Re: [SLUG] operating systems and schools

["David Foster" <bridgeport@nospam.australians.com>]

The most important R of all Research. If you can teach someone how to
research, they can learn anything. Uni does not teach (spoon feed), the
student is expected to Research, the lecturers and tutors are there to
provide guidance.
----- Original Message -----
From: Terry Collins <terryc@nospam.woa.com.au>
To: <slug@nospam.slug.org.au>
Cc: David Foster <bridgeport@nospam.australians.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 01, 2000 11:06 PM
Subject: Re: [SLUG] operating systems and schools


> 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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