Topic: Bang Your Head on Your Desk - the thread of teaching despair!

[darkstarrynight]

Rough Semester start.
1) COVID the week before (still lingering after effects);
2) Lost a week for Faculty search candidate talks;
3) Now am sick (again) and lost another lab;

So, now I have the crappy choice of
A) cancel class, again, and fall further behind; or
B) teach class, hope I don't cough up a lung mid-lecture, and violate my oft-repeated Mantra of the Covid era - "If you are sick, stay home"

Decisions, decisions.

I hope you feel better ASAP!

[FishProf]

Rough Semester start.
1) COVID the week before (still lingering after effects);
2) Lost a week for Faculty search candidate talks;
3) Now am sick (again) and lost another lab;

So, now I have the crappy choice of
A) cancel class, again, and fall further behind; or
B) teach class, hope I don't cough up a lung mid-lecture, and violate my oft-repeated Mantra of the Covid era - "If you are sick, stay home"

Decisions, decisions.

I hope you feel better ASAP!

Thanks.  Turn out there was a third option.
C) Review the last quizzes, realize the students don't understand [fundamental idea from prerequisites], I posted an online lecture from that prerequisite course as a required review.

In the end, I stayed home, which was he correct idea, based on the couching fit that knocked me down for ~15 min right before the scheduled class time. 

Win!

[Langue_doc]

Rough Semester start.
1) COVID the week before (still lingering after effects);
2) Lost a week for Faculty search candidate talks;
3) Now am sick (again) and lost another lab;

So, now I have the crappy choice of
A) cancel class, again, and fall further behind; or
B) teach class, hope I don't cough up a lung mid-lecture, and violate my oft-repeated Mantra of the Covid era - "If you are sick, stay home"

Decisions, decisions.

I hope you feel better ASAP!

Thanks.  Turn out there was a third option.
C) Review the last quizzes, realize the students don't understand [fundamental idea from prerequisites], I posted an online lecture from that prerequisite course as a required review.

In the end, I stayed home, which was he correct idea, based on the couching fit that knocked me down for ~15 min right before the scheduled class time. 

Win!

Feel better soon! May I suggest having a little chat with autocorrect?

[namazu]

Rough Semester start.
1) COVID the week before (still lingering after effects);
2) Lost a week for Faculty search candidate talks;
3) Now am sick (again) and lost another lab;

So, now I have the crappy choice of
A) cancel class, again, and fall further behind; or
B) teach class, hope I don't cough up a lung mid-lecture, and violate my oft-repeated Mantra of the Covid era - "If you are sick, stay home"

Decisions, decisions.

I hope you feel better ASAP!

Thanks.  Turn out there was a third option.
C) Review the last quizzes, realize the students don't understand [fundamental idea from prerequisites], I posted an online lecture from that prerequisite course as a required review.
In the end, I stayed home, which was he correct idea, based on the couching fit that knocked me down for ~15 min right before the scheduled class time. 
Win!

Feel better soon! May I suggest having a little chat with autocorrect?

I dunno, "couching fit" describes being incapacitated pretty well.

(And yes, FishProf, best wishes for a quick and complete recovery!)

[FishProf]

Why not both?  Both is good.

[Caracal]

Bang #4: Several students have explained that they used the information from a Google search to answer questions because they wanted to be certain that they had the correct answer with the correct terminology. However, our questions are usually something along the lines of "what is the difference between the results from X and Y" after they have just completed tasks X and Y. We want them to reflect on their work, not repeat (and therefore plagiarize) what the definitions of X and Y are.

Many students can't grasp the idea that learning is about being able to apply knowledge, specifically to new situations. "Every question can be answered by Google" is a fundamental truth of the universe to a lot of them, so formal education is really a hoop-jumping exercise in principle, since *Google could do all of their assignments, write all of their papers, and take all of their exams.


(*Maybe with a little help from ChatGPT.)

Mostly the problem is with the order of operations. Googling something is often a pretty good way to start trying to figure something out, but a bad way to get a final answer.

[RatGuy]

To start the semester, I assigned the Gothic novel Wieland. The writing assignments for this course are due in class (no electronic submissions) and some students can't figure that out. So for the first one, I told students who didn't have a hard copy were to place them in my departmental mailbox. I explained where that mailroom was located. That was a week ago.

Today I learned that one of my students placed her homework in another colleague's box ... because that colleague's last name is Wieland.

[Caracal]

To start the semester, I assigned the Gothic novel Wieland. The writing assignments for this course are due in class (no electronic submissions) and some students can't figure that out. So for the first one, I told students who didn't have a hard copy were to place them in my departmental mailbox. I explained where that mailroom was located. That was a week ago.

Today I learned that one of my students placed her homework in another colleague's box ... because that colleague's last name is Wieland.

Haaaa.

[fishbrains]

To start the semester, I assigned the Gothic novel Wieland. The writing assignments for this course are due in class (no electronic submissions) and some students can't figure that out. So for the first one, I told students who didn't have a hard copy were to place them in my departmental mailbox. I explained where that mailroom was located. That was a week ago.

Today I learned that one of my students placed her homework in another colleague's box ... because that colleague's last name is Wieland.

Haaaa.

Someone get that student a nap!

[Caracal]

To start the semester, I assigned the Gothic novel Wieland. The writing assignments for this course are due in class (no electronic submissions) and some students can't figure that out. So for the first one, I told students who didn't have a hard copy were to place them in my departmental mailbox. I explained where that mailroom was located. That was a week ago.

Today I learned that one of my students placed her homework in another colleague's box ... because that colleague's last name is Wieland.

Haaaa.

Someone get that student a nap!

At least it's an adorable mistake...

[apl68]

To start the semester, I assigned the Gothic novel Wieland. The writing assignments for this course are due in class (no electronic submissions) and some students can't figure that out. So for the first one, I told students who didn't have a hard copy were to place them in my departmental mailbox. I explained where that mailroom was located. That was a week ago.

Today I learned that one of my students placed her homework in another colleague's box ... because that colleague's last name is Wieland.

I'm sure you have your reasons for that choice...but surely Castle of Otranto would be more fun for your students to read.  Of course if it's an American literature class, then Wieland it must be.

[Hegemony]

I recently read Wieland for the first time. Oh, the suffering. And that was just me. I'm glad I don't have to teach it.

[apl68]

I recently read Wieland for the first time. Oh, the suffering. And that was just me. I'm glad I don't have to teach it.

I felt the same way when I read it out of curiosity some years back.  But it seems to be considered enough of a milestone in early American literature to be still taught.

Castle of Otranto has Gothic castles, ghosts in armor, skeletons prophesying doom, and much, much more!  Hollywood could probably make it into a movie that people would actually watch, and still be mostly faithful to the plot.

[darkstarrynight]

Context: one month into the semester, masters course, graduate student is not new, emailed me late last night, student has turned in three assignments late. I can check how long students spend on the materials and submission portal, and this student logged in last night (three days after the due date) and did everything in under 10 minutes. It was definitely not graduate level work.

Student: I cannot figure out when assignments are due. Please help me so I do not lose points.

Me: Here are the 37 places (I exaggerate, there are at least 7 places though) on the LMS where I put due dates, plus they are in the syllabus and my weekly emails. Rather than worrying about losing points, you should be interested in learning the material. I do not recommend doing an entire assignment late and putting in about five minutes worth of work.

Student: I see what you are saying.

[FishProf]

This morning (start of week 5).

"Dear Professor,
Thursday I had come across a difficulty within my  entire WSU account. I am working closely with June at the registrars office to get this problems work out. Your course has yet to appear back on my blackboard, refraining me from doing any of the work you have assignments to us last Tuesday. I am asking that I get an extension on any of the work given to us within this past week if applicable.
Thank you for your understanding,"

Translation:  I didn't pay my bill, got my account suspended, and now I will feign ignorance so you won't penalize me.