Loretta, thank you for your perspective. I get it and agree with most of what you wrote.
And yes, I needed to vent, however don’t mistake that for missing the forest for the trees. I’ve gotten most of it out of my system. I’ve started looking for a different job, not just because of this situation but because I also need a more steady income without the 3 unpaid months off each year. Maybe I’ll get lucky and get hired by a potato queen, since you so aptly applied the analogy. :discodance:
Oh my dog! Buttercup was just almost nice to me. I don’t know what to do![/quote]
Almost.
Still fantasising about Bridge Over The River Kwai?
Madam Loretta, your cork floating calmly on the sea of turbulence analogy is beautiful.
Some points I would like to make:
In the school classroom environ it is not easy to ascertain the desires of the individual students. I submit that whilst the adults may value your potato status the children may wish to form a bond, the may wish to learn grammar, they may wish to swear at you in Hokkien. I believe a certain responsibility to those children is needed, and that a good lesson will balance all of these elements. A time to play, a time to learn, and a time to bond. Having recently met a former student who spoke English with ease under my tutelage, but who now has difficulty with basic grammar, English teachers can make a difference. The potato can have value if it chooses to. Look closely enough and each potato is different. The children can see that, if it the adults cannot. Don’t fail the young 'uns for soon they will be adults.
Buttercup. Madam, the motion picture ‘Perfume,’ left me desirous of the vomitorium.
Read the book! Lordy lord, illiterates abound!
Or maybe by these guys: Wego High School is hiring
I think that’s as close as you’ll get to what you’re looking for. I’ve heard that they’re a pretty good crowd to work for, but have no first-hand experience.
Hope it works out for you.
:bravo:
Thanks for comming out of retirement, lorretta.
I guess it’s no coincidence but I’ve been thinking along these exact same lines. I have not been through something entirely disimular to CraigTPE. In my case it’was in the form of a staff meeting which resulted in a thread, entitled “what am I doing wrong?” [url]What Am I Doing Wrong?
But there it is in what 'ole Lorretta, from her death bed, on the edge of retirement or whatever, has very precicely come to the self-same realisation and wrote it here. Thank 
for the internet, and you guys. You guys!
I suddenly asked myself: why do we have this idea that our calling has to realised in some kind of dream job, or indeed in any job? Why in any job - in payed employment? - that has to be to do with the Protestant Work Ethic and the whole capitalism fandango covered so nicely by Max Weber. Why is some kind of dream job some kind of ego boost? That’s just dreaming… Like ideas of romance and marrige - they have only come together through lazy wishful thinking.
Ah. That’ll be someone correcting me. Not quite sure how to cope with this. I guess I just have to take a deep breath and say “you’re right, thanks for pointing that out.”
There, it’s done. I can handle it. I’ve been wrong before anyway. The last time was in 1998 so I guess I was due. :raspberry:
This sounds like management speak. This is suitable for a medium to big company, but not small operation as schools or departments invariably are. Especially one where the human factor and motivation is extremely important. People are not units and there is no need to treat them as units when you can personally deal with everybody involved. It’s counter-productive and unprofessional.
I don’t think it’s necessary even in large corporations. I worked for a major US airline for 8 years and was treated rationally and with respect.
Work ethic? hahahahaha…I use to have one, just like most of the previous posters to this thread. I’ve worked here more than 4 years now. Yes, I could go on and on with stories of how I’ve been un-appreciated after lots of non-paid prep time. It used to hurt my feelings. Not anymore. I realized it’s a business, not some academic calling, here. Do the minimum to get by. The minimum won’t be asking a lot. I was a proud professional once, but this place has ruined me for the real world when I eventually return to the USA. Just count the money or get a girlfriend or several girlfriends, if necessary or take up a new hobby. Find something else to balance out the frustrations of working for businesses such as we work for. Several people posted replies saying that’s just the way it is here, so reconcile yourself to it. I used to be hard-working, too. Just count the money and focus on off-work activities. Do the minimum to get by. It’s not about laziness. It’s about mental survival. pace yourself for the long haul, if you want to work here several years. Learn to let the water flow off your back. Good luck to us all.