Makes me wonder why I stood in that classroom all those weeks and delivered carefully prepared mini lectures and activities - might as well have shoved on a dvd of cute kittens for all they seem to have learnt... (and would've gotten better evaluations too)
BlackholeBoard, how many buttons do I have to click to accomplish anything?
Student A: It's on the syllabus! Student B: It's on the syllabus! [...] Student X' ' :It's on the syllabus!
Coworker [Dr Hobson's Choice]: Yes, I received your humble-brag-cloaked-as-question the first two times. I just opted out of bothering to pretend to give a damn as you don't actually want my input.
why students lie when requesting overrides by offering reasons that I can disapprove in seconds--once I access their transcripts, schedules, etc. online in seconds.
... why students lie about everything, so easily, with no fear, and then shrug it off when caught. Have they never faced any kind of consequences for lying? They must not have. They just give me a goofy grin when they tell a whopper, trying to trick me. The grin goes away when I say, 'Well, zero, then.' What else can I do?
It should be interesting to come back here later today to see how others celebrate VD. A buddy of mine says he celebrates VD every day with an antibiotic cocktail.
Why oh why does my colleague I am teaching with ignore my emails asking IMPORTANT questions about the class this week? Why must they do everything last minute and try to fix it by giving me a panicked phone call the morning of class?
I have a colleague like this. At first relying on him caused me all kind of trouble. I learned not to rely on him, mainly by taking over all his responsibilities myself. It's a lot of extra work, but it beats dealing with him.
Hello distinguished visitor from another university, whose visit to campus I have been in charge of arranging. Thank you for promptly getting back to me several weeks ago about my question regarding any dietary restrictions, in which you stated that you had no problems with anything, so that the set menu for the group lunch could be arranged in advanced. Also, thank you for, AT THE LAST MINUTE, telling us that you actually do in fact have various dietary restrictions. Because, shit, the world revolves around you and fer sure with one hour's notice the staff in the kitchen is going to throw out that entire load of food in which every course has something that you've got a problem with. If you are going to feel slighted by the fact that all that is left for you to munch on is some bare lettuce, well, you can kiss my ass.
Why does my department require the one-on-one conference? It takes 3 days for me to move through 50 of them and by the end of that, I've been exposed to 50 diseases and 50 excuses for why they couldn't do what I've spent two weeks teaching them how to do.
I received a very thoughtful, well written thank you message from a student after I sent a reminder to my class about an assignment that is due Thursday.
So where's the misery?
I teach 200 students each semester and I send five or six of these reminders each term. This is the first appreciative response I've received in five years. I know that they are not all worthless, demanding, ignorant little shits but I know that I'm still 99.99% correct with that statement.
What I really don't need to see in my inbox first thing Monday morning: a message from a sniveling student (not a freshman but a junior who ought to know better) who can't understand why it's not okay to copy and paste an online summary into his paper. It's only the second week of class and I'm already dealing with plagiarism?! Can we hit the Reset button and start over?
Online first-year comp, starts tomorrow. Two students out of three who have already posted their intros (yay, keeners) have gone to great pains to point out that they are not looking forward to being in the class and don't feel that they should have to take it. No one asked you whether you *wanted* to be here, kiddos! I certainly don't give a flying fig. If you can't be bothered to take a required freshman course when you're still a freshman, you have only yourself to blame.
Now, shove off so I can read the other boring intro posts and feign a welcoming demeanor to get override pay by keeping these students in the course until after the census.
My two preps this semester require 4 different sets of syllabi, calendars, handouts, LMS sites, etc. (same course/assignment sequence for 3 sections, but 3 different schedules). And all but the online class will need to be updated each time we lose a day to snow (and the online one will need to be updated too if we lose power to ice). In fact, given the current weather forecast, it's beginning to look like I might have to update the materials before I even finish them. At least the first day of class is semi-disposable, but, simply from a keeping-track-of-details point of view, this is beginning to look like the semester from hell, hitting just at a time when my brain seems less and less willing to keep track of details (whether to blame hormones or too many years of summer teaching in a row, I'm not sure; it's probably both. All I know is I'm going to be spending a lot of time making, checking, and updating to-do lists).
I don't understand... my single colleague who hits on (indubitably married) me 90% of the time, and then spends the other 10% of the time suggesting I'm interested in hir...
My mission to be as miserable as possible has taken me to the other side of the other side. I'm now a student in a prep-program to go into administration. I'm supposed to "introduce" myself on a discussion board and the rest of my cohort sounds like the World's Most Interesting Man while I sound like Dwight from the Office.
Misery: Grading.
ReplyDeleteMakes me wonder why I stood in that classroom all those weeks and delivered carefully prepared mini lectures and activities - might as well have shoved on a dvd of cute kittens for all they seem to have learnt... (and would've gotten better evaluations too)
Do it! Do it! :)
DeleteBlackholeBoard, how many buttons do I have to click to accomplish anything?
ReplyDeleteStudent A: It's on the syllabus! Student B: It's on the syllabus! [...] Student X' ' :It's on the syllabus!
Coworker [Dr Hobson's Choice]: Yes, I received your humble-brag-cloaked-as-question the first two times. I just opted out of bothering to pretend to give a damn as you don't actually want my input.
why students lie when requesting overrides by offering reasons that I can disapprove in seconds--once I access their transcripts, schedules, etc. online in seconds.
ReplyDelete... why students lie about everything, so easily, with no fear, and then shrug it off when caught. Have they never faced any kind of consequences for lying? They must not have. They just give me a goofy grin when they tell a whopper, trying to trick me. The grin goes away when I say, 'Well, zero, then.' What else can I do?
ReplyDeleteYay! Holiday! I get to stay home! (And prepare the next two weeks of lectures) Let's hear it for Civil Rights!
ReplyDeleteOK, it's not misery, but still.
I also get to finally take down the Christmas decorations, with the lovely Mrs. K.
DeleteWhy? Just put shiny hearts on everything and celebrate VD!
DeleteIt should be interesting to come back here later today to see how others celebrate VD. A buddy of mine says he celebrates VD every day with an antibiotic cocktail.
DeleteShot of lysine with bourbon.
DeleteAfter Christmas, all of my VD decorations come out.
DeleteWhy oh why does my colleague I am teaching with ignore my emails asking IMPORTANT questions about the class this week? Why must they do everything last minute and try to fix it by giving me a panicked phone call the morning of class?
ReplyDeleteI have a colleague like this. At first relying on him caused me all kind of trouble. I learned not to rely on him, mainly by taking over all his responsibilities myself. It's a lot of extra work, but it beats dealing with him.
DeleteDue to a quirk in the Staff Union Contract, our semester begins on a Friday. Not exactly a big deal.
ReplyDeleteI have received over 10 emails from students in my Tuesday/Thursday sections asking if they need to show up on Friday.
Hello distinguished visitor from another university, whose visit to campus I have been in charge of arranging.
ReplyDeleteThank you for promptly getting back to me several weeks ago about my question regarding any dietary restrictions, in which you stated that you had no problems with anything, so that the set menu for the group lunch could be arranged in advanced. Also, thank you for, AT THE LAST MINUTE, telling us that you actually do in fact have various dietary restrictions. Because, shit, the world revolves around you and fer sure with one hour's notice the staff in the kitchen is going to throw out that entire load of food in which every course has something that you've got a problem with. If you are going to feel slighted by the fact that all that is left for you to munch on is some bare lettuce, well, you can kiss my ass.
Why does my department require the one-on-one conference? It takes 3 days for me to move through 50 of them and by the end of that, I've been exposed to 50 diseases and 50 excuses for why they couldn't do what I've spent two weeks teaching them how to do.
ReplyDeleteI received a very thoughtful, well written thank you message from a student after I sent a reminder to my class about an assignment that is due Thursday.
ReplyDeleteSo where's the misery?
I teach 200 students each semester and I send five or six of these reminders each term. This is the first appreciative response I've received in five years. I know that they are not all worthless, demanding, ignorant little shits but I know that I'm still 99.99% correct with that statement.
What I really don't need to see in my inbox first thing Monday morning: a message from a sniveling student (not a freshman but a junior who ought to know better) who can't understand why it's not okay to copy and paste an online summary into his paper. It's only the second week of class and I'm already dealing with plagiarism?! Can we hit the Reset button and start over?
ReplyDeleteWorking on a holiday -- again.
ReplyDeleteOnline first-year comp, starts tomorrow. Two students out of three who have already posted their intros (yay, keeners) have gone to great pains to point out that they are not looking forward to being in the class and don't feel that they should have to take it. No one asked you whether you *wanted* to be here, kiddos! I certainly don't give a flying fig. If you can't be bothered to take a required freshman course when you're still a freshman, you have only yourself to blame.
ReplyDeleteNow, shove off so I can read the other boring intro posts and feign a welcoming demeanor to get override pay by keeping these students in the course until after the census.
My two preps this semester require 4 different sets of syllabi, calendars, handouts, LMS sites, etc. (same course/assignment sequence for 3 sections, but 3 different schedules). And all but the online class will need to be updated each time we lose a day to snow (and the online one will need to be updated too if we lose power to ice). In fact, given the current weather forecast, it's beginning to look like I might have to update the materials before I even finish them. At least the first day of class is semi-disposable, but, simply from a keeping-track-of-details point of view, this is beginning to look like the semester from hell, hitting just at a time when my brain seems less and less willing to keep track of details (whether to blame hormones or too many years of summer teaching in a row, I'm not sure; it's probably both. All I know is I'm going to be spending a lot of time making, checking, and updating to-do lists).
ReplyDeleteFucktards lurk everywhere.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand...
ReplyDeletemy single colleague who hits on (indubitably married) me 90% of the time, and then spends the other 10% of the time suggesting I'm interested in hir...
My mission to be as miserable as possible has taken me to the other side of the other side. I'm now a student in a prep-program to go into administration. I'm supposed to "introduce" myself on a discussion board and the rest of my cohort sounds like the World's Most Interesting Man while I sound like Dwight from the Office.
ReplyDelete