write with style.
I don't care how they dress,
or how they address me.
They can bitch about grades,
water off a duck's back.
But they must write
with style & clarity.
I give them (not assign, mind you)
this book to read and use
.It has made my life remarkably easier,
as we all share the knowledge of that text.
When they prepare something for me
that does not meet my standards,
I simply send them back to the book,
and I refuse to take in work that is inelegant.
Some of them complain.
No matter.
Those that make it through,
have earned it.
Those that pass my class,
will excel elsewhere.
I've seen it proven.
I'm at peace with it.
We all thought my freshman comp teacher was a real weirdo. He was a hard ass and we didn't really like him. He had a particular kind of arrogance that doesn't really bother me (if you are good and you know it, I don't find that arrogant), but it did add to the pressure. We hated his class. But within a few semesters I realized what I had learned from him. Even now, more than a quarter of a century later, I still think of that class.
ReplyDeleteA few years ago I learned that he had passed away and I still regret that I never got around to thanking him.
I love it, Prof. Tingle...
ReplyDeleteI love it too! On order! Thank you! =)
ReplyDeleteHow do you do this for a class of 100?
ReplyDeleteLegend has it that Henry Kissinger repeatedly returned a paper to a student, writing on it only, "Is this the best you can do?" After enough tries, his student said, "Yes! This is the best I can do!" Kissinger reportedly said, "Fine. I'll read it now." I couldn't get away with that. (But then, I couldn't get away with lots that old Hank has done.) What do you really do?
Also, is your name really Dick Tingle?
@Froderick
ReplyDeleteI chose a job
where I do not teach
classes of 100.
Oh well, how fortunate for you! As a direct result, what you seem to think is helpful is anything but, for plebians like me. Thanks a lot, Dick.
ReplyDeleteIs there an option
ReplyDeleteat your college
to put copies of a book
on reserve in a library?
I'd think 1-2 copies
purchased used even
from half.com or Alibris
might suffice.
And if correct and elegant writing
is such a central factor
in your teaching,
you might even consider
adding a good style manual
or handbook
to your courses.
That would certainly
send a strong message
to your students.
As for class size,
I regret that the amount
of grading I need to do
in my discipline
prohibits large classes.
After enough tries ... Kissinger reportedly said, "Fine. I'll read it now."
ReplyDeleteMaybe it was a humanitarian concern.
"After enough tries ... Kissinger reportedly said, "Fine. I'll read it now."
ReplyDeleteMaybe it was a humanitarian concern."
- CDP
Explains the secret bombing of Cambodia, maybe his support of Indonesian murder squads in East Timor.