Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before

Hello everyone, I come to you this evening as a man who seeks to speak plainly. Instead of my signature prolixity, I aim to offer a few personal truths spoken as honestly as I once did.

As you have probably noticed, a few of us editors have decided to share our personal academic histories, all with the intent of enforcing the point that, despite previous engagement - or lack there of - in education, there is always a moment where things can be turned around. And although this moment is better coming sooner rather than later, the main importance is that it comes at all.

When I was an elementary school lad, I obsessed over the quality of my work, I gave great thought to my reputation with my fellow classmates and instructors alike. This continued until about 7th grade, the grade where I - to put it nicely - lost sync with myself. I found all of my assignments dull and exasperating, and decided not to complete them. Believe it or not, the only interest I had in school was science (go figure). I participated in science fair competitions and won first place in district, county and state competitions, and one year even won first prize in the Discovery Channel National Science Fair (first prize was a large savings bond and an entire week vacation in San Francisco where I would get to meet the Mythbusters, ya, how awesome is that?!) Aside from that, I also competed in "Botball" robotics competitions and made it to 3 national competitions (why they were in Oklahoma is still beyond me). Now I know what you are thinking, "what does this guy mean he lost it? Compared to Jack, he is a model student!" Well, I suppose in some ways you would be right, but everything really hit the fan when I was in high school. Like Jack, I was in I.B. everything, and hated nearly every minute of it, mainly because I hated all the teachers (especially the English ones). I had become so accustom to leaving everything to the last minute and not caring if I even had a test the next day, they never really hurt your grade anyway, how could it in a class that had 2,000 points for a quarter? This trend continued: failing notices, progress reports, make up assignments, emails flying back and forth between my mom and the teachers, emotional mixtures of apathy and guilt, all the while somehow making B's and C's (I'm convinced Jack and I are born under the same sign or something, its the only excuse), it was terrible. Believe it or not, this lasted until SENIOR YEAR of high school! I was in a quandary about what to do with my life (my love of science having worn off somewhere between 9th and 10th). I forced myself to sit down and really meditate on what I enjoyed, and what my natural abilities were/are. I began to realize that, if I thought back to all the great memories of my childhood, adolescence, and on up, almost all of them came back to literature: the excitement of the elementary school library, my mom bringing home the new installment of the Lemony Snicket series for me to read, staying up nights to find out just how these characters, who, in ways, I felt closer to than any of my other friends, would escape the next trap or solve the next riddle. That realization in mind, and the thought that a future which would allow me to pursue what I loved was right in front of me if only I applied myself, compelled me to achieve good grades and to truly attain knowledge so that I could have a future. I know it sounds cheesy to say that from that moment on everything was different, I started caring about my academics, about my place in things, etc., but its the truth, and from then on I have always made it my purpose to excel in my pursuits, which, I can is something I have succeeded in.

So, again, if you take anything away from the overly sentimental stuff above, it is this: Do not be afraid to take action over your life. Act wisely and decisively, Think earnestly upon matters which concern you. Only then will you begin to find true fulfillment. As I said before, its best for this to be done sooner rather than later, so take my advice and the advice of the other editors who have so openly blogged about this. Learn from our mistakes (my god I've suddenly turned into my grandmother) and don't be afraid to do a little soul searching. The moment you stop being able to surprise yourself is the day you lose worth.

To Dr. Easley & Mrs. Bickford, two very special ladies - E. W. Strege

In Defense of Meanness

Today, I told a student, to her face, that she had done something “stupid.” And the crazy thing is she didn’t run away crying or put up a defense mechanism or block out entirely the point I was making. She smiled and quietly laughed and nodded knowingly. Because she knew it was true. (She had plagiarized).

I did not go into my meeting with this student with the intention of using the word “stupid” or any other word like it. However, once speaking with her, I knew something had to be said to get my point across about the severity of what she had done. I was speaking with her directly and openly, with no hostility, reiterating to her what could happen to her student status if she were to ever do this again. She didn’t really “get it” or react until I said, “what you did…was stupid.” Her quite laugh spoke volumes to me as I understood completely what it meant coming from her: she got it. And she clearly agreed.

Despite what some of my fellow educators may feel about words like “stupid,” I know that what I said to this student, paired with my tone, made all the difference in her understanding and openness to what I was telling her. As soon as we started talking, she was not afraid; she knew she had no reason to be because I was not angry. I was not giving up on her as a person; I was simply letting her know that what she did was dumb and could have and should have been avoided. It was this little bit of honest meanness in word choice that brought everything home. She expressed appreciation for what I said- because it was honest. We were two people communicating openly, an often difficult feat for a professor and a student.

After the disagreements that went down on this blog last week, I have been thinking a lot about the concept of “meanness.” Is it, in fact, an act of flagrant self-regard for one to proclaim the downfalls of others? Was I just abusing my position as this girl’s instructor when I told her that what she did was idiotic? Or was it in fact my duty to tell her that?

What I realized is that when we talk about people being "idiots" or doing something “stupid” or “dumb,” it is not a reference to their mental capabilities; it is a reference to their behavior. An “idiot” is "an utterly foolish or senseless person." Not someone who is incapable of higher thought or sense, but rather someone who practices neither.

When students don't put in the effort to improve and when they don't attempt critical thought and when they write half-assed drafts with no thought behind them (and when they knowingly plagiarize), they are behaving like idiots. It is idiotic to spend thousands of dollars on an education that you are not intellectually invested in. This common behavior not only reveals a problem with the average modern student but also with the system as a whole. How did it get this way and what can be done about it? In my opinion, the main issue is that college has become a means to better career prospects. It is just a game so many people play- they want the rewards of the game (the degree, the better paying job, the prestige) without putting in the intellectual work. And without that intellectual work, they don't deserve the degree because, damn it, they're not earning it. To expect to get rewarded for something you're not putting in the work for is idiotic. And it is clear when a student and a person is really trying (like the English language learners both Jack and Slick mentioned in their blogs last week), because improvement comes with that territory. And it is obvious when a student is not trying. Higher education is great because no one has to do it; no one is forced to go to college. So, when a student behaves like he is forced to go to class and forced to go to the writing center and only put in the minimal thoughtless effort to get by, he is being idiotic.

And this branches out to all aspects of life- people who live their lives as if they are forced into every action, every event, as if they have no freewill are idiotic. The only way to not be an idiot, is to stop being so apathetic and to really try at the things you set out to do, not just float by at everything. People like that, until they change, are a waste of everyone's (except maybe therapists') time and energy.

This brings me back to my original point: I point out the downfalls of lazy students and lazy people who show no progress because they do not put in the time and effort to improve at the things they do, they allow themselves to be coddled and their only explanation for their behavior is boredom. I feel like them sometimes, but I won't allow that to be my life because I see the way they are and remind myself and others not to be like that. This has nothing to do with talent or natural brilliance, it has to do with effort, critical thinking, and drive which, just like reading and writing, are not natural abilities, but must be learned and always honed and which are qualities exhibited by the English language learners discussed in last week's blogs.

We must stop coddling students (and all people for that matter). We must not be afraid to tell them when they are not cutting it. We must hold them to the higher standard that is at the heart of higher education.

And sometimes we must push them out of their apathy and away from their destructive behavior- and if that means telling them that their actions are “stupid,” so be it.

But, of course, proceed with caution.

Until next time,

Leena