no comp. was Re: Saying "No" (was Convention is focused)

[Mike Kurta]

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    Del:
    I wonder if the problems you eloquently addressed would be =
diminished by having conventions every other year.  Heresy?  Blasphemy?  =
Maybe not.  It might mean half the effort for the national office and =
those hard working souls who work their volunteer hearts out, and =
possibly more exhibitors, better classes, more attendees, etc.  Should =
we skip a year and give it a try ? =20
Absence makes the heart........
    Mike Kurta, RPT
  From: Delwin D Fandrich=20
  To: pianotech@ptg.org=20
  Sent: Tuesday, July 23, 2002 2:45 AM
  Subject: Re: no comp. was Re: Saying "No" (was Convention is focused)



    ----- Original Message -----=20
    From: Wimblees@AOL.COM=20
    To: pianotech@ptg.org=20
    Sent: July 21, 2002 1:42 PM
    Subject: Re: no comp. was Re: Saying "No" (was Convention is =
focused)


    In a message dated 7/21/02 4:32:53 PM !!!First Boot!!!, =
BobDavis88@AOL.COM writes:=20



      Instructors teach at the most two classes. That's two periods out =
of a=20
      >  possible 20. That 10%. ....Why should instructors get free =
registration,=20
      plus a >stipend of some sorts,=20

      Because the attendees are getting the benefit of MUCH more than =
1.5 hours=20
      (*2) of the instructor's time. The instructor doesn't just walk in =
and start=20
      talking. Even after teaching at many conventions, I still spend =
NUMEROUS=20
      hours revising the material to make it as clear and efficient as =
possible,=20
      and I can't count the hours before the first one I taught at. =
Knowing the=20
      subject is one thing, but preparing it to be useful to 100 people, =
with=20
      differing levels of experience and different learning styles, is =
quite=20
      another.=20



    Bob=20

    Everything you say is true. But everyone who teaches a class has =
spent time prior to coming to a convention to prepare for it. That is =
what we all do. But how do we get compensated for that? Is free =
registration enough? Is one night's lodging enough? No, it is not. If we =
truly wanted to get paid back, it would cost the PTG too much. And how =
do we compensate for someone who has taught the same class five or six   =
times? There are  classes I teach where I just have to get out my notes, =
and I'm ready to go.=20


  You're contradicting yourself here, Wim. You either spend time =
preparing for a convention or you don't. If you don't, you should be. =
Don't you see any problem with presenting exactly the same class five or =
six times? How many times is that class going to help attract me--or =
anyone else, for that?--back to a convention? I'll go to most classes =
once. Some, I'll go to twice. But, Lew Herwig's classes were the only =
ones I've gone to more than that and they were never the same twice =
running. Nowadays, when the upcoming convention class schedule arrives =
in the mail and I look down the list and see the same class offered by =
the same instructor that I went to last year or five years =
ago--sorry--been there, done that.=20

  When I hear someone going on about how wonderful all of the great =
classes are at the conventions, I have to wonder how many conventions =
they have attended. Usually, it's not many. There are too many of our =
members who no longer attend conventions regularly--if at all--because =
they've been to most of classes that are offered on a regular basis and =
they don't see enough new and interesting in the lineup whet the =
appetite. These folks are simply not willing to invest the time and =
spend the money each year for those few classes that are new enough or =
different enough or advanced enough. So, they start skipping a year or =
two here and there until finally they just don't bother at all.=20

  There is only room for so much at each convention and with so much =
aimed toward drawing in relatively new and inexperienced bodies, they =
are going to increasingly leave out the very people who have worked hard =
to raise them to the level they have now achieved.=20

  Now this may be an ideal scenario for you and Richard. It is not for =
me, nor is it for many others. The last I heard, PTG, and its annual =
convention, is supposed to be serving all of the membership, not just =
those who are beginners and those who find themselves at some =
intermediate skill level. But that is what is gradually happening.

  I would suggest that most instructors who are presenting classes much =
beyond the elementary level have been attending conventions somewhat =
longer than average. Certainly they have been by the time they have =
gained much experience at teaching. That means they have already had the =
opportunity to attend your classes--you know, those you can repeat each =
year without any preparation by using the same old handouts--at least =
once or twice. Maybe five or six times if they didn't get it right the =
first few times. And they've probably managed to attend most of the =
other standards at least once or twice as well. Couple this history with =
the inevitable and unavoidable scheduling conflicts and as each year =
goes by there are fewer and fewer classes of interest to choose from.=20

  This year there were four classes listed in the class schedule I found =
of interest that I haven't already taken. Combined, these four may have =
been enough to get me to Chicago. Probably not, but at least I'd have =
considered making the trip. And this was a good year--there have been =
some years when there haven't been that many. Now, in Chicago this year =
I taught a total of 9 hours (every hour of which required more =
preparation time than my partner or my family wants to even think about) =
and all but one of those four classes was scheduled for a period during =
which I also was teaching.=20

  So, with that class schedule you and Richard would have happily pay =
for my own air fare to Chicago, pay a full (or only slightly reduced) =
registration fee, pay for four or five nights at an overpriced hotel =
eating overpriced (but otherwise exceptionally forgettable) meals and =
lose a weeks work, not to mention the work and family time I gave up to =
prepare for the thing. Oh, yes, I was able to pick up a 'free' drink at =
the Steinway reception.

  Now, with respect to Ron Nossaman, his class on bridges--while very =
good--was simply not worth all that. It would have been cheaper and =
taken far less time to simply have flown directly to Wichita and had him =
give it to me personally.

  Much like the 1980s, our conventions seem to have reached something of =
a plateau. (We can forgive Richard who, in spite of his rhetoric, wasn't =
around PTG then and so can't really be expected to know much about those =
days. But you were.) They are losing their attraction to an =
unacceptable--and, I think, growing--number of long-term and highly =
experienced members. And they are losing an unacceptable number of =
capable and experienced instructors. These are some of the best people =
we have. These are people who don't just grab last year's outline and =
hop on a plane. True, there will always a fresh supply of newcomers =
willing to be exploited, but unless we make begin now to make some =
fundamental changes we are going to find ourselves locked into a =
continually repeating downhill cycle.

  If the membership ultimately decides this cycle is actually desirable, =
then so be it--I'll not be around all that much longer anyway. It won't =
affect me all that much. However, don't you then be surprised as you =
watch the vitality that has fueled and driven our organization and its =
conventions toward excellence dwindle and ultimately slid into =
mediocrity. Or will you even notice? Presenting the same class year =
after year after year is mediocrity and I know you are capable of more =
than that. Mediocrity is never acceptable, and we can't afford it. =
Especially when the rest of our industry is already struggling under its =
own ponderous mass of stagnation. And yet mediocrity seems to be just =
what you are presenting as not only acceptable, but desirable.

  Our conventions do not offer much to the relatively advanced =
technician. They can't really--there are no longer many instructors at =
that level who are willing to bear the financial and personal cost =
themselves and we've been letting them fade into the sunset. Sure, there =
are always some bright folks coming up through the ranks, but we'll soon =
burned them out just as those who have gone before.=20

  We claim to value the kind of experience and knowledge these people =
are working hard to attain--until it comes time to pay for it. And then =
we say we don't need to. Our convention are great just the way they are. =
And, yes, our conventions are a good educational value for some. Less =
so, however, for a growing number of those who have worked and struggled =
hard to raise themselves above the average. You may be willing to write =
these folks off; I am not.

  At this point I'm not suggesting that PTG actually pay =
instructors--that will have to wait for another day and probably another =
generation. A day when we are willing go beyond just talking about being =
professionals and become willing to pay whatever price is necessary to =
actually become professionals. In the meantime this we can do: we can =
make it less difficult for those who are willing to keep coming back =
each year to educate us in the manner to which we've become accustomed. =
It is neither reasonable nor fair for those who expect to profit from =
the experience, knowledge, time and work of convention "volunteers" (of =
all varieties) and instructors to demand that it be given to them free =
of charge. There ain't no free lunch, folks. Especially at the hotels =
PTG typically chooses for its convention sites.

  Del


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