Well, last night I had my last class for my last "real" grad school course. I turned in my portfolio and all is done. Tonight, I have my first Student Teaching Seminar. Not sure what I'm going to do, since I STILL have not received my student teaching assignment.
The longer this goes on, the more irritated I get about the whole situation. It's making me hate my choice to attend this school, and that's terrible. I am so frustrated with the entire department - no one will return my calls. My advisor was unsympathetic, saying that my classmate who already has her assignment just got hers early. Okay, I'll buy that for a week or two - but it's been almost a month, and my mailbox remains empty.
This program is really geared towards people in my exact situation - someone who has a Bachelor's degree in a subject who wants to get a teaching certificate and earn a Masters. It's for people who already have a first career and are working; that's why all the courses are at night and we don't have any actual time in a secondary classroom, b/c it's understood that we have jobs during the day during the week.
So why would you make someone wait so incredibly long to let them know where they will be spending the next four weeks of their life? Another classmate also hasn't received her placement, and she has to give notice to her employer. As someone in HR, that's not something to be taken lightly. Obviously, my situation is a little bit different, but I haven't talked to my boss about when my last day will be since I have NO IDEA when I will be starting my assignment. I know, vaguely, that it will be after the new year, but that's just not good enough. Every time I think about it, it makes me angrier and angrier. If I didn't respond to someone or allowed this to happen, my job would be in jeopardy. It's unacceptable that it's just "the way things are" at my university. If it's a problem with Pittsburgh Public Schools - then don't send student teachers there anymore!! We are lucky enough to have numerous school districts surrounding the city, so why depend on one entity. I had to turn in my paperwork in APRIL - yeah, six months ago - and I haven't heard a peep.
ARGH.
Okay, I'm done. And I feel better now - I swear!
Okay, one more thing - my co-workers are making me sad :( I don't know why, but today my boss just kept looking at me with a sad, puppy dog face. I asked him what was wrong and he told me that it's hitting him that I'm leaving soon and he's really going to miss me. My counterpart won't let anyone talk about it b/c she's an emotional person and will just start crying. I keep telling them they may wind up stuck with me until June since I still don't know where the heck I'm going to be, but they're not buying it. Although they have said that they are going to call my school and tell them to keep my paperwork lost....hmmm....
Anyway, how 'bout them Stillers?? What a game, eh? I'm still hoarse from screaming on Sunday and I was still cold all day yesterday. That wind was not fun. Even my beer coat didn't protect me from that.
It's been so cold in Pittsburgh lately that I stepped outside today and thought it was positively balmy. "Wow," I thought, "I guess the temps did get up into the 50s like the weather chick said."
I got in my car, started my engine, and looked at my temp readout - 33 degrees. What?!? Okay, this provides yet another reason for me to move south - 33 degrees is not warm! It's not balmy! And it's definitely not okay that I thought that this morning!! LOL.
I need to get back into Christmas mode. I haven't finished decorating my apartment and I need to get my cards together. I haven't sent out Christmas cards since I moved back to Pittsburgh (not sure why, too lazy and cheap, I guess) but I've already bought them and I need to make it happen. I keep getting mail asking for donations for various organizations. I hate receiving them. I always feel guilty b/c I rarely donate, and this year I have to be even more careful with my money since I will be unemployed soon. At the same time, I don't really have the opportunity to donate my time since I'm still so busy with work. I'll have to figure something out.
6 comments:
swg... Christmas Mode is exactly what you need! Crank up the Carols, turn on some colorful lights, run your sweeper over some tinsel!
~AirmanMom returning ot her blog...
ah christmas mode. i love it.
i put up all my lights. but now i am not at home to turn them on.
i have all the fixin's to get my christmas cards in the mail, but haven't done that yet either.
i have however made a batch of gingerbread cookies that were delicous! putting on the carols does help get the mood flowing.
you have a lot on your plate.
i'm sorry your university is so unprofessional. they need to get on the ball. they can't just call you up on a friday and tell you "be at such and such by monday".... can they? that would suck.
i hope that they get things in gear for your soon.
and if you think 33 degrees is warm i'd hate to see what feels cold to you! my goodness. poor dh had to do a 12 mile road march in OK a few days ago. it was 22 degrees with a wind chill that made it feel like 12. all their water froze and no one could get a drink for the whole march. augh. i could not have survived that. i would have turned to a solid block of ice.
hope all works out with work soon! chin up!
REminds me of when I was taking my last semester of classes before graduating. I could not - for the life of me- get the dept. responsible for assuring I had, indeed, completed all requirements, to contact me. I called, I emailed, my professor who KNEW the dept. head called for me... NOBODY would get in touch with me long enough to say "Yes, you're right, you HAVE completed all coursework as set forth by the program guide pamphlet at the time you originally enrolled." How HARD is that? I mean, I know I dallied so long at completing it that they had changed the requirements and the program several times, but, according to the one helpful prof. I had, I should be "grandfathered" in. I was really afraid I was going to be denied escape from that place. NOBODY ever called or emailed me back! I finally sent one more email saying "Fine. If I don't hear back from you I'll just take that as confirmation that I am finished."
I guess I was, because I never heard back from them, I walked, my name was called and I have that stinkin' piece of paper.
I realize your school has other things to worry about, but seriously, shouldn't there be someone who's sole responsibility is to ensure these assignments get out to everyone in a timely matter. Because the fact that they expect you to put your life on hold until they are good and read to clue you in to what you will be doing is ridiculous. Seriously, people have lives, jobs, living situations, that need to be figured out. Things that take time to give proper notice. Inefficentcy is one of my hugest pet peeves and it sounds like you are receiving a huge dose of it. I am so sorry!
I'm sorry about your class :-( That really stinks. I"m glad you are getting back into the christmas spirit though.. that will help get through the season!
I can't believe how cold it is in pgh! It's in the 60's down here... it's nice but definitely not the necessary snow that i would like for xmas!
That's pretty rotten, what your school is doing to you. I'd complain to someone higher up.
Brrr! I'm so anti-cold. It snowed here today and I just about cried!
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