New way to get $L support for events

I'm a trainee instructor at Teazers, so even though I'm not LL approved I have been able to teach for over a month, recieving my pay entirely out of the owners pockets.

Once I'm approved I will continue to teach at Teazers, because I care about more than the money, and the helpful atmosphere and great people at Teazers are worth those 50L: If it costs me 50 out of 500L to keep that alive, so be it.

There's a reason why Teazers is the most active educational institution in SL- the people there are committed to it.

This has been quite an interesting thread, funny if nothing else. Sure you could start a University and shave L off of the instructor's pay just to feed your habit's (by habits I mean taking that L into your pocket and not turning it back to the establishment for improvments, etc) and if your that unethical and would be ok doing this, well maybe you just need to leave Second Life. =]

I am not coming here today to stand up and be the Poster Child for TeaZer's nor am I going to rant and rave about their instructors/ciriculum; all of the SLer's that pack their classrooms everyday speak worlds for their establishment when compared to what I could say.

What I will say is that if the instructors at TUi felt like they were being scammed, they all have minds of their own, they would move on...but they don't. The instructor's their truly care about passing on what they have learned to the plethora of student's that fill the classrooms and lobby everyday but hey, don't take my word for it (im just a lowly DJ) go down to TeaZer's sometime when the lobby is rocking and, if nothing more, observe. If nothing more, you will enjoy your stay and may pick up a thing or two from the TeaZer Campers. =]

My hat goes off to the owners of TUi, they have done a remarkable job with their establishment and hope that they are around for ages to come. =]

You guys jeer at TeaZers for things like the class to become an instructor, and the process of hiring we have to go through, but one thing that gauruntees is that we have quality instructors on staff.

I've been to other classes, and, while some were excellent teachers, many others were down right horrid and I wouldn't go back to the class if Linden paid me to be a student there. (OK well, maybe we can talk numbers if you really want to..)

Teazers not only keeps a core of dedicated, excellent teachers on staff, but provides an amount of support you would NEVER get teaching on your own.

Yes, a teacher that knows what they are doing should be able to scrap together a class from what they have in inventory, but isn't it so much better that, not only can we get loads of textures or generic scripts from the Instructor's lounge to help put together a good class, but, if needed, other Instructors are ready at a moment's notice to help develop a class or even write a specialized script for one!

Also, at Teazers, they provide well over a hundred classes already laid out, debugged, and packaged for our Instructors. And more being developed everyday. Don't think this means Instructors don't have their own classes that only they teach either. Not only do we Instructors make many of our classes, but we have an Instructor level class to assist us in doing exactly that, and submitting it for Linden approval.

You want to be a greedy Linden collector and just do a job to get the most out of it, fine. I can point you to some excellent brothels and escort services. Many strip clubs might hire you to dance on a pole.

You want to do something you LOVE that makes you feel good and helps complete your life? Then come to Teazers and if you can get through the rigorous training and hiring process, come teach with us.

Those that can, teach. And if you think TeaZers is a scam on the Instructors OR the students, then you've never met our staff nor ever had our classes. TeaZers is here to stay, here to play, and here to thrive. If you don't like it, get over it, cause we aren't going anywhere. We like it here, and our students like us being here.

Maybe because there are so many more of them, and the RL publicity that SL garners is mostly based on the financial aspect of the grid, and as more mainstream gamers come into SL, they set up the consumer class (win, level up, be the best). The education offered in SL, while a small dike against a rushing flow of uneducated newbies, is not to be blamed for their newbness, it is alleviating, perhaps innadequately, the negative experience to which you refer.

I have been teaching at TeaZers since December and am one of the ones most affected by the $50L reduction in pay. I teach two classes a day, everyday. I am well aware that I could do all the things listed that TeaZer's does on my own. The money is still quite good by sl standards and the camaraderie and fellowship among the staff is quite worth the minute reduction in pay. Something TeaZers offers that is not being looked at is the help and companionship the other instructors provide. If I have a problem with some aspect of a class, all I have to do is ask. Several other instructors are always willing to assist.

Is money everything? if so go find a job in rl as it is highly unlikely you will get rich teaching classes in sl. I enjoy teaching and the companionship of intelligent people who also enjoy teaching and helping others.

To me, TeaZer's is well worth $50L a class.

Aarlon Montagne

We teach to a certain standard and criteria. The class approval process is Linden regulated, the wordings to posts have to contain certain phrases, the content of the class has to be complete. This may surprise you, but a lot of education in SL started out as talented builders and or helpful souls, teaching on the fly, without lesson plans. When you organize into a university you have to standardize some aspects of your classes. The TU instructor level classes ensure that everything adheres to a certain standard of quality, completion, and consistency. These classes are open to all, and provide useful tips to good samaritans who might want to teach their fellow SLers and not have an MA in teaching...people to whom "lesson plans" might not be "common sense" but who turn out to be great SL educators anyways.

I've been working for Teazers for the past 5 months. I wanted to come in defense of them. Lets seriously look at the situation item by item.

"Clam to pay the teachers the $500L that ALL instructors get for LL sponsored classes."

True, that was the old system, and it was reduced to $450. However, How long does it take to get paid by LL? at TU, pay is immediately after class. I've heard weeks.

Linden Labs own economic changes have made this necessary. The elimination of the two types of traffic payments make it impossible to have land for classes without taking a piece of the top.


"Promise class help and class outlines."

There is always class help available, and many many many outlines. I've got a folder of them. In addition they have one of the best libraries of scripts and prims I've seen. Free to instructors.



"Have fun parties where L$'s are given away"

They do happen, once or twice a month. Can yo usay otherwise?

"Make everyone feel special............maybe with a 'card' or trophy"

Is there a problem with this?

"Give jewelry away as an Instructors only prize"

Only prize? Have you gone jewlery shopping lately?

"Get all the content the Instructors have to offer...turn it into a class"

TU has always had the policy of if you design a class, its yours. Not TU's. TU asks permission before they give your material to anyone.


"Whine about the $L's it cost to run all the land you decided to buy and appeal to thier 'guilt' factor.....include a spread sheet"

So, tell me. You pay 4195 US plus setup fees for a sim. and TU takes up an entire sim. Do you expect the owner to just pay this money for nothing?



"Take $L50 from each and every Instructor's LL pay, for each and every class

Voila....you have $L in the bank"


OH really, lets look at the numbers. IN a perfect universe, assuming there are 6 classes per hour at TU, that's 144 classes a day.

At $50 per class that's $7200 Linden per day

30 days in a month

216,000 linden.

Converted to US dollars at today's exchange rate.

$720.

Minus $195 US for the monthly cost

$525

Cost for the sim --- $1K one time

Congratulations its three months until you see dollar one, in a PERFECT universe.


Now lets look at reality..

# of TU classes today -- 24 (A pretty typical day)

Linden Generated to TU -- 1200

Lindens per month on this average -- 36000


Total Revenue in $US -- $120

Congratulations -- You've just lost $75, and have not recouped any of your initial investment.

The real question is, Why should TU be providing instruction at all? Linden Labs has moved the entire universe where there's only one real way to make money. Sell product. Entertainment, social activities, and education are slowly being phased out as a way to make any real L$ in SL.

Klandon Melville

Personally were I running Teazers, I'd charge people to take the classes, not the instructors. Maybe not for the newbie classes, but for the how-to make stuff? Yeah I'd charge.

The LL rules for the program say that the classes have to be free. If there not you can kiss the Lindon aproval away.

Wow, ... sounds like someone has a little axe to grind. Maybe they couldnt cut it as a TUi instructor, or think that whining is better than doing something productive. Why else start such a rediculous thread?

In any case, so long as people are benefitting from a school curriculum, who freakin cares how it operates in the background? The question to be answered is "Are the students getting valuable information to live a better life in SL?" So far, the class attendees are getting a lot more than their money's worth. And, if an instructor doesnt like how the school is run, move on and shut the hell up. If a student doesnt like the classes, dont come back. No one is forcing anyone to do anything. Start your own school, create nirvana, do it your way and show us all how right you are. That's what people with better ideas do. Whiners are generally losers who are too lazy to do much about anything, because whining takes no effort, no resolve, no commitment.

Frankly, I think members should pay for the classes anyway, but thats just my own opinion. I dont know what will happen when Dwell goes away, but something will, and there will still be classes taught somehow. I suspect that there will actually have to evolve a pay-as-you-go model, which IMHO, is the way it aughta be anyway. I think part of the model TUi uses is that they have a mall area that helps to support the cost of SIM. I'm not 100% sure of that, but it sounds like a good idea to me. You want people to come, give em something of value and they might actually pay for it.

I know some of the folks who work, not only at TUi, but at other schools as well. They are all different and similar at the same time. Everyone who runs a school, any school, will tell you it takes A LOT of time and effort, previous commentary from those who dont know what they are talking about aside. There will always be people willing to teach for free, and there will most likely be these more organized and material schools where the class options are greater. All SL members are free to pick what is comfortable for them.

Also, from what i've noticed, many of the classes and processes at other schools seem to be copied from what TUi is doing. Are those instructors paying TUi back for the labor and effort that they simply walked away with and are reselling? I'll ask TUi how many commission checks they've received lately.

Anyway, I'm sure that, like the originator of this thread, I've bored you all silly with my version of useless information. But, what the hell. You dont have to be smart to post anything, and I'm certainly no more of a genius than the originator of this thread, so I did it too.

This is fascinating stuff; I had no idea of the depth and breadth of education in SL yet.

I'm about done making a small Academy, loosely modeled as a Hogwarts-style school with founding Houses.

It's mainly for fun as I don't wish it to become 'work' for either instructors or students. For those that love to teach and those that love to learn.

We don't really have any plans to draw $L 500 per class from the Company, although we could apply someday I suppose. It's more about fun and spreading knowledge.

We have some instructors lined up that are rightfully famous grid-wide and beyond for their creations, talent and skills. And we are looking to give 'certificates' for passing a class, with the name of the class, school and so forth.


All that said, I was thinking we should charge *something* minimal, just so we don't draw 'students' that just stop paying attention, socialise, then leave halfway through a class.

What should we charge, if anything?

The instructors will get 100% of it.

Doesn't surprise me, I'm in the instructors group, just not offiliated with any SL university organization. What I was saying was that some of the reasons I've seen for also joining with Teazers just didn't seem worth it to me. All of the things Teazers provides any instructor is capable of doing on their own. The only benefit I can see is having the Teazers name to bring in a larger student population but from what I've seen, simply posting your classes on the event calender brings in enough students to hold a decent class, too many students means not being able to provide enough individual attention. I did attend one Teazers class quite awhile ago and frankly the instructor explained things rather quickly, gave the appearance she was in some kind of rush and there were so many students in the class they were actually told she couldn't stop to answer all of their questions. As for all the other reasons you mentioned, I still feel that if "lesson plans" are not "common sense" then that person probably shouldn't be teaching.



I think most instructors in SL started out just showing their friends and strangers around them how to do little things. The point of joining the instructors group is to take that to the next more organized level. Being involved in a facility like Teazers for me would feel TOO organized, I would be following someone else's guidelines and while I'm sure there is an appeal in that for some, it just doesn't appeal to me.

Again, hey more power to the Teazers people for seeing a market and jumping into it, good for them... I just wonder how many of their instructors would still be teaching classes without their bosses to do the detail work for them.

Where exactly did you get that number if I may ask? Last I heard a sim still cost 1200 US$ up front.

I personally have developed 12 classes for TeaZers and myself to teach. Many other instructors at TeaZers have done the same thing. I assure you, the classes do not spring forth like Athena from the brow of Zeus fully formed but require effort and planning on the part of the faculty and staff of TeaZer's University.

Eek, just read my own above post and I didn't mean for it to sound so negative. I'm sure Teazers has fine instructors over all. I guess I just mean I'd rather do the detail work myself than have someone else tell me how it needs to be done.

I have known FP since long before Teazers. She isn't in it for the $ (which I'm pretty sure she does pretty well on the land rental side of the biz). The economic viability for TU wasn't a factor in it's creation, she has always liked to help people. I'm sure that any drama in TU is unfounded.

we don't take stuff too personal allana, especially not from people offering civilized discourse ;P

Well I started in SL in mid January and found my way by accident to TeaZers and have never left since!

The classes they offered me as a newbie were great and taught me all I wanted to know about surviving in SL.

I was so taken by the place that I applied to become a Trainee Instructor and taught almost 14 lessons a week for over a month as a trainee all at TeaZers expense before getting LL approval.

The thing about TeaZers instructors is that they are a close knit family willing to help each and everyone and I for one teach not for the money but for the buzz I get from receiving comments at the end of my classes from satisfied students.

If you have never been to a Teazer's class then try one for yourself and see how it makes you feel at the end.

First Page and Dragon Stryker spend many hours and their own money to keep TeaZers afloat and I for one have seen so many clubs come and go in my short life that if it requires my 50L a class to allow other newbies to get the benefit then thats a small price to pay.

Ranting and Raving Finished

p.s. Don't knock it till you try it - you never know you might get hooked aswell

Yup, Teazers is a great place to be.

I don't mind donating 50$L of each class there.

It's worth it. Have met wonderful people and tons of new friends. Mega thumbs up.

Well its been said that Teazers this and that. bla bla bla.But infact when otehr clubs talk a good game Teazers does what other clubs dont. They Do alot of good with little ego added. First page along withthe rest of those teachers on that island give learning content with little in return back to them. But i can`t say that about another such learning club where egos run high along with their mouths. Why is that all of the sudden its the in thing to help newbies and run learning classes? Well as i said befor its al about ego in some clubs. But Teazers is acut above they rest.

ty lol

Ok best benefit I've heard yet. Everyone likes finding a place to call home and be comfortable. That I can relate to.

I read the forums regularly, but never post anything.
This is my first post.
I am a little over two months old in Second Life.

A day or two after I started in Second Life, I somehow ended up at Teazers. They were teaching a class, something at an advanced level. I asked someone how I can learn all that stuff, and she explained about their advanced level classes, intermediate level classes, and beginners level classes. She recommended that I start with beginners level classes.

But, it just so happened that there were no beginners level classes starting for the next few hours, but there was an intermediate level class. Being the brand new newbee that I was, I realized that even an intermediate level class would go way over my head.

So I was getting ready to leave, but the lady must have sensed my disappointment, and asked me to wait. She then IM'ed the instructor, who was going to teach the intermediate level class that would start half hour later. The instructor TP'ed me to his location, and gave me a quick 15 minute lesson on the pre-requisites for his class. Then, he took me to his class, where there were about a dozen students. During the class he helped me through IM, and made sure that I was able to build the posing stand that he was teaching.
I know there was nothing in it for him, except perhaps the satisfaction of having helped a new person.

I have attended a few other classes at Teazers since then, on particles, on scripting and on building. In every class that I attended, the instructors and the people who were associated with Teazers were kind, helpful, and willing to share their knowledge. At no time did I feel that they were being taken for a ride, or that they were in it for the money. I learned a lot from them, and am grateful to them.

The only reasons I can think of why the person who wrote the original posting in this thread chose to do so is that, perhaps a) he has an axe to grind, or b) he is a teenager mad at the world. He might feel a lot better about himself if he did something to help others for a change, instead of trying to tear down a good thing.

I had to chuckle when I read Allana Dion because
a) she says things like "if lesson plans are not common sense then that person probably shouldn't be teaching".
b) I haven't seen Allana teach any classes.
So, I guess she is taking her own advice, and that is a good thing.

Allana, anyone who has taught in real life would not pooh-pooh the efforts required in putting together a quality class and lesson plan. I suspect that is even more true in Second Life classes.

Anyway, God knows there are too many strip clubs and seedy places in Second Life. I hate to see people who have nothing better to do trying to tear down one of the nice and civilized things that I experienced in Second Life.


PS: Thank you Norton Lazarno and Charlie Lazarno for taking time out to help a newbee.

Still trolling the people these days heheh

I was wondering how long before this issue became public. TeaZers has lost some very tallented Instructors over this.

1. Instructors post their own events at TeaZers.
2. The paperwork filing is in the form of a scripted reporter. The scripting for this is not difficult and anyone that has access to someone who does basic scripting can get their own reporter. In fact I will have one available for general use for a nominal price after I test it to make sure it is indeed working as it should.
3. getting immediate payment is good for those who don't want to wait
4. There's lots of places to teach. Some are under the impression it's ungodly hard though. Sorry TeaZers, it isn't as hard as you guys make it seem.
5. Some course materials are provided, some are not.
6. Again, Instructors post their own events and handle their own schedules. TeaZers restricts how many classes and what level the classes can be. Other than that it's all the instructors doin it


As far as the other things Teazers provides:

instructor level classes - few and far between (with the exception of basic how teazers works classes)

I personally think there are other options open to TeaZers and that charging Instructors (who do a hell of a lot of work for TeaZers) is not the way to go.

At my current rate of teaching this pay cut will cost me the equivalent of $9USD per month.

I have the facilities to teach and I'll get the bennefit of traffic at my location

I have been creating my classes on my own for some time now. The most I've gotten out of TeaZers is some great friends and some cool textures. I do have to give them credit for getting me started as I didn't know I could instruct until I went to one of their classes and giving me the ideas for the first few classes. (I started before prepared classes for new instructors was even close to what it is now) and for inspiration for some of my first classes that I developed.

So while I wish TeaZers the best, I have to do what's best for me. As I've already announced to them I am leaving TeaZers, mostly over this very issue and issues related to it.

For those that do get more value out of TeaZers (I'm sure there are lots that do) it's a good deal - just not one that's for me