Re: [SLUG] operating systems and schools

[Terry Collins <terryc@nospam.woa.com.au>]

David Foster wrote:
> 
> Not being teachers by trade, but concerned parents astonished by the lack of
> teaching ability at the local primary schools withdrew our children and
> taught them ourselves. The children were 8,8 &6. They are know 17(3rd year
> Civil Engineering),17(3rd year Computing),15(1st year Science). You do not
> need to be a teacher to educate children, guidance, encouragement and a
> belief in the 4 R's (and plenty of books) is all that is needed. 

Reading, writing, aRithmetic and R?


>I find it difficult to feel sympathy for primary/secondary teachers. They
> are fighting for a salary equal to University Lecturers.

Are they really going for so little? Have you seen how little uni
lecturers are paid? And the qualifications they are required to have?

Seriously, there are lies, damm lies, and newspaper facts and
statistics (never let the facts get in the way of a good story {:-).

I've just sent the following to Jon B, so I will cut and paste it here
for how teachers wages have changed over the last 15 years.
"When we got married, my wife earnt more as a 2 year trained teacher
than I did as a computer op. When she had attained 4 year status (
after six years part time study), we were leap frogging each other
each year for whomever earned the most. Now, I earn 50% more p.a. than
she does and I do not have a
wonderfully paid computer position; quite moderate actually". Nuff
said?

> The SMH (August) ran sample Q&A
> for the HSC IT exam prepared by the senior marker and 2 of the solutions
> were incorrect (The blind leading the blind). No wonder so many university
> students fail programming 1 at Uni level.

So what else is new? Actually HSC stuff is one issue. Technical
subjects at uni is another issue.

It goes back to that old saying that just because you are a good
programmer, it doesn't mean that you will make a good analyst.
Similarly, just because you are good enough to earn a degree at uni,
doesn't mean you know how to teach the subject. The worst lecturers
I've seen were usually rated as the brightest as student. The problem
was that they can not relate to any student, other than the best. The
method of teaching at uni has to be the worst method of instruction
every devised. 

Then you add the "brilliant" engineering creton at UTS that taught C
in the early 90s' and the dean almost threatened me with expulsion
when I wrote and complained. 

--
   Terry Collins {:-)}}} Ph(02) 4627 2186 Fax(02) 4628 7861  
   email: terryc@nospam.woa.com.au  www: http://www.woa.com.au  
   WOA Computer Services <lan/wan, linux/unix, novell>
   snail:  PO Box 1047, Campbelltown, NSW 2560.

 "People without trees are like fish without clean water"
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