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bje
Joined: 19 Jun 2005
Posts: 527
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 Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 1:17 pm Post subject: Re: ACK |
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| Dedicated wrote: |
Recent news from Kuwait is that a certain silence and calm has fallen over the place, mainly due, one supposes, to recent dramatic departures of key staff and the fact that management have apparently installed sophisticated software to try to establish who is writing to this open forum. That speaks volumes.
This forum has obviously generated anger and frustration amongst many staff at ACK in several departments, yet the very fact that people need to express their feelings on this forum , rather indicates they cannot do so successfully in the workplace without fear of reprisals.
Who exactly has oversight at ACK? Who can one complain to, or appeal for help if and when a teacher has problems or grievances? Any other reputable programme or institute of higher education has a tribunal, ethics committee, union grievance procedures and layers and layers of oversight and support. Where is ACK's?
Any real university has complete transparency - lists of department heads and positions that provide teachers with all the information they need. If there is real transparency, why have so many teachers left? Teachers have been dismissed for merely flagging up problems.
If ACK cannot respond to these complaints with any comparable substance, then they lack all credibility. |
You must be joking. Even an established public institute such as the HCT in the UAE does not come close to displaying what you appear to expect of a so-called 'real university'. If you want 'transparency' etc. it's best to stay in the UK, US, Australia, wherever. Even then, employees are by no means guaranteed the type of ideal scenario you might think 'should' pertain in 'academia'. |
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Dedicated
Joined: 18 May 2007
Posts: 972
Location: UK
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| Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008 12:17 pm Post subject: Tranparency at ACK |
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In reply to bje, who stated
| Quote: |
| If you want transparency etc it's best to stay in the UK, US Australia, wherever. Even then, employees are by no means guaranteed the type of ideal scenario you might think "should" pertain in "academia" |
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Here in the UK, there is no ideal scenario in academia, but we do have unions and people are appointed who can generally do the job well for which they have been selected, otherwise they are removed.
The ACK website states" Our priority is to ensure that the ACK approach to educating its students using Australian training packages and curricula within a culture of care, is recognized throughout the Gulf region as being innovative and world's best practice".
Everyone seems to be laying the blame at the feet of " Arab Management" (as Astoria stated) when in fact, their role is endorsing the recommendations of their in -house experts from Australia, the UK and the US. Management is to blame for allowing the former Head of the FP (a UK citizen) to continue this farce. Hopefully, things will change in the FP with a new acting Head (US citizen). However, in the Business dept, the inept and asinine management continues, with the new Australian Head of Management totally unable to produce a teaching timetable in two weeks. The impact of his decisions impacts upon the teachers and the new arrivals are already seriously not impressed.
These people know what transparency is, surely? So how come they seem incapable of introducing and upholding it? |
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bje
Joined: 19 Jun 2005
Posts: 527
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| Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008 2:06 pm Post subject: Re: Tranparency at ACK |
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[quote="Dedicated"]In reply to bje, who stated
| Quote: |
| If you want transparency etc it's best to stay in the UK, US Australia, wherever. Even then, employees are by no means guaranteed the type of ideal scenario you might think "should" pertain in "academia" |
.
Here in the UK, there is no ideal scenario in academia, but we do have unions and people are appointed who can generally do the job well for which they have been selected, otherwise they are removed.
Yes, but that's in the UK.
The ACK website states" Our priority is to ensure that the ACK approach to educating its students using Australian training packages and curricula within a culture of care, is recognized throughout the Gulf region as being innovative and world's best practice".
Read any Gulf institute's website (especially the HCT's) and you'll see the same kind of rhetoric.
Everyone seems to be laying the blame at the feet of " Arab Management" (as Astoria stated) when in fact, their role is endorsing the recommendations of their in -house experts from Australia, the UK and the US. Management is to blame for allowing the former Head of the FP (a UK citizen) to continue this farce. Hopefully, things will change in the FP with a new acting Head (US citizen). However, in the Business dept, the inept and asinine management continues, with the new Australian Head of Management totally unable to produce a teaching timetable in two weeks. The impact of his decisions impacts upon the teachers and the new arrivals are already seriously not impressed.
I'm not sure why the particular citizenship of one or another HOD should be relevant. UK/US- which would be better? My own relatively well-established UAE institute has as yet been unable to produce a teaching timetable for the upcoming semester either...we'll see. I'm not impressed.
These people know what transparency is, surely? So how come they seem incapable of introducing and upholding it?
Everybody 'knows' what transparency is, but many couldn't give a toss, provided they rake in their monthly salary. All the same, it doesn't help matters when there is a workplace 'psychopath' (I can't think of a less vulgar term for it) on staff, with a documented history on the verge of emerging. Mischief-makers in the workplace only make things worse. |
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Edmond Dantes
Joined: 06 Dec 2006
Posts: 13
Location: Q8
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| Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2008 2:34 am Post subject: |
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Think twice and think again about working here. A reign of terror has begun. The new president of the ACK is a notorious thug and bully. He was recently fired by HCT in Abu Dhabi for incompetence, his intimidating �management� style and for failing to win accreditation for the women�s college. He was booted to the men�s college where he lasted only six months.
He has a well-deserved reputation for crude, sexist humour and for tormenting and firing people who work under him for petty, personal reasons. He left many shattered careers and enemies behind in Abu Dhabi. Given his reputation, one has to wonder why the geniuses here hired him. Either they didn�t get in touch with the vice chancellor at HCT or they actually want someone who will kick a**, terrorize upstart teachers into submission and destroy those who don�t like it.
I worked for this vindictive backstabber in Abu Dhabi, and that was enough. I will not work for him again. I�m outta here.
Last edited by Edmond Dantes on Sat Feb 09, 2008 4:49 am; edited 3 times in total |
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bje
Joined: 19 Jun 2005
Posts: 527
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| Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2008 2:52 am Post subject: Re: Tranparency at ACK |
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[quote="bje"]
| Dedicated wrote: |
In reply to bje, who stated
| Quote: |
| If you want transparency etc it's best to stay in the UK, US Australia, wherever. Even then, employees are by no means guaranteed the type of ideal scenario you might think "should" pertain in "academia" |
.
Here in the UK, there is no ideal scenario in academia, but we do have unions and people are appointed who can generally do the job well for which they have been selected, otherwise they are removed.
Yes, but that's in the UK.
The ACK website states" Our priority is to ensure that the ACK approach to educating its students using Australian training packages and curricula within a culture of care, is recognized throughout the Gulf region as being innovative and world's best practice".
Read any Gulf institute's website (especially the HCT's) and you'll see the same kind of rhetoric.
Everyone seems to be laying the blame at the feet of " Arab Management" (as Astoria stated) when in fact, their role is endorsing the recommendations of their in -house experts from Australia, the UK and the US. Management is to blame for allowing the former Head of the FP (a UK citizen) to continue this farce. Hopefully, things will change in the FP with a new acting Head (US citizen). However, in the Business dept, the inept and asinine management continues, with the new Australian Head of Management totally unable to produce a teaching timetable in two weeks. The impact of his decisions impacts upon the teachers and the new arrivals are already seriously not impressed.
I'm not sure why the particular citizenship of one or another HOD should be relevant. UK/US- which would be better? My own relatively well-established UAE institute has as yet been unable to produce a teaching timetable for the upcoming semester either...we'll see. I'm not impressed.
These people know what transparency is, surely? So how come they seem incapable of introducing and upholding it?
Everybody 'knows' what transparency is, but many couldn't give a toss, provided they rake in their monthly salary. All the same, it doesn't help matters when there is a workplace 'psychopath' (I can't think of a less vulgar term for it) on staff, with a documented history on the verge of emerging. Mischief-makers in the workplace only make things worse. |
Gulezar/Dedicated, your PMs (coincidentally sent at exactly the same time) were instructive, thank you.
The question is, why systematically set out to undermine colleagues? Common sense suggests it's more productive and congenial to simply do one's job, while stifling the urge to delve into others' personal lives.
Whatever the reasons, a Google search of current female teachers' names + 'lecturer' will eventually display the person concerned, who has a relatively recent and similar history at the HCT Dubai.
While there's no doubt that private Kuwaiti colleges and universities can be 'messy' to say the least (and indeed downright intolerable), adding 'workplace psychopath' to the equation can have heinous effects.
Certainly, it reflects very poorly on the upper management that they have not, to date, located the source of a proportion of the college's problems and dispensed with the services of the perpetrator. |
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