was conceptual or algebraic and will do nothing to help the teacher correct the mistake.

The bottom line is that knowledge doesn't count, only exam grades.  The kids have got to get those 80's or the school will not look good.

(There is something inherently wrong with having to show your supervisor every exam you give. Teachers are professionals and should be treated as such.  Just because an exam is typed, or neatly done as a cut and paste job does not mean it is a good exam.  The math department has over 30 teachers.  Mr. AP will not be able to go over every example on every teacher's exam to make sure the questions are good ones and some of the tests he will be passing off on will be barely satisfactory or unsatisfactory, so what is the point?)

REMEMBER THIS LADY!

 

Look at this lady - Let us never forget!

The world hasn't just become wicked...it's always been wicked. The

prize doesn't always go to the most deserving.

Irena Sendler

Died	12 May 2008 (aged 98)Warsaw, Poland

During WWII, Irena, got permission to work in the Warsaw ghetto, as a

Plumbing/Sewer specialist.

She had an 'ulterior motive'.

She KNEW what the Nazi's plans were for the Jews (being German).

Irena smuggled infants out in the bottom of the tool box she carried

and she carried in the back of her truck a burlap sack, (for larger

kids).

She also had a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi

soldiers let her in and out of the ghetto.

The soldiers of course wanted nothing to do with the dog and the

barking covered the kids/infants noises.

During her time of doing this, she managed to smuggle out and save 2500

kids/infants.

She was caught, and the Nazi's broke both her legs, arms and beat her

severely.

Irena kept a record of the names of all the kids she smuggled out and

kept them in a glass jar, buried under a tree in her back yard.

After the war, she tried to locate any parents that may have survived

it and reunited the family.

Most had been gassed. Those kids she helped got placed into foster

family homes or adopted.

Last year Irena was up for the Nobel Peace Prize.

She was not selected.

President Obama won one year before becoming President for his work as

a community organizer for ACORN

and

Al Gore won also --- for a slide show on Global Warming.

In MEMORIAM - 63 YEARS LATER

I'm doing my small part by forwarding this message.

I hope you'll consider doing the same..

It is now more than 60 years after the Second World War in Europe

ended.

This e-mail is being sent as a memorial chain, in memory of the six

million Jews, 20 million Russians, 10 million Christians and 1,900

Catholic priests who were murdered, massacred, raped, burned, starved

and humiliated!

Now, more than ever, with Iran , and others, claiming the HOLOCAUST to

be 'a myth'.

It's imperative to make sure the world never forgets, because there are

others who would like to do it again.

This e-mail is intended to reach 40 million people worldwide!

Join us and be a link in the memorial chain and help us distribute it

around the world..

Please send this e-mail to people you know and ask them to continue the

memorial chain.

Please don't just delete it.

It will only take you a minute to pass this along..

 

Gone But Still Sickened

As I have written before, several of my colleagues have been forwarding me Mr. AP's memos.  While they have no affect on my life, they still sicken me.  Take this line, for example:

 

CUNY does not consider a student College Ready unless they scored 80 or higher on at least one of the Math Regents exams while they take in high school.  Therefore, students who scored a grade lower than 80 on MXRE or MXRG have been notified to retake the Regents exam. 

A child studying on his own will only score higher than an 80 if they have intensive help.  It is common knowledge that the longer the students are away from a subject, the more they forget.  teacher  The 80 DOES NOT MEAN the work has been mastered, only that the test has.  I have watched tests being looked over and seen points magically pulled from the air to give kids these points, points which help the school but do nothing for the student.  Mr. AP claims he doesn't want kids to have to take remedial math because he doesn't want them to pay for it but these kids need that extra term.  I've seen the kids who walk into the college math class ill prepared because all they ever did in high school was learn to pass an exam and they don't succeed.  It is far better to let them take one term of remedial math than to watch them fail term after term and eventually drop out.

Please do your best to convince them to retake the MXRE.  If they score higher than 80, their chances of passing MR21/MR22 increase drastically.  Provided, they have been working with algebra in MR21, there is no reason why they will not score over 80 in MXRE, particularly if  they are passing.

An 80 on the regents is the equivalent of a 63.75%.  The colleges are working hard to keep standards and help students.  They can't do this when kids come out of high school knowing so little.  The 80 he is looking for will help the school, and especially the math department look better but will do nothing for the students.  If anyone is really interested in using data, perhaps the kids who got these inflated 80's should be followed and their success rate should be noted.

Talent



Being blessed with talent is a wonderful thing.  On the way to our free weekend in the Berkshire's we passed the Circle Museum, a wonderful collection of sculptures made entirely of scrap material.  The artist told us it is getting harder and harder to find material as everything is being exported now.

I happily left him an unasked for donation.  Check out more of his  work here, on facebook.

A Career Celebrated



Mr. AP convinced a retired teacher to have a party.  She worked in the school for over 30 years and he felt, rightly so, her career should be celebrated.  (No comment here about the way he treated the departure of other teachers.)  She didn't want a party, but under pressure gave in.

I am happy for her.  She said the night was wonderful.  There were speeches from colleagues and administrators praising her and forty people were in attendance.  (I had to work or I might have been there as well.)  Even the admins who usually duck out the first time they think no one will notice (everyone notices) stayed until the end.

I went to the UFT retired teacher luncheon with this woman who commented on how wonderful it felt to finally be recognized after all the years she put in.  I know she found this was even more wonderful.  I wish her all the best and look forward to the time we will now get to spend together and to getting to really know someone I worked with for years but knew only in passing.

Kudos

Kudos to the principal of Packemin HS and all the other principals for signing the petition against the new teacher evaluations.

Will There Be A Curve?



The question I have been asked most often about the upcoming final exam.

Buyer Beware

(sunrise in the Berkshires)



It began with a phone call saying I won a free weekend in the Berkshires.  I was at work and the caller wouldn't give my husband any information.   She made arrangements to call back when I would be home.  When she called she wanted to know if my husband was around too.  Since it didn't feel right, I said no and told her to call back on the weekend.  Putting two and two together (I am a math teacher after all) I figured out the call was for a time share and I was going to turn it down.  But, being semi retired gives me lots of free time so we listened to the pitch and decided to go.  Unfortunately, the weekends available were no good for us.  My husband was disappointed.  I told him not to worry.  We would get a call back for another weekend.  Two weeks later the call came.

The sweet young woman on the phone promised us a free weekend in a one-bedroom condominium, breakfast and $125 travel expenses.  I asked her what the catch was and she assured me that we would only be required to listen to a 90 minute presentation.  We packed our bags and hit the road.

Saturday morning we were met by a real smoothest talker.  We told him we were sorry to disappoint, but we were not interested in making a $27,000 purchase.  He told us it was no problem, if we didn't buy, his next customer would.  He treated us like we were his best friends as he took us to breakfast and gave us a tour of the area.  He told us he made $180,000 a year selling time shares and told us how he makes money on the time share he owns.  (Told us how he does something unethical that we shouldn't share with his bosses.)  He was so charming that the non cynic would have thought they made a new best friend.

After 90 minutes we went back to the office and got hit with the hard sale.  When we repeated that we were not interested, he brought over his boss who came down almost 2/3 in price.  When we reminded him we were promised to be out of the meeting in 90 minutes and he got a little nervous about the noise we might make, he told us to go collect our money.  Of course we had to listen to one more sales pitch along the way.  This guy came down to $4900.  We still said thanks but no thanks, took our money and left.

Right now it is off season in the Berkshires.  Everyone in the hotel at the moment is on one of these free weekends.  An astronomical sum is being spent wining and dining them in the hopes of making a sale.   My feelings of sympathy for the poor guy not making a sale turned to ones of contempt when I realized how many people were being duped into spending so much money.  We wondered how many bought at $27,000 what was offered to us for less than $5000?  We wondered how many believed the hype about making $2000 or more a year renting out the time share.  (If this was the case, there wouldn't be so many foreclosures.) We doubted hsi $180,000 a year salary which he claimed wasn't so much.  (Living where he did, he could have lived like a king on that kind of income.)

All in all, buying one might not have been the worst idea in the world.  We might have bought if we didn't already own a vacation plan somewhere else.  Still, beware before buying.  Remember, these guys are not your friends.  And, never take the first or the second or even the third price.  You can walk out and then come back and take the last price when you know that is the lowest it will go.

Pain Free



Several years ago I needed some surgery.  My doctor grudgingly agreed to let me wait several months, until after the AP exam to get it.  I assured her I wasn't in pain and I would call immediately if things got worse before the scheduled appointment.

There never was any pain and  I did manage to wait until the end of May to have the procedure.  Once I had it, I felt like a new person.  I had learned to live with the discomfort and to not think about it, but it was there, bothering me every day and it was only after it was gone that I knew how bad it actually was.

I was reminded of this story as I walked in to Packemin every morning to teach my class.  I never realized the pain I was in daily until it was no longer a part of my life. 

Evaluation Time



As students get ready for their final exams at college, teachers are also being evaluated and it is not a five minute visitation by a no nothing supervisor.  It is an evaluation by the students who actually sat with this teacher every day. 

The evaluation form begins asking the students about he course and covers questions about their interest before and after, difficulty, objectives, workload, homework, things the student must deal with on a daily basis.  The student is even asked to rate their level of effort which includes attendance, note-taking, reading, homework, studying and participation.  Since the survey is anonymous, it is hopeful that the kids will answer honestly and this will give insight to who is doing the evaluation, unlike the anonymous RMT.

The next section asks about the instructor and includes topics such as preparedness, knowledge, ability to explain, availability for help, encouragement, organization and then ends with rating how effective the instructor is.

The evaluation then asks the student to mark their year in school, requirements class fulfills, current grade and the number of hours spent studying for the course.  Lastly there are four more questions the students must write out answers to, including if they would recommend this instructor or take another course with him/her. The instructor can even add a personal question.

The teacher is not in the room while the evaluation forms are being filled out and does not even see the results until the students in the class are a distant memory.  I know the schools use these forms.  When I interviewed for my current position I was asked to bring evaluations from the other college I taught at.  I know these reviews were carefully read every term and if enough comments warranted, I would not have been rehired.

It is always good for me to hear what my students think and want.  I've read, listened and adjusted based on their comments which were often right on the money. 

Millions of dollars are being spent on evaluation methods but that money is being wasted when the best evaluators are sitting in front of us.  They are cheap (free), available and want to help.  These are the voices that can help make a difference in education.  It is time to start listening them an.d using what they say.