When I was asked to teach a new course between csc130 and 349a and I preferred 130 (which is on my teaching preference list), they assigned 349a (which is not on my list) to me
When I said I had no experience and expertise with 349a and the courses before and after it, they said every cs prof can teach it, a “foundation” course, and they had already left enough time to me
That’s why I was forced to teach seven courses back to back in four terms last year, ending up with a vitreous detachment?!
That’s why 461 was canceled this year, failing the once another year commitment to students, and 361 lost an offering in the fall, so the spring offering has doubled its size with eight lab sections, two hours each section each week?!
When I started to prepare, they put so much distraction with various attacks and investigations on me, taking away all my time
Did I really have enough time to prepare well?
When I talked to all five 349a instructors in the last five years, they all gave different opinions to me
When I talked to the instructors of follow-on courses, they questioned whether it is really needed in the current form and/or shall be taught by cs when most students are now in different engineering programs
When I studied the materials online, no one in my background is teaching such a course, anywhere
They told me if they can get someone more suitable to teach 349a, they would let me teach 461, so students won’t have to request directed studies on a regular course from me
When they got the instructor who taught 349a twice last year and will teach it again next year, they assigned him to teach a new course 226 for one time only too!
I was asked and taught 225 before and 226 now has 1/3 of the old 225, and I have taught 360 and 361 following 226 too, so I volunteered and am confident to teach 226, and the more experienced and capable instructor who took 349a and its advanced version from the course founder before can teach it
When we proposed to switch 349a and 226 between us, so a much better assignment for both classes of students, they rejected, and even declined a meeting
When I talked to the dean and explained the situation and how teaching can be better assigned in a systematic, “teach-down” approach, he said “you shall be the chair”, and agreed to arrange a meeting with the chair and me, but asked me to teach the course the next day in the best way possible
I indeed had been preparing, even though I never agreed to teach it as I am not prepared well yet, including discussing with TAs and getting familiar with how these prerequisites are taught at uvic
When I started to teach, they removed me all in a sudden without informing who’s the replacement from when
When I gave a free tutorial on a generic tool (matlab) in a canceled classroom, they interrupted me many times, harassed and intimidated students multiple rounds, and escorted me off campus
They dumped 349a back to the instructor who was willing to switch, and now he has to teach 105, 226 and 349a at the same time!
Now they are looking for a sessional instructor to teach ***130***?!
And they suspended me, affecting two phd candidacy exams and two phd thesis defenses, and all other students and their research and program pipelines, as well as incoming visiting students/profs?
What do they really want from me (and my students)? What do they really want us to do? How can I make them happy, so my students and me are not hunted all the time?
130: Web Applications
225/226: Data Structures and Algorithms I/II
360: Operating Systems
361: Computer Networks
349a: Numerical Analysis
461: Multimedia Systems”
