A Whole 'Nother Campus; WS200
"I'm so done with _Thelma and Louise_!" me, venting
my frustrations that the film had to be dragged out until today
due to technical difficulties.
"I'm so done with the class!" the 65 year-old woman exclaimed.
"I'm sorry--but what does any of this have to do with feminist issues?!"
"Wow. Gee." I stuggle to remain composed. "Maybe if you had been
here the first day of class when I explained these connections
you'd understand better. Or maybe read the syllabus?"
"Even the book you have us reading [Toni Morrison's _Beloved_]
is all about slavery and blacks--not women--" she continued.
Next quarter? Instead of creating a reading packet,
incorporating film, analazing internet resources, etc.,
I shall: Assign one, single, $80 text "Feminist Issues."
Read Chapter one.
Read Chapter two.
Read Chapter three.
Test.
Repeat.
Her implied question? "If I'm here to get my degree, to get my money,
how is reading this book going to get me money? What does this black
literature have to do with me, with my success?"
Perhaps these are valid questions.
If I could put my index finger into a wall socket
and shock my brain back into academic curiosity concerning
my students and how best to teach them, I would.
posted by SquirrleyMojo @ 10:06 PM
3 Comments:
When I was a student, I actively sought out the teachers who creatively found ways to circumvent the drudgery of chapter one followed by chapter two followed by etc. If she's not smart enough to realize what you're doing [for her] then a degree isn't going to give her anything other than a new line on her resume.
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Clearly these sort have a very clear idea about what an education is, they're horribly wrong, and there very likely isn't a way short of electroshock that make them realize that the goal is dog-paddling towards enlightenment.
We'll never get there - the virtue is in the striving.
Wow, that sounds really presumptuous.
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