Frustration

I had a lot of fun this past weekend, but in between time spent at parties, bike riding, going to Church and bowling, I seriously spent a lot of time grading, planning and getting ready for a good week of school.  And you know what?  I was ready.

Just before school started, though, catastrophe struck.  A small fire developed in one of the lighting fixtures on the second floor of the building.  Worse, it was the second fire we have had in the building since school started.  It was much like the other fire.

After the fire was put out, we quickly evacuated the building.  Director Bill made the decision to send the children home until the problem is fixed.

How does this happen?  Here is where it gets frustrating.  The same people who “fixed” the problem two weeks ago were there again in force to “fix” the problem again.  Undoubtedly, and predictably, at some point they will declare that the problem is the fault of the tenants, and they have done everything correctly.  Does it matter that their hardware is shocklingly inadequate, or that their workmanship is rubbish?  Does it matter that they didn’t fix it correctly the first time?  No!

And worse, there is no regard for the safety of students or staff.  It appears these people want something for nothing.  There is no society anywhere that would say what they are doing is OK.  It is not.  Their ethics are not Kazakh.  I refuse to believe that any culture would foster this sort of unethical money-grubbing self-centered incompetence. What these people are doing is shameful.

What is happening reminds me of the importance of rule of law.  Bureaucracies can be frustrating and difficult, but they can serve a purpose.  These people need to be investigated for their conduct.  In the meantime, while they try and make money at any costs, there are scores of students and teachers who are prevented from doing what they do best – learning to make the world a better place.

Success Orientations

Success Orientations Poster

I asked my students to create posters outlining, among other things, QSI’s success orientations.  These are the qualities that QSI expects its graduating students to attain.  They are certainly aspirational.  If the personal growth that I am seeing in A. and other classmates is any indication, attainment is  quite likely. By the way, it was A. who did such an exceptional job on the poster pictured here.

Today, for example, J. personally thanked and hugged the Director for all of his hard work.  Another student has thanked me a couple of times following lessons.  I am increasingly impressed with what I see happening.  More to come.

My Website

This weekend I finally began the process of converting my class website from a support for my students at the American International School in Hong Kong (where I taught last year) to making it a website that supports my current students at the International School of Atyrau in Kazakhstan.

Shortly after I started teaching at Alchesay High School, in Whiteriver, Arizona in January, 2004, I met with George Thomson at the Sunrise Ski Lodge.  While his family skiied, he showed me how to register a domain name, as well as the basics of how to use Dreamweaver to create a website.  He helped me purchase server space, and I was off.  Although I have changed servers since then, I have maintained the same domain name, and I have consistently provided my classes with a website ever since.

Certainly the quality of the website has waxed and waned over the years.  Depending on my teaching circumstances, I have emphasized different aspects of the site. While I was teaching at the American School of Yaounde, I discovered Voodoo Pad Pro, and switched from using Dreamweaver.  It was one of the best moves I ever made.  It made modifying the website so easy; the flexibility and versatility of the software is what makes it so great.

I can honestly say that teacher tools for creating a class website have never been better.  I am now using PersonalBrain for the site index and most of the supporting pages.  I like the way it sets up relationships between ideas.  It uploads documents easily for student use.  Beyond that, it is very helpful on my computer as a tool that permits me to find what I need quickly and easily. The support for the product is fantastic.

For my class calendar, I am using Planbook.  Planbook has been a work in progress for the past couple of years, but it is really coming into its own.  It has many great features.  Jeff Hellman, its developer, is easy to talk with, and has incorporated many teacher-led ideas into the software.  It is already well worth its price, and I can see it only getting better with time.

For grading, I have chosen to use the most recent upgrade of Easy Grade Pro.  It permits me to grade student work by standard.  It is a sophisticated program, and the learning curve is quite steep, but once it is mastered, it too is well worth the price.  I love how it enables me to talk to students about mastery of standards and skills, rather than about grade percentages.  And that ties in so well with the Quality Schools International philosophy.

I still love Voodoo Pad Pro for what it can do.  Although I once centered my website around this program, I have switched to PersonalBrain.  But Voodoo Pad Pro is another excellent piece of software.  Gus is responsive to customer needs and concerns, and the program is easy to use, but terrifically effective.

Taken together, these four programs are the backbone of what I do as a teacher.  These tools make me a better teacher for my students.

I teach because I want to enable our next generation of young people to make the world a better place.  I thank those people working on the software that I rely on for helping me to fulfill my vision.  By the way, here is my website.