I'd been told when I arrived at my new school - and when I interviewed, come to think of it - that there's a movement afoot to increase the school's academic rigor. Which I'm all for - rigor is a very good thing, especially when your parents are spending over $20,000 a year in tuition to send you to school. I was also told that one of the things that was presenting obstacles was that there had been a pretty strong culture to the school that didn't take academics that seriously, a culture that pervaded among both students &, in some cases, faculty. And cultural change, as all the historians who read this thing knows, takes a long time.
The chair of my department assures me that things have vastly improved since he arrived 13 years ago. But these past couple of weeks I've gotten an up-close look at the remnants. A startling high number of my students failed to turn in their first papers on time. In one class, as I've already mentioned, only 10 (out of a class of 18) turned in the paper on its due date. I've had slightly lower percentages in my other classes, but in all three it's been dramatically higher than at the other two (public) schools where I've worked. And at those places, those students who were not turning in a paper on the due date would, in most cases, send me a TMI-filled email outlining in excruciating detail why I did not yet have their papers, and pleading for more time. Here, I get an email that simply says, in total, "Sorry this is so late." with a paper attached SIX days after its due date.
I simply can't get my head around this. Why on earth are you in college - and spending, with room & board included for this overwhelmingly residential college, over $100,000 over four years - if you're not going to do your work?! There's always a slacker or two. I know that, and I'd say slightly more than half of the students who turned things in late or didn't turn them in at all would fall into that category. But a few are among my best students in discussion. I just don't get it.
15 years ago
2 comments:
There's something deeper that you're missing here: consequences. These kids have never faced them, because most of them have parents that have sheltered them from them for their entire lives. They think they can get out of any misfortune that comes their way, especially that which they have brought on themselves.
You have the chance to change all that.... fail them. Do it. I know you want to. Tell them what will happen if they don't do the assignment next time, and then follow through. As a parent myself, I'm telling you, THIS IS WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE.
Believe it or not, they will be better people for it.
Oh, don't worry, Joe. Those of them who haven't turned the paper in are getting a xero on it. And since this first paper counts for either 15-20% of their grade, depending on the class, that's going to do lasting damage to their grades.
And the clock's still running on the late policy, so even if they turn them in like 10 days late, they get an F, simply due to late penalties.
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