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by KC5AV
Wed Aug 16, 2017 8:22 pm
Forum: Instructors' Corner
Topic: Instructor recertification class
Replies: 30
Views: 7995

Re: Instructor recertification class

jamcgowan wrote:I too was in the first class on 8-14-2017.

LET ME STATE CATEGORICALLY THAT I TRULY APPRECIATE EVERYONE AT DPS! I HOLD THEM IN THE HIGHEST REGARD, SO MUCH SO THAT I HESITATED TO COMMENT ON THIS THREAD. :tiphat:

If I had shown up for one of my LTC classes as unprepared as the onsite DPS team was, I would likely never get a student again. Not knowing how to set up a ppt projector properly (ie. Keystone settings), and using screens that were so small that they were extremely difficult to read, are just unacceptable in my mind. This was an instructor's class and should have reflected that. I felt like we were utilized as guinea pigs for the classes scheduled after ours. I understand that the classes should improve the more they are taught, but this was a very disappointing experience for me.

In the first half of the class, the self identified, "Senior" supervisor, was clearly not prepared, in fact, if I heard, 'we don't know' once, I heard it 50 times. At times he even came across to me as frustrated and wishing he were somewhere else. Now I realize that that is merely my impression, but I was not the only one that felt this way. As has been mentioned by others, this class was, for me, frankly a waste of time.

By that I mean that they took about 1.5 hours worth of material and tried to stretch it into 4. Don't get me wrong, I like anecdotal stories from time to time, when and where appropriate, but over use of them to 'fill out' the time is a waste of everyone's time, IMHO. Frankly, as far as I'm concerned, everything that was covered could have been addressed with the instructor community, 'without' having to go to Georgetown this time around.

Fortunately, I only had to come from the Houston area. If I had had to drive from some of the farther reaches of Texas, I would have been extremely aggravated. As it is, I like many, still had the expense of a hotel room, time off from work, and the incidentals involved with driving to Georgetown.

Again, I truly appreciate the DPS team and wish them the best. I know that they are in a difficult position trying to implement the legislative changes. I can only hope that in the future, they will learn from this experience and do a better job in the renewal classes.
In their defense (and mine a little, since I was up there trying to help them with setup), the folks in charge of the community center wouldn't allow DPS in on Sunday afternoon to set stuff up, so they were quite pressed for time. Sure, the screens were too small, but you had the slides right in front of you, so that wasn't too much of a distraction.
by KC5AV
Mon Aug 14, 2017 8:11 pm
Forum: Instructors' Corner
Topic: Instructor recertification class
Replies: 30
Views: 7995

Re: Instructor recertification class

PBratton wrote:Do yell at me too loudly, but is carry allowed in class?
Location is not posted. Carry away. Trooper Pittman said something about the number of guns in class.

There was nothing really touched on in the morning session that we haven't covered here (just another indication of how valuable this resource is. Thx Charles).

There was quite a lot of discussion on 46.035, and whether churches, hospitals, and nursing homes are off limits whether posted or not. Maybe next session, we can get a carve out to provide online re-certification for instructors. :lol::

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