Failing to Invest in our Future

The GAT roundtable didn't result in many concrete decisions yesterday afternoon, but it did raise several highly important issues and bring them to the attention of the president of the university. Whether he will choose to act on them remains to be seen.

http://media.wildcat.arizona.edu/media/storage/paper997/news/2008/11/20/News/Budget.Woes.Hurting.Tas-3554817.shtml

Some themes were constant:
1) The need for more training of graduate student teachers. This would not only make their jobs easier, but also reduces hassles, makes teaching across departments more consistent and cuts down on problems later (such as grade appeals, conflicts, etc). There is no reason not to invest in better teacher training, and graduate credit should be given to GATs who complete these courses.
2) Interdisciplinary students (like Genetics, Mexican American Studies, Latin American Studies, etc) have a hard time getting jobs and have to basically go door-to-door every semester to solicit employment. It was suggested that some kind of database for GATs could be set up so that departments seeking GATs could view all of the eligible candidates at once and make it more likely for students to get employed if they want to be.
3) International students are in a particularly hard place with the cut-backs because their immigration status depends on their being consistently employed. It was suggested that some kind of cushion be built into programs so that there could be a one semester grace period for GATs or RAs who can't find employment. This would keep them from being essentially thrown out of the country with no notice and no time to make arrangements.
4) Large class sizes mean more work for TAs and less educational value for students. With more students, assignments have to be cut back, feedback needs to be shorter and not as thorough, and students do not learn as well. GATs stressed that this is not simply a matter of workload or of teaching a particular subject. GATs teach critical thinking skills that are necessary to survive in this competitive economic climate. Compromising education at this juncture will lead to an inevitable "dumbing down" of Arizona.
5) There seems to be a consistent disparity between workload and compensation that needs to be worked on.

Our favorite quotes from Shelton himself:
There has been a "graduate erosion of graduate compensation" as a result of underfunding graduate students.
"None of this is an excuse for not treating people as well as we can."
"A compromise for a short time in the quality of education may be necessary."
We "want to avoid sharp edges in the transition process."
"I believe in lower tuition."
"They [undergraduates] are paying more and getting less."

He also suggested a central clearinghouse of TAs who are qualified to teach in more than one department. The administration is also working on a way to help tuition dollars follow student credit hours. They want to make Tier I and II credits more flexible so that they can be taught in more places and/or combined.

Perhaps most shocking was an account of one student whose program stopped hiring GATs in 2007, but still requires graduate students to teach as part of their program requirements. This means that this particular student has been obligated to teach for free this semester with no compensation in terms of salary, health or tuition. Shelton insisted that this must be an isolated case and that he will investigate. He admitted that if this case is true, that it is similar to "slave labor," and we at Sallygradstudent agree.

Shelton spoke for a while about the consistent failure of the state to invest in public education at all levels. It seems that individuals are unwilling to fund anything that they do not see as directly benefiting themselves.

If Arizona wants to compete in this economy, we need to educate our population. Businesses do not locate themselves in an area of unqualified workers. Educating the public is not about creating some elite class of intellectuals. It is about attracting skilled jobs that will ultimately benefit the state. The less we invest in public education, the more we mortgage our future.

Write to your state representative or to the governor and tell them what you think.
http://az.gov/webapp/portal/topic.jsp?id=1165