Meeting with a new class for the first time is always a little awkward. To break the stress of all the first day expectation discussions it is always interesting to know if the students are willing to share any rumors that they have heard about a class.
This year they shared two rumors: (1) "this is the hardest class we will ever take" and (2) "everyone fails the first exam." One of the more gregarious students then added "and, you give lots of extra credit and curve all of the exams."
The first two may be true on some level (although those types of rumors are often started by students that do not study adequately), but the third one, well, not true... but good for a laugh...
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Day 1... Exciting or Depressing?
The end of summer and the beginning of the fall semester always happens so suddenly.
With every semester the schedule of classes, meetings and other "professor" responsibilities changes. That means that the "routine" also needs to change. Simple things - what time to get up, what time to arrive on campus, when to exercise, etc. - all need to be adjusted to meet the demands of the new work schedule. The days can be different throughout the week. A Monday could begin with an early morning class, while a Tuesday might begin with an evening class.
Some professors find the new semester to be a renewal... a source of excitement and energy. Lately it has seemed to be closer to the movie "Groundhog Day," where everything is simply a slightly modified repeat of a previous semester.
The first class meeting is always the same - the syllabus, the expectations, the "motivational" speech about success in the class. The class is always disappointed if anything substantial is covered. (All that money spent for education, but students perceive a short class with little to no content to be a good thing.)
With every semester the schedule of classes, meetings and other "professor" responsibilities changes. That means that the "routine" also needs to change. Simple things - what time to get up, what time to arrive on campus, when to exercise, etc. - all need to be adjusted to meet the demands of the new work schedule. The days can be different throughout the week. A Monday could begin with an early morning class, while a Tuesday might begin with an evening class.
Some professors find the new semester to be a renewal... a source of excitement and energy. Lately it has seemed to be closer to the movie "Groundhog Day," where everything is simply a slightly modified repeat of a previous semester.
The first class meeting is always the same - the syllabus, the expectations, the "motivational" speech about success in the class. The class is always disappointed if anything substantial is covered. (All that money spent for education, but students perceive a short class with little to no content to be a good thing.)
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
The Old and the Forgetful
At what point does continuously forgetting "things" become a problem?
What happens when a colleague cannot remember anything? And, frequently forgets major decisions... leading to multiple "flip-flops" about everything?
What can you do when all discussions lead nowhere because it is necessary to start from "scratch" with every conversation?
Which party is responsible for ensuring that the other one remembers the outcome of the last conversation?
What happens when a good idea from one conversation is suddenly a bad idea when it is time to implement it?
What do you when ideas that were rejected many times are not remembered... and continue to resurface?
What happens when only very old data is remembered and used to justify decisions?
What happens when a colleague cannot remember anything? And, frequently forgets major decisions... leading to multiple "flip-flops" about everything?
What can you do when all discussions lead nowhere because it is necessary to start from "scratch" with every conversation?
Which party is responsible for ensuring that the other one remembers the outcome of the last conversation?
What happens when a good idea from one conversation is suddenly a bad idea when it is time to implement it?
What do you when ideas that were rejected many times are not remembered... and continue to resurface?
What happens when only very old data is remembered and used to justify decisions?
Student vs. Student
Students travel in packs, cilques form, teams develop... it is the natural development of a class culture as the semester progresses.
It is interesting to watch the different personalities of students develop and how the culture of the class handles them. One of the more interesting characters is the "parasite" student. This tends to be the "weak puppy" that has a pleasant enough personality to integrate with some of the better students. In some classes the parasite can find a host to help pull them through the semester. In other classes, the environment quickly abandons the parasite... leaving it to suffer on its own. In the most cruel environments, the host starts to feed bad information to the parasite... perhaps a form of poisoning to protect itself.
The other interesting battle that can occur is the "Non-traditional" vs. the "Traditional" students. Some classes will have a combination of typical college age students and non-traditional (a.k.a., older) students that work full time in a professional capacity in addition to taking classes. The conflict can escalate as assignments begin to accumulate. The traditional students view the non-traditionals as people that are only taking one class and have experience as a benefit to help them succeed. The non-traditionals see the traditional students as a bunch of kids that have all the time in the world to complete their assignments.
In a good class the culture brings these two together to provide some of the life experiences with the fresh young ideas...
It is interesting to watch the different personalities of students develop and how the culture of the class handles them. One of the more interesting characters is the "parasite" student. This tends to be the "weak puppy" that has a pleasant enough personality to integrate with some of the better students. In some classes the parasite can find a host to help pull them through the semester. In other classes, the environment quickly abandons the parasite... leaving it to suffer on its own. In the most cruel environments, the host starts to feed bad information to the parasite... perhaps a form of poisoning to protect itself.
The other interesting battle that can occur is the "Non-traditional" vs. the "Traditional" students. Some classes will have a combination of typical college age students and non-traditional (a.k.a., older) students that work full time in a professional capacity in addition to taking classes. The conflict can escalate as assignments begin to accumulate. The traditional students view the non-traditionals as people that are only taking one class and have experience as a benefit to help them succeed. The non-traditionals see the traditional students as a bunch of kids that have all the time in the world to complete their assignments.
In a good class the culture brings these two together to provide some of the life experiences with the fresh young ideas...
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Recommending withdraw... while suffering from withdrawl
Seeing his name on the roster at the beginning of the semester was a surprise. This was his third time in the same class. He passed the class the first time (with a "D"), then repeated the class the following semester... and failed. (The most recent grade counts.) That was a year ago.
After the second week of the class, he attended for the first time. He never mentioned that he missed the first two weeks. Maybe he just figured the we both knew that he was not in class, so what was the point of discussing something that we already knew? His presence was as obvious as his absence; he answered nearly every question that was asked, provided some excellent comments to the class discussions and overall was a tremendously positive addition to the room. Being in the class for the third time must make the answers a little easier.
It is now over six weeks into the semester and that single class during the second week is the only time that he attended class. His attendance was an issue in previous semesters, but never this bad...
When he finally contacted me, his reason confirmed some lingering suspicions... drugs and alcohol. He gave a long, tear-filled explaination of his problems, the counciling that he was seeking and the desire to get "back on track."
When it is "too little, too late"? This was a student that wanted to remain in the class after missing over half of the semester... and, he wanted to miss the rest of the semester to move home, away from the drinking atmosphere of a campus environment. Sometimes you have to get life back on track first, before you can move forward. His request conjured an image of a derailed train trying to move forward without creating more damage. The suggestion to withdraw completely from the university, continue working toward a sober lifestyle, then return when better able to handle the pressures of college coursework without falling into the trap of drugs and alcohol was met with a more extreme upset reaction that I would have ever expected.
It was difficult to recommend a complete withdraw. The student needed to get his life together, but there is always the concern that he will never be able to return to college...
After the second week of the class, he attended for the first time. He never mentioned that he missed the first two weeks. Maybe he just figured the we both knew that he was not in class, so what was the point of discussing something that we already knew? His presence was as obvious as his absence; he answered nearly every question that was asked, provided some excellent comments to the class discussions and overall was a tremendously positive addition to the room. Being in the class for the third time must make the answers a little easier.
It is now over six weeks into the semester and that single class during the second week is the only time that he attended class. His attendance was an issue in previous semesters, but never this bad...
When he finally contacted me, his reason confirmed some lingering suspicions... drugs and alcohol. He gave a long, tear-filled explaination of his problems, the counciling that he was seeking and the desire to get "back on track."
When it is "too little, too late"? This was a student that wanted to remain in the class after missing over half of the semester... and, he wanted to miss the rest of the semester to move home, away from the drinking atmosphere of a campus environment. Sometimes you have to get life back on track first, before you can move forward. His request conjured an image of a derailed train trying to move forward without creating more damage. The suggestion to withdraw completely from the university, continue working toward a sober lifestyle, then return when better able to handle the pressures of college coursework without falling into the trap of drugs and alcohol was met with a more extreme upset reaction that I would have ever expected.
It was difficult to recommend a complete withdraw. The student needed to get his life together, but there is always the concern that he will never be able to return to college...
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
The more things change...
After 10 years as a "professor".... The students have changed... but not for the better. Some professors remain... long after they should have gone.
For today's students too many things are simply "too hard." Their work ethic has diminished; they have developed an attitude of entitlement.
For yesterday's professors change is not an option. Although the world outside the academic walls has changed, their thinking inside these walls remains the same.
For today's students too many things are simply "too hard." Their work ethic has diminished; they have developed an attitude of entitlement.
For yesterday's professors change is not an option. Although the world outside the academic walls has changed, their thinking inside these walls remains the same.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
The Compliment
There is an odd dynamic that sometimes occurs between a student and a professor. As part of my role, I often travel with students to conferences and other off-campus events. This give a wonderful opportunity to get to know each other as people, outside of the traditional professor/student interaction.
For some students this interaction sparks increased academic performance, for others it creates a situation where they do not have the life experiences necessary to separate "work" from "social". For students that are not able to determine what behavior is appropriate in different situations it can lead to a real disappointment when the professor/student relationship is expected. In the "social" situations the students tend to be more likely to reveal personal information than the professor. Sometimes a student will realize this and start probing for information.
A common line of questioning I encounter is related to age. This is something I have never revealed. At first I left them wondering because I was too close to their age, and now because, well, it is not so close. I received an compliment (or at least I see it as a compliment recently) when a student realized that his questioning was not leading to a satisfactory response... "I don't know how old you are, but I do know that you can drink like a 25 year old."
For some students this interaction sparks increased academic performance, for others it creates a situation where they do not have the life experiences necessary to separate "work" from "social". For students that are not able to determine what behavior is appropriate in different situations it can lead to a real disappointment when the professor/student relationship is expected. In the "social" situations the students tend to be more likely to reveal personal information than the professor. Sometimes a student will realize this and start probing for information.
A common line of questioning I encounter is related to age. This is something I have never revealed. At first I left them wondering because I was too close to their age, and now because, well, it is not so close. I received an compliment (or at least I see it as a compliment recently) when a student realized that his questioning was not leading to a satisfactory response... "I don't know how old you are, but I do know that you can drink like a 25 year old."
Friday, January 19, 2007
Expectations
During the first class meeting the professor sets the expectations for the semester. Typically, these expectations are provided in writing on a course syllabus and verbally through a review of that same syllabus, perhaps in ever greater detail. Frequently students use the first class as the "test drive" to make sure that the class is not going to be "too hard" or require "too much work." After that first class meeting students know what to expect for the rest of the semester, and have the information needed to decide if they will remain in the class or drop it (and seek an "easier" one). Of course, if the class is required for their major, the decision keep the class has probably been made for them.
The opposite perspective is that these same students enter the classroom on the first day with their own expectations for the class, but these are not shared. This leaves the professor without knowing what is wanted (or needed) by each of the individual students in the class. So, how can a class cater to all of the needs of a diverse population of students, especially when the students do not get the opportunity to make their expectations known?
In the end, professors evaluate the students against the criteria established at the beginning of the semester. And students are left to rate the professor against their own silent expectations.
The opposite perspective is that these same students enter the classroom on the first day with their own expectations for the class, but these are not shared. This leaves the professor without knowing what is wanted (or needed) by each of the individual students in the class. So, how can a class cater to all of the needs of a diverse population of students, especially when the students do not get the opportunity to make their expectations known?
In the end, professors evaluate the students against the criteria established at the beginning of the semester. And students are left to rate the professor against their own silent expectations.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Can you change my grade?
It was the first day of the spring semester. A student from one of my fall classes appeared at my office. This was a student the spent most of the month of October somewhere other than in my class. At the end of the fall semester, when he realized failure was inevitable, he asked for a second chance. All he wanted was the opportunity to submit the seven assignments that he had neglected to complete throughout the semester. Since he had been attending class the last 4-5 weeks of the semester, I accepted the late assignments. He earned his "D."
Anytime a visit starts with "I am not here to beg...", the rest of the conversation is generally uncomfortable. As the story unfolds it turns out that "D" left him with a grade point average below 2.0, and since he was on academic probation for having an overall GPA below 2.0, he was dismissed from the university. But (there is always a but), if he were able to convince his professors from the fall to let him do more work to "earn" a higher grade, then maybe his average could reach 2.0. Reaching that number was important so that he could stay in school, get his financial aid reinstated, and not have to start repaying his loans.
At the beginning of every semester the expectations are carefully laid in front of each student. It is easy to review these expectations and compare them to the actual performance. Simply skipping six of the weekly quizzes that were based on the assigned textbook readings was enough to drop him the half letter grade he now so desperately needed to stay in school. (Well, the half letter grade from this class and the full letter grade in each of two other classes.)
It is a difficult choice. He put himself in this situation, yet because he is back to ask, but "not beg," for a change of grade, the responsibility suddenly falls to the professor. The decision has the chance to be life altering for this 22 year old. Does giving another break really help this student? For five straight semesters his GPA has been below 2.0. Is he ready for college? Is he really serious about college? Is he just wasting financial aid money and filling seats that would be appreciated by someone else? Or, is this the break that will finally change his attitude toward education and suddenly appreciate and cherish the opportunity that he is about to lose? From a course perspective, does going back to complete some assignments and quizzes that are now outside the context of the entire course experience really lead to a better understanding and increased mastery of the course materials?
How many second chances are appropriate?
Anytime a visit starts with "I am not here to beg...", the rest of the conversation is generally uncomfortable. As the story unfolds it turns out that "D" left him with a grade point average below 2.0, and since he was on academic probation for having an overall GPA below 2.0, he was dismissed from the university. But (there is always a but), if he were able to convince his professors from the fall to let him do more work to "earn" a higher grade, then maybe his average could reach 2.0. Reaching that number was important so that he could stay in school, get his financial aid reinstated, and not have to start repaying his loans.
At the beginning of every semester the expectations are carefully laid in front of each student. It is easy to review these expectations and compare them to the actual performance. Simply skipping six of the weekly quizzes that were based on the assigned textbook readings was enough to drop him the half letter grade he now so desperately needed to stay in school. (Well, the half letter grade from this class and the full letter grade in each of two other classes.)
It is a difficult choice. He put himself in this situation, yet because he is back to ask, but "not beg," for a change of grade, the responsibility suddenly falls to the professor. The decision has the chance to be life altering for this 22 year old. Does giving another break really help this student? For five straight semesters his GPA has been below 2.0. Is he ready for college? Is he really serious about college? Is he just wasting financial aid money and filling seats that would be appreciated by someone else? Or, is this the break that will finally change his attitude toward education and suddenly appreciate and cherish the opportunity that he is about to lose? From a course perspective, does going back to complete some assignments and quizzes that are now outside the context of the entire course experience really lead to a better understanding and increased mastery of the course materials?
How many second chances are appropriate?
Stereotypes
The fallacies of life as a professor:
- Summers off
- Only work a few hours a week
- No class = no work
- Overpaid
- An easy job...
If all of these were true it probably would be the greatest job in the world.
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