tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post1007044727482773464..comments2023-10-15T04:23:50.187-04:00Comments on College Misery: Axe + grinding stone = plan? A Big Thirsty for the Ages.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-92171662708279981312012-11-04T15:46:55.914-05:002012-11-04T15:46:55.914-05:00You're right, Old School. Our perspectives ar...You're right, Old School. Our perspectives are different because we work in different places and because our evidence is entirely anecdotal. But here's some possible anecdotal evidence that I'd find more convincing: I wonder what professors at elite, exclusive STEM schools like Cal Tech or MIT would have to say about today's students? Those students are almost certainly as &Philiphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05244643308698776814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-71745772558825475992012-11-04T14:01:30.606-05:002012-11-04T14:01:30.606-05:00Philip, here's why I don't share your pers...Philip, here's why I don't share your perspective. Yes, I'm tiringly familiar with the old/ancient quotes about how youth are going bad etc. I don't believe there was throughout most of history a Garden of Eden but that we're now experiencing the Fall from Grace. There have been many good (or better) phases and many bad phases throughout history. Until about five years ago, weOld Schoolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13699515354669340909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-46831501949062266692012-11-04T01:34:53.708-05:002012-11-04T01:34:53.708-05:00This argument isn't convincing when you cite, ...This argument isn't convincing when you cite, or rather don't even bother to cite, a culture that became extinct.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-28297964946906799822012-11-03T14:55:35.918-04:002012-11-03T14:55:35.918-04:00"There, there, everything's gonna be all ..."There, there, everything's gonna be all right" is NOT what I'm saying. It could very well be that the Dark Ages began in the 60s or that they're beginning now. I don't happen to think so--simply because this students-today-are-worse-than-they've-ever-been discussion could have taken place at just about any time in human history.<br /><br />Back in the 70s--the Philiphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05244643308698776814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-46220112163290736322012-11-02T20:41:39.167-04:002012-11-02T20:41:39.167-04:00If something like CM had existed back in the '...If something like CM had existed back in the '60s, I have no question that there would have been lots of posts about the emergence of bad behaviors by the students, because they were so well justified. LSD definitely did cause "frighteningly glazed-over eyes looking for the next new superficial . . . high," and while it's not as common now as it was then, the inebriant mania Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-43422550371780493912012-11-02T18:44:38.382-04:002012-11-02T18:44:38.382-04:00A reading of Aristotle and a study of how the huma...A reading of Aristotle and a study of how the human being learns tells us that we learn best by imitating a real human being. There is a lot of evidence that it was our physical ability to undertake endurance running that allowed us to develop our minds. Not just the access to the better quality of protein ( yeeehaw! raw buffalo steak!) but the ability to be patient, acquire persistence, and Trish from Texarkanahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01537710252663530562noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-77707088715229622462012-11-02T16:25:50.107-04:002012-11-02T16:25:50.107-04:00You might be right about a fundamental change in h...You might be right about a fundamental change in human beings caused by digital technology. Or you might be wrong. We'll have to wait and see to know for sure.<br /><br />I went to college in the 60s, and if something like CM had existed back then, I'm sure we'd find plenty of posts by the people who taught my generation freaking over "the emergence of unusually bad behaviors.&Philiphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05244643308698776814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-19136236807930934482012-11-02T03:04:34.972-04:002012-11-02T03:04:34.972-04:00The problem with declaring the age of the lecture ...The problem with declaring the age of the lecture to be dead is that employers will continue to use it, in the form of staff meetings, since it's the easiest way for them to talk to their employees. Employers will therefore continue to criticize university faculty for not preparing our students for life in the real world, this time for failing to train our students in the skill of sitting andAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-32810004698565128572012-11-02T02:01:51.077-04:002012-11-02T02:01:51.077-04:00My genuine thanks for all the support and ideas (a...My genuine thanks for all the support and ideas (and to the mods for gracing my jeremiad with the designation, "Big Thirsty for the Ages").<br /><br />No, Philip, things really are different now (at least in my neck of the woods). I'm not just old and jaded, and it's not just a blip. About five years ago I started noticing the emergence of some unusually bad behaviors. At first Old Schoolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13699515354669340909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-1916395621527428282012-11-02T01:57:10.215-04:002012-11-02T01:57:10.215-04:00For sure, Monkey. The benefits of any new technol...For sure, Monkey. The benefits of any new technology will always create new sets of problems and unintended consequences. <br /><br />University professors gnashed their teeth and pulled their hair when books first became available to large numbers of people. "Students won't have to memorize anything anymore," they worried. "They'll be able to look things up in books.&Philiphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05244643308698776814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-6282297413828992542012-11-01T23:22:19.208-04:002012-11-01T23:22:19.208-04:00Philip, I believe this is a very important comment...Philip, I believe this is a very important comment. I think the age of lecture is dead. These electronics addicts will end up flourishing in online coursework that requires them to unlock new material only when they have sufficiently proven mastery of the old material. We're in for a few decades of transition.Academic Monkeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07086078244493768565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-86451744644284087382012-11-01T21:28:33.792-04:002012-11-01T21:28:33.792-04:00My favorite computer classrooms have the students ...My favorite computer classrooms have the students arranged along tables that create two facing rows down the middle of the room, perpendicular to the screen and whiteboard. With wheelie chairs, students can easily face me or anyone else in the room (though it's still not an ideal discussion venue). The seats that inevitably exist around the perimeters of such rooms (facing the walls) aren&#Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-82784495520647801782012-11-01T19:01:19.664-04:002012-11-01T19:01:19.664-04:00Although they're illegal--but no one has, to m...Although they're illegal--but no one has, to my knowledge, ever been prosecuted, pocket-sized, battery-operated cell phone jamming devices are readily available over the internet. They're less than $40 and effective up to 15 meters.<br /><br />A Christmas stocking stuffer for a proffie close to your heart!Philiphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05244643308698776814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-10476919195794662272012-11-01T18:54:00.745-04:002012-11-01T18:54:00.745-04:00Teaching in a computer classroom these days is pro...Teaching in a computer classroom these days is probably BETTER because at least those screens are big and stationary. It's the small stuff--the tablets, the laptops, and the cell phones--that provide the biggest distractions. And if a computer classroom is set up properly--that is, with all the facing out from the wall so that the teacher can see what everyone is doing--then that's best Gone Gradhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17545285786616979495noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-67319365049502741352012-11-01T18:53:20.154-04:002012-11-01T18:53:20.154-04:00P.S. I will concede that computers are indispensab...P.S. I will concede that computers are indispensable for research in the physical sciences, but are used effectively only by people who understand the principles by which they work thoroughly, unlike nearly all my students.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-45313423306209971532012-11-01T18:46:13.227-04:002012-11-01T18:46:13.227-04:00Oh, there were never days when students didn't...Oh, there were never days when students didn't drive their teachers crazy. Let's not be hopeless romantics. The problem is that, back in the days when students read newspapers in class, it was easy to spot this and tell the student to stop. They're getting better all the time at concealing texting, although novices at this look like perverts since they're constantly staring Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-67187327713345229992012-11-01T16:46:24.207-04:002012-11-01T16:46:24.207-04:00I generally teach in computer classrooms, so telli...I generally teach in computer classrooms, so telling students to put away the computers isn't really an option (though freezing the screens and/or spying on what they're doing -- powers I use very sparingly, but warn them at the beginning of the year exist -- are). My solution is to make my class more and more focused on having students do things that produce (at least lightly graded) Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-13195192591160463602012-11-01T15:17:26.073-04:002012-11-01T15:17:26.073-04:00Last Summer my whole department agreed that the us...Last Summer my whole department agreed that the use of electronic devices would not be permitted in classes and put that in our syllabi. Guess we'll all get bad evals this year. I've given a warning, then I quietly mark them absent after that. CrayonEaterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10126396989880932207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-4717730403079123192012-11-01T14:44:04.899-04:002012-11-01T14:44:04.899-04:00Sorry if this is getting old, but I have to disagr...Sorry if this is getting old, but I have to disagree.<br /><br />Exactly when were the good old days when students didn't drive their teachers crazy?Philiphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05244643308698776814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-19718129851582853622012-11-01T09:33:55.239-04:002012-11-01T09:33:55.239-04:00I follow Frod's plan, except I don't tell ...I follow Frod's plan, except I don't tell them to turn stuff off. I sjust quietly mark them absent. They're so funny, thinking they can get away with playing with their phones without me noticing. So very funny.<br /><br />At around midterm, I make a general announcement, reminding them that if they are using their phones in class (or doing anything unrelated to class, like StellafromSparksburghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17584701718285662953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-40677724051027451292012-11-01T08:05:49.853-04:002012-11-01T08:05:49.853-04:00Teaching will go on for ages. Learning? That'...Teaching will go on for ages. Learning? That's done.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-33407081305549950292012-11-01T05:47:33.833-04:002012-11-01T05:47:33.833-04:00Post of the week, surely.
And....paragons of cogn...Post of the week, surely.<br /><br />And....paragons of cognitive acuity.....is excellent<br />EC1https://www.blogger.com/profile/13414931249618049097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-51667106889969632182012-11-01T05:38:34.774-04:002012-11-01T05:38:34.774-04:00My approach is similar to Froderick's. I ban c...My approach is similar to Froderick's. I ban cell phones outright, and mark them absent if they are used. They get several freebie absences, but after that their grades take a major hit. I generally only need to make an example of someone once (publicly, of course), and that seems to stop the problem for the rest of the semester. Surprisingly, my evaluations have not suffered in the slightestCurmudgeon in Traininghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07524725236168917391noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-77750421953979174852012-11-01T05:38:14.934-04:002012-11-01T05:38:14.934-04:00Same thoughts in my head. Since I had started teac...Same thoughts in my head. Since I had started teaching the theory and practice of idiot box content, I find myself engaged with more and more passive students. I find myself trying to explain the dangers of the Idiot box content, and how it manipulates emotion, alters attention span, limits personal engagement. I get back wishes for more exciting idiot box content. I also find myself less and Trish from Texarkanahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01537710252663530562noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-70970215776014309072012-11-01T02:28:25.418-04:002012-11-01T02:28:25.418-04:00A possible solution to the Fermi Paradox is that, ...A possible solution to the Fermi Paradox is that, when ETIs invent electronic entertainment, they lose interest in the real Universe. It reminds me of the Star Trek pilot, The Cage. I sure hope this isn't the solution.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com