Re: GEN: Library Aides and Block Scheduling

[Diane Durbin <dianed@TENET.EDU>]

We serve two schools, a 6,7,8 middle school and a 9-12 high school.
Between them there are 1125 students.  We have 8th grade aides and also
high school aides, usually jrs. or srs.  We do not get a choice of aides,
although we can refuse to take someone who is totally unacceptable.  Our
aides are usually kids who have completed all necessary credits but have
to have a class to fill out the day or they are kids who can't make it in
the class they originally were assigned to.  Some of our aides are good
and some aren't worth the poweder it would take to blow them up.  We have
A days and B days, so we have the aides every other day.  And it is
either feast or famine!  Our blocks are 90 minutes.  On B days we have 2
blocks with 6 aides each block and 2 blocks with 1 aide.  On A days we
have only about 2 aides in each of the 4 blocks.  You can get a lot done
with them in 90 minutes, but if they are not inclined to work, it is bad
news!  They do not get a grade that counts toward their average, so you
don't have much clout.

Diane Durbin
dianed@tenet.edu