Apparently Education Queensland, the local education department, has set strict catering guidelines for teacher professional development sessions: no sandwiches, only cheese and crackers… and no ‘exotic cheeses’. What the…? Way to make staff feel that they and their contributions and professionalism are appreciated!

This kind of penny-pinching nonsense happens in our department too. Look, I’m not in favour of wasting taxpayers’ money, but I think it’s demonstrable that the over-all effect of these ‘savings’ is people who feel undervalued and unappreciated, and who are therefore likely to offer the minimum contribution and loyalty possible in return. It doesn’t always happen because we have personal integrity and want to do a good job, and because we feel an obligation to our students. But how much better would it be to spend an extra 50 bucks here and there on a meal for engaged, energetic staff in a positive frame of mind?

OK, that’s not really what my show is called, but the first one went off this morning with only very minor technical glitches at the start. In case you missed it for some (likely timezone-related) reason, the whole show is available (as a single 53 MB mp3) here: http://www.bravus.com/November7.mp3

Here’s my planning outline for the show, which will give you some sense of the range of music played (sans requests).

(Click for the larger, more legible version)