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Post by Deleted on May 12, 2013 19:38:33 GMT -5
Our school does a summer reading requirement every summer. There is usually one book. We have a "One School, One Book" agenda, and we usually get a free copy of the chosen book. Every teacher is expected to assess it.
This year the committee that chooses the book decided to be ultra-creative. They did a "Sweet Sixteen" sort of format to end up with four books. The four books total $60 if you buy them on Amazon. The English dept. is in charge of assessing.
Am I wrong in thinking I don't particularly want to spend $60 on books that I didn't choose? I bought one so I could say I did the summer reading, too. But no other department is expected to spend $60 and the time to read 4 books that weren't their personal choice for summer reading. You guys talk about how we have all this time "off" in the summer, but this is a great example of work demands during the summer.
I, however, am mostly annoyed that it is a financial demand. I am trying to budget a little more strictly. I don't want to buy these particular books. They don't interest me. I did buy the one that is most closely aligned with what I teach. That would be THE HOBBIT. Its author was an Old English scholar, and we do start off the year with BEOWULF. The dragon in both is identical. But it isn't like all of my kids will know that.
Do your kids have summer reading? How does it work?
Anyway, I am not buying all four books. I've read two of them . . . THE HELP (which I checked out of the library a couple of years ago) and THE HOBBIT (which I read mega-years before but thought related most closely to what I teach). I have a really tight budget right now for a number of reasons. $60 is a deal-breaker.
Can you tell that I am really annoyed? This is the type of thing you couldn't afford to be annoyed about without tenure. Told to buy and read four books over the summer? Do it or get fired. I don't mind the reading (I love to read), but I mind the drain on my financial resources.
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milee
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Post by milee on May 12, 2013 20:14:27 GMT -5
I guess I've never had a job where I didn't have some out of pocket costs, so it's difficult to relate. From when I was a waitress and required to have a certain color pants and work shoes to when I was a professional starting out and required to not only dress the part but subscribe to and read all sorts of trade publications on a starting salary that was less money on an hourly basis than I was making waitressing, I've always had a few costs that were just part of the job. As for the summer reading, both my boys have 2-4 books to read for English, a math solving packet (usually 30-60 pages) and a social studies type research project. Guess the total out of pocket costs for the materials/books for each boy is around $50 - $70.
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midjd
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Post by midjd on May 12, 2013 20:22:03 GMT -5
I get annoyed every August 1 when I have to pay $145 to keep my license to practice law. Like it hasn't cost enough already. Do you have to purchase the books? Can you borrow them from the library?
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milee
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Post by milee on May 12, 2013 20:29:54 GMT -5
Thinking more - if the $60 is such a big deal, maybe just skip buying and reading them all and simply vote for the one you know. If another one is chosen, there will be plenty of copies around you can borrow.
But I'm still thinking that if having to buy 4 books and read them over the summer is one of the best examples of the huge and unreasonable work demands over the summer, that may be one you want to keep to yourself because it might be tough to find a sympathetic ear amongst people in most other jobs/professions. JMHO.
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Post by Deleted on May 12, 2013 20:38:38 GMT -5
What are the other two?
I vote library too, or paperback swap...
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on May 12, 2013 20:42:16 GMT -5
Can you buy one and then swap with others? Keep the cost to one book for everyone, but everyone still be able to read all 4? although I don't know how easy it is to share books on kindles.
If the other 2 are older, you can probably snag a library copy in print or for kindle.
It sounds like they are pretty quick reads, or you could see if the library has audio books and just get it out of the way in the car when running errands.
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on May 12, 2013 20:56:09 GMT -5
I can appreciate the cost of expenses you don't really volunteer to front. yeah, you can float it, but you really shouldn't have to. :\
that said, I'm going to try to offer tips on your curriculum as best I can from what my sis has leaked from her own - she's a HS English teacher in a private school, while I work in Engineering/Facilities in a pharma company. she has been able to teach some pretty "out-there" things in comparison to what I remember from our shared public HS. she's taught (as best I can remember) - American History X, Running With Scissors, Angels in America, among others. she's got free reign to teach whatever she wants, as long as she can justify an academic reason.
I guess I'm confused as to why you have to front the bill for the course books in a public school?
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Post by Deleted on May 12, 2013 22:17:42 GMT -5
I just placed my last scholastic order of the year. I get TONS of free books from them. Do you do their book orders?
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justme
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Post by justme on May 12, 2013 22:21:11 GMT -5
Do you have a Kindle - or a smart phone? My local library has almost every book imaginable for lend on Kindle/Nook through Overdrive. I've read at least 20 books through my library on my Kindle without paying a cent.
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2013 0:51:51 GMT -5
Your sister was allowed to teach Running With Scissors to her HS class? WOW. Now I am not one to want to censor books at all, but I am surprised that a parent didn't have a shit fit over this one. I know I will not ever be able to look at hair cholesterol treatment the same after reading it...
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2013 0:53:51 GMT -5
As for the OP, why do you have to buy them? Go to the library and check them out. I also highly doubt that a non-tenured teacher would get fired for NOT buying the books.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on May 13, 2013 4:56:29 GMT -5
Sorry, I'm in the camp of "if $60 and 4 books is the worst of it, you have it pretty easy". I spent thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours studying to pass the CPA exam. This was after I had a job but it was an expectation of my firm. I would have gladly exchanged that for $60 worth of books.
All throughout my career I have been expected to buy and read business books that our CEO thought we should read. We even had a book club at work (forced) where we had to discuss the books. I just took it as a part of my career and muddled through the books (some were good, some were not).
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swamp
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Post by swamp on May 13, 2013 6:58:24 GMT -5
I'm with mid and Tina. I pay $300 over two years to register as well as pay for CE courses and trade publications. I also have to make up the work I missed going to the CE's
You're whining.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on May 13, 2013 7:07:35 GMT -5
I'm with mid and Tina. I pay $300 over two years to register as well as pay for CE courses and trade publications. I also have to make up the work I missed going to the CE's You're whining. yep...and all of that reading/studying was done after working 50 hours or more a week...we didnt' get the luxury of doing it during a break.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on May 13, 2013 7:44:39 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2013 9:11:32 GMT -5
Guys, you act like I don't have licensing fees and testing fees (Praxis), etc. There are costs associated with any job. I know that. As a professional, many of the costs are the same as your costs including liability insurance. Those I willingly accept as part of the cost of my profession.
These are four books that will be obsolete the next year as far as I'm concerned. Sure, I could borrow the books from the library, but then I wouldn't have them in the fall when it came time to actually use them. Like I said, I have read The Help. It wasn't that memorable a book that I would want to stand up and talk about it without rereading it this summer.
Your examples, Thyme, don't include shipping. So add another $2.98 to each of your prices. Prime doesn't work with used books in most cases.
The other books are Never Fall Down and The Fault in Our Stars. We don't have either one of them in either our local or school library.
Our final four remains four. It doesn't go on down to one.
Ignore my rant. I just am tired of spending money on school stuff.
P.S. You think teachers don't have continuing education requirements?
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swamp
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Post by swamp on May 13, 2013 9:26:56 GMT -5
Your examples, Thyme, don't include shipping. So add another $2.98 to each of your prices. Prime doesn't work with used books in most cases.
I hope you do.
However, it is my understanding, that at least in NY, the schools have "superintendent's days" on school days where the kids don't go to school and the teachers get their CE requirements done at no cost to the teachers. I have no idea how it's done in AL.
STill cheaper than $60.
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midjd
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Post by midjd on May 13, 2013 9:28:54 GMT -5
Nobody said you didn't... but having to spend $5 apiece for 4 used books on Amazon doesn't seem like a complaint-worthy burden. I work for the state, so have few outside-of-work demands compared to others in my profession, but that sort of thing seems to be par for the course for any professional job. If I started a thread about how I'm required to have business lunches with certain colleagues a few times a month and can only write off 50% of the cost on my taxes, I'm not going to get much sympathy either. You're well-compensated for your field and get quite a bit of time off (if not the three months of complete freedom others might envision). Look on the bright side.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on May 13, 2013 9:32:24 GMT -5
So adding $3 shipping to each of the books bring the cost to around $25....sorry, I'm not seeing what the big deal is.
Locally, school districts pay for continuing education for the teachers. Your school doesn't pay for that? Dang, our teachers get a great deal!
Like I said, though, on top of my continuing education, business journals, etc., I also have to buy business books that are chosen by the CEO. And these are not $3 books that I can pick-up on Amazon. But it is an expectation of my job so I do it.
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on May 13, 2013 9:34:00 GMT -5
Your sister was allowed to teach Running With Scissors to her HS class? WOW. Now I am not one to want to censor books at all, but I am surprised that a parent didn't have a shit fit over this one. I know I will not ever be able to look at hair cholesterol treatment the same after reading it... yep. the health teacher taught "Kids" too. they have a lot more freedom at a private school to teach what they want, as long as there is a good academic reason for it. I don't think she taught RWS to freshmen, if that makes you feel a little better about it.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on May 13, 2013 9:34:59 GMT -5
Your examples, Thyme, don't include shipping. So add another $2.98 to each of your prices. Prime doesn't work with used books in most cases. I hope you do. However, it is my understanding, that at least in NY, the schools have "superintendent's days" on school days where the kids don't go to school and the teachers get their CE requirements done at no cost to the teachers. I have no idea how it's done in AL. STill cheaper than $60. We have "in-service" days where the kids are off and the teachers get a day of training. I do not know if this counts as CE or not.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 13, 2013 9:36:16 GMT -5
Why can't you buy them used? If I'd bought all the books new at the campus bookstore for my 20th Century Lit class in college it would have been over $100. I was able to get them for as little as a penny used thru sellers on Barnes and Noble. Even with shipping I came out to less than $20.
You could also ask about inter-library loans. Your library might be willing to bring in a book available at a sister library for you. If you are a member this is often free of charge.
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2013 9:40:49 GMT -5
I'm guessing this has more to do with, can't wait for the year to end blues, than anything.
Praxis was a one time thing.
i was going to say my district paid most of my continuing Ed too... But I don't think susanna is in a union state...
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milee
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Post by milee on May 13, 2013 9:42:58 GMT -5
Your examples, Thyme, don't include shipping. So add another $2.98 to each of your prices. Prime doesn't work with used books in most cases. I hope you do. However, it is my understanding, that at least in NY, the schools have "superintendent's days" on school days where the kids don't go to school and the teachers get their CE requirements done at no cost to the teachers. I have no idea how it's done in AL. STill cheaper than $60. We have "in-service" days where the kids are off and the teachers get a day of training. I do not know if this counts as CE or not. The school districts I'm familiar with in AZ and FL have both "in-service" days and professional days but sometimes call them one thing. This year it was 6 weekdays during the school year where students were off and teachers were receiving training or working on grading/admin work.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2013 9:45:18 GMT -5
In service is not enough in my state to satisfy continuing Ed credits. But my district always paid for workshops/ reimbursed for credits...
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2013 9:45:27 GMT -5
Some of our continuing education is provided by the system (Ipad training, for example), and some is not. Some is done during professional development days, and some is not.
Last year the Alabama legislature decided they wanted to prolong the tourist season (we do have nice beaches in case you are laughing at the idea of people purposefully choosing to vacation in Alabama). So they passed a law that says school can't start before August 15th and must end by Memorial Day. So now our professional development days occurs before and after the school year.
There is a movement away from the district providing the training (costs money for speakers, etc.) and toward "flexibility" in allowing us to count conferences we do in the summer. However, we must pay for these ourselves. I'm doing one in June that is only $40 because it is driving distance. But with transportation and lunch, it will easily cost $100.
That's not as expensive as $250 for a seminar, but neither is a teacher's salary as high. And I've bought professional books to participate in required book "clubs." I get professional development for that, too.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on May 13, 2013 9:47:09 GMT -5
I paid for them myself when I was an Asst. DA making $30k a year.
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2013 9:49:28 GMT -5
May I suggest you get them on audio
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milee
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Post by milee on May 13, 2013 9:51:08 GMT -5
I should clarify. My posts probably sound like unsympathetic, "quit yer bitchin'" and "I had to walk 10 miles uphill in the snow so you should, too" type BS.
It does stink to have to spend money and personal time on something job related. Especially when it's combined with an environment where there haven't been raises in a while and you don't feel appreciated.
I was just making the point that unfortunately, I think that's less to do with a particular job being abnormally sucky and more to do with this just being the way that all professional type jobs - and many low level jobs - are starting to be. There have been some fundamental shifts in the economy and people are being asked to work more and give more personal time for less compensation. It's the new reality everywhere across the country. It's been the new reality for the private sector for the last 5 years and it's been the new reality for the public sector in the last few years, so the private sector employees who have been living with the yuck for a while aren't very receptive to complaints from people who they perceive are simply dealing with the same stuff that they've been having to deal with all along.
But it stinks for everybody. [img]http://images.proboards.com/new/undecided.png[/img]
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on May 13, 2013 9:54:18 GMT -5
I also have to buy a book for my job. I am totally not interested in reading it. I'm expected to read it on my free time. It totally sucks. I am expected to read 3 books a year. All of which are these stupid books with some lame theory on how to be a better employee. I have a whole bookshelf full of this crap. I'm glad my company is keeping the publishing industry alive.
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