Dear God, sometimes Tuesdays and Thursdays are interminable. I'm noticing two things in terms of my stamina (or lack thereof): one, being here in the office as late as I am this semester is making it very challenging for me to wind down in time to get a decent night's sleep. I know I kvetch about lack of sleep all the time--I bore myself with it--but it is a thorny problem for which I would like to find a real solution. In the "never again" department, I will never again teach an evening class, unless it is absolutely, completely, utterly necessary. The last slot of the day grid is late enough (that's the 5-6:15 slot on Mondays and Wednesdays); the additional 50 minutes I need to put in to the evening class is just that many too many.
The other stamina issue is more emotional than physiological, and it has to do with trying to hoik students out of their unfocused, irresponsible, vague, lackadaisical and otherwise maddening ways. Case in point, the student who first didn't submit his revised essay at all--though he kindly handed me the version that I marked up for mechanics review--then submitted it single spaced and with just his name at the top; then, when I told him he needed to resubmit it formatted correctly, added the bullshit header that students learn I don't know where, double spaced it, and otherwise didn't change a damned thing. And it's two pages long, double spaced (minimum length requirement, four pages). He's turned in absolutely no other homework. And yet he has the intellectual chops to do really well--but he seems absolutely hell-bent on washing himself down the drain.
And he's one of many who look startled when I point out that they haven't done something basic that they need to do: attach a works cited page, format the essay correctly, write as much as the assignment required (without overwriting by 50%), submit on time, submit to Turnitin ... I could go on.
Today, in the 1:00 class, I had to say--loudly--"from now on, if you sleep through class, you are absent." That woke up the two young men who drifted off before I even finished taking attendance. I will say they managed to stay awake for the rest of the class, but honest to Christ: do I have to tell you that it's important to stay awake in class? Thanks to my kid sister's research, I know that sleep enhances memory, but that's after you've learned something. And I know Suzuki method music instruction includes having the student listen to the music as he or she sleeps--but the student is not supposed to sleep through the actual lesson.
Lollygaggers. That's what I have. Classes full of lollygaggers. https://youtu.be/XYoBOhZvBEw
I don't quite know what happened in Advisement, but I made even less progress on marking essays today than I did yesterday. I'm looking at the rapidly growing piles of stuff I have to mark and (again, the chronic, boring plaint) wondering when I'll be able to grind through it. The weekend, obviously--but will that be enough? (I'm paying for taking last weekend off, big time. I didn't even sleep enough to make it a good trade-off.) I've been feeling just the tiniest bit under the weather health-wise for a couple of days now, too. I haven't wanted to call in sick, because what I'm doing with the classes seems important, but tomorrow, I may come in just long enough to teach Nature in Lit, then bail on Advisement, pack up a bunch of stuff to mark, and roll home, just so I'm more physically comfortable--and can nap, if the urge comes upon me. My concern is that I may get too comfortable at home and may bail on Thursday as well. Not that that would be a disaster: I have a "review" day built in to the schedule for the 102s, so I could simply adjust all the reading assignments one class later and still have them ready to do the next essay when scheduled.
I don't know, I'd say I'll think about that tomorrow, when I'm stronger--but really, I'll think about that tomorrow, when I know whether I feel stronger or not.
I'd love to do a positive reframe of the day--but I almost don't need one. I'm not feeling negative (the bitching about needing to hoik students up out of their own murk notwithstanding); I'm just feeling somewhat worn down. So, departure is the better part of valor for today. I'm outta here.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
HOIK?
ReplyDeleteIf it's a Westernism, I should know it quickly before moving to Washington State. If not I had better get it contextually! And lolly gagging is a feature of my extended family (though not the branch that includes my wife: they were taught "You're a worker/ not a shirker!" ). They snooze -- they lose!