Ok, so I need to gripe for just a minute here about the complete and utter lack of motivation, resourcefulness and independence in this generation's kids (pick any or all of them from age 5 onward).
NPR just ran a story about "Helicopter Parents" who not only micromanaged every moment of their child's 1-18 years of life, but continued through college and even into the job search and interview processes. Unfortunately, it isn't just the children of these so-called heli-parents who are incapable of sorting life out on their own: it's most of the students today.
I constantly bit my tongue to keep from saying something condescending, rude or sarcastic when students ask me questions that are obvious, that I've answered in the preceding 30 seconds, or are easily answerable with just a little bit of thought and elbow grease. There is such a thing as a stupid question. I once joked that in all of my classrooms, I would like to post a sign saying: "STOP before you ask, and 1. Look around, 2. Ask a Neighbor, or 3. Use Your Resources." So many of the questions students ask me are already written in black and white on the syllabus, could be answered simply by observing the students around them, or simply applying some common sense.
Perhaps because my parents had no patience for dumb, or easily self-answered questions, neither do I. I firmly believe that before asking a question, a person should strive to answer it herself first. If we answer our own questions we actually tend to internalize more of the answer, as opposed to minimally digesting what someone else tells us. Not to mention that answering one's own question saves the rest of the people around her the time it takes to listen to her and the answer. Of course, some questions are genuinely useful to all the members of the learning community, and I LIKE those!
I am home sick today, but thanks to the miracle of Internet and technology, I am still holding class, albeit via Blackboard Learn. I put together a reading quiz on Blackboard that my students are to take within the 50 minutes of class time. Some students emailed me because there was a glitch with the quiz and it was trying to require a password (even though I had initially set it not to need one--apparently I changed the settings while editing the quiz)--fine, good reason to email. However, other students simply emailed me that "I and my classmates could not take the quiz because it required Respondus Lockdown Browser." Not, "Professor G, how do I use Respondus Lockdown Browser?," but "I can't take it." Not one student actually looked in the Course Tools menu to find the Respondus browser (which basically restricts students to Blackboard, so they cannot venture off into Google-land to find answers for the test or quiz).
I fully intend to reward the students who responsibly attempted to take the quiz within the class time, so long as they attempted to take it, and did not just tell me how they were not able to, even though they still had 30 minutes of class time left.
I find that I have a low, if not nonexistent, tolerance for laziness and lack of resourcefulness. Unfortunately, it seems that both are endemic in students right now.
It's a hard thing to teach resourcefulness to an adult. In children you learn by suffering consequences and being challenged, yet encouraged by your parents. The consequences and challenges have a bigger impact as adults.
ReplyDeleteI gave my first test in my freshman nsg class this week. 4 people passed it (out of 25). The range of grades is 34-79. Quite disappointing. I thought to myself, "Is it me? Is my test too hard? Did I not teach well enough?"
I haven't been using PowerPoint this semester. I've been using more active learning strategies, which got me thinking, "Should I go back to PowerPoint?" But its SO freaking boring and... done. I just can't rely on it, soley.
After looking at the test again, I've decided I was fair. (I used a VERY similar test last year and had better results.) Ultimately I think this is a learning experience and a wake-up call for some of my girls. A high standard must be held when it comes to the ones who are responsible for people's lives! The consequence I hold in my power is not letting this sort of behavior get into today's nursing workforce!
AS