Here's how it works:
Mondays and Wednesdays are chaos. My first class is at the Farm at 8am. It runs until 9:15 and then, after asnwering students' questions that they didn't ask during class, I drive over to the Patch. There, I take care of office hours....of which students will never use so I can make tests and get grading done.......and I teach at 11:40. At 1, I let the group go, inhale lunch, put in the attendance & make sure I am out of the buidling before 1:30. Otherwise I will not make it to the 2:00 class back at the Farm. I have two classes back-to-back and then at 5:00 I race home to scarf down something that is supposed to be dinner and then run to the Patch to teach a 5:40 and an 8:15.
At the Farm, where I have all freshman, it is amazing. My 8am group are there. Only about three trickle in by 8:03. Not 8:10. Not 8:20. 8:03 is when the entire class is there with books open, notebooks at the ready, and pens uncapped.
I can say the same for my two afternoon classes. They are all on time for the afternoon hours. They are ready.
The work ethic is something out of a teaching textbook. They do the work. I mean they actually do the entire assignment. No gripes. No "Why?", "Are you serious?", or "When do you want me to do this because I ain't got time..." crap.
My EG 1 classes had to bring in their rough drafts for a first essay this past Wednesday. I did not announce it. The directions had been on the syllabus from Day One. I did not remind them, did not reread it to them, and did not post any announcements on a website for them. Combined, of the 55 students, only five came without it. The other fifty had it typed & ready to go. Those that didn't were so embarassed, asked to leave, and promised me a great essay on Monday.
The EG001 group completes all activities in a chapter. Even if I said only do certain ones. They are quick to provide answers, allowing me the luxury of never calling on anyone. When they get it wrong, another who got it right tries to explain the answer. ?????????????????????? It's like I am in a dream.
Then the nightmare begins. My EG 2 class in the Patch whined about 'having to reeeeeaaaaaaaaad". They 'don't wanna'. Hey~it's a literature class. What do you think is involved? Why bother attending college if you don't want to do the work?
At the Farm, they are all brand new. Freshman status. Mixed ethnicities. From all areas of LI and the 5 boroughs. Same at the Patch. So why such discrepencies in their attitudes and behaviors? Why such opposite work ethic?
Last night took the cake. I was teaching a 5:40 of my own & had to cover for a brand new adjunct. The ad. was out Tuesday and I went in, told the class to read Chapter 11, and sign the attendance. Some were thrilled that he was not present, saying 'he ain't got no clue what he's doin'". I said it was not polite to say such things & pointed out that he already passed EG1 and they have yet to do so.
Last night I went in and told them to answer the five questions at the end of an essay within that same chapter, as well as write a one-page descritpion from a selection at the end of the chapter. "Why?" "What's this for?" "We didn't read that essay. It wasn't part of the chapter." I pointed out that it is in the chapter and when an entire chapter is assigned, one must read the whole chapter. It is not at their discretion to decide what's important and what isn't.
They argued that they didn't know the vocabulary. I said that is their own fault for not defining it before coming to class. They gave the whole list: don't have time, don't own a dictionary, don't have a computer to look it up on dictionary.com, had other work to do, and the one said she's homeless and I can't expect anything of her.
So I said "How can you afford $15k a year if you are homeless? Yet you can't afford a $7 dictionary? Or to go to a library?" She repleis with "So what? You sayin' if I ain't got no home I can't go to college?" I pointed out that one should attend where they can afford. I couldn't have afforded the Patch when I went to school & I selected schools by how much I could afford to pay. Nevermind that she has brand new highlights, $100 jeans on, and a fancy phone with (I bet) a hefty bill each month. But can't afford a $7 dictionary?
It was such a waste. They did the work half-heartedly. They goofed off. One student came to me complaining that he couldn't do the work with the music playing and the phones ringing. And, keep in mind that these are adults. People who work all day. People who we think are mature and responsible.
Pathetic.
