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Go to first message Go back 20 messages Messages 1997 - 2016 out of 2150 Go forward 20 messages Go to most recent message
1997. arkymalarky - 1/21/2019 8:53:30 PM

the only thread

1998. arkymalarky - 1/21/2019 8:53:54 PM

anywhere

1999. arkymalarky - 1/21/2019 8:54:08 PM

near a

2000. arkymalarky - 1/21/2019 8:54:33 PM

millennial!!!

2001. arkymalarky - 1/22/2019 10:40:54 PM

Hey Msno what's your view on the outcome of the LA teachers strike and how it might affect things elsewhere in Ca.

2002. winstonsmith - 1/23/2019 2:59:16 AM

Congrats on the 2K Arky!

I will keep you guys posted on the college saga.

2003. arkymalarky - 1/23/2019 7:22:15 AM

Thanks!

I had a wonderful little experience last week in my retirement. Three of my students attending three different universities were out for Christmas and meeting for lunch and invited me to have lunch with them. They said they were talking about my AP Lit class and thought they'd like to visit and I was so thrilled. Had a great time.

2004. Ms. No - 1/23/2019 11:28:24 PM

Arx,

I haven't actually had time to look at the outcome. I'm avoiding news again. :-)

I was just talking to a co-worker this morning about how differently teachers unions are treated compared to other labor unions -- cops, firemen, teamsters, etc. When cops or firemen or teamsters threaten to strike over contract negotiations nobody accuses them of hating the populations they serve. Nobody says to cops "Oh, sure, go strike because you don't care about people's safety! You don't care about crime!" or to firemen " You don't care if people's houses burn down." or to teamsters "You don't care if stuff doesn't get delivered," but the first thing you hear when teachers threaten to strike is that they don't care about kids.

Right. We became teachers because we don't care about kids. We do this job because.....it's so easy and we make so much money??

What other professionals are just expected to volunteer their time? People complain about the high cost of medicine, but it isn't a regular complaint that doctors are greedy and ought not to get paid for their work. Insurance companies get accused of that, but not doctors.

Goes to show how work is valued and whose.

2005. Ms. No - 1/23/2019 11:29:50 PM

Trillium,

I couldn't handle the stress of being a stylist. Yet another profession that isn't always recognized for how difficult it is or how stressful.

2006. Ms. No - 2/4/2019 6:29:03 PM

Ugh! Too much stuff to do right now -- four preps starting with the new semester, and now I'm running the Art Club three days a week after school. Don't know how long that's going to last. It gives me four 12 hour days a week and eats into my prep time. I'd be working those hours anyway, but I'd be lesson planning rather than working hands-on with kids.

One of my students asked me the other day what I would do if I weren't a teacher and I panicked, like I was going to have to go out and look for a job again and had no idea what I want to do.

Our district is yet again trying to balance its poor budget decisions on the backs of teachers and students. They reduced our FTE from 12 to 7 and then gave us 5 back under different funding which means that we don't lose any positions, but 5 of our positions are now open for other teachers to bump into.

I'm likely safe since I've got 11 years in the district now, but we'll probably lose both of our other English teachers. So, in addition to mourning the loss of a great teaching partner and our first really cohesive Department in years, I'll be training folks who don't have any idea what it means to teach at a Linked Learning school.

Just when we start to get our stride going, they come and pull the rug out from under us again. Fuckers.

2007. Ms. No - 3/4/2019 6:11:18 PM

So, today is the day we find out how many of our teachers are in jeopardy. I've got enough years in that I should be okay, but it's not a done deal until it's a done deal.

Fingers crossed that I don't lose my newest teacher. She's so amazing!

2008. Ms. No - 3/4/2019 6:15:38 PM

In other news I am tired, tired, tired! My big wish right now is to be home alternately gardening and working on refining and revising my curriculum.....oh, yeah, and finishing writing the lesson plans for the course I'm actively teaching at the moment. Sheesh!

Assuming I don't get bumped to another site, I'll be teaching World History again next year for the first time in about 4 years. I'll have two English 12s, two Govt/Econ, and one World History in addition to my zero period teaching Infographics.

I'd really rather teach World History than Govt/Econ, but I'm not wild about having to coordinate with the other World History teacher as far as scheduling goes. He's been using the same PowerPoints to teach World History for the last six years. That's not the way I teach, but I may have to defer to him.

2009. Ms. No - 3/4/2019 6:23:03 PM

Just submitted my revisions for the module I've been writing for the CSU college-prep course for 12th grade English. There are so many things I still want to work on with it, but this is definitely one of those cases where "It's never done, it's just due."

The main complaint I have with the modules and the module framework is that there isn't enough writing instruction and the writing required by the program isn't varied enough to really develop students skills. They aren't all 5-paragraph essays, but they do all pretty much involve responding to a topic with an argumentative paper.

Yet another thing I'd rather be working on this morning than getting ready to teach my seniors. Nothing wrong with them --- they're an awesome class --- just me in a funk is all. ;-/

2010. winstonsmith - 3/17/2019 2:34:14 AM

Well, my daughter got into Pomona College in Claremont California and they gave her a decent financial deal. I am very happy that she got into a good school and that we can make it work financially. She is insanely happy to get into her first choice school. I had a lot of anxiety about this and I’m really relieved.

2011. wabbit - 3/17/2019 8:24:07 PM

Congratulations to your daughter (and you) winstonsmith, great news!

2012. winstonsmith - 3/18/2019 1:26:52 AM

Thanks Wabbit!

2013. Ms. No - 3/18/2019 5:34:38 PM

Congratulations! That's great news!

2014. winstonsmith - 3/19/2019 12:47:12 AM

Thanks Ms No!

2015. Trillium - 3/22/2019 1:33:20 AM

Congrats winstonsmith. Best wishes for your daughter.

2016. winstonsmith - 3/24/2019 9:02:10 AM

Thanks Trillium!

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