Dealing With Uncooperative Tech Staff
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Introduction
You're an enterprising teacher who has heard of K12LTSP and possibly even subscribes to the K12LTSP mailing list. You see the value in K12LTSP, and you want it for *your* school, too. Great, you go up to your technology staff, and you tell them what you want to do. Not only do they shoot you down, but they do so rudely and brusquely. You walk away upset, insulted, possibly a bit hurt, and definitely perplexed as to why they would treat you that way.
Or, perhaps, you didn't get treated rudely. You just got a polite, but definite, "NO."
But this is K12LTSP! Wouldn't these IT folks welcome such a thing? Wouldn't they love to reduce their own workload so that you don't have to call them all the time to re-image your 30 Windows PC's after the latest trio of viruses made them unusable again?
NOTE: This article expresses ONE IT Staff person's point of view and in NO WAY does it reflect every (or dare I say many) school IT staff's opinions. Not all IT staffers talk so condescendingly to or about the faculty, staff, and administration they serve every day. There are many (way too many) generalizations in this article that should be taken with a pound of salt while reading. Anywhere you see broad, sweeping generalizations (such as the entire section on Microsoft-centric IT shops), please know that the thoughts expressed by the original author of this article are in no way indicative of many of the IT shops (Microsoft or otherwise) that I have worked for and with in my 10+ years experience as a K12 technology staff person.
The Intended Audience
The intended audience is you, the educator. That means teachers, vice principals, principals, counselors, program directors, and anyone else on the instructional side of the house. If you want to know why your techies seem hostile to you at times, then this article is for you. If you would like a glimpse into how we tech/engineer types think and how to increase our cooperation with you, then this article is definitely for you.
Rationale and Reason for this Article
I am a network engineer--a very, very good one. I sling big WAN links around every day like construction crews sling cranes and bulldozers around; technology is second-nature for me.
I am a former MCSE. I love LTSP. I love kids. I love to see kids using technology and learning about it.
But I treat the instructional side of the house--teachers, principals, etc.--like rattlesnakes and view them as such. And I'm far from alone. If you heard some of the conversations that we tech-types have about you, you would either get really angry or turn white as a sheet.
I didn't always feel that way. When I first went to work at my district, I thought, "wow, I get to work with--by definition--the most educated, smartest set of people! This'll be great! Man, I can hardly wait to get started!" I remember my own teachers, many of them very fondly. But for them, none of us in the Information Technology field would be in this field. We often teach ourselves about IT (I'm virtually entirely self-taught), but educators gave us the background to be able to do that. And we know it.
So why would so many of us engineer/tech types end up feeling anything but positively for educators? How is that even possible? And, just as importantly, what can we do about it? How do we fix it?
That is the reason for this article.
The Central Issue
There is a fundamental disconnect, to be sure. Most engineers are focused on engineering. Most teachers are focused on teaching. Engineers and teachers tend to be educated in roughly equal quantities (bachelors' degrees, masters degrees, even some Ph.D.'s). Since the audience here is educators, I assume you know how educators think. What you don't hear is the other side--that of the tech folks. I wish to help out with this, because it's why you're often getting rebuffed when you come talk to us, and especially about anything "Linux-y." I want to help fix that.
A Real-World Example
I will start with an example at my own place of employment. I will warn you: a lot of you won't like what you're about to read.
A few years ago, some educators decided that they wanted wireless connectivity in their school. Why? Because one school was doing a pilot, and certain other schools's administrators, and their teachers, wanted to Look Good and Keep Up. Plus, wireless connectivity, when it works, does have a convenience factor to it, and since several teachers had wireless devices at home, they also wanted it at school. So, what did these intrepid educators do? They went out to the local computer store, bought some wireless access points, and joyfully hooked them up to the nearest available network drop.
The Network Comes Tumbling Down
What these educators didn't know, because they hadn't bothered to talk to us beforehand, was that most wireless access points have their own built-in DHCP servers...and they're activated by default. People all over the school now are firing up their workstations and wondering why they can't log in, why they can't get email, why they have no connectivity at all! Oops....
When the trouble ticket comes in, I read it and immediately know what just happened. I go out to the school, check the IP address settings of a workstation that can't connect to confirm my suspicions, and then spend an hour tracking this wireless device down. I went around to every teacher and asked, "did you by any chance install any wireless devices recently?" Every one of them said no. I then went to the principal and told her what happened: someone had installed a "rogue DHCP server, looks like it's a wireless device from home" on the network, and that removing this thing would fix the problem. The principal sent out an announcement on the PA system.
Meanwhile, I had tracked down the specific network drop where this thing lived. I went there, with the principal in tow, and it turned out to be in the classroom of one of the teachers that I had previously asked, and who had ever-so-innocently told me, "Nope, not me." Yes, this teacher had brought her wireless device in from home...and she lied to my face about it.
So, What Happened?
What did the principal do? Not a thing. On the contrary, she said, "oh, it was probably just an honest mistake, no big deal, it's fixed now." Nothing--not a single word, even in private--indicating that she'd speak to her teachers to not do that again! On the contrary, her subsequent questions were, "well, when are *you* going to get us wireless, then? We have an education job to do, you know!" She acted like the whole thing was somehow a fault of mine. A few weeks later, this same thing happened again, at that same school, with a similar reaction from that same principal.
But Isn't That an Isolated Incident?
No, unfortunately. Far too many times, I've seen educators do similar things. They'll see Acme Whiz-Bang Educational Computer Tool, and they'll go out and buy it. They won't talk to us first; they'll just go out and purchase it. Then, they plop it on our desks and command us--yes, command us--to somehow Make It Work.
This is in spite of the fact that the system requirements for this new Acme Whiz-Bang thing are double what we have in the school.
Despite that, we get (imperiously) told, "well, it's already bought, so make it work." When we tell them that it just won't work on those systems, and what it'll cost to get systems that do support it, then they get hostile. Our bosses get told that we're "being uncooperative" with the instructional mission. It gets escalated way up the chain, to the Vice-Superintendent level. Meetings ensue. Someone (read: the techie) gets yelled at...and maybe even written up.
Not good...at all....
The Difference in Thinking
Engineers tend to be focused on fixing problems. We see something that could be improved, and we just go and do it. That's our reason for existence--solving problems. We love to do that, and anything that gets in the way of solving a problem is viewed as bad and to be immediately overcome by any legal--and, if it's critical enough like life being at stake, even illegal--means necessary. We simply want things to run smoothly, and we will do everything that we can to make that happen. We emphatically do *not* care about organizational politics. That is viewed by us as an obstruction and thus inherently *BAD*.
Educators have a somewhat different focus. They tend to wear their degrees on their sleeves a lot. Prestige matters to them. I understand this; it's the same way in colleges, and it's how they get promoted. If you come up with this Latest, Greatest Program (TM) that improves Standards of Learning scores by ten percent across the board, that will bode well for you. Organizational politics tends to be embraced by educators. Appearing to know a lot seems to be an important thing here.
The end result is that the educators very often end up looking down on their "not focused on education" techies. This is a bad strategy. We detect this, and naturally, we don't like it. Very often we'll know something about technology, and the educator will feel this pressing need to prove that he's smarter overall than the techie. We often hear things like the following:
1.) "You're just support staff, you're not educators, you're not central to the mission."
2.) "You wouldn't know what it's like to face a classroom full of kids!"
3.) "How dare you try to order me what software to choose in my class, you non-teacher, you?"
4.) "We don't really need you, there's lots of IT workers out there...."
5.) "Anyone could learn to do your job, you're not that special."
6.) "My Masters degree is from <Such and Such University>. Where'd you go to school?"
Furthermore, I've had more than one educator--and this includes principals--tell bald-faced lies about me to my bosses. I will knock myself out for that school, and when I get back, what awaits me is a meeting with my boss, who informs me that my MIS Director just got a call from Such-and-Such, talking about how rude and disrespectful I supposedly was. One senior engineer--who is well liked and widely respected--even got banned from one of our schools by that school's principal!
The message is clear: "we don't need you, you're not a member of our club, and we can and will replace you at our whim." Since senior managers in school systems (e. g. principals, Vice-Superintendents) tend to be former educators, with the same mindset, guess which viewpoint gets favored?
The Central Issue is, therefore, a fundamental, and general, lack of respect for technical folks, from top to bottom, in school districts. The tech folks don't feel like they can afford to trust you. And that's why you're getting your K12LTSP idea thrown back in your face.
This needs to change.
How to Fix the Central Issue
I'm pretty sure that, since you've read this far, you'd like to fix the Central Issue and get your K12LTSP server running smoothly. Therefore, it's likely that you actually do have an open mind and would like a good working relationship with your techies. That's a Good Thing, too, and your good mindset is actually the majority of the battle won already.
The key is to get the techies' trust before you ever approach them with something like K12LTSP. That means getting to know your tech person, and I mean as more than just "the tech fix-it guy." You've got to establish an interpersonal relationship with him, individual to individual. That means saying hello in the hallway, that means taking an active interest in IT, that means doing your own homework and trying things out, that means actually learning how the tool called a computer works. And above all else, it means being honest when you make a mistake, and treating your tech person with respect--the same respect you like being shown toward you.
Your techie will have his guard up at first, and it may be for quite a while, especially if you've bad-talked him or not followed the Golden Rule with that person. It can take a year if you've treated this person badly in the past. Think about how you've acted toward him, and if you could've acted better, fess up and apologize. Don't gush on about it, just acknowledge it.
Over time, the ice *will* melt. You'll see it happening; just pay attention. Don't rush it. Repeat: DO NOT RUSH IT. It'll happen.
As the ice continues to melt, invite your techie out to lunch. More than once. Get to know this person; you eventually will be asking him for a big favor, namely, advice or even help regarding your K12LTSP server-to-be. Just understand that your techie's focus is technology and will likely end up talking about that. That's OK; ask questions, learn from this person. You'd be surprised what you can learn from a geek; they're very often quite erudite. Continue to learn more about IT on your own; this will go a long way with your techie. Too many end-users don't even bother or show a desire. Your efforts here will be viewed most favorably, even if your techie doesn't overtly show that fact. Remember, you're doing this for you as much as for the kids in your class. You're getting to know someone. Become friends with this person, for real. We can tell when you're faking, and we don't like it. Remember, honesty.
OK, you've gotten to know your techie pretty well. You may have had a few disagreements, but you've worked them out like big kids do, and you've always treated your techie with respect. That's the part that we really notice, BTW, like most other people.
Now, all this time, you've been doing AAAALLLLL of your homework regarding K12LTSP. You know what a DHCP server is. You know what happens if an incorrectly-configured DHCP server gets loose on the network. You have learned something of how to run and administer GNU/Linux, and you yourself use GNU/Linux at home, at a minimum. You might even have a GNU/Linux box at school that you regularly use. Merely installing the OS and letting the box collect dust doesn't count. You are now armed with information. BUT...you have very sneakily also managed to gauge your techie's threshold of tolerance for something other than Microsoft Windows, without tipping your hand about K12LTSP or your own strong interest. If he's unfriendly to non-Microsoft solutions, then don't bring Linux up again...yet. If he is friendly, though, he may be a user. Explore that with him. Talk about it. Ask questions, and listen.
Now, time has passed, you and your techie are on very good terms, and the Great Moment hath come. You need to present your case with your techie. Have a box in your classroom, a workstation with K12LTSP installed in "regular workstation" mode, but do install all the educational apps. Better to use a decently-powered (minimum Pentium III-800 with 512MB DRAM) desktop for this. Remember, this is a demo; you want the demo to come off as well as possible. Show your techie the educational apps. Show him Firefox, the Web browser. Let him know that you'd really love to use this stuff in your classroom--and focus on the applications, not Linux itself!
Remember, you and your techie are friends, now. He's naturally predisposed to considering something that you're showing him, and he's also naturally inclined to help you if he doesn't see a threat to his job in doing so. At that point, show him the K12LTSP Web site, and ask for his recommendation on how to do a "small pilot project" at your school. Do not ask "if", ask "how." This is very important. If you ask "if", then you very likely will be told "no." Oops, you just ended that conversation. Always come from the point of view of how you can make this a success. Ask your techie when--not if--the two of you can talk about it next. Make an actual appointment. Tell him that you really looking forward to see this pilot project work. And emphasize that it's just a pilot, and just for your class, not a full-blown rollout.
But What About Those Microsoft-Centric IT Workers?
First off, don't call us "IT workers." When you do that, you're reminding us that you consider us the "hired help." See the section titled "The Central Issue." Instead, call us by our names. Remember, respect and common courtesy.
There is a very real issue, though, regarding folks who seem blind to anything besides Microsoft products. Every recommendation is Microsoft Something-Or-Other. If it doesn't come from Microsoft, it is deemed either way too hard for Real People to use (e. g. Sun Solaris), or "it's free, therefore hippie, tie-dye, pony-tail, no thanks." Both of these are diversions on their part to hide the real problem.
The real problem is that they know Microsoft...but that's all that they know. They don't know anything about GNU/Linux or anything else UNIX-y, and they're terrified of it. I mean it; they're absolutely scared silly. They are deathly afraid of appearing incompetent in front of people who they think can affect whether or not they have a job next week. They know that there are tons of "Microsoft Certified" people out there, so they don't want to lose their jobs any more than you do. They might not get another one right away. They have families, rent/house note to pay, and so on, just like you. Remember, we techies in general have learned--usually the hard way--that You Are The Enemy. Consider my earlier example about the wireless devices. Now consider someone who knows only Microsoft and, furthermore, feels like he's under attack, to boot.
Think about if you were to be de-staffed. Feels good, doesn't it? How would you react? Wouldn't you take steps to defend your income?
Your Microsoft-centric techie is both afraid and resentful. Of you. He'll never tell you that to your face, but it's true. That's why so many Microsoft-centric folks use bluster and speak like they have the Authority of God. If they make it so, perhaps it will become so and make their positions more secure.
Some of the excuses you will hear from techies, and especially Microsoft-certified ones, are the following:
1.) "That's not the approved standard, can't allow it on the network."
2.) "I'm busy as heck keeping up with my regular duties, let alone experiment with something unauthorized anyway."
3.) "Microsoft is what's used in the Real World."
4.) "The only reason that there aren't a lot of viruses for Linux is because Microsoft is used so much. If Linux were as popular, there would be just as many viruses for it."
5.) "How do I use Microsoft Group Policy to lock this thing down?"
6.) "Does it run Internet Explorer and Microsoft Office?"
7.) "How do I integrate it with the Microsoft Active Directory?"
8.) "Who's going to support it? What company do we call when it breaks?"
These are all excuses, especially the one about who's going to support it. Your Microsoft-Certified techie probably has never once actually called Microsoft Support in his life. But he'll use it to instill Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) into the minds of decision-makers. Sadly, it works nearly every time. It's a very big, effective gun, and one that Microsoft and Cisco are masters at using. We need to act before this happens.
Therefore, what we have to do is put that Microsoft-Certified person at ease. You support this person. You're on this person's side. You and this Microsoft-loving person will learn it together and make both of yourselves better for the experience. Remember the bit about becoming friends with your techie? This is a continuation of that. Your techie's got to know in his gut that you won't smile him in the face and then stab him in the back with a tattle-tale visit to your vice-principal if things go wrong.
That's why it's so important to focus on the applications, not on Linux. Do not mention Linux. Rather, focus on the fact that here's an educational tool that you want to try out in your classroom. Demo'ing these on a computer of yours is very important here. Invite your techie to your classroom. Log in, fire up TuxType, and start playing. Then, fire up ChildsPlay and get going. Follow that up with TuxMath and TuxPaint.
Now, your techie's going to find this interesting. Have him play some of the games. You've got him hooked; now, let him reel himself in. :-) Naturally, your techie will ask how much all of this cool stuff costs. You just smile and say, "it's a free download." Your techie asks, "oh, really, where from?" It is at this time that you show your techie the K12LTSP Web site. Let your techie do the surfing. You might point out the case study there on the Web site, but let your techie control the exploration. Remember, you've got to let your techie reel himself in. DO NOT PUSH IT! You don't have to.
Above all, DO NOT mention anything about how OpenOffice.org is a replacement for Microsoft Office. DO NOT mention anything about how Firefox is so much better than Internet Explorer. But...DO mention that you essentially have just gotten KidPix for free. Microsoft-Certified techies see OpenOffice.org and Firefox as direct threats, because they directly replace equivalents from Microsoft--their bread and butter. But KidPix doesn't do that. Microsoft doesn't make KidPix. Therefore, KidPix is viewed as "neutral" and thus "safe" to replace.
Now, present the idea of that small pilot. Your Microsoft-loving techie, having seen the ease of use of GNU/Linux and K12LTSP, will be impressed. You have thus vastly increased your chances of cooperation from your Microsoft-certified techie. You may still have some resistance, but it will be much, much less than it would've been otherwise. You can take it from here.
