Monday, September 16, 2013

No More Games: Read the Fucking Syllabus

We are on the quarter system, which means we have not started classes yet (but remember, we don't get out until the end of June!). Here's my current misery in the form of an email exchange that started a month ago:

From: SillyLala@yahoo.net:
Can you tell me the book we are using in your class.
Thank you.
[No Name]

[+]

To: SillyLala@yahoo.net.
I teach several courses. I'm not sure which one you are in. Please let me know which course you have signed up for and I will email you the course syllabus, which has a list of books you will need.

[+]

From: SillyLala@yahoo.net
I am in your Treedecorating course.


[+]

To: SillyLala@yahoo.net
I teach several Tree-decorating courses. Please let me know the course name or number or, alternately, your name or student ID number so I can look up your schedule.

[+]

From: SillyLala@yahoo.net
I am in your Intro to Treedecorating 145 class.

[+]

To: SillyLala@yahoo.net
Please see the attached PDF document. It includes a list of the materials and textbooks you will be required to buy for the course.

[+]

From: SillyLala@yahoo.net
I do not see the name of the book.

[+]

To: SillyLala@yahoo.net
Look on the syllabus under "Required Textbooks and Materials." It is, in fact, the first item on the syllabus under the course name and header. There is a list of several textbooks and several items you will need to purchase.

[+]

No response for two weeks.
Today I receive:

From: SillyLala@yahoo.net
Can you tell me the name of the book for your class?

[+]

NO, I'm not going to play this game again.

9 comments:

  1. AnonymousSeptember 16, 2013 at 3:17 PM

    This is actually a psychology experiment to determine a human's ability to differentiate questions developed by a machine or another human. Since you received the same question after providing extensive instructions, I would guess that it's a human asking the question.

    Although you might say that machines are only as smart as the people who design them, machines can't be that dumb since people that dumb aren't capable of designing machines.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Contemplative CynicSeptember 16, 2013 at 3:46 PM

      May I respond as I would with a machine? By kicking it into submission?

      Delete
    2. Emergency Mathematical HologramSeptember 16, 2013 at 7:00 PM

      I'm slowly growing accustomed to students failing the Turing Test.

      Delete
    3. The Contemplative CynicSeptember 16, 2013 at 10:45 PM

      I'm guessing the Turing Machine could process info better than 3/4 of our students.

      Delete
    4. introvert.profSeptember 17, 2013 at 8:29 AM

      EMH FTW.

      Delete
  2. UnknownSeptember 16, 2013 at 10:36 PM

    I am so glad that I'm not the only one who cannot seem to communicate simple ideas to students via the syllabus. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Contemplative CynicSeptember 16, 2013 at 10:50 PM

      I'm guessing it's a problem we ALL have on this blog, hence the term "RTFS" that started here. :)

      Delete
  3. BellaSeptember 17, 2013 at 4:03 AM

    Ooooh. Such good times ahead with Silly.lala!!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Contemplative CynicSeptember 17, 2013 at 8:27 PM

      I'm tempted to tell Silly.Lala she's been promoted to another class.

      Delete

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