While you do raise one or two fair points... get off your freakin horse.

Let me direct you to people such as these: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3dc_gggSJs

Just as a quick point - First Year Psychology (Psych 1X03) will continue to run in the event of a strike. There will be changes (especially to tutorials), but we will keep students informed throughout the process. In the event of a strike, we have absolutely everything prepared to get information out to students (check ELM for all updates) and to make sure their education isn't compromised.

Cheers,

John (Intropsych Senior TA)

Originally Posted by ramirez.a

I agree... a 50-60 student tutorial does not help any more than a lecture. That is why one of the primary issues of this strike is CUPE's proposal to CAP tutorial sizes to: 25 students per tutorial, 15 per lab, and initially proposed ratio of 60 students per T.A./R.A.

... however, our university administration does not believe that this CAP to tutorial sizes is relevant in enhancing the quality of our education as they have made very clear that they REFUSE to address any likelihood of tutorial cap sizes.

You don't have to be pro-union, or in fact pro-CUPE to realize that this action alone illustrates that our quality of education is not a priority to the McMaster administration, while they simultaneously continue to increase our tuition (this past year by the maximum lawful amount: Undergrad 4% - $7.2 million revenue, and Graduate 8% - $2.2. million revenue)... and WILL BE INCREASING TUITION AGAIN NEXT YEAR, yet they continuously slash our services...


... just food for thought

This makes it sound like the increase in tuition is to counter the union's demands though. Mac has to make its money from somewhere.
That being said, if they raise tuition more than the amount that the union is demanding per TA per year/30 of us (tutorial sizes), I will be royally pissed off.

So this is my problem.

Smaller class sizes = more TAs
But also: more $ to TAs
More TAs + more $ to TAs = $$$

WHY

I LIKE being able to afford McMaster, thanks.

WAIT I have the perfect solution. I'll just become a TA next year, and get back all the money that I've been ripped off!

You obviously made some sudden judgements. What did you say about that again?

I think there's a line between idiot and just not knowing something. Not knowing one of the most basic facts about a subject (like the compound thing or the running backward bit) and then wasting 5 mins of tut time on it is being an idiot. Open the textbook. That is the idiot part of it, since she obviously made no effort to do so - it's stated in black and white. Make a damn effort, is what I'm saying.

And being inconsiderate is being an idiot. Not academically, maybe, but socially. Why waste 5 minutes of 50 people's tut time asking something like that which, as I've said, is in most chem textbooks as a straight statement. It's assumed knowledge, esspecially at this level.

And I didn't ostracize her, i just said here I thought she was an idiot. I don't think that counts as ostracizing her, having an opinion about her intelligence. if I say Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie are idiots, I'm not ostracizing them, am I? I was never questioning her right to be there, I was talking about how she wasted time by asking a dumb question and it annoyed me.

...

I don't care if people ask questions.

But, if it's halfway through November (when the 10^-2 m/s happened) and you're confused about a basic concept like scientific notation in a physics class, it's frustrating for the entire class. Having a professor explain scientific notation when we should be talking about torque is a waste of everyone else's time and money.

Go on the internet, google "scientific notation" or open your textbook after class and try to figure it out.

It's like that time when someone asked who Rosa Parks was.



It's less embarrassing and a lot of first year material is on the internet anyways.

Some quick budget facts: (from the consolidated 2009-10 budget)

Total revenue increase due to undergraduate tuition increase: ~$7 million
Total revenue increase due to graduate tuition increase: ~$2 million

So the University netted about $9 million dollars from the tuition increase this year. If they enact another tuition increase this year of similar proportion then they will receive $18 million more tuition than 2008-9.

The total value of the TA contract is only $18 million between ~2700 TAs. So this tuition increase could fund 50% more TAs in every course. After next year's increase you could double the number of TAs compared to last year. I can guarantee that hasn't happened and won't happen. In fact the University claims there has been no appreciable increase in the number of TAs this year. So far they've proposed to put about $300,000 / year into the TA contract, or about 3.3% of the money from the tuition increase.

So where did the other 96.7% of the tuition increase money go? That's a question every student at McMaster should be asking. It certainly hasn't gone towards TAs.

Originally Posted by smiles

This makes it sound like the increase in tuition is to counter the union's demands though. Mac has to make its money from somewhere.
That being said, if they raise tuition more than the amount that the union is demanding per TA per year/30 of us (tutorial sizes), I will be royally pissed off.

So this is my problem.

Smaller class sizes = more TAs
But also: more $ to TAs
More TAs + more $ to TAs = $$$

WHY

I LIKE being able to afford McMaster, thanks.

WAIT I have the perfect solution. I'll just become a TA next year, and get back all the money that I've been ripped off!

Originally Posted by dsahota

Some quick budget facts: (from the consolidated 2009-10 budget)

Total revenue increase due to undergraduate tuition increase: ~$7 million
Total revenue increase due to graduate tuition increase: ~$2 million

So the University netted about $9 million dollars from the tuition increase this year. If they enact another tuition increase this year of similar proportion then they will receive $18 million more tuition than 2008-9.

The total value of the TA contract is only $18 million between ~2700 TAs. So this tuition increase could fund 50% more TAs in every course. After next year's increase you could double the number of TAs compared to last year. I can guarantee that hasn't happened and won't happen. In fact the University claims there has been no appreciable increase in the number of TAs this year. So far they've proposed to put about $300,000 / year into the TA contract, or about 3.3% of the money from the tuition increase.

So where did the other 96.7% of the tuition increase money go? That's a question every student at McMaster should be asking. It certainly hasn't gone towards TAs.

... and you think you're helping the problem by asking for a raise? Because that's REALLY bad logic.

Originally Posted by britb

The thing about tutorials is it depends on TAS as well as the other students. An idiot with a big mouth can totally destroy even the best TA's session.

Humanities tutorials are good, from what i've seen, esspecially after the first essay/major assignment. But then again, both of those had less than 20, maybe less than 15 each.

Science tuts are kinda pointless, you seem to get a lot of idiots in there. Esspecially in chem. There was a girl yesterday saying that she didn't know the difference between ionic and molecular compounds (for anyone not in chem, that is LITERALLY the first thing they teach you.) Maybe the TA go over it for like 5 minutes. Oh, math has problems too (but the concept is good), but that might be because it's 1ls3 (aka, loser math, lol). Someone didn't know bedmas (I won't explain that, since it's like 4th grade stuff).


Anyway, I do small tutorials would be much better, but it's not worth a strike. Or a (bigger) increase in tuition.

Wow!
Are you for real? Do you know how superior and snobby you sound. No wonder some people are afraid to speak up in class.

Originally Posted by smiles

... and you think you're helping the problem by asking for a raise? Because that's REALLY bad logic.

Yep, because we asked for a wage freeze for graduate TAs (i.e. a 0% wage increase).

Originally Posted by dsahota

Yep, because we asked for a wage freeze for graduate TAs (i.e. a 0% wage increase).

... and for undergrad?

Yeah, reviewing it, it was a bit over the top I agree and I appreciate the headsup - it's just an issue I feel passionately about. There are enough superiority complexes among the kids in my courses and I'm just sick of hearing this stuff.

I also appreciate any clarification about other posters. I didn't want to make too many assumptions and I apologise if I did, or I misinterpreted. I'm just strictly referring to the word idiot being used to describe academic performance.

Yeah, there are very bright people amongst us, but there are also people who struggle and unless the person is a personality ass, it's not a polite word to use when a person is working hard.

Btw: While the "get off your freaking horse" did make me think, I know there are better comebacks If you'd like to debate or refute a point, I'm happy to listen but, if you're going to make it personal, then there's much better material

Originally Posted by smiles

... and for undergrad?

There's a wage increase. currently phased in ($24.00 in year 1, $28.00 in year 2). Undergraduates by compensation are only about a 10% of the unit so the total expect cost in year 1 is about $250,000 and in year two about $300,000. Of course those numbers are also still open to negotiation, we still have two whole days of bargaining left.

Originally Posted by dsahota

There's a wage increase. currently phased in ($24.00 in year 1, $28.00 in year 2). Undergraduates by compensation are only about a 10% of the unit so the total expect cost in year 1 is about $250,000 and in year two about $300,000. Of course those numbers are also still open to negotiation, we still have two whole days of bargaining left.

ONLY?
Those numbers add up, dear friend.
And if you're a student, which I'm not sure you are, I don't see how you can support this, even if you're a TA. Seriously, you don't think YOUR tuition's going to increase when you ask for a raise? And if you think that 96.5% of the money is going elsewhere, and if your freaking raise is the excuse for admin to raise your tuition, WHY WOULD YOU ASK FOR A RAISE? You're ultimately losing money.....

Originally Posted by smiles

ONLY?
Those numbers add up, dear friend.
And if you're a student, which I'm not sure you are, I don't see how you can support this, even if you're a TA. Seriously, you don't think YOUR tuition's going to increase when you ask for a raise? And if you think that 96.5% of the money is going elsewhere, and if your freaking raise is the excuse for admin to raise your tuition, WHY WOULD YOU ASK FOR A RAISE? You're ultimately losing money.....

There's about 900 undergraduate TAs, $250,000 / 900 = $280 per TA
The tuition increase was about 4% on ~$7000 = $280 per TA.

The tuition increase has already happened and the reason isn't the cost of education. Rather its to use students as a "revenue stream" to plug holes in the general revenues of the University. If you were a student TA and had a way to fight to get your money back it seems only fair to try. I'd love if we could advocate to keep tuition fees down for all students, but unfortunately we're only able to represent TAs and we have a responsibility to do all we can for them.

I am a student (2nd year of my Master's in engineering physics). I am in my last semester and am an RA in lieu of a TA. Last year I was the TA for Eng Phys 4MD3.

Students are one of the main revenue streams for the university. That is why I never understand why people are always surprised by tuition increases. The government will never fund a university properly so people should just accept the fact that tuition will increase in order to make up for funding losses.
Its sad but its reality.