Hi Folks I have not read, nor will read, the New York Times article. So my thoughts are clearly limited, and do not represent the spirit of that essay. That said, I must say the following "quote" from a student to a professor made me pause.
"You're spending too much time with my moron classmates and you ought to be focusing on those of us who are getting the material." For me, the email aspect is a separate issue. While not my concern here, it does remind me of an essay I use in my theory course. Anne Hornsby wrote an essay that is featured in Peter Kivisto's text, ILLUMINATING SOCIAL LIFE which addresses the impact of computer networking on interaction, and from a Durkheimian aspect, asks whether or not the internet is facilitating a new, third form of social solidarity. There are lots of ideas in that essay that sound relevant for parts of the discussion here. However,.. When I read that quote, my first thoughts were negative. I have over the years had students say things like this, face-to-face, in evaluations, etc. Basically, I read a student saying "I am better than the others" and "my needs are more important than theirs." Sometime my students say this differently, such as "do you give credit for attending class?" or similar statements suggesting I am not meeting the needs of that individual properly. When I read this quote I immediately thought if someone said that to me, I would WANT to say: "Looky here, bud! I have been teaching longer than you have been learning... Don't tell me how to teach. I teach to diversity. It is foolish to assume all students should or could be on the same page at the same time. I teach from A to F. Some of you are bright, some are not. I do not get to choose you - you choose me.. If you don't like my course, my students, and me style, drop the class. But I am going to decide how to teach and reach the most students.." I also thought I might like to say: "if you are truly that bright, why don't you help me teach the next chapter? Alternatively, there are tons of work study dollars lying around here, and I need a tutor." But I would probably not say these things. I don't like sounding hard edged, or stiff necked. Instead, I might simply say: "If you are looking for an independent study, sign up for an independent study. This is a class." Peace (and levity) to all Robert J. Hironimus-Wendt, Ph.D. Sociology and Anthropology Western Illinois University 1 University Circle Macomb, IL 61455-1390 phone: (309) 298-1081 fax: (309) 298-1857 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] "It doesn't matter how strong your opinions are. If you don't use your power for positive change, you are indeed part of the problem, helping to keep things the way they are." -Coretta Scott King --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Teaching Sociology" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/teachsoc -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
