I stated at him from across folding table/desk. "What does that mean?" I inquired.
"I don't know but there has been a complaint and you need to resolve it."
"Are they not understanding the material? They haven't come to me with any questions."
"They don't know what you WANT out of the assignments." Dean of Under Achievement's hands are steepled on his chin in front of me.
"The assignments that state tell me about concept A and provide me an example? The assignment I handed back to them and let them rewrite after I specifically told them what to fix and in looking at my grade book this student did not?"
I stare at the Dean as the silence draws out. "I am confused as to what you want me to do? The student hasn't asked for help, went over my head to complain that I did not provide help they did not ask for. I gave them clear instructions, feedback, an opportunity to rewrite the assignment, and then provided the correct answer. What else would you like me to do?"
"What I need is for this problem to be be resolved."
I wanted to slam my head against the table but I knew the rickety legs couldn't withstand the impact.
sent in by FML
Now you know why a basic tenet of American law is that anyone accused of wrongdoing has the right to face one's accuser. This is yet another example of university administration's power having expanded to things they shouldn't be doing. But then:
ReplyDeleteNOBODY EXPECTS THE SPANISH INQUISITION!
"What I need is for this problem to be be resolved."
ReplyDelete"Well, then you should resolve it as you see fit. I've done what I can to resolve it. If there are any further specific steps required of me or specific instructions you would like to give me, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me again at your convenience. Now, if you don't mind, I have some papers to correct."
Perfect.
DeleteThe customer is always right.
ReplyDeleteI haven't confirmed this with Nate Silver, but I can predict with confidence that with that type of leadership, your dean WILL be my next provost.
ReplyDeleteAny chance you could go over HIS head? I realize that the air gets thinner as you ascend, but is there any chance that someone in admin has their head screwed on right and could back you up with the Dean of Student Underachievement? It's a longshot I admit.
ReplyDeleteOne of the advantages of tenure is that it allows you to look Dean of Student Underachievement coolly in the eye and say "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard." (or some suitably diplomatic version thereof)
Your story demonstrates that your dean deserves his title. He is underachieving.
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm glad you spared the table. I'm not sure sure I'm glad you spared the Dean (but physical and/or verbal attack would no doubt have landed you in a whole new circle of bureaucratic hell, so it's probably just as well). I'll be interested to hear if others have practical suggestions, but I *might* be inclined to follow up this conversation with a short, to-the-point email that summarizes your understanding of the Dean's request, and the steps you have taken to support this student's learning, and reiterates a request for guidance as to what you might, next reasonably do (including, perhaps, whether there are campus resources to which you might direct the student, or of which you might take advantage yourself). A cc to your chair (if you have one) might also make sense. And a friendly note to the student reiterating your willingness to help (and asking that (s)he make sure to raise questions and problems with you from now on, since you can't help if you don't know about them) might also make sense, though I'd take advice on that one (you don't want to be accused of "retaliation" because she went to the Dean). In short, lay out a CYA paper (virtual) trail.
ReplyDeleteOr drop it for the moment and see if the whole thing blows over (maybe the Dean, having passed the buck/done his duty, will be letting it drop, too)? This is where a knowledge of institutional culture, and/or this particular Dean (and/or access to someone who has such knowledge) would be useful.
Finally, am I correct in understanding that this Dean walked into your classroom to have this conversation?!? Does he have any idea what that does to your authority? Or do you hold office hours behind a rickety folding table? Either way, you have my sympathies (and I hope you're looking for a better job).
I am wondering if you could talk with this student, and document it.
ReplyDeleteI'd ask the student for a conference. Take the concerns seriously. Go over the assignments. Ask if (s)he was aware of the fact that (s)he could have rewritten the assignment. If not, I'd look over his/her attendance records together. If so, and the answer is that she/he still does not get it, I'd ask him/her to ask me whatever questions she/he has. I have had luck with reading the assignment together, and asking them to stop me the moment they are confused. It seems sarcastic, and perhaps it was when I first thought of it, but actually, I think some students understand things better when you read them the assignment one on one. If they did feel like they understood it better, I'd tell them that they should always make an appointment with me or a tutor to have their assignments read aloud to them. Seriously, I would, and I would mean it. If they still did not understand it, I would eventually turn it back to them with some words about college level thinking and that this is the nature of the course requirements. I'd document every bit of this, getting the student to write things down. With particularly horrible/mean/scheming students, I've come to meetings like this with list of items we will cover, and had them initial once we've covered them.
After all this, since I have tenure, I'd tell the student that the time to come to me with these questions was when I offered the chance at a rewrite. And that next time, this is what they should do to get the chance to do better. If I did not have tenure, I'd tell them they could rewrite it one more time, and agree on a due date. Without or without tenure, I'd also have the student sign a note that we met and I answered all the questions (s)he had at this time.
I've done all this before. I'm sure I'll have to do it again.
I love the picture for your original post. Yes, these things do make you hate the place.
Your Dean is an idiot and, unfortunately, academia is plagued by them.
ReplyDeleteUpdate: After reviewing this with my Dean I told them I would talk to the student but was unclear what else I could do. I was told I needed to be more approachable and available to students and that I needed to take into account all the different learning styles and adapt my teaching to meet the needs of each individual student in my class. All 100 of them apparently. Also I need to be more customer service oriented. . . I just gritted my teeth.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry, FML. Did you send this post to me? I thought the FML at the end was just the typical Fuck My Life sign off, not your screen name. And here I made up a perfectly awful RYS/CM style name for you...
DeleteMy bad, everyone; I'm rusty. I made corrections above.
Leslie K
Yes, for folks who occasionally send in posts, if you have a name Fab has published you under before, please let me know. Or at least give me a name to use. Keep in mind that we post things pseudonymously, and that Cal will have a stroke if we don't use something approximating his INGENIOUS (INGENIOUS, I tell you!) system that gives us such great names as: Irritated Ian from Ithaca, and Conjunctivitis Carl from Cleveland.
DeleteAargh. I would interpret this:
DeleteI needed to be more approachable and available to students and that I needed to take into account all the different learning styles and adapt my teaching to meet the needs of each individual student in my class. All 100 of them apparently. Also I need to be more customer service oriented.
As "it's probably time for me to think about getting the hell out of here" -- either by going on the academic job market or by implementing a plan B. Of course that's easier said than done, and may take time; in the meantime, I like Bella's document, document, document approach (but I freely admit that if I had to do this sort of stuff, I'd be plotting my exit, forthwith. It's a good approach to a ridiculous situation, but it's still a ridiculous situation).
I hope my name isn't giving Cal transient ischemic (sp?) attacks. At least I've got the adjective-noun form and the alliteration, but I've never hailed from a place. I'll have to think about the C possibilities (the first few that come to mind are in Ohio, not surprisingly). There's also Cambridge, Canterbury, Columbia (all with multiple referents), Connecticut. Hmm.
You should explain to your dean that he needs to take into account all the different learning styles of the instructors he deals with and adapt his crappy line of "You need to resolve it" into something that's actually helpful. He's currently acting like the perfect example of the sort of asshat who shouldn't be working in education.
DeleteNo big deal, I got to purge my craw so I feel a little better! :)
ReplyDeleteI hope you and EMH work at the same place, because the possibility of two incompetents of this caliber existing separately is painful.
ReplyDeleteAny chance your Dean is an Ed.D. and not a Ph.D.??
ReplyDeleteI'm so tired of the "different learning styles" excuse.
ReplyDeleteA new talk needs to be added to Freshman Orientation, possibly to follow after "You're In College, Not The 13th Grade." Under "Your Duties As Students" could be the line, "We, and the rest of the world, don't care about your 'learning style.' It is your job to adapt your learning style to your instructors' teaching styles."
Once, when screamed at by a class of 80 undergraduate education majors that I was not accommodating their learning styles, I made the mistake of saying, "When you have bosses in the real world, they're going to want you to do things their way." The ed majors organized and complained to the ed school, and if there's anything that will make "education professionals" cave in every time, it's when students organize. They complained to my incompetent department chair, whose management style was to avoid conflict of any kind at any cost. I nearly was denied tenure for that.
DeleteIn grad school, I was in a class in which there were a couple of ed students. There was a guest lecturer, and these two yapped with each other, making it impossible to hear the talk. Several of us shushed them, gave dirty looks, and still they yammered on. I finally tapped on on the arm and told her to take her side conversation outside, or shut. The. Fuck. Up.
ReplyDeleteShe burst into tears and dashed from the room.
I was called into a meeting with the dean and this student. I said there was nothing to discuss--she was being disruptive and rude. She said that I was "disrespectful of her personal learning style." And what would this style be, I asked. "I need to talk in order to listen better."
I wished the dean good luck and excused myself from the meeting.
Tapped *one on the arm.
DeleteHow did it go?
DeleteThe dean explained to her that some people's individual learning styles may involve listening. :0). Chatty Cathy stayed way far away from me for the rest of the term...and continued to yap.
DeleteThis is so much a part of my college's standards and practices.
ReplyDelete