tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post7775737902209111098..comments2023-10-15T04:23:50.187-04:00Comments on College Misery: That Nourishing MotherUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-30362304522854017022016-05-16T07:50:53.372-04:002016-05-16T07:50:53.372-04:00Thank you for bringing total load into it. Perhaps...Thank you for bringing total load into it. Perhaps that's a metric that should be published as well. It is definitely a multidimensional issue. But I do wish to steer clear of the inference that adjunct = mediocre (not that Peter was implying it). We must always consider how mediocrity can be thrust into the classroom by a system that pays lip service to excellence while caring only for the Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-76490745417959589812016-05-15T22:23:59.528-04:002016-05-15T22:23:59.528-04:00Sadly, I think you're right about donor power....Sadly, I think you're right about donor power. Nevertheless, I fully agree with the OP's sentiment that when it comes to discretionary giving, one is within one's right to not support a system that is wrong.Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-21002308915810049002016-05-15T21:18:02.639-04:002016-05-15T21:18:02.639-04:00I'm not sure that I'm ever first-rate, but...I'm not sure that I'm ever first-rate, but I'm definitely a better teacher when I have fewer students and sections (total course load as well as class size does matter, which is another reason that forcing people to teach for several different institutions at once isn't a great idea; a lot of adjuncts have 5/5 or even 6/6 loads). I'm sure there's a point below which Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-63457405168574031372016-05-15T21:12:10.767-04:002016-05-15T21:12:10.767-04:00Sadly, I don't think the professoriate has eno...Sadly, I don't think the professoriate has enough combined donor power to make the slightest impression on our collective alma maters. I know mine doesn't care what I think, but I graduated from one of those places possessed of an endowment that is sometimes compared to the GDP of small countries. I'm not sure they're much swayed even by their millionaire donors (maybe if a few Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-39836363585086283362016-05-15T16:00:54.117-04:002016-05-15T16:00:54.117-04:00OPH, you make perfect sense. That's why it ha...OPH, you make perfect sense. That's why it has no chance of happening where I am.Perplexed Peternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-48027048870377574222016-05-15T14:08:09.271-04:002016-05-15T14:08:09.271-04:00I don't think mediocrity should be tolerated f...I don't think mediocrity should be tolerated from any faculty, adjunct or tenure(d)-track. I'd rather have 2 first-rate adjuncts each in front of a class of 20 than 1 first-rate adjunct in front of a class of 40, and I'd rather that "full-time adjunct" positions be converted to TT, so that adjunct gigs are used as originally intended: for practicing professionals to bring Ogre Proctor Hephttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17428431147495287413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-67389383967904711132016-05-15T12:35:31.663-04:002016-05-15T12:35:31.663-04:00And class sizes. They're so focused on that, ...And class sizes. They're so focused on that, they forget the most important variable is who's teaching the class! Would you rather have a first-rate teacher in a class of 40 or a mediocre one in a class of 20?Perplexed Peternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-53260369371064962572016-05-14T12:12:16.087-04:002016-05-14T12:12:16.087-04:00Pardon me for not recalling which one but someone ...Pardon me for not recalling which one but someone mentioned in a recent comment: until potential students and their parents start choosing colleges based on full time faculty to student ratio instead of housing, internships, etc. we're screwed.1184 Days until Retirementhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09915199543025704045noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-16822384704828843322016-05-14T12:11:17.604-04:002016-05-14T12:11:17.604-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.1184 Days until Retirementhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09915199543025704045noreply@blogger.com