Indeed. And international students (who have a great deal to offer, but can often be quite needy, and, thanks to work restrictions, have considerably more time to put into being needy than the average U.S. student, at least at my place) may represent exactly that kind of wish fulfillment.
I'd forgotten about Clara (who I think was actually a Carl, but I was being circumspect, in part because Clara/Carl was exactly the sort of person who *wouldn't* recognize hirself if the genders were reversed). I have, however, given up the practice of offering in-person office hours to online students, at least during the summer. I still do conferences (in-person or online) toward the end of the term, and virtual office hours, but in-person office hours just yield either crickets or the occasional Clara/Carl, who is *really* hard to get rid of in a reasonable period of time when they know you have no fixed teaching schedule.
This is a great reminder to be careful what you wish for. "Oh, if only I had some really engaged students..."
ReplyDeleteIndeed. And international students (who have a great deal to offer, but can often be quite needy, and, thanks to work restrictions, have considerably more time to put into being needy than the average U.S. student, at least at my place) may represent exactly that kind of wish fulfillment.
DeleteI'd forgotten about Clara (who I think was actually a Carl, but I was being circumspect, in part because Clara/Carl was exactly the sort of person who *wouldn't* recognize hirself if the genders were reversed). I have, however, given up the practice of offering in-person office hours to online students, at least during the summer. I still do conferences (in-person or online) toward the end of the term, and virtual office hours, but in-person office hours just yield either crickets or the occasional Clara/Carl, who is *really* hard to get rid of in a reasonable period of time when they know you have no fixed teaching schedule.