OT: Annoying Teachers

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Topic:	Religions > Atheism
User:	"Daniel Kolle"
Date:	03 Sep 2003 04:24:16 PM
Object:	OT: Annoying Teachers

My Honors English (no different that regular english, except that all
we do is dissect books for the fucking "meaning" all day) teacher
thinks I am not smart enough to be in her class. She has advised I go
to remedial english. Why? Her reasons are:
I do not talk enough in class (ummm... okay) and I do not write long
enough essays. (Page-and-a-half single spaced over a ten page short
story not enough?)
My father has written a response to my teacher. Here it is,
albeit summarized:
--
Dear [Teacher],
Thank you for bring to my attention that my son does not write
long enough essays. Because (as you say) my son is a dumbass, I'll
speak for him. Mrs. [Teacher], you are really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really fucking annoying. Go ***** yourself.
This ain't quite exactly two pages, but I think ya get the
idea.
--
I am not lying. That is what he wrote. Cannot wait to see the look on
her face.

--
-Kolle; 15 A.A. #2035
Koji Kondo, Yo-Yo Ma, and Gustav Mahler are my Gods.
Madly Insane EAC Scientist.
.

User: "Mike Painter mpainteratattdotnet"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 06:42:01 PM

"Daniel Kolle" <DKolle@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:kolclvoh62tmva7oq67dguce4qnngeij2m@4ax.com...

I had problems with long essays also. All my engineering and science classes
demanded short reports with no fluff.
The English teachers wanted fluff.
I also found out the hard way that you can argue with the math and science
guys if you are right or at least know what you are talking about.
"That should be 3 pi, not pi over 3" can generate a lot of heat but it's
about the answer.
"That is not what the writer meant" can get you a really bad grade.
.

User: "Doug Semler"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 12:25:53 AM

At some point in the past, Mike Painter <mpainteratattdotnet> slavered,
and posted this:

"Daniel Kolle" <DKolle@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:kolclvoh62tmva7oq67dguce4qnngeij2m@4ax.com...

I had problems with long essays also. All my engineering and science
classes demanded short reports with no fluff.
The English teachers wanted fluff.

And when it's difficult for one to produce fluff...that person is royally
screwed.

I also found out the hard way that you can argue with the math and
science guys if you are right or at least know what you are talking
about.

That's why math (and math-based) teachers generally give partial credit for
incorrect answers, especially when the incorrect answer is arrived at by a
simple transposition or something similar. Oh, once again that concept of
showing one's work rears its 'ugly' head <g>.

"That should be 3 pi, not pi over 3" can generate a lot of heat but
it's about the answer.

And the "why" is explainable by either the teacher or the student, probably
with only one to two pages of equations (depending on the problem), all of
it objective.

"That is not what the writer meant" can get you a really bad grade.

And the "why" is "explainable" by ten pages of fluff, all of it subjective.
--
Doug Semler
http://home.wideopenwest.com/~doug_semler
a.a. #705, BAAWA. EAC Guardian of the Horn of the IPU (pbuhh).
I hate spam, standard email address munging applied.
42
DNRC o-
.

User: "Nakas"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 11:08:12 PM

"Daniel Kolle" <DKolle@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:kolclvoh62tmva7oq67dguce4qnngeij2m@4ax.com...

Why don't you talk in class? If you have something to say you should grow
some balls and say it, if you have nothing to say then maybe you do belong
in a remedial class.
.

User: "Jeremy Martin"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 11:30:37 PM

(Daniel Kolle <DKolle@hotmail.com>):

I'm glad to see that your father is an intelligent, tactful
person.
--
Jeremy Martin
I have an aa number, but I'd have to look it up.
.

User: "Daniel Kolle"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	05 Sep 2003 06:56:03 PM

Jeremy Martin <mrbungle@pattonisgod.com> thought hard and said:

(Daniel Kolle <DKolle@hotmail.com>):

I'm glad to see that your father is an intelligent, tactful
person.

Hah.
--
-Kolle; 15 A.A. #2035
Koji Kondo, Yo-Yo Ma, and Gustav Mahler are my Gods.
Madly Insane EAC Scientist.
.

User: "maky m."
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 09:52:12 AM

Daniel Kolle <DKolle@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:<kolclvoh62tmva7oq67dguce4qnngeij2m@4ax.com>...

My Honors English (no different that regular english, except that all
we do is dissect books for the fucking "meaning" all day) teacher
thinks I am not smart enough to be in her class.

it seems more like she KNOWS that you are not smart enough. your post
serves as evidence that your teacher is correct.

She has advised I go to remedial english. Why? Her reasons are:
I do not talk enough in class (ummm... okay) and I do not write long
enough essays. (Page-and-a-half single spaced over a ten page short
story not enough?)
My father has written a response to my teacher. Here it is,
albeit summarized:
--
Dear [Teacher],
Thank you for bring to my attention that my son does not write
long enough essays. Because (as you say) my son is a dumbass, I'll
speak for him. Mrs. [Teacher], you are really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really fucking annoying. Go ***** yourself.
This ain't quite exactly two pages, but I think ya get the
idea.
--
I am not lying. That is what he wrote. Cannot wait to see the look on
her face.

User: "Brian E. Clark"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 07:46:17 PM

Daniel Kolle <DKolle@hotmail.com> wrote:

Her reasons are: I do not talk enough in class (ummm... okay)

It sounds like she is dissatisfied with your level of class time
participation.

and I do not write long enough essays. (Page-and-a-half single
spaced over a ten page short story not enough?)

A page-and-a-half, single-spaced essay sounds a tad brief, although it
could be long enough provided you write succinctly and comprehensively.
The whole question turns on the subject of the paper, of course. "Relate
Billy Budd to Tom Joad" requires more space than "Explain why the
monkey's paw should come with a disclaimer."
--
-----------
Brian E. Clark
.

User: "Kevin Anthoney"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 05:16:39 PM

Daniel Kolle wrote:

Looks like you'd be better off not being in her class. Ask for a transfer.
If you're not writing essays long enough for her liking, that's because
she's not teaching you properly. Claiming that you're a "remedial" student
is just an admission that she's useless.

Why? Her reasons are:
I do not talk enough in class (ummm... okay) and I do not write long
enough essays. (Page-and-a-half single spaced over a ten page short
story not enough?)

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science, maths and stuff? People
who are good at actually thinking tend to be really bad at bullshitting.
Don't worry about it. Your talent's more important than hers.

My father has written a response to my teacher. Here it is,
albeit summarized:
--
Dear [Teacher],
Thank you for bring to my attention that my son does not write
long enough essays. Because (as you say) my son is a dumbass, I'll
speak for him. Mrs. [Teacher], you are really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really,
really, really fucking annoying. Go ***** yourself.
This ain't quite exactly two pages, but I think ya get the
idea.
--
I am not lying. That is what he wrote. Cannot wait to see the look on
her face.

Cool Dad!

--
-Kolle; 15 A.A. #2035
Koji Kondo, Yo-Yo Ma, and Gustav Mahler are my Gods.
Madly Insane EAC Scientist.

--
Kevin Anthoney
kanthoney[a]dsl.pipex.com
.

User: "Doug Semler"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 12:15:18 AM

At some point in the past, Kevin Anthoney <kevin_anthoney@hotmail.com>
slavered, and posted this:

Daniel Kolle wrote:

Looks like you'd be better off not being in her class. Ask for a
transfer.

If you're not writing essays long enough for her liking, that's
because she's not teaching you properly. Claiming that you're a
"remedial" student is just an admission that she's useless.

I find it very difficult to believe that a teacher would honestly consider
transferring a student from an honors class to a remedial class. I would
challenge that with the Academic Review Board of the school.
However, I do recommend that you move into a normal (less advanced) class,
if anything to get away from that teacher. It sounds like the teacher is
already biased against you (only after 1 week of classes?), and any
advantage of GPA boost will be attenuated by the poor grade you'd probably
receive. However, make sure the administration acknowledges the fact that
your request for transfer is *not* because of any inability on your part,
but rather for the bias. This way, you can petition the administration to
return to the Honors track in the next semester/school year. Remaining in
that class will definitely do you more harm than good.

Why? Her reasons are:
I do not talk enough in class (ummm... okay) and I do not write long
enough essays. (Page-and-a-half single spaced over a ten page short
story not enough?)

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science, maths and stuff?
People who are good at actually thinking tend to be really bad at
bullshitting.

I had a Morality (Ethics for all you Public School weenies <g>) class in
which the teacher would give us a topic on which we had to write 500 word
essays (these were weekly in-class assignments). I consistently would only
be able to write 250-300 words, and was always finished with my essays 15-20
minutes before class was over. I would also get A's on these essays. One
day, many of the students were finishing their essays too early and started
disrupting the class. The teacher said something like this: "You all better
get back to writing your essays. The only reason I have to ask for 500 word
essays is because I have to wade through all the ***** you guys write.
If you would learn to write like Doug [and a couple others in class that had
the same "problem" as I], I wouldn't have to tell you to write so many
damned words."
OK, that was a pretty verbose anecdote, but the point is this: Your teacher
is probably inundated with students who beat around the bush (a four word
verbose way of saying '*****') and is not used to having a student who
can write concisely. Word/page minimums are evidence of this very
phenomenon. I am actually surprised it that you were able to get one and a
half pages out of a ten page story...Was it Guy de Maupassant's _The
Necklace_? It seems to be a favorite first short story in Lit books.

Don't worry about it. Your talent's more important than hers.

I am not lying. That is what he wrote. Cannot wait to see the look on
her face.

Cool Dad!

I'd be careful though, you may get in trouble if you are the messenger.
You'll probably be hauled off to the principal's office to explain. Tell
dad to be available for phone calls from the office that day :)
--
Doug Semler
http://home.wideopenwest.com/~doug_semler
a.a. #705, BAAWA. EAC Guardian of the Horn of the IPU (pbuhh).
I hate spam, standard email address munging applied.
42
DNRC o-
.

User: "Daniel Kolle"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 04:03:39 PM

"Doug Semler" <doug_semler@REMOVEMEwideopenwest.com> thought hard and
said:

However, I do recommend that you move into a normal (less advanced) class,
if anything to get away from that teacher. It sounds like the teacher is
already biased against you (only after 1 week of classes?),

One month.
--
-Kolle; 15 A.A. #2035
Koji Kondo, Yo-Yo Ma, and Gustav Mahler are my Gods.
Madly Insane EAC Scientist.
.

User: "Daniel Kolle"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 06:17:44 PM

Kevin Anthoney <kevin_anthoney@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science, maths and stuff?

Science, yes. Math, no. I am lucky if I can manage a 70 average in
math.

People
who are good at actually thinking tend to be really bad at bullshitting.

Indeed. I was given a topic to write on. (It was my opinion of
euthanasia.) I wrote three sentences.
--
-Kolle; 15 A.A. #2035
Koji Kondo, Yo-Yo Ma, and Gustav Mahler are my Gods.
Madly Insane EAC Scientist.
.

User: "maky m."
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 09:56:13 AM

Daniel Kolle <DKolle@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:<47tclv8r4epk5ug35fvj5139pjhi9riqro@4ax.com>...

Kevin Anthoney <kevin_anthoney@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science, maths and stuff?

Science, yes. Math, no. I am lucky if I can manage a 70 average in
math.

and you still wonder why your teacher holds the opinion that you
aren't smart?
barely making a C in math at an american high school is proof that you
are mighty dumb.

People
who are good at actually thinking tend to be really bad at bullshitting.

Indeed. I was given a topic to write on. (It was my opinion of
euthanasia.) I wrote three sentences.

User: "Brainfried Sysadmin"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 06:39:12 PM

On Wed, 03 Sep 2003 18:17:44 -0500, Daniel Kolle wrote:

Kevin Anthoney <kevin_anthoney@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science, maths and stuff?

Science, yes. Math, no. I am lucky if I can manage a 70 average in math.

People
who are good at actually thinking tend to be really bad at bullshitting.

Indeed. I was given a topic to write on. (It was my opinion of
euthanasia.) I wrote three sentences.

Okay, I'm curious.
What were your three sentences?
.

User: "quibbler"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 07:44:30 PM

In article <pan.2003.09.03.23.37.52.249635@way.com>,

says...

On Wed, 03 Sep 2003 18:17:44 -0500, Daniel Kolle wrote:

Kevin Anthoney <kevin_anthoney@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science, maths and stuff?

Science, yes. Math, no. I am lucky if I can manage a 70 average in math.

People
who are good at actually thinking tend to be really bad at bullshitting.

Indeed. I was given a topic to write on. (It was my opinion of
euthanasia.) I wrote three sentences.

Okay, I'm curious.

What were your three sentences?

Perhaps something like this:
"Nobody starts off wanting to DIE! But then they muddle through the
first wearisome term of high school English class. By the end of the
soul-crushing freshman year some students perceive a bullet to the
cranium as a merciful release from the grisly torture of three more mind-
dulling years of hacking out schlock essays about phony and contrived
minutia for the insatiable beast that is Honors English."
Do ya think I captured the teen angst? :) There is just a wee possibility
that I may have laid the melodrama on a bit too thick. :)

--
_____________________________________________________
Quibbler (quibbler247atyahoo.com)
"It is fashionable to wax apocalyptic about the
threat to humanity posed by the AIDS virus, 'mad cow'
disease, and many others, but I think a case can be
made that faith is one of the world's great evils,
comparable to the smallpox virus but harder to
eradicate." -- Richard Dawkins
.

User: "Brian E. Clark"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 10:29:59 PM

Kevin Anthoney <kevin_anthoney@hotmail.com> wrote:

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science,
maths and stuff? People who are good at actually thinking
tend to be really bad at bullshitting.

Perhaps you've heard of Asimov, Sagan, Dawkins, Hawking, Einstein,
Jefferson, Franklin? Well, you get the idea. ;-)
Some people make brilliant physicists but poor writers. Some people
make supreme writers but find science and mathematics baffling. And some
scientifically capable people write very well, and vice versa. It seems
a bit -- I don't know the right term -- contemptuous? incomplete? to
dismiss expository ability (let alone true authorial artistry) as
"bullshitting."
I'm not necessarily defending the teacher's attitude, by the way, but I
don't find her request for longer papers unreasonable. I'm hard pressed
to believe that anyone (even someone like Daniel who obviously writes
with a clear mind and sure hand) could exhaustively analyze a subject in
one-and-a-half pages! :)
--
-----------
Brian E. Clark
.

User: "August Pamplona"
Title: Re: OT: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 12:45:40 AM

"Brian E. Clark" <reply@newsgroup.only.please> wrote in message
news:MPG.19c07c7f61094099989f6d@netnews.comcast.net...

Kevin Anthoney <kevin_anthoney@hotmail.com> wrote:

Yeah, I had that "problem". Are you good at science,
maths and stuff? People who are good at actually thinking
tend to be really bad at bullshitting.

Perhaps you've heard of Asimov, Sagan, Dawkins, Hawking, Einstein,

I can't imagine Asimov writing an essaythat's as long as the short
story it's dissecting (which almost sounds like what this teacher seems
to want). Asimov was an excellent writer but he as also clear and
concise and you will find no bullshitting (or even flowery prose) in his
writing. The same could be said of Sagan, Dawkins and probably Hawking
(I haven't read Einstein so I won't comment).

Jefferson, Franklin? Well, you get the idea. ;-)

Some people make brilliant physicists but poor writers. Some people
make supreme writers but find science and mathematics baffling. And

some

scientifically capable people write very well, and vice versa. It

seems

a bit -- I don't know the right term -- contemptuous? incomplete? to
dismiss expository ability (let alone true authorial artistry) as
"bullshitting."

I'm not necessarily defending the teacher's attitude, by the way, but

don't find her request for longer papers unreasonable. I'm hard

pressed

to believe that anyone (even someone like Daniel who obviously writes
with a clear mind and sure hand) could exhaustively analyze a subject

one-and-a-half pages! :)

--
-----------
Brian E. Clark

August Pamplona
--
"No, jew. Your jew opinion doesn't matter no matter what, jew. Your
writings deserve no comprehension, merely scorn, jew. You are jew."
-Lysis on m.f.w.
a.a. # 1811 apatriot #20 Eater of smut
To email replace 'necatoramericanusancylostomaduodenale' with
'cosmicaug'
.

User: "towelie"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	03 Sep 2003 05:42:30 PM

Daniel Kolle wrote:

You're most likely, like me, an economical writer. I prefer to say/write
what I need to say/write and quit talking/writing, not ramble on for x
amount of time/paper. Having to write a paper that is a certain length only
teaches one how to *****, not how to write properly.

Be sure to keep us updated!
--
Sometimes God takes those closest to us, because it makes him feel
better about himself. He is a very vengeful God. He's all *****
about something we did thousands of years ago. He just can't get over
it, so he doesn't care who he takes. Children, puppies, it don't matter
to him, so long as it makes us sad...God gives us life and love and
help just so that he can tear it all away and make us cry, so he can
drink the sweet milk of our tears. You see, it's our tears that give
God his great power.
aa #2133
apatriot #19
.

User: "Daniel Kolle"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	04 Sep 2003 04:15:29 PM

"towelie" <bugoNOSPAM@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Be sure to keep us updated!

I am now back in regular English. There must be a god. :-)
And I get to see my old 9th grade Honors teacher, a professor. A very
good teacher.
As for the email my dad sent to my old teacher, I do not know. The
email system was down. Hee hee.
--
-Kolle; 15 A.A. #2035
Koji Kondo, Yo-Yo Ma, and Gustav Mahler are my Gods.
Madly Insane EAC Scientist.
.

User: "Robibnikoff"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	05 Sep 2003 02:46:17 PM

In article <7laflvgiqsq6jhgpo9rdjedbnofhvuh2cn@4ax.com>, Daniel Kolle says...

"towelie" <bugoNOSPAM@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Be sure to keep us updated!

One thing I learned while getting my BA degree in English Lit is that it would
seem that the majority of English teachers are a fickle, and often pompous,
bunch. Once, as an experiment, I handed in the same paper to two different
creative writing professors - One gave me an A-, the other gave me a D.
One main impression that I got is that what they mainly seem to want from their
students is not to be creative and develope new ideas, but to parrot back their
own. I took a course on Shakespeare from a very popular professor and our first
assignment was to analyze a passage from Hamlet (he gave each student a specific
passage). When I received back my assignment, he'd written, "This is a very
good essay - well thought out and well written, but you're wrong. F".
Needless to say, I dropped the class the following day ;P
Robyn
Resident Witchypoo & EAC Spellcaster
#1557
.

User: "Mark K. Bilbo"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	06 Sep 2003 09:14:10 AM

On Fri, 05 Sep 2003 19:46:17 +0000, Robibnikoff wrote:

In article <7laflvgiqsq6jhgpo9rdjedbnofhvuh2cn@4ax.com>, Daniel Kolle
says...

"towelie" <bugoNOSPAM@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Be sure to keep us updated!

One thing I learned while getting my BA degree in English Lit is that it
would seem that the majority of English teachers are a fickle, and often
pompous, bunch. Once, as an experiment, I handed in the same paper to two
different creative writing professors - One gave me an A-, the other gave
me a D.

One main impression that I got is that what they mainly seem to want from
their students is not to be creative and develop new ideas, but to
parrot back their own. I took a course on Shakespeare from a very
popular professor and our first assignment was to analyze a passage from
Hamlet (he gave each student a specific passage). When I received back
my assignment, he'd written, "This is a very good essay - well thought
out and well written, but you're wrong. F".

SHEESH.

Needless to say, I dropped the class the following day ;P

As was imperative.
I cannot STAND people like that. What does it mean to be "wrong" about
understanding literature? Oh there are parameters set by language to be
sure but so much of it is purely subjective. That's part of the game.
It's definitely questionable in a case such as Shakespeare. The man's been
DEAD for how long now? And I'm not aware of any interviews he gave about
what he "meant."
Ran across a story once (wish I had a reference for it--blast) in which
someone was doing their orals for their degree (I believe a Masters but it
could've been a Ph.D.). The candidate used a favorite author's piece and
did the whole interpretation thing. Her committee said "wrong, wrong,
wrong" afterward.
So she wrote to the *author of the piece who wrote back and said "yes,
that's exactly what I meant."
The department's reaction?
They banned using living authors...
--
Mark K. Bilbo
.

User: "Doug Semler"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	07 Sep 2003 12:06:01 PM

At some point in the past, Mark K. Bilbo <iskanipa-y@hoo.com> slavered,
and posted this:

It's definitely questionable in a case such as Shakespeare. The man's
been DEAD for how long now? And I'm not aware of any interviews he
gave about what he "meant."

Ran across a story once (wish I had a reference for it--blast) in
which someone was doing their orals for their degree (I believe a
Masters but it could've been a Ph.D.). The candidate used a favorite
author's piece and did the whole interpretation thing. Her committee
said "wrong, wrong, wrong" afterward.

So she wrote to the *author of the piece who wrote back and said "yes,
that's exactly what I meant."

The department's reaction?

They banned using living authors...

Reminds me of the movie _Back to School_, when Rodney Dangerfield's
character used Kurt Vonnegut to write a paper on one of Vonnegut's books.
--
Doug Semler
http://home.wideopenwest.com/~doug_semler
a.a. #705, BAAWA. EAC Guardian of the Horn of the IPU (pbuhh).
I hate spam, standard email address munging applied.
42
DNRC o-
.

User: "Brian E. Clark"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	10 Sep 2003 01:31:02 PM

Ran across a story once (wish I had a reference for it--blast) in
which someone was doing their orals for their degree (I believe a
Masters but it could've been a Ph.D.). The candidate used a favorite
author's piece and did the whole interpretation thing. Her committee
said "wrong, wrong, wrong" afterward.

So she wrote to the *author of the piece who wrote back and said "yes,
that's exactly what I meant."

The department's reaction?

They banned using living authors..

Such stories sound suspiciously like urban legends.
I'm not denying the insanity of some corners of academia, of course, but
how does the above anecdote differ from the infamous "Atheist professor
who dropped the chalk" story?
--
-----------
Brian E. Clark
.

User: "Mark K. Bilbo"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	10 Sep 2003 05:18:32 PM

On Wed, 10 Sep 2003 18:31:02 +0000, Brian E. Clark wrote:

Such stories sound suspiciously like urban legends.

I'm not denying the insanity of some corners of academia, of course, but
how does the above anecdote differ from the infamous "Atheist professor
who dropped the chalk" story?

No, this was a person with a name and an actual school writing about
something that had happened to her.
If it's an urban legend, it's a unique one...
--
Mark K. Bilbo
.

User: "K Knight"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	07 Sep 2003 07:01:07 PM

Doug Semler <doug_semler@REMOVEMEwideopenwest.com> wrote in message
news:BZ-cna5DPr8Y-MaiXTWJjw@wideopenwest.com...

At some point in the past, Mark K. Bilbo <iskanipa-y@hoo.com> slavered,
and posted this:

Reminds me of the movie _Back to School_, when Rodney Dangerfield's
character used Kurt Vonnegut to write a paper on one of Vonnegut's books.

Reminded me of the scene in "Annie Hall" where Woody Allan is waiting in a
movie line-up and has to listen to some jerk rant on and on about the *true*
meaning of Marshall McLuhan's (sp?) work - so Woody hauls Marshall McLuhan
from off camera to tell the guy he's an idiot. Woody then faces the camera
and says "Don't you wish real life was like this?"
Kathy aa#1802
.

User: "Mark K. Bilbo"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	07 Sep 2003 09:04:27 PM

On Mon, 08 Sep 2003 00:01:07 +0000, K Knight wrote:

Doug Semler <doug_semler@REMOVEMEwideopenwest.com> wrote in message
news:BZ-cna5DPr8Y-MaiXTWJjw@wideopenwest.com...

At some point in the past, Mark K. Bilbo <iskanipa-y@hoo.com> slavered,
and posted this:

Reminds me of the movie _Back to School_, when Rodney Dangerfield's
character used Kurt Vonnegut to write a paper on one of Vonnegut's
books.

Reminded me of the scene in "Annie Hall" where Woody Allan is waiting in a
movie line-up and has to listen to some jerk rant on and on about the
*true* meaning of Marshall McLuhan's (sp?) work - so Woody hauls Marshall
McLuhan from off camera to tell the guy he's an idiot. Woody then faces
the camera and says "Don't you wish real life was like this?"

Yes, oh yes!
--
Mark K. Bilbo
.

User: "Robibnikoff"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	08 Sep 2003 09:09:01 AM

In article <pan.2003.09.08.02.04.26.648756@eac.org>, Mark K. Bilbo says...

On Mon, 08 Sep 2003 00:01:07 +0000, K Knight wrote:

Doug Semler <doug_semler@REMOVEMEwideopenwest.com> wrote in message
news:BZ-cna5DPr8Y-MaiXTWJjw@wideopenwest.com...

At some point in the past, Mark K. Bilbo <iskanipa-y@hoo.com> slavered,
and posted this:

Reminds me of the movie _Back to School_, when Rodney Dangerfield's
character used Kurt Vonnegut to write a paper on one of Vonnegut's
books.

Reminded me of the scene in "Annie Hall" where Woody Allan is waiting in a
movie line-up and has to listen to some jerk rant on and on about the
*true* meaning of Marshall McLuhan's (sp?) work - so Woody hauls Marshall
McLuhan from off camera to tell the guy he's an idiot. Woody then faces
the camera and says "Don't you wish real life was like this?"

Yes, oh yes!

LOL - You ain't kiddin'! :)
Robyn
Resident Witchypoo & EAC Spellcaster
#1557
.

User: "Mark K. Bilbo"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	07 Sep 2003 03:54:02 PM

On Sun, 07 Sep 2003 13:06:01 -0400, Doug Semler wrote:

At some point in the past, Mark K. Bilbo <iskanipa-y@hoo.com> slavered,
and posted this:

It's definitely questionable in a case such as Shakespeare. The man's
been DEAD for how long now? And I'm not aware of any interviews he gave
about what he "meant."

Ran across a story once (wish I had a reference for it--blast) in which
someone was doing their orals for their degree (I believe a Masters but
it could've been a Ph.D.). The candidate used a favorite author's piece
and did the whole interpretation thing. Her committee said "wrong,
wrong, wrong" afterward.

So she wrote to the *author of the piece who wrote back and said "yes,
that's exactly what I meant."

The department's reaction?

They banned using living authors...

Reminds me of the movie _Back to School_, when Rodney Dangerfield's
character used Kurt Vonnegut to write a paper on one of Vonnegut's books.

And got an "F" I presume?
(I never watch anything with Dangerfield in it)
--
Mark K. Bilbo
.

User: "Lord Calvert"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	07 Sep 2003 04:52:09 PM

Reminds me of the movie _Back to School_, when Rodney Dangerfield's
character used Kurt Vonnegut to write a paper on one of Vonnegut's books.

And got an "F" I presume?

(I never watch anything with Dangerfield in it)

After reviewing the paper the professor (Sally Kellerman) said, "You obviously
don't know Vonnegut."
Rich Goranson, Amherst, NY, USA (aa#MCMXCIX, a-vet#1)
EAC Ill-Legal Dept. "Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here"
"My country, right or wrong; to be defended when right and righted when wrong."
- Thomas Jefferson
.

User: "Robibnikoff"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	06 Sep 2003 11:39:56 AM

In article <pan.2003.09.06.14.14.09.680001@eac.org>, Mark K. Bilbo says...

On Fri, 05 Sep 2003 19:46:17 +0000, Robibnikoff wrote:

In article <7laflvgiqsq6jhgpo9rdjedbnofhvuh2cn@4ax.com>, Daniel Kolle
says...

"towelie" <bugoNOSPAM@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Be sure to keep us updated!

One thing I learned while getting my BA degree in English Lit is that it
would seem that the majority of English teachers are a fickle, and often
pompous, bunch. Once, as an experiment, I handed in the same paper to two
different creative writing professors - One gave me an A-, the other gave
me a D.

One main impression that I got is that what they mainly seem to want from
their students is not to be creative and develop new ideas, but to
parrot back their own. I took a course on Shakespeare from a very
popular professor and our first assignment was to analyze a passage from
Hamlet (he gave each student a specific passage). When I received back
my assignment, he'd written, "This is a very good essay - well thought
out and well written, but you're wrong. F".

SHEESH.

You ain't kidding. I knew this was a battle I wasn't going to win ;(

Needless to say, I dropped the class the following day ;P

As was imperative.

Sadly, true. And it was hard to get into one of this guy's classes. He had a
great personality and really had you on the edge of your seat. However, unless
you were a mind reader and knew HIS exact interpretation, b'bye.

I cannot STAND people like that. What does it mean to be "wrong" about
understanding literature? Oh there are parameters set by language to be
sure but so much of it is purely subjective. That's part of the game.

As much as I enjoyed taking literature classes and did end up majoring in it, I
soon realized that it was a "game". And in order to get a passing grade, you
had to play by that particular instructor's rules. This is why I ended up not
going into teaching - I didn't want to be like those jerks.

It's definitely questionable in a case such as Shakespeare. The man's been
DEAD for how long now? And I'm not aware of any interviews he gave about
what he "meant."

LOL, EXACTLY! I often wished that these long-dead authors could be resurrected
and questioned about their work.

Bastards

So she wrote to the *author of the piece who wrote back and said "yes,
that's exactly what I meant."

The department's reaction?

They banned using living authors...

Pardon the expression, but JESUS H. CHRIST!
Robyn
Resident Witchypoo & EAC Spellcaster
#1557
.

User: "Mark K. Bilbo"
Title: Re: Annoying Teachers	06 Sep 2003 02:51:56 PM

On Sat, 06 Sep 2003 16:39:56 +0000, Robibnikoff wrote:

In article <pan.2003.09.06.14.14.09.680001@eac.org>, Mark K. Bilbo says...

On Fri, 05 Sep 2003 19:46:17 +0000, Robibnikoff wrote:

In article <7laflvgiqsq6jhgpo9rdjedbnofhvuh2cn@4ax.com>, Daniel Kolle
says...

"towelie" <bugoNOSPAM@hotmail.com> thought hard and said:

Be sure to keep us updated!

One thing I learned while getting my BA degree in English Lit is that
it would seem that the majority of English teachers are a fickle, and
often pompous, bunch. Once, as an experiment, I handed in the same
paper to two different creative writing professors - One gave me an A-,
the other gave me a D.

One main impression that I got is that what they mainly seem to want
from their students is not to be creative and develop new ideas, but to
parrot back their own. I took a course on Shakespeare from a very
popular professor and our first assignment was to analyze a passage
from Hamlet (he gave each student a specific passage). When I received
back my assignment, he'd written, "This is a very good essay - well
thought out and well written, but you're wrong. F".

SHEESH.

You ain't kidding. I knew this was a battle I wasn't going to win ;(

Needless to say, I dropped the class the following day ;P

As was imperative.

Sadly, true. And it was hard to get into one of this guy's classes. He
had a great personality and really had you on the edge of your seat.
However, unless you were a mind reader and knew HIS exact interpretation,
b'bye.

AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
(Sorry, flash back)
Suddenly, I'm thinking about "Dr. Jane" (yes, that's what she wanted to be
called). Back at the intro seminar of the program I'm in. Oh so friendly
and outgoing and... controlling and condescending.
By the end of the seminar, I wanted to ask "what is this, Romper Room?"

As much as I enjoyed taking literature classes and did end up majoring in
it, I soon realized that it was a "game". And in order to get a passing
grade, you had to play by that particular instructor's rules. This is why
I ended up not going into teaching - I didn't want to be like those jerks.

Well, it doesn't have to be that way and not all of them are. But, wow, is
that particular profession just *rife with it.

It's definitely questionable in a case such as Shakespeare. The man's
been DEAD for how long now? And I'm not aware of any interviews he gave
about what he "meant."

LOL, EXACTLY! I often wished that these long-dead authors could be
resurrected and questioned about their work.

Bastards

So she wrote to the *author of the piece who wrote back and said "yes,
that's exactly what I meant."

The department's reaction?

They banned using living authors...

Pardon the expression, but JESUS H. CHRIST!

Ayup.
Somedays, academe...
(And, so help me, I could spend the rest of my life being an academic
type... there are just a *lot of them that need a 2x4 upside the head)
--
Mark K. Bilbo
.

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