Last Night

From last night's dream: "My ol' grandfather used to say there were only two things that he was afraid of - Jesus, and women."

Too Much Damn Trouble

Once upon a time at my college the campus bookstore would alert faculty that texts they had ordered for an upcoming semester were either out of print or in a new edition, but that got to be too much damn trouble, so now the faculty have to contact the publisher of each text ordered to confirm that the text will indeed be available for the semester requested.

Once upon a time at my college the media office would take orders for films to be shown and air them over closed circuit television at the appropriate time on the appropriate date, but that got to be too much damn trouble, so now the faculty have to pick up the films from the library, locate and reserve video equipment, and show the films themselves.

Once upon a time at my college, the Registrars Office would send notification of student withdrawals from class to the relevant instructor via campus mail, but that got to be too much damn trouble, so now the faculty have to look up the classes on-line every few days to see who, if anyone, has dropped the class.

Once upon a time at my college, the department secretary would take gradebooks at the end of the semester, Xerox them for the instructors, and turn the originals into the Evening Programs office, but that got to be too much damn trouble, and now the faculty turn the gradebooks into Evening Programs themselves, and are not given Xeroxes for their records.

Once upon a time at my college at the end of each semester the Registrars Office received grade assignments from faculty and eventually sent letters to each student reporting the grades that he or she had earned, but that got to be too much damn trouble, so now faculty post grades on-line, and students are supposed to find out their final averages by logging onto their student accounts. Now, students often don't know what their grades are because they don't know how to log onto a computer, or because they still think that a hard copy printout will be sent to them.

Once upon a time at my college faculty were evaluated by students (anonymously) and administrators were evaluated by faculty (non-anonymously) at least once a year, but that got to be too much damn trouble, so now faculty are still evaluated by students annually, but administrators have not been evaluated by faculty in years.

Once upon a time at my college, a new semester began with class rolls issued at the beginning of the semester and updated once a week for the first three or four weeks, but that got to be too much damn trouble, so now faculty are expected to print class rolls daily off the Internet the first several weeks of class.

Once upon a time at my college the Distance Learning office took care of all the needs of the Distance Learning faculty, but that got to be too much damn trouble so now the local division offices and even non-Distance learning faculty are expected to do thing that Distance Learning did in the past.

Once upon a time at my college students who had been dropped from enrollment were certified to return to class with formal written documentation, but that got to be too much damn trouble, so now faculty either have to intuit that a student has been re-enrolled in the course being taught, or check the on-line class rolls every day for every class.

It's nice that things have gotten so simplified.

On Concrete Thinking and Public Education

Puritanism - The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy. - H.L. Mencken

I have the challenging responsibility of trying to teach some very concrete thinking students to think in a more flexible and critical way. Typically I fail miserably and in the process create students who just totally loathe me. There's an old and wise saying that one should never try to teach a pig to sing because it frustrates the teacher and annoys the pig. There is some truth to this.

My college requires that we faculty devise measures to test critical thinking among our students and report our findings. I rarely find much evidence of anything remotely resembling critical thinking in my classes. One of my colleagues, not generally known as being one of our brightest stars, nonetheless was quite insightful in noting that we expect our students to think critically, when throughout their entire lives they have been discouraged from critical thinking by their most revered institutions. Critical thinking is very threatening to our political and religious leaders who do their very best to stifle it.

Demagogue - one who preaches doctrines he knows to be untrue to men he knows to be idiots. - H.L. Mencken

What has been troubling to me is that many of these very dogmatic and concrete thinking young people are the very best of students on the tests I administer. This has been an issue that I have tried to resolve in my own thinking for quite some time now. Today, I think I figured it out.

I teach seven classes a semester in a community college. I have hundreds of students, and dozens and dozens of tests. But because of the size and number of classes I teach, and because of the very non-selective nature of the students in my college, almost all of my tests are multiple choice. The multiple choice test requires the student memorize "facts" from readings and lecture, and then be able to recognize these facts when confronted with typical "stem and four choice" tests. No analysis, no insight, no understanding is required. Concrete thinkers are in their element in this type of testing environment, as it reflects their approach to learning about politics, religion, and other social institutions. When I recently told my Sex class that polls show about 80 - 90% of the soldiers in Iraq think they're there in response to Iraq's involvement in 9/11, I was shocked to find my class firmly believed that too - "Well, that IS why they're there." On the same day I was told that it's difficult for people to talk about sex openly because of Adam eating from the tree of knowledge.

I believe that religion, generally speaking, has been a curse to mankind - that its modest and greatly overestimated services on the ethical side have been more than overcome by the damage it has done to clear and honest thinking. - H.L. Mencken

Consider the students in small classes in selective liberal arts colleges and universities around the country. They actually discuss ideas without resorting to quoting Bible verse as the final and conclusive authority. These students actually have to think about things and be able to defend their positions and, if necessary, change their minds. They take tests that require analyses presented in the form of essay. They are truly demonstrating a "change in behavior as a result of practice or experience" which is the very essence of learning.

Recently two of my colleagues were bragging about how easy graduate school was for them. I couldn't join in their discussions because for me graduate school was the greatest challenge of my life.

My initial thoughts were that this was simply rodomontade on their parts and that graduate school was probably far more difficult than they pretended. But then it stuck me, both of them, one with only a Master's, one with a Ph.D. in a infamously "soft" discipline, were both products of the state educational system. Both are incredibly concrete thinkers for people with advanced degrees, teaching college-level classes.

The difference between the education I got at a nationally recognized university, in a rather challenging subject, and the "education" they got in their state run diploma mills is a difference far more vast than I had previously recognized. I suppose no one, myself included, really expects much more at state funded community college. The state has reaped what it has sown and seems perfectly happy with that result.

Whiskers

For the first time in a very long while, I am completely without facial hair. I've been queried about this by several. The reason is simple, my squeeze is going through menopause, and her doctor has prescribed testosterone for her. I think in a heterosexual relationship, only one partner should have a mustache.

Figaro?

When you're a man, the adventure of getting a hair-cut is that, for most of us walk-ins, we never have the same barber/hair stylist twice. This evening after dinner I went to the nearest Super Cuts for a quick trim.

My barber had only one arm.

How often does one have the opportunity to receive a hair-cut from a gay one armed barber?

If, tomorrow, my students say "Gawd, your new hair-cut looks like crap," I'll be ready.

"I had a gay one-armed barber," I'll reply.

Older Students

A friend who is writing a book on non-traditional college students recently asked me to list thing I like and dislike about these older and more settled people. Here's what I wrote to her.

Things I like about non-traditional students, in no particular order.

They're more serious students. Class is not play time, they don't play grab ass with each other and don't spend a lot of time flirting. Some semesters ago the pretty young Russian woman in the back of the class was too busy putting nail polish on the guy next to her to listen to lecture.

They have life experiences that contribute to the tone of the class and their academic success.

They're better students. A colleague with a proclivity for research showed a long time ago that the GPAs for the non-traditionals were higher than the younger students.

They're more respectful. I've yet to see a non-traditional put his or her head on the desk and try to take a nap while I lecture. They are far more likely to call me Dr.; the young ones call me Mr.

They come to class more regularly.

They actually study and take responsibility for their grades. A young man in Intro this semester sits on the front row without pencil, pen, text, or notebook - his desk is totally bare. He can't understand why his grades are so bad. Another young student in years past didn't come to class but about a third of the time, didn't turn in several written assignments including a 100 point book report, and failed the class. He was so outraged AT ME that he wouldn't speak to me in the halls.

The non-traditional student is rarely dogmatic in religious views. Dogmatic religious thought generally comes from young women who argue that the Bible is perfect and without flaw. If I point out discrepancies they become incensed AT ME.

Piaget said that concrete thinking gives way to formal operations in everyone at about age 12. He's wrong. Some never make it. My experience is that older students are far less likely to be concrete than younger ones.

Older students seem to enjoy classes. Younger ones tend to see them as a chore.

Older students seem to have been better prepared in high school than current students were.

Older students are more likely to actually study at home.

Things I don't like about non-traditional students, in no particular order.

I don't like that college is sometimes a dumping ground for older people because no one can decide what else to do with them. The older woman with Alzheimer's who took my Intro class about five times, and scored chance on each of her tests is a waste of time and resources. The woman in the walker, at least 70 years old and plainly moderately retarded who was taking my class so she could become a psychiatrist, is an affront. The fellow so brain damaged by drugs that the social agency couldn't get him a job who was sent to my class in Child Psychology because they didn't know where else to send him, is an outrage.

For older students jobs and family come first. Frankly, for most people with advanced degrees or degrees from major universities, school came first. I understand that the paper wasn't done because you had a sick kid... but the paper wasn't done.

Non-traditional students are less likely to consider advanced degrees. Most of them are eager to get a Bachelors and begin using it in some employment situation immediately. A two or four year graduate program does not appeal to these folks who often think they are behind the other younger students anyway.

Non-traditionals often lack confidence in their ability to compete with the younger students.

Older students are more likely to reject information that goes against their personal experiences. "I spanked my kids, and I don't want to be told there is a better way." Cognitive dissonance if you will. Younger students are more willing to consider possibilities they haven't yet committed to.

Non-traditional students (women especially) sometimes will give up their education if the spouse is threatened.

Non-traditionals who DO consider graduate training are often unwilling to relocate to other towns or states to pursue those possibilities.

Non-traditionals may drone on in class too much about their children or grandchildren.