About 'theShopTeacher.com' web site
Greetings everyone and welcome to the site.If you are a teacher who instructs in the areas of: technology education, industrial technology, the practical arts, industrial, occupational or vocational education, then no matter what you call it, “theShopTeacher.com” is a web site you will visit again and again. If you teach woodwork, automotive, metalwork, electrical or power technology to name a few, the unique challenges of being a hands on, materials, tools and processes teacher are many. theShopTeacher.com web site will prove to be an effective, project, information and collaboration center.
We also welcome input from people of the trades, the home hobbyists, back yard mechanics and retirees of course. The relationship between shop teachers and the skill set of many others is important because the students, our children, are the ones who become the beneficiaries of this wealth of knowledge. By combining the pedagogy of the teaching profession with the traditional and up-to-date knowledge from talented individuals, this effort will help influence and train the 'much needed' skilled students and trades people of tomorrow.
Shop teachers strive to create exciting and practical lessons and projects, but unfortunately, this usually happens in relative isolation. Why not use projects and lesson plans that have been tried, tested and reworked by others in the same line of work. Ultimately, we learn from each other. At the same time, why not use the knowledge that is sitting at our finger tips and take advantage of a vast array of specialists who are willing to lend a thought. A form of, "Communities of Practice" if you will. theShopTeacher.com has begun and continues to compile these "real world" ideas and build a web site that will share; tips n' tricks, short cuts, quality projects, lesson plans, SAFETY and production strategies. In the meanwhile, saving $$, material, headaches, and time. We invite anyone who can add to the wealth of knowledge where our children become the eventual winners. This is not academia; this is real life, with real budgets, real students, and real teacher issues.
Why I started theShopTeacher.comMy name is David De Pieri. I worked in the trades as a journeyman machinist and CNC programmer for ten years. I then became a high school shop teacher in 1992 and have taught a plethora of courses including; Technology 8, 9 and 10, automotive, drafting, electronics, metal work, power mechanics, wood work, as well as, career preparation machine shop & drafting technology. Realizing the many hours spent preparing a course only to have an appointment change a year later bothered me. We work hard at what we do! I knew there had to be a better way for shop teachers to be able to learn on a more global scale and lessen the amount of "wheel-inventing."
Uniting shop teachers and talented individuals who have practical work based knowledge, years of experience and honed skills, can only help produce great results for students in an ever changing world. I'm proud to introduce a system where shop teachers and our registrants can build a better tomorrow for the kids who enjoy the “hands on” experience of design and build.
This site is coming together thanks to people like you. Those of you who have contacted me, please send me your projects, images, lesson plans, tips n' tricks and life experiences. Soon I'll have things in a more organized and structured manner, but I wanted to show you the preliminaries. Designing this web site, layout and content is a ton of work, please be patient.
Come back often, I really appreciate everyone's support and input you have provided so far.
Thanks very much to all,
Dave