I’m a history teacher. I just ordered a class set. Now I need to work out if there’s money in the budget so I don’t end up paying for it myself. If I have to, I will.
I'm fairly sure we used them when I was at school. Certainly used something very similar.
I'm wondering if during your transaction of the sale if the publisher happened to mention whether they would also be reprinting the first volume of the series? It's curiously absent from the publisher's website.
As I understand it form conversations I've had with colleagues in England (and we all could be wrong), they have realised Books III (The Tudors) and IV (The Stuart) first, as these are the ones that required very little editing (they are not making wholesale changes, but there are few cases where dates and other details are better known today than they were when the books were printed) and they want people familiar with the books to see these, and spread the word about their resurrection. The original Book I is somewhat problematic. A lot more of the information in that one, particularly information about the Dark Ages, needs correcting (we know a lot more about a lot of that period than they did when the books were written). Book II (also now available) includes a lot of the later period originally in Book I as well as that covered in the original Book II, and a new Book I is being written in the style of the original. They are also writing a number of other books to cover more recent times and areas of time which they feel were insufficiently covered in the original volumes.
You are working as a history teacher in Australia, and you're teaching in-depth history of Great Britain? Wonderful! Is this in the public schools, a college or in a private school?
Well, that's a matter of terminology... I teach at one of the Associated Public Schools of Victoria, a group made up of what were, originally, the states most exclusive private boys schools (a number are now coeducational). We use the term 'Public School' in the sense that it was originally used in England - the oldest and most exclusive schools there. I teach at secondary level - 12-17 year old boys. We're not a typical Australian school - although there are dozens like us, all up, we probably educated 10% of children.
We regard it as very important to maintain our traditions and links to our history and British history is one of the most important parts of that. Over four years (12-15), our boys do a year of Ancient history, a year of European history, a year of British and Commonwealth history, half a year of Asian history, and half a year of American history (all through this time, they are also studying a separate Australian history/geography/politics subject). British history is studied in Year 9 - age 14. The battles, intrigues, and similar tend to keep the boys interested in a year when they are often slipping a bit academically.
I do hope that you'll be fully reimbursed for the purchase....I'd imagine that shipping those books from the UK to Oz would be pricey indeed.
Yes - they give us a healthy budget (healthy enough that it's rare I have to think too much about exceeding it, which is why I need to check). The biggest problem is I have primary responsibility for the History budget, and while I'd have no hesitation in signing off on this purchase if another staff member made it ("Excellent idea. Of course, we'll pay.") I do rather have to consider whether my own purchases are justified, rather more carefully to avoid the idea of taking advantage of things. If need be, I will pay for it myself - I earn a very decent salary, and have a Defence Force pension as well as that, and frankly, the ability to get a spotty teenaged boy to sit up and pay attention and stop annoying the person next to him, is worth a fair bit, so I can amortise that over the next few years of teaching :)