The Fora: A Higher Education Community

Do you ever just get tired of teaching? Maybe we need a teaching fatigue thread? I'm tired of dealing with cheaters and online students who want to do a month's worth of work in a day. It's just not fun anymore.

I don't know about getting tired of teaching, but I'm getting tired of all the stupidness that comes with it. As in sitting there listening to someone and thinking, "What this person is saying is so bat$hit crazy stupid, I don't want to respond in any way because they'll think I'm taking them seriously. But if I don't respond, they'll think they won some kind of argument . . ."

I haven't gotten that much smarter over the years to suddenly start thinking like this, so I'm guessing it's not something about me. Could be wrong there.

Once again, my vent has to do with the ventilation.  We've been having some more HVAC work done.  Now our already excessively-chill running air conditioning has gotten even worse.  Today the temperatures in the staff areas of the building have been running seven and eight degrees below set point.  My office has been the worst.  I've got howling drafts of 55-degree air blasting through.  I'm wearing a jacket and cap as I type this, and still shivering. 

Meanwhile I just paid last month's electricity bill for the library, and our electricity use was way up over the same time last year.  My home's electricity usage was actually down, so it's not because this summer was hotter.  So we're burning crazy amounts of electricity to keep the building shivering cold in the summer.

The HVAC system is supposed to fine-tune temperatures in specific spaces by using hot water in the system to warm up the air where needed.  The variable air volume boxes say that the hot water valve is 100% open, yet the air exiting the boxes is the same 55-degree air coming into them.  It's as if we have no heat in the building at all.  This is not long after we thought we'd finished a months-long battle to get heat back into the building.  Yet I've checked in the boiler room, and the boiler is running.  It's burning who knows how many dollars' worth of gas, and we're getting absolutely nothing for it.

Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on July 09, 2023, 07:47:27 PMDo you ever just get tired of teaching? Maybe we need a teaching fatigue thread? I'm tired of dealing with cheaters and online students who want to do a month's worth of work in a day. It's just not fun anymore.

I'm getting burned out on the absurd demands/requests from students who want the "flexibility" to do work any time, not be required to attend class, leave early or show up late with no penalties. 

And I teach LABS.  Colleagues who record their lectures and allow students 24 hours to turn in what were supposed to be "in class assignments" are NOT HELPING.

Them: "Welcome to [Baskets 101]!  This lecture is supposed to be in-person, but it's OK to not be here.  You can watch the video later!"

Students: "Yay!"

Me: "Welcome to [Baskets 101 lab]!  This lab is in-person, so please show up on time with your lab coat & pre-lab assignment."

Students: "Boo!  Dr. Geneticist is a meany-pants!"

Quote from: the_geneticist on July 12, 2023, 02:22:56 PM

Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on July 09, 2023, 07:47:27 PMDo you ever just get tired of teaching? Maybe we need a teaching fatigue thread? I'm tired of dealing with cheaters and online students who want to do a month's worth of work in a day. It's just not fun anymore.

I'm getting burned out on the absurd demands/requests from students who want the "flexibility" to do work any time, not be required to attend class, leave early or show up late with no penalties. 

And I teach LABS.  Colleagues who record their lectures and allow students 24 hours to turn in what were supposed to be "in class assignments" are NOT HELPING.

Them: "Welcome to [Baskets 101]!  This lecture is supposed to be in-person, but it's OK to not be here.  You can watch the video later!"

Students: "Yay!"

Me: "Welcome to [Baskets 101 lab]!  This lab is in-person, so please show up on time with your lab coat & pre-lab assignment."

Students: "Boo!  Dr. Geneticist is a meany-pants!"

+ 1 quintillion. My colleagues in lecture courses do not understand that is is just not remotely good pedagogy to flip my lab to virtual. They continue to "advocate" for students in the name of "equity" that we need to be "flexible" and continue to hyflex (which here means basically to allow students to attend online anytime they want to). I will die on this hill next year. Basketweaving lab is in-person. Show up in class or be absent.

Quote from: OneMoreYear on July 12, 2023, 03:53:42 PM

Quote from: the_geneticist on July 12, 2023, 02:22:56 PM

Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on July 09, 2023, 07:47:27 PMDo you ever just get tired of teaching? Maybe we need a teaching fatigue thread? I'm tired of dealing with cheaters and online students who want to do a month's worth of work in a day. It's just not fun anymore.

I'm getting burned out on the absurd demands/requests from students who want the "flexibility" to do work any time, not be required to attend class, leave early or show up late with no penalties. 

And I teach LABS.  Colleagues who record their lectures and allow students 24 hours to turn in what were supposed to be "in class assignments" are NOT HELPING.

Them: "Welcome to [Baskets 101]!  This lecture is supposed to be in-person, but it's OK to not be here.  You can watch the video later!"

Students: "Yay!"

Me: "Welcome to [Baskets 101 lab]!  This lab is in-person, so please show up on time with your lab coat & pre-lab assignment."

Students: "Boo!  Dr. Geneticist is a meany-pants!"

+ 1 quintillion. My colleagues in lecture courses do not understand that is is just not remotely good pedagogy to flip my lab to virtual. They continue to "advocate" for students in the name of "equity" that we need to be "flexible" and continue to hyflex (which here means basically to allow students to attend online anytime they want to). I will die on this hill next year. Basketweaving lab is in-person. Show up in class or be absent.

Yep. Our College is trying to rein in people who are giving extra flexibility, but I've learned long ago that most admins don't really care that much about it (and so some profs get away with letting students slack off). So it goes.

Our brilliant revolving-door HR dept. strikes again:  six-week classes end tomorrow, with the payroll for the final 2 weeks also due tomorrow (the previous 4 weeks were paid the end of June). But, nope. A couple of hours ago we got an email from HR saying, essentially, "We screwed up. You'll get paid the end of July."

I'm OK, but there have been many, many times when getting that paycheck late--2 whole weeks late, in this case--would have been the difference between feeding the kids, paying for church camp, and such, or not.  And a lot of adjuncts teach our summer classes, so they're definitely paycheck to paycheck.

Of course, I'm sure if I'd fail to show up for two weeks of teaching, or neglect to submit final grades, because of a similar "processing error" (their excuse), it would be no big deal either. //dripping sarcasm//

This kind of shit just gets So. F*&ing. OLD. (And for what it's worth, during my 2 decades working as an accountant in industry, I cut checks every day of the week, and esp. if there was something screwed up with someone's paycheck, I'd come in and fix it ASAP on my own time.)

ETA: for what it's worth, my late check is about $1400, so not an inconsequential amount--at least, not to me.

Quote from: AmLitHist on July 13, 2023, 02:36:01 PMOur brilliant revolving-door HR dept. strikes again:  six-week classes end tomorrow, with the payroll for the final 2 weeks also due tomorrow (the previous 4 weeks were paid the end of June). But, nope. A couple of hours ago we got an email from HR saying, essentially, "We screwed up. You'll get paid the end of July."

I'm OK, but there have been many, many times when getting that paycheck late--2 whole weeks late, in this case--would have been the difference between feeding the kids, paying for church camp, and such, or not.  And a lot of adjuncts teach our summer classes, so they're definitely paycheck to paycheck.

Of course, I'm sure if I'd fail to show up for two weeks of teaching, or neglect to submit final grades, because of a similar "processing error" (their excuse), it would be no big deal either. //dripping sarcasm//

This kind of shit just gets So. F*&ing. OLD. (And for what it's worth, during my 2 decades working as an accountant in industry, I cut checks every day of the week, and esp. if there was something screwed up with someone's paycheck, I'd come in and fix it ASAP on my own time.)

ETA: for what it's worth, my late check is about $1400, so not an inconsequential amount--at least, not to me.

That would piss me off something fierce. Do they not have a 'plan B' in place for emergency payments? I can see how some people would have problems, especially if they are paycheck-to-paycheck. Is this issue just affecting faculty, or all College/University employees?

Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on July 09, 2023, 07:47:27 PMDo you ever just get tired of teaching? Maybe we need a teaching fatigue thread? I'm tired of dealing with cheaters and online students who want to do a month's worth of work in a day. It's just not fun anymore.

It occurred to me the other day that I don't think I have the energy to "help" students anymore. It might just be the summer break version of me talking, but I'm tired of trying to "help" students do things they have shown they're not interested in doing. Our chair had sent an email around about including a statement about OpenAI/etc in our syllabus and talking to them about its uses, etc. No. I don't want to do that. I'll include it in my plagiarism statement but I'm not interested in talking to them about how they feel about it, how we can use it, etc. I'm not interested in encouraging students to sign up for advising or registering for the next semester when they haven't done so yet. I don't want to "incentive" them to do the work. Do it. Don't do it. I don't care. I'm tired of adapting to things. A new LMS. A new Gen Ed. ChatGPT. I'm over it all.  Either my summer has been too long or not long enough!!

Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on July 13, 2023, 04:10:36 PM

Quote from: AmLitHist on July 13, 2023, 02:36:01 PMOur brilliant revolving-door HR dept. strikes again:  six-week classes end tomorrow, with the payroll for the final 2 weeks also due tomorrow (the previous 4 weeks were paid the end of June). But, nope. A couple of hours ago we got an email from HR saying, essentially, "We screwed up. You'll get paid the end of July."

I'm OK, but there have been many, many times when getting that paycheck late--2 whole weeks late, in this case--would have been the difference between feeding the kids, paying for church camp, and such, or not.  And a lot of adjuncts teach our summer classes, so they're definitely paycheck to paycheck.

Of course, I'm sure if I'd fail to show up for two weeks of teaching, or neglect to submit final grades, because of a similar "processing error" (their excuse), it would be no big deal either. //dripping sarcasm//

This kind of shit just gets So. F*&ing. OLD. (And for what it's worth, during my 2 decades working as an accountant in industry, I cut checks every day of the week, and esp. if there was something screwed up with someone's paycheck, I'd come in and fix it ASAP on my own time.)

ETA: for what it's worth, my late check is about $1400, so not an inconsequential amount--at least, not to me.

That would piss me off something fierce. Do they not have a 'plan B' in place for emergency payments? I can see how some people would have problems, especially if they are paycheck-to-paycheck. Is this issue just affecting faculty, or all College/University employees?

This is illegal. File a complaint with your state/local labor board.

Quote from: ciao_yall on July 13, 2023, 07:03:29 PM

Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on July 13, 2023, 04:10:36 PM

Quote from: AmLitHist on July 13, 2023, 02:36:01 PMOur brilliant revolving-door HR dept. strikes again:  six-week classes end tomorrow, with the payroll for the final 2 weeks also due tomorrow (the previous 4 weeks were paid the end of June). But, nope. A couple of hours ago we got an email from HR saying, essentially, "We screwed up. You'll get paid the end of July."

I'm OK, but there have been many, many times when getting that paycheck late--2 whole weeks late, in this case--would have been the difference between feeding the kids, paying for church camp, and such, or not.  And a lot of adjuncts teach our summer classes, so they're definitely paycheck to paycheck.

Of course, I'm sure if I'd fail to show up for two weeks of teaching, or neglect to submit final grades, because of a similar "processing error" (their excuse), it would be no big deal either. //dripping sarcasm//

This kind of shit just gets So. F*&ing. OLD. (And for what it's worth, during my 2 decades working as an accountant in industry, I cut checks every day of the week, and esp. if there was something screwed up with someone's paycheck, I'd come in and fix it ASAP on my own time.)

ETA: for what it's worth, my late check is about $1400, so not an inconsequential amount--at least, not to me.

That would piss me off something fierce. Do they not have a 'plan B' in place for emergency payments? I can see how some people would have problems, especially if they are paycheck-to-paycheck. Is this issue just affecting faculty, or all College/University employees?

This is illegal. File a complaint with your state/local labor board.

So far as I know, it's only summer faculty.  Of course, the Evil Overlords administrators never have to worry about their paychecks being on time.

I've already been online looking into the labor board this morning. It's Missouri, though, so not much help for workers; the state leg. wants to be a right-to-work fiefdom.

I sent a scathing email to the HR toady who sent the message yesterday, and cc'd my union leadership and my dean.  The dean has the best odds of getting something done. We'll see.

Also:  Paddington, I'm right there with you:  "Do it. Don't do it. I don't care."

I've come in to work with broken bones and a collapsed lung after an accident to make sure the payroll was taken care of here.  You never, ever, but never fail to pay your employees.  Scripture warns employers who fail to pay their people with Hell.

apl68, do you know which book and verse that is? I may need to keep that scripture citation in my back pocket in case of similar issues.

We ordered pizza tonight — pesto chicken with bacon added. If arrived without any pesto. You'd think the first step to making a pizza would be "add sauce."

Update:  after enough hell being raised by me and my union leadership, the money was deposited in my bank account around 8 p.m.

Come to find out, only people at my campus (not the other 3) weren't paid for this summer work. So, tell me again how we're all One College^TM, one of the Best Places to Work in the region, etc.

I'm glad it got resolved, of course, but still aggravated as hell that every blessed thing has to be an ordeal. I really don't have the attention or energy for this kind of stuff at every turn.