The Good, The Bad, and The Terminally Unhip

Those of you who have read this blog in the past and those of you who have spent five minutes in my company will know my fondness for speaking to your professors. That being the case, I thought it might be high time to get to know those denizens of the deep who enslave you for months at a time...

The Good: Yes, they are out there (just like the truth...or versions of Return of the Jedi that still include the "yub-yub" song). A "good" professor, doesn't necessarily mean an "easy" professor. "Good" professors challenge you. They help you make the connections between specific things and abstract concepts. They are engaging in a classroom setting and they feel comfortable with their material. Good professors get excited by what they are talking about--they are passionate and dynamic and they actually give a crap about their students. If you start off doing well in their class and then do poorly...they're going to ask you what's going on and if there is anything they can do to help. A good professor will make him or herself available to you. They will give you pointers on your writing, on your study skills. Good professors can become good career advisors down the line so make use of them when you find them!

The Bad: Like it or not, you're going to have bad professors. I try to help my students limit their contact with bad professors because, well hell, I wouldn't want to take a class with them either. But here's the thing; you CAN learn from bad professors. The obvious thing is for anyone out there who wants to teach. Think about the ways that your bad professor speaks to his or her students. Observing classroom dynamics is one of the first things that a young teacher needs to do in order to learn. Take all of the bad traits...and then do the opposite! Take all of the good traits and model your teaching style after those! But we can also be a bit more creative (for those of you who are horrified by the very thought of teaching). Did your bad professor give you a grade you feel you didn't deserve? Use this as an opportunity to learn how to negotiate difficult personalities. Approach the professor with a question, rather than a demand. (Good Approach: "Would it be possible for me to speak to you during your office hours about the last exam? I had some questions about my responses that I would really like to clarify just for my own understanding." Bad Approach: "Hey douchebag, you graded my test wrong! I deserve partial credit on, like, five of these questions!") You know as well as I do that there are people in this world who are generally unsatisfied with their lot in life, are just killing time until they retire, or are so territorial about the things they know (or their job in general) that they might as well pee all over everything in their path. Learning to be smart about your dealings with these people is one of the greatest learning experiences you can have during your first year of school.

The Terminally Unhip: This category has only come into existence within the last few years. I realize that I'm dating myself horribly by telling you that we didn't have things like Blackboard, or iPods when I was in school (we barely had the internet), but professors who are not making use of these tools are just the tip of the "unhip" iceberg. Utilizing technology is incredibly helpful in the classroom setting. Facebook has become one of my favorite tools to help me stay in touch with my students (who often will NOT check their university e-mail). Online course components frequently make professors' jobs easier--but they have to be willing to maintain the technology. If your professor isn't utilizing Blackboard to post your grades, you need to be a LOT more proactive about your attendance. Do you have a folder or notebook for the class? Each time you are absent, write down the date (that way, if there is ever a discrepency, you have a record! Even better, e-mail the teacher or TA and inform them that you missed class and find out if you missed anything. Remember that e-mails are date and time stamped!) If the professor does not allow you to keep your graded work, make sure you write down what grades you're getting, as you get them! The other aspect of this category is the professor who tries to be "cool." They're the ones who make the bad jokes and use the slang that stopped being cool 5 years ago...and they do it with such earnest intensity that you cringe each time they open their mouths. (For instance: My bosses--two of the whitest white guys ever put on this planet--wrote a textbook for students having academic "difficulty". The book is filled with a lot of good advice, but students lose faith in it when they are asked to rate the study strategies on the basis of whether or not it would "rock my world". Not kidding.) When faced with professors like this, I want to beg them not to try so hard--but at least you can laugh at them.

There is one more category I would be remiss if I did not mention here. Though not an official designation of professor, I think I need to talk about TAs. The Teaching Assistant is another one of those time-honored university traditions that you aren't going to be able to escape. Here's what you should know: 1). TA's are only sometimes paid. More often than not, being a TA is something students do for the learning experience. They think they are being favored by Professor X...in reality, they are going to end up doing the bulk of the work, while handling all of their graduate course work, and not getting paid. 2). TA's are still learning. Very few programs actually teach graduate students the art of pedagogy (teaching) and developing your personal teaching style takes time! 3). TA's are young. This might seem like a benefit...and it can be, but all too often, TA's feel like they have to overcompensate for their age by being extra strict. They don't want to be taken advantage of by people closer to their age, so they act like asses. TA's often make the mistake of walking into a classroom and demanding respect, instead of assuming that the respect is already there (or will be earned quickly through fair practices).

I made all of these mistakes (and probably a lot more) when I was a TA--so remember that there is room for improvement. I learned pretty quickly that my passion for certain subjects wasn't something that everyone was going to enjoy--that wasn't my fault and it wasn't theirs either. Be open to new ideas and don't place blame (unless someone is being a douche...then you can blame as much as you want).

Oh, and one final note. I've written before about using sites like www.ratemyprofessor.com and I stick by that. Post your responses to classes, both good and bad...but be fair in your posts! If there was something you could have done to make the class better, you might not want to say that the professor was a jerk (and for the love of god--stop using the freaking chili pepper function on the site! A professor's relative hotness has nothing to do with your learning potential). And you might want to check out MTVu sometime. The Professors Strike Back section is getting a lot of hits lately...with good reason.

Choice

I'll be honest with you, the last two weeks have been really hard. My emotions always tend to ebb and flow with the behaviors of my students and my students have been going through some difficult experiences of late.

I have long had an absolute passion for the written word (hence, this blog). I make my living with words and choosing the right things to say to make someone feel better is as much a part of my daily life as eating or breathing. Some words hold a bigger significance than others. There are words that always make me laugh ("kumquat" for instance. I mean, really? Say it to yourself a few times. I bet you start laughing.) And then there are words that are so inevitably powerful, my fists clench when I think them. Like the word, "choice."

My students have been making some difficult choices lately, and some have had their choices taken away from them. I have two incredibly bright, talented students who are no longer in school through no fault of their own. These students made every effort to remain in school for as long as they could because learning (another powerful word) was important to them. I think about both of them every day and I hope that they will return as soon as they possibly can, because they have impossibly bright futures ahead of them.

I have some other students who chose to challenge themselves this semester. They took bad situations, struggles, and academic difficulties, and they stood up to all of it. These students refused to allow a bad start to determine the outcome of their education. They have worked harder this semester than I ever thought possible. When they get a bad grade, these students experience a momentary setback...and then they try again. They fall and then they stand up again. How many people do you know in your life who can do that? I would rather work with a student who is motivated to succeed, rather than a student with all of the god-given talent in the world, because the motivated student will work until they drop.

But I also have students who have "checked out." I have students this semester who stopped caring, who are just coasting through, who don't know what they want and can't get motivated enough to find out, who would rather sit around and smoke pot than read a book. Please don't get me wrong. It's ok if you don't know what you want to do...as long as you are actively seeking an answer! It's easy to get bogged down in hopelessness when you feel completely adrift, but why would you wallow in that? And yes, I understand the need to kick back with the recreational substances (I am the last person to lecture anyone on that subject), but when "recreation" becomes your full time job, your priorities are clearly out of alignment.

Let me ask those of you who have "checked out" a question: why are you wasting your time? Can you write down exactly how you spend every hour of every day? If you have big dreams (and don't tell me you don't have goals, because that's bullshit) do you really think that sitting on your ass is going to help you accomplish those dreams? If you're in college right now, why aren't you taking advantage of the opportunity? You (or your parents) are probably paying quite a bit of money for your time in school. Why are you wasting that money? If you truly, honestly, do NOT want to be in school, then you need to sit down with your parents and lay it out for them, point by point, how you're going to spend your life and how you're going to make money. If you can't do that, then start taking advantage of what is right in front of you, because you aren't ready to be on your own just yet (not being able to have a "grown up" conversation with your parents is a major sign of that...yes, it's scary, but you have to do it if you want this.)

If you're in school and you aren't leaving any time soon, maybe a change is in order. If you aren't happy in your major, switch to undeclared until you figure out the thing that really makes you happy. But sitting around waiting for life to happen to you isn't getting you anywhere. Yes, you should experience friends, and parties, and relationships, and all of the other social things that go along with college--but not to the complete exclusion of the act of learning. The whole purpose of these four (or five) years is to start forming that person you will be as an adult. I can't say that I've met many college freshman who start their first year saying, "I want to be a deadbeat who gets fired from every minimum wage job he gets and has no outside interests and can't form coherent thoughts!" Because that is the pattern you're setting.

I cannot make these choices for you. I can help you talk out your thoughts about your career and the places you see yourself going. I can help make those academic classes more bearable. But I can't do any of that until you are honest with yourself. What do you really want from your education? What do you hope to gain from all of this? Don't dodge the question, don't evade it. You don't have to tell me the answers, but you sure as hell have to be clear about them in your own head.

"Choose (verb): 1) to select from a number of possibilities. 2) to prefer or decide; to pick by preference. 3) to want; desire."

The acting of choosing is not passive. You cannot "select," "decide," or "desire" without some action on your part. Allowing someone else to make decisions for you is NOT choosing...it is inaction. And at a time in your life when you are forming yourself, inaction is deadly.

The Other Side of the Coin

Every year, the Office of Academic Advising distributes surveys to each student who enters our office. The purpose of these surveys is simple: ensure that we are providing our students with accurate information and that they are being well served by their advisors.

My bosses use a marketing centered approach to all of this stuff (surveys to judge student reactions, focus groups to gage response to new programs, numbers driven incentives) because we are, for all intents and purposes, in a service industry. As an advisor, I provide a service to my students. I wouldn't do this job if I didn't clearly understand that fact and if I didn't enjoy providing that service.

Unfortunately, that is not the prevailing attitude in my department (or in all of the departments across the university). I could very easily point a finger (likely the middle one) at several departments with sticks permanently planted in orifices where they were never intended to go, but we need to address the bigger problem. We are currently residing in a consumer driven environment. You, as students, are paying for your education, so you are entitled to the best service possible. Yes, there are times when your parents (who are probably paying for a portion of the aforementioned education) will step forward and demand that service on your behalf. But ask yourself who benefits?

Your parents have already completed their educations. You are the one who will be earning this degree, you are the one who sits in the classes and earns the grades. It is absolutely vital that you take ownership of your education NOW.

The first step is filling out surveys like the one my office distributes. If you don't tell us how we're doing, we can't make improvements. I know that filling out surveys is a giant pain in the ass. I usually fill out surveys in only two circumstances: 1) if I received great service or, 2) the worst service known to mankind. Use things like surveys to make yourself heard...don't just assume that someone else is going to do it!

The next step is, well, raising hell. If you're told something that doesn't seem right or you feel as if you're being disrespected, tell someone! Go to that person's supervisor and explain what happened. Be polite as possible but make sure that you make yourself heard. You all know that I am a huge fan of "covering one's ass". Well, this is a perfect example. If you have documentation or, better yet, witnesses, bring them to your meeting. No one should be allowed to get away with treating you badly! Most departments will make adjustments to keep you happy (my office will switch your advisor if you are seriously dissatisfied).

When you do find someone who knows what they're talking about, don't let go! I have a select few people that I constantly call when I need help, because I know that they're going to go out of their way to assist my students (one of whom has moved to our remote campus--he STILL answers all of my students questions whenever I ask!)

While all of the above is completely true, you still need to be reasonable. We all have bad days and sometimes allowances have to be made. Every department here at VCU is required to have training in customer service (important tenents include: not ignoring students while making personal phone calls, answering phones clearly and with a smile, asking if you can put someone on hold, returning e-mails and phone calls promptly, etc.) If these things don't get done, try politeness first. If that doesn't work, then you're clear to get cranky. I find it absolutely unacceptable for people to ignore students while they hold personal conversations, but that's one of my pet peeves. A lot of the other things are basic manners and I try to remember that not everyone was raised the same way I was and cut them some slack.

Sometimes there are good reasons for the things we do...here are some examples of survey responses:
1). "My advisor had so many students under her that despite all the times she told us she knew our names, she called me by a completely different name than mine every time she spoke with me." Ok, I hope it helps this student to know that the advisor in question still hasn't managed to learn my name after knowing me for four years. We do have a lot of students (150-200 students per advisor) but that doesn't mean we shouldn't make an effort to know you. What helps is if we actually SEE you on a regular basis!

2). "My current advisor is amazing and extremely helpful. During Summer orientation, however, the advisor told me that UNIV 101 was required and that's definitely not true. I ended up taking it and didn't benefit much from it." I am really glad that this student likes their current advisor, but clearly we're all worried about that second sentence. Students are being randomly assigned into classes...being lied to by advisors? No. Some students were required to take the UNIV 101 class (which, if this student is listening, was just as much of a pain to teach as it was to sit in). The problem is that this requirement was apparently not communicated clearly to the student. Summer Orientation is, for lack of a better phrase, a giant clusterfuck. New students and shuffled from location to location and are given so much new information that it is virtually impossible for them to remember everything. Some advisors rushed through the explanation process. On behalf of all of us...our bad.

3). "The classes I was told to take at the beginning of the fall semester were incorrect." Ahh. This is the kind of comment that my boss absolutely hates reading. It means that we're giving students incorrect information...and incorrect information is the mortal enemy (the Darth Vader, if you will) of the academic advisor. Here's the thing. We try really hard to stay on top of all of the curriculum changes (and there are a LOT), but we're going to make mistakes. A good advisor will admit to making a mistake and will do what they can to correct it, not leave the student to bear all of the responsibility alone.

4). "Not helpful at all. Does not respond to e-mails even when it is labeled as urgent." Oh dear. I don't want to discriminate here, but this one can be tied directly to the age of the advisor. Some of our "older" advisors are not as comfortable with the advances in technology as they probably should be (my office has just started an initiative to get all of our advisors on Facebook...the howls of terror that could be heard from some of the advisors were rather humorous). So, to be fair, most of these advisors wouldn't even recognize that you've flagged an e-mail as "urgent."