tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post324836324704970688..comments2023-10-08T05:00:23.559-04:00Comments on Clarissa's Blog: MannersClarissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-45564626172015113202011-02-18T15:48:48.826-05:002011-02-18T15:48:48.826-05:00I accidentally walked into one of my teachers'...I accidentally walked into one of my teachers' offices without walking one time when I was a freshman. I got a stern talking to. I never did it again.<br /><br />Now I make a point to knock on doors, and wait at the doorway until acknowledged. Always wait until conversations are over before beginning one of your own. And never, ever touch something that isn't yours without asking first (though that one didn't involve me--I only overheard a sharp remark).<br /><br />That's a lesson I learned fast. It's disturbing to see that some people lack such simple respect. Being polite can sometimes dance around the subject. Make it clear to the offenders that they had better take you seriously. Sternness is what a lot of high schoolers respond to. Maybe that might work for college students (especially any repeat offenders)?Penhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02258514554021130617noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-77243269635801419902011-02-18T14:44:37.418-05:002011-02-18T14:44:37.418-05:00I've never encountered this behaviour in my cl...I've never encountered this behaviour in my classes. Ever. I think though, it may have a lot to do with my field of study, Asian Studies. <br />When you're learning a language like Japanese, you're taught not only the language, but the attitude of respect and deference to your teacher that's common in the culture so you can assimilate more easily in study-abroad experiences. So we call our teachers "Sensei" in Japanese, or "Sir/Ma'am/Professor" in English, bow to them, and are very careful in our behaviour and language towards them. I could never even imagine yawning in front of a professor.Leah Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16798094383285526940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-53255527866248201022011-02-18T11:54:29.355-05:002011-02-18T11:54:29.355-05:00Wow - it's hard to fathom how much the environ...Wow - it's hard to fathom how much the environment has changed in less than 20 years. <br /><br />'Back in the day', the dean wouldn't even entertain a student complaining about a grade. The prof was king/queen. You don't like it - drop the class. You need the credit (required course) - suck it up and learn to deal. <br /><br />Of course, the student body bought into this paradigm as well. Anyone even considering 'complaining' about their grade would have been ridiculed off campus.Patricknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-33847364456006153812011-02-18T11:38:53.677-05:002011-02-18T11:38:53.677-05:00" in my university days, the prof had the pow..." in my university days, the prof had the power to kick the student out of the course. As students, we were the beneficiaries of the professors research. We were not the reason they were there."<br /><br />-Oh, what a golden dream! None of that attitude has been preserved, not even a tiny little shred. Nowadays, a student complains to everybody, including the Dean, that I gave him a failing grade on the essay "just because" he copy-pasted it from the Internet.<br /><br />Would you feel entitled to complain to the Dean if you got a bad grade for plagiarizing? As for me, I'd just crawl into a hole and pretend I wasn't there. This guy, on the other hand, made the whole situation as public as possible.<br /><br />I didn't tell anybody he cheated. He told everybody himself and felt outraged in the process. <br /><br />Huh?Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-17478171732305667642011-02-18T11:34:26.958-05:002011-02-18T11:34:26.958-05:00I don't know what latitude you have as an inst...I don't know what latitude you have as an instructor at your institution, but I know in my university days, the prof had the power to kick the student out of the course. As students, we were the beneficiaries of the professors research. We were not the reason they were there. We were a distraction at best to the professor, and they had no obligation to keep a petulant student in class.Patricknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-59976956259606277032011-02-18T11:33:58.933-05:002011-02-18T11:33:58.933-05:00I think you might be right, David. I'm a woman...I think you might be right, David. I'm a woman, I'm blond, and I have this kind of appearance that prevents people from taking me seriously.<br /><br />But it's very annoying.Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-38884272267892420232011-02-18T11:31:57.435-05:002011-02-18T11:31:57.435-05:00I have never had any bag of papers looked through ...I have never had any bag of papers looked through by students without my permission, whether it was a simple plastic grocery bag, a briefcase, or an attache case, all of which I have used at one time or another. I have had students look through a stack of papers I set on a table in a classroom, for whatever reason, but somehow having it in a container sends a signal that it is not appropriate to do so. As far as I am concerned, the container or lack of one should not be a factor; both are a violation of boundaries. I wonder whather students tend to be more intimidated by male professors than by female ones in this kind of situation.Pagan Topologisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01611788563582362688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-6693266194822262942011-02-18T11:13:09.696-05:002011-02-18T11:13:09.696-05:00Believe it or not, in the handbag case, I actually...Believe it or not, in the handbag case, I actually had to wrestle it out of the students' hands. They seemed not a little peeved by my desire to have the undivided use of my own handbag. I tried talking to them about it after class (in a very polite and reasonable manner) but they were very petulant and pouty.Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-31921332057184499392011-02-18T10:58:04.884-05:002011-02-18T10:58:04.884-05:00Imo, if they don't act like adults, they have ...Imo, if they don't act like adults, they have no right to complain and should hear it. <br /><br />RE the yawning student: may be politely ask her during recess to sit further, if she's that sleepy next time, since it makes you want to yawn too and makes concentrating hard?elnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-64976394070164315022011-02-18T10:57:11.302-05:002011-02-18T10:57:11.302-05:00As for addressing the students that have 'mino...As for addressing the students that have 'minor' annoyances (yawning) - take a page from the old military playbook - praise in public, discipline in private. Ask to speak with her after class and tell her about the disruptive nature and what you expect in class. Keep it professional, and how it impacts your performance in class. Don't make it about 'her' - it's your inability to deal with a distraction.<br /><br />As for the more significant intrusions (violating your private property, invading your office without permission) - immediately kick them out. Don't let them 'win' (for lack of a better term) - if they get what they want (your attention) - then there is no impetuous for them to change their behaviour. You'll be doing your colleagues, and society at large, a great favour.Patricknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-60445067720576873482011-02-18T10:45:33.259-05:002011-02-18T10:45:33.259-05:00el: last semester I gave a long and detailed talk ...el: last semester I gave a long and detailed talk to my freshmen about plagiarism. I did it after 30% of the students plagiarized their first written assignment, and I felt I simply had no choice.<br /><br />So then they complained that they didn't like to be treated like they were still in high school. They expect to be treated like adults but often refuse to act like ones.Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-226694391991375312011-02-18T10:42:56.312-05:002011-02-18T10:42:56.312-05:00I don't know what would be a good reaction in ...I don't know what would be a good reaction in such cases. Like the one with the yawning student. I did her a huge favor by letting her into the class against the wished of my Chair. And now she sits there either sleeping or yawning (sometimes loudly) in my face.<br /><br />Interrupting the class and telling her off is not a good idea because I don't want to single her out. These are adults we are talking about. What is one's reaction when an adult is being so obliviously rude?Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-50704126089602687962011-02-18T10:41:28.444-05:002011-02-18T10:41:28.444-05:00Would you be potentially in any trouble, if you me...Would you be potentially in any trouble, if you mentioned it? I would be tempted to give a talk (of course in Spanish), assisted by a PP presentation with humorous pictures, like<br /> you jumping in horror when several students try to steal handouts from behind;<br /> a yawning student putting legs on your desk;<br /> your bag open with keys in the air, toilet paper on the floor, while a pack of students are on it as coyotes on a carrion, shouting "I want those handouts too!"<br /><br />Students can be drawn as stick figures, while your own head can be on your stick figure.<br /> O<br /> /|\<br /> |<br /> / \<br /><br />I know it sounds silly, but otherwise they may never learn. Naturally, if you would put yourself in real danger of complaints to the administration, it isn't worth it.<br /><br />Or it could've been a serious PP with positive pics, like one person holding a door for another (a girl for a boy with lots of books), etc.elnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-23711302030971754242011-02-18T10:37:28.582-05:002011-02-18T10:37:28.582-05:00Why do we accept this behaviour? By not confronti...Why do we accept this behaviour? By not confronting it, we tacitly condone it and ultimately, endorse it.Patricknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-74540069099083391452011-02-18T10:32:08.658-05:002011-02-18T10:32:08.658-05:00Thank you, sarcozona, what a great idea. :-)
Patr...Thank you, sarcozona, what a great idea. :-)<br /><br />Patrick: I live in the Bible Belt. The ideals of feminism have not yet arrived here. :-)<br /> <br />Maybe this happens because women are used to infantilizing themselves, so it takes them a lot longer to see themselves as adults.Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-28956161432151931762011-02-18T10:22:06.653-05:002011-02-18T10:22:06.653-05:00Could the dearth of manners among female students ...Could the dearth of manners among female students be related to the decades long struggle to 'protect and promote' girls 'self-esteem' in the face of tyrannical patriarchal males?<br /><br />From my experience growing up, it was almost forbidden to correct or discipline a girl for bad behaviour. To offer guidance of any kind regarding proper behaviour was seen as anti-feminist and typical controlling male dominating aggression.<br /><br />Thankfully, my wife and ignore that PC BS, and have taught our children (1 boy/1 girl) to speak respectfully, ask nicely, hold doors open, interrupt a conversation only when necessary - and to apologize for the intrusion. Not to intrude in someones personal space, and to show respect in general for property and person.<br /><br />As for the students going through your bag - I would have tossed them from class, period. They're done.Patricknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-28189561814052060882011-02-18T10:17:35.795-05:002011-02-18T10:17:35.795-05:00I yawn whenever I see someone else yawn, even if t...I yawn whenever I see someone else yawn, even if they're just pretending. One of my classes (a bunch of 8 year olds) discovered this and took turns yawning outrageously throughout our class. They managed two days of getting me to yawn almost continuously through class before their giggles gave them away.sarcozonahttp://sarcozona.org/noreply@blogger.com