--- David Bowles
Here's a some background on me and my involvement in education to date: I've been working with PC-based IT systems all my working life (at 51 I'm no spring chicken <VBG>). My my skill base ranges from database programming in the early days (BASIC and 6502 assembler for the Apple II - I burnt myself out doing that!); through network
I started out with 6502 assembler on the BBC Micro. In fact, it was these computers, during primary school that I blame for my interest to this date.
I'm also disabled; not physically but with some neurological issues including Tourette Syndrome (no I don't swear ...except when I'm
Hmm, I too suffer from a neurological condition (that I refuse to name) as well as various other things.
...well actually I'm still reserving judgement on this. But I can't hold off for much longer, as seven years later I still haven't found an appropriate niche for myself within this field -- at least not one that's open to people who come in from outside the teaching profession.
It's ironic, in many ways. The whole point of teaching is giving others knowledge. How are people going to learn, by excluding the very people that can offer the very information that might be of use?
Here's an IT related example: Within both schools where I did my teaching practice it took more than ten days for someone to set me up with an account on the school network. This required lots of shuffling bits of paper in and out of various pigeonholes in the staff-room.
Well, my knowledge of schools can only come from a student perspective, however, I would imagine that different schools have (lots of) different means of handling things.
All my offers of assistance were turned down. Why? Because I didn't have "the appropriate qualifications"(?) to work on their system
It is unfortunate. but paper is what drives the employment industry... if you don't nowadays have paper to say you can do XYZ, people aren't going to want to know.
Are network crashes on this scale one-offs? Unfortunately not. At an even bigger school where I also did teaching practice (with approximately 2,500 students), I learned that sometime afterwards they suffered a similar period of network downtime ...once again taking down all their PCs in the process. Seems like this is not unusual.
Depends on the $IMBECILE employed to manage the network. I have yet to meet someone capable of not crumpling at the seams when something goes wrong in this sense.
So what's the point of this post? Well as I said earlier I'm not a quitter and I've still not lost all hope of finding my niche in 'Teacheland' or at least within some organisation that works closely with schools.
Do you even need to find a niche? Just do your job.
So once again can you help me? ...or failing this can you point me in the direction of a man or woman who can?
Can you be more specific? I can help to an extent, but don't expect much, I am still a University under-graduate... -- Thomas Adam "The Linux Weekend Mechanic" -- http://linuxgazette.net "TAG Editor" -- http://linuxgazette.net "<shrug> We'll just save up your sins, Thomas, and punish you for all of them at once when you get better. The experience will probably kill you. :)" -- Benjamin A. Okopnik (Linux Gazette Technical Editor) Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com