RANTING/VENTING MEGATHREAD 3.0

I don't have a us/them thing with Korean teachers. 

well i never used to, but it has always felt that the koreans teachers i've worked with feel like that. they'd also be the first to snitch/report on anything if it meant brownie points with the principal. i've basically had to learn not to trust the korean teachers i work with. sadly, this is even the feeling among all 6 of the native teachers at my current school

that could burn bridges

If that's happened, I haven't noticed. Nevertheless, I wouldn't want any bridges between myself and a mooch.

It's not a case of reinventing the wheel, it's more like your second point. If you give me a file to present, it's not going to work. Likewise if you take one of my lessons you won't be able to pull it off. Part of excelling as a teacher is finding your own way to deliver the material. I don't feel comfortable using a downloaded lesson because it's not mine, I didn't create it, it's not designed with me in mind. The kids can see it a mile off too and it really changes their mood and involvement in the class.

Someone mentioned a few days ago about their PPT skills improving and how their old professor at Uni had terrible stock/downloaded PPT's. It reeks of low effort. I guess what I'm trying to say is, sure someone can use my stuff, but it won't work for you because it's made by me, for me, for my kids. Not yours. So what's the point, you know?

Every teacher can do as they wish, download what they want, it's your call. I choose to design, create and deliver my own and that is why it is my IP, not the schools/MOE.

This 100%.

Other people's content is to serve as a template. Something to get you going and to reduce your prep time by 25-50% depending on what it is (and in most cases that reduction in prep time is due to technical issues, rather than actual educational content, particularly if you have mediocre tech skills). It needs to be tailored to the individual teacher and class.

Aren't all threads on the internet basically 'useless'?

no (?)

that's a very general (and very weird) question, what exactly do you mean by "useless"

This 100%.

Other people's content is to serve as a template. Something to get you going and to reduce your prep time by 25-50% depending on what it is (and in most cases that reduction in prep time is due to technical issues, rather than actual educational content, particularly if you have mediocre tech skills). It needs to be tailored to the individual teacher and class.

Hang on. A while ago I said there's only so much prep you can possibly do, and if you've been teaching for a while you really don't need to spend hours prepping for every class. And I said having fancy presentations doesn't make you a better teacher.

Now you're saying it's good to focus on content rather than the tech (something you were arguing against before) and that it's a good thing to cut down on unnecessary prep (something you were also arguing against before, saying "there's always something else you can do")

Hang on. A while ago I said there's only so much prep you can possibly do, and if you've been teaching for a while you really don't need to spend hours prepping for every class. And I said having fancy presentations doesn't make you a better teacher.

Now you're saying it's good to focus on content rather than the tech (something you were arguing against before) and that it's a good thing to cut down on unnecessary prep (something you were also arguing against before, saying "there's always something else you can do")

All I'm saying is downloading a template can assist those with mediocre tech/design skills and add that visual zaz to what you're doing. From there you can brighten it further or focus on contents or both.

"Always something you can do" does not equal unnecessary prep.

well yes there's no point creating your own materials from scratch if there are already materials available that are suitable for your class

at the same time, there is absolutely no point spending hours to prepare for a single 40-minute class (unless you know you'll be able to reuse it a lot in the future)

my point is just because you do spend hours preparing for a single class, it doesn't necessarily mean it will be any good. a no-prep, no-tech lesson can be just as (or more) successful as one with fancy powerpoints

Aren't all threads on the internet basically 'useless'?

I rather liked that thread. I'm 100% for showing off my vast knowledge of pointless trivia.
Bummed that it got shut down. 

well yes there's no point creating your own materials from scratch if there are already materials available that are suitable for your class

at the same time, there is absolutely no point spending hours to prepare for a single 40-minute class (unless you know you'll be able to reuse it a lot in the future)

my point is just because you do spend hours preparing for a single class, it doesn't necessarily mean it will be any good. a no-prep, no-tech lesson can be just as (or more) successful as one with fancy powerpoints

The point was that it's not about doing it every lesson if I recall the debate in question, my point was that a teacher who NEVER stays late or does that kind of extra work, very likely has questionable work ethic and standards.

That being said, you're right that time does not equal quality. At the same time, people who care about quality tend to devote time.

I rather liked that thread. I'm 100% for showing off my vast knowledge of pointless trivia.
Bummed that it got shut down. 

Now, when one moderator is bummed that a thread that wasn't breaking any rules is shut down, and another moderate in fact did shut it down, does that not appear to show a certain arbitrariness and lack of consistency in terms of which posts are shut down? Shouldn't moderators be sort of on the same page on things like that?

The point was that it's not about doing it every lesson if I recall the debate in question, my point was that a teacher who NEVER stays late or does that kind of extra work, very likely has questionable work ethic and standards.

That being said, you're right that time does not equal quality. At the same time, people who care about quality tend to devote time.

yes but as i said, i used to have 4 hours a day free to prepare a total of about 6 lessons a week. if you need over 3 hours to prepare one 40-minute class, you're doing it wrong. i can't see a single scenario where i would have needed to stay late, unless i was doing report cards or something (but that's not planning lessons).

even if you had 10 classes, that's still 2 hours to prep each one. even if you had 20 different classes a week, that's still more than enough time. 

and besides, fancy-looking lessons doesn't always mean quality lessons. it really depends on the teacher. a 5-minute lesson jotted on the back of a napkin could be more fun and effective than another teacher spending 5 hours preparing something

of course there's always a happy medium, but just because a teacher doesn't spend hours upon hours prepping, it doesn't make them a bad or lazy teacher.

it's like when people don't want to pay for a graphic design saying "oh come on. it will only take you 30 minutes". but the time spent getting to where it only takes you 30 minutes is what people don't seem to understand. same with teaching- the more you do it, the faster you can put together a quality lesson

The more you cook, the faster it is to whip something up.

That doesn't mean that throwing yourself into a full course gourmet meal won't yield better results, and if your chef NEVER puts forth the effort to do such a thing and instead opts for the path of minimum resistance, well that may be fine for quick service casual, but is that the kind of chef you'd want at your place?

Same thing with a teacher. If they NEVER go all out at least occasionally, that likely says something about their character and their underlying talent.

Same thing with a teacher. If they NEVER go all out at least occasionally, that likely says something about their character and their underlying talent.

you can go "all out" and not spend hours preparing something. that's my point. and if you do go "all out", i still don't see how it would take more than a couple of hours, if your class if 40-minutes long. time spent planning =/= quality of lesson

The more you cook, the faster it is to whip something up.

That doesn't mean that throwing yourself into a full course gourmet meal won't yield better results, and if your chef NEVER puts forth the effort to do such a thing and instead opts for the path of minimum resistance, well that may be fine for quick service casual, but is that the kind of chef you'd want at your place?

Same thing with a teacher. If they NEVER go all out at least occasionally, that likely says something about their character and their underlying talent.

you can go "all out" and not spend hours preparing something. that's my point. and if you do go "all out", i still don't see how it would take more than a couple of hours, if your class if 40-minutes long. time spent planning =/= quality of lesson

Agreed, that's why every teacher should be observed properly twice a year. Inexperienced ones should spend 2 hours + to get the lesson just right, experienced ones can probably do it in less.

i miss being properly observed (by people who know what they are talking about)

Steel Rain 2: Summit (강철비2) came out yesterday. Big hit Korean movie. BUT

I wanna see a movie on Sat morn with the GF due to the kiddo being woth her father most of Saturday. Steel Rain 2 is taking up 2/3 of all the screens everywhrre and that means that we have 4 choices in movies for Saturday. :-(

Steel Rain 2, NO

Peninsula, saw it, it's not good.

Aladdin, NO, I refuse to support shitty cash-grab remakes, especially Disney ones.

And Happy Liitle Submarine. A movie for 4 year olds.

GOD DAMMIT

Steel Rain 2: Summit (강철비2) came out yesterday. Big hit Korean movie. BUT

I wanna see a movie on Sat morn with the GF due to the kiddo being woth her father most of Saturday. Steel Rain 2 is taking up 2/3 of all the screens everywhrre and that means that we have 4 choices in movies for Saturday. :-(

Steel Rain 2, NO

Peninsula, saw it, it's not good.

Aladdin, NO, I refuse to support shitty cash-grab remakes, especially Disney ones.

And Happy Liitle Submarine. A movie for 4 year olds.

GOD DAMMIT

Looks like the only option is tantric sex then, I guess you can only put it off for so long :(

I hear that you can watch movies on the interweb these days.