Fantastic TES Staffroom Post

[Dos_Box]

Hello everyone,

 

I feel compelled to contribute to this discussion which has taken on a far wider frame, but which raises underlying issues that should be addressed.

 

I've been in IT for a long time, most of that spent in 'industry' and I've had the opportunity to work alongside a variety of other professions including accountants and lawyers. I can say without reservation that I have never worked with a more insecure lot than Teachers, no other profession that I have ever encountered has carried such a enormous chip on their shoulders. Do not get me wrong, I've met some wonderful teachers, but what is it about the teaching profession that they seem to have such problems recognizing and respecting the role that other professionals play in schools.

 

Modern schools contain a variety of professionals. These people have careers too. Maybe they leave an organization in the 'widgets' industry and join the new organization in the 'education' sector. Depending on the school they join they may be switching from private to public sector. They haven't changed profession, simply employers. Let's say they were a 'widget' engineer and they are brought in to look after the schools 'widgets'. OK so now they are a 'widget' engineer working in a school... They will discover that they are now considered to have 'left industry' even though they are still a part of the 'widget' engineering world and collaborating with their peers. But a bigger surprise will be that they now have a new label... 'non-teacher'! They are now defined by what they are not. Welcome to the apartheid of the school work-place.

 

IT is at the heart of most organizations today. Whatever sector, organizations are reliant upon their computers for core functions such as finance and administration – salaries paid by computers, letters, emails etc. Added to which are any needs specific to the organizations aims – in the case of a retail organization, sales to their customers – in the case of a school, education of their pupils. It is right therefore that IT be aligned to the aims of the organization, but as can be seen IT in retail is not limited to sales in shops just as in schools IT is lot limited to the classroom. The IT infrastructure in a school has to meet the needs of the whole school, teaching and non-teaching.

 

IT facilities are expensive, not just to install but also to maintain. The visible aspects such as computers in classrooms are of little value unless backed up by the unseen elements such as network cabling, switches, servers etc. Then there is the necessary cycle of replacement, none of this kit lasts forever and it costs a fortune to maintain a cycle of replacement. Then there is the cost of fixing things that break, paying for all that software licensing, consumables like ink cartridges and toners, staffing and whatever contracts are necessary with external contractors.

 

It's very easy to understand how people can develop over simplistic views of IT – most of us have computers at home, a computer enthusiast may network several computers together to share files, the internet or printing, an ICT teacher may network a room of computers as part of a project. It's in understanding how much of a leap it takes from that to networking hundreds of computers. Layers of complexity are added in order to address security and central management. Once you get to this kind of level things become very complex and contrary to popular misconception whilst the interface for the end user has been getting increasingly user friendly at the back end of networks things are getting ever more complicated. The 'out-of-the-box' network is a myth.

 

The vast differences in scale between schools also adds to the confusion amongst teaching staff about the relative complexity of IT, scale is everything. In small schools some ICT staff may have been used to being involved in the day to day operation of a network, in a larger school these responsibilities are necessarily handed over to IT professionals. Once a networks size takes it past certain freshholds additional complexities are necessarily introduced.

 

Professional IT skills are just that, backed by training, qualifications, experience. IT professionals who hold accredited industry certifications are required to recertify regularly, those who are members of professional bodies have to maintain CPD. To take 2 years out of IT is to make your skills out-of-date.

 

Schools are therefore bringing in ever more highly trained/experienced computer professionals. As network management becomes the preserve of experts conflicts arise with teachers who have traditionally considered themselves the 'experts'. These teachers need to realise that scale and complexity of IT infrastructures in schools are now increasingly such that they can no longer expect to be able to understand it fully and they need to respect the expertise of others.

 

A schools IT infrastructure is there to serve the whole organization not just the ICT or Media Studies department, not just teaching and not just teachers. Managing a network is at the core of what a Network Manager does, but usually his responsibilities extend beyond this. An NM is usually a manager of staff, a prioritiser of workloads, juggler of budgets. One thing is usually for certain, your Network Manager isn't idle when you aren't supplying him with additional work!

 

The NM is usually responsible to the schools senior management and pursuing agendas agreed with them, to which you may or may not be party. Priorities are usually agreed, at least to some extend with some kind of steering group/committee. In well run schools plans usually extend several years ahead allowing the school to plan for all the relevant issues of costs and implications.

 

ICT strategy is usually guided by some kind of steering group/committee. Decisions are made and plans laid often years ahead. There are usually significant restrictions on resources which have to be accommodated, primarily financial. Difficult decisions have to be made and sometimes blanket choices about standardisation are necessary for the good of the organization.

 

Committees are imperfect but they allow a variety of voices to be heard. In my experience many school ICT committees are unrepresentative and pander to the whims of one or other specific department at the expense of the rest of the school. More often than not the deciding factor on plans is cost in all its forms – not just the cost of implementing something but the on-going cost of maintaining it and supporting it. These committees have to make difficult decisions, but ultimately it is usually the committee or in exceptional circumstances senior management who make the final decision – not the Network Manager. Blaming a network manager because he has a differing opinion which is more highly valued in this area of expertise than your own is unprofessional.

 

As an NM myself I suffer the flack for decisions made (or not made) at this level, which isn't right. I will give you two examples:

 

Example 1 - equipment identified as going to fail and the impact that this failure will have brought to the attention of senior management – either no decision made or the decision taken to do nothing about it – equipment fails, staff blame NM!

 

Example 2 – a need identified, proposals/plans made – but either insufficient funds or lack of decision or decision to delay until future date – staff blame NM for not meeting needs!

 

Example 3 – staff want a technician in every classroom ready to pounce on any problems that arise, to hold hands and mop brows – budget allows a couple of technicians to support half a dozen buildings – response time/support not good enough, staff blame NM!

 

The reality is that the role of NM is one of the most difficult and thankless in education, it's even recognized as such by the IT industry. Nowadays schools often have very highly skilled and experienced NM's who deserve the respect of their colleagues.

 

I would suggest you make friends with your Network Manager, treat him with respect and LISTEN to what he has to say – ask questions not demands. Talk to him/her about what you want to achieve and allow them to guide you as to the best way to achieve that. The choice of software comes later and the choice of operating system later still. Ask them about the channels for decision making in the school, make any proposals to the right audience. Respect the opinions of others, respect the areas of professional expertise of others. If you don't get your way don't blame the NM.

 

Let's all try and be professional here, we do no credit to our relative professions by stooping to exchanging insults. I trust you will all listen to my comments and respect my views.

 

Can be found here:

 

http://www.tes.co.uk/section/staffroom/thread.aspx?story_id=2351485&path=/ict/&threadPage=&messagePage=8

[_Bat_]

I didn't read all of that article, but read most so I got the gist. I can honestly say, I do not have that kind of a problem here.

 

I've been working at these two schools for almost exactly a year now and only once have I had a teacher argue with what I am doing when it comes to the computers (when they obviously had no clue what they were talking about). There has been a bit of an incident recently with the website for one of the schools, but thats not really related in my opinion. There are different skill levels among the teachers ranging from being able to use a computer for regular tasks to never having used a computer before and too scared to learn. If a teacher belongs in the latter group, they openly admit it and if they belong in the former group, they always appreciate what my network manager or myself tell them when it comes to the computer network.

 

I've only ever worked in these two schools though, maybe someone has a different story?

[webman]

How true.

[ChrisH]

That person speaks the gospel truth!

[localzuk]

I don't have that problem here, although I do feel that people blame me when things break which are outside of my control.

 

There doesn't seem to be too much of a 'them and us' split and my expertise is appreciated 99% of the time.

 

The school my dad teachs at however is completely different. There is a definite divide, a general feeling of snobbery by the teachers towards the support staff and technical team. It causes many, many problems.

[webman]

That sort of thing is rife on the TES forum though, teachers treating support staff like slaves and generally looking down their noses at them.

[ChrisH]

*Cough* Bisley98 anyone?

[projector1]

never had that sort of problem here, staf are very good!

i think alot goes down to the fact that we do go out our way to make sure the staff can rely on us and have the confidence to use the IT resources knowning that they have a support team ready to solve/repair/troubleshoot any issues/challenges

[_Bat_]

*Cough* Bisley98 anyone?

 

I read all about her... something must have caused her to say the things she did. Her partner apparently worked in IT, yet she still bashed support workers down to the ground? Something is not what it seems there.

[_Bat_]

YES, I AM saying that technicians are not professionals like I am. Most are unqualified and lazy, as I have stated earlier

 

Youch! I bet that went down well!

[Midget]

Where's that from Bat?

[_Bat_]

Where's that from Bat?

 

Here: http://www.tes.co.uk/section/staffroom/thread.aspx?story_id=2138547&path=/ict/&threadPage=&messagePage=3

 

Post at the bottom of that page. There are plenty more posts from him/her on that forum elsewhere saying even worse things.

 

And YES, I am saying, very strongly, that technicians have no place whatsoever in education - they know nothing about it - thats why they are just technicians, not teachers.

[NetworkGeezer]

Wow. It's strange to see such strong oppinions when an OS or browser hasn't been mentioned

[Grommit]

Words like "Getting above thier station" rings in my ears on TES

[mattx]

Most technicians would be better than some teachers I would say in certain schools ? Anyone like to comment ? ;-)

[GrumbleDook]

I actually feel slightly sorry for the OP in the TES thread. They want to do something different but they feel they are being blocked ... then others jump on the badwagon and it becomes either an OS flamewar or a teacher/techie flamewar ...

 

Still ... some good quotes have come out of it ... and it is funny to spot people posting under alternative accounts on there ;-)

[MkII]

It's just my SMT that are guilty of what he's saying. Maybe i'm lucky that nearly all teaching staff are really good here, or is it always just the odd 1 or 2!?

[GrumbleDook]

I am just frustrated that the thread constantly comes back to people looking down their noses at one another or an OS war.

 

I just wish that people would accept that if someone has expertise in a particular area (teacher, network manager or cleaner) then it should be listened to and the benefits to the students should be weighed up.

[_Bat_]

I am just frustrated that the thread constantly comes back to people looking down their noses at one another or an OS war.

 

I just wish that people would accept that if someone has expertise in a particular area (teacher, network manager or cleaner) then it should be listened to and the benefits to the students should be weighed up.

 

I completely agree. I wouldn't dream of saying to one of the teachers in my school that they were doing something wrong with regards to teaching, even if I honestly thought they were. For instance, a lot of the teachers in my schools shout at the kids... I often walk down the corridor and hear them yelling. I personally believe that there has to be better ways of controlling a class then yelling. But having never ever been in a similar situation as them before, I keep my mouth shut because I am probably wrong (plus I am well aware I am not in a position to say anything like that to them anyway).

[GrumbleDook]

I'm now in a position where I *DO* tell teachers if they are doing something wrong ... or if there may be better ways of doing things ... but it nearly always involves discussion ... unless they are in a situation that is FUBAR and I have to just deal with it ... but that is because I am not a Network Manager ... and it has taken time to get to this position ... but I will still always listen and try to ensure I am doing right by the school ... even if it means more work / effort for Stephen and the rest of the team.

[Andrew_C]

I couldn't teach; I know that, I've tried in a fairly specialized field. I reckon that I'm averagely intelligent and that if a student doesn't get what I find blindingly obvious I'm flummoxed. (Since that experience I've tested my IQ but modesty prevents...) ;-)

 

Equally, a lot of the teachers around here can't tie their own shoelaces without help, but teach some pretty obscure subjects to an astonishingly bright bunch of kids and keep them VERY motivated.

[mattx]

Its nice being able to take a back seat and watch.

[GrumbleDook]

I've been an instructor ... I've been a coach ... I have run playschemes for children (specialising in those with disabilities) and I get annoyed when people talk down to me because I did not doss about about for 3 years and *then* actually work for a year to get a PGCE ...

 

But I also get annoyed when people from a technical/admin background, whether they are techies, NMs, Sales drones or bean counters, decide that just because a teacher has ideas and knowledge it should be discounted because they are a teacher.

 

I know this makes me unpopular at times ... I can live with that and I will continue to shout down people that do not give one another a chance to at least discuss possibilities and opportunities.

 

There ... rant over ... I am now repeating myself on the TES thread ... and in here too ... nothing new there. I think I'll leave it at that unless there is a reply direct to me.

 

sorry if people feel as if I have gone on ... but there are times I really will not sit back and watch.

[broc]

When I worked in the IT industry as an IT systems engineer & later as an IT consultant I had sales colleagues who were paid more, who worked fewer hours, who took the technical staff for granted and sales staff were always treated by our employer as a 'superior' life form when compared to technical staff.

As you might imagine, sometimes there was friction between the two groups of people; corporate management attitude was simple enough, you both need each other, get on with it. The techies were told, if you want to be treated like sales staff then become a salesman. This was a hard message for some.

 

This is of course a sweeping generalisation as I worked with some really good sales colleagues who valued the support they received from their technical support staff.

 

So, for me, working in a school is no different ....... teachers need technicians, technicians would not have a job if it were not for the teachers they support. None of us is perfect, we all moan about 'them' from time to time but we need each other. I could not do the salemans job when I worked in Industry any more than I could do a teachers job in a school now.

 

We all have our jobs to do, let's give 'them' a break, teachers and support staff together. As technical support staff we can always walk away fom a problem that is bugging us; imagine being in a class with 30 bugg@rs and no means of escape!

[mattx]

I used to to a IT induction for new staff where I used to work in the private sector. I used to enjoy that, shame it was stopped when we finally shelved OS/2 & went down the Citrix route.

I've done a few training [ 20 mins max ] sessions on stuff for some staff, but being a teacher ? Naaaa Thanks - looks too stressful for me....

I prefer to take a back seat and watch them.....