This site is a class blog space for new Career and Technical Specializations and Heathcare Science teachers enrolled in the New Teacher Institute (NTI) at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Give me my money!
Coming from commercial advertising I really feel helpless when it comes to trying to get the right equipment in my lab. My first thought is that when I was in the work force and my equipment, let's say a camera, was malfunctioning during the day, then all I had to do was make a phone call and get a replacement sent that day, because without equipment we couldn't make money. Now that I'm in the classroom and equipment malfunctions it slows education productivity. They did a decent job of getting me things I need, but not nearly enough to cater to the number of students that they would like to master the standards. We got to keep the money coming to stay relevant. Here we are, the experts of our respected fields, bringing with us the latest in what the industry wants and we already have to jump through hoops to get what we need to stay up to date. The reality is that our equipment will break and tear up, all I'm saying is don't make the money more difficult to come by. I feel like my contribution to perkins is our schools own school tube site. This site is public access and is constantly updated with new video posts. Our students are putting out top notch programming and we can't get it done without the proper equipment...just like any television station, and isn't that what I'm getting them ready for?
The equipment fight rages on...
ReplyDeleteLast week we had a camera go down, and I was terrified to tell my CTAE director. Once I worked up the courage and told her, she actually nodded her head and said, "These things happen. We have some repair money set aside." WOW! I was shocked. It's sad that I was expecting something totally different. Not from my director (she is always helpful) but the system does seem to work against you. Perkins has provided for all of this money and the system has created a web of bureaucracy to get to it. Forms in triplicate, administrator approval, purchase orders, all are most likely necessary at some point, but it seems like keeping the money un-spent has become an art form. You are doing great - keep your students work out there, and they have no other choice but to keep throwing money your way. Be patient, and remember that nothing ever really happened THAT fast at the TV station either....it just seemed like it because they'd have some other busy work for us to do in the meantime.