How students still manages to surprise me
Well, this semester started with an unusual situation. Journalistic Documentation, a class I taught for the last two years, was finally out of my hands. I say “finally”, because I never really liked that subject. Of course documentation is very important in journalistic work, but it’s a little too much dedicate an entire semester to it. I’ve always thought that Documentation (affectionally called “Docu”) should be a unit within other course, Reporter Techniques, perhaps.
Besides, Docu is a class for first year students… and they are, well, difficult to handle. They’re like puppies: funny, cute even… but messy, annoying, noisy and totally lacking in discipline. They chat in class (out loud) or they surf the web while the professor is talking and in general, they have this attitude that says “Old woman, I really don’t care at all about what you’re saying”.
The first time I taught a class to first year students, it was a nightmare. Now, I manage them pretty easily: the key, I think, it’s to be strict but funny. Meaning, if I see one of my students kissing a classmate while I’m talking, instead of screaming in rage I make fun of them and I say, in a light tone: Come on, gentleman, I’m sure you can wait until I finish my class to make out with the young lady, right? And there’s some nice, secluded spots outside where you’ll be comfy and hidden from indiscrete looks…”. Then the whole class laughs, including the students, which are also a little embarrassed. Ta-daaa! ^_^
Oh, but I digress. What I wanted to say is that Docu is a class that requires an enormous amount of time, effort and energy so I was happy when they told me it was going back to the original professor (I was merely replacing him while he finished his PhD). But then, a day before the first class, they told me that the other professor was going to teach only a section of Docu and if I could handle the other two groups. I said yes, of course, but the truth is I was a little overwhelmed: I had two other subjects to teach, with many students too.
Anyway, I started Docu fuming against the awful organization in this School of Journalism, against my colleague that left me stuck with most of HIS class and of course against first year students who are unrulier every year (or perhaps it's me that's older and meaner every year???? XDXD).
And a couple of weeks later, I was offered the chance to give one of my other courses to another professor. She was doing only two hours of classes, which is not enough for a full time professor. I said no. Because the class they want me to give up to was for fifth year students and a delight to teach. On top of that several students had told me that they choose that class specifically because I was the one teaching it. So I didn’t think it was fair to abandon them to other professor… who was low on class hours because one of her courses was cancelled for lack of students. (There were three optional courses for fifth year students: hers, another colleague’s and… mine’s, so in truth, she didn’t have students because they preferred me and the other professor to her).
And then they asked me if they could offer her Docu. Of course I said yes! After all, none of the first year students really knew me, so they wouldn’t be disappointed if I didn’t teach that course… or so I thought. When I announced them they were going to have another professor there was booing and negative screams. They actually asked me not to leave. I said goodbye to them… and yes, I felt sad because after several classes I already knew many of them, and I kinda liked them already… That's me, I complain but I grow fond of my students incredibly fast...
But I didn’t know the also liked ME. I got facebook messages telling me “Please, please, think about it… don’t leave us…” “Goodbye, ex-professor… :’(“ and emails telling me how sad they were and that many of them chose specifically those sections of Docu because I was in charge of them. One of my fifth year students told me the other day “Profe, that’s because the students asked about you and everybody told them good things”.
And apparently they hate their new teacher. Every day, really EVERY DAY one of my former Docu students approaches me to complain about why I left them, that the new professor is no fun at all, that her classes are boring, she’s so distant and she screams at them and she scolds them constantly and criticize them in a very rude way.
Well, I know the professor in question very well. In fact, I love her dearly, she’s kinda my adoptive mother and I worked with her many years as her T.A. I’m sad to see the students don’t like her. She’s not a bad person at all, she can be sweet and funny. It seems to me she doesn’t know how to handle first year students, so she reacts in a hard way to them.
But I have to confess that I’m also so flattered and really surprised to see that my students seem to think so highly of me. I never dreamt of that. I'm touched, truly touched. That's why students never cease to surprise me. God, I love my job.
In other news, Concepción is under a HUGE STORM. Streets are flooded, roofs are flying, there's thunder and lightning and hail going on for HOURS. I haven't seen a storm so strong in many years. In fact, the University is closing due to bad weather. So I better get going now.
If this rain stops, tomorrow Rodri, Connie and I will travel to Curanilahue: yesterday Edita's daughter was born. The first granddaughter of Uncle Mingo. I know he's watching her with a smile on his face, but I would have preferred to see that warm smile and to share his happiness...
Besides, Docu is a class for first year students… and they are, well, difficult to handle. They’re like puppies: funny, cute even… but messy, annoying, noisy and totally lacking in discipline. They chat in class (out loud) or they surf the web while the professor is talking and in general, they have this attitude that says “Old woman, I really don’t care at all about what you’re saying”.
The first time I taught a class to first year students, it was a nightmare. Now, I manage them pretty easily: the key, I think, it’s to be strict but funny. Meaning, if I see one of my students kissing a classmate while I’m talking, instead of screaming in rage I make fun of them and I say, in a light tone: Come on, gentleman, I’m sure you can wait until I finish my class to make out with the young lady, right? And there’s some nice, secluded spots outside where you’ll be comfy and hidden from indiscrete looks…”. Then the whole class laughs, including the students, which are also a little embarrassed. Ta-daaa! ^_^
Oh, but I digress. What I wanted to say is that Docu is a class that requires an enormous amount of time, effort and energy so I was happy when they told me it was going back to the original professor (I was merely replacing him while he finished his PhD). But then, a day before the first class, they told me that the other professor was going to teach only a section of Docu and if I could handle the other two groups. I said yes, of course, but the truth is I was a little overwhelmed: I had two other subjects to teach, with many students too.
Anyway, I started Docu fuming against the awful organization in this School of Journalism, against my colleague that left me stuck with most of HIS class and of course against first year students who are unrulier every year (or perhaps it's me that's older and meaner every year???? XDXD).
And a couple of weeks later, I was offered the chance to give one of my other courses to another professor. She was doing only two hours of classes, which is not enough for a full time professor. I said no. Because the class they want me to give up to was for fifth year students and a delight to teach. On top of that several students had told me that they choose that class specifically because I was the one teaching it. So I didn’t think it was fair to abandon them to other professor… who was low on class hours because one of her courses was cancelled for lack of students. (There were three optional courses for fifth year students: hers, another colleague’s and… mine’s, so in truth, she didn’t have students because they preferred me and the other professor to her).
And then they asked me if they could offer her Docu. Of course I said yes! After all, none of the first year students really knew me, so they wouldn’t be disappointed if I didn’t teach that course… or so I thought. When I announced them they were going to have another professor there was booing and negative screams. They actually asked me not to leave. I said goodbye to them… and yes, I felt sad because after several classes I already knew many of them, and I kinda liked them already… That's me, I complain but I grow fond of my students incredibly fast...
But I didn’t know the also liked ME. I got facebook messages telling me “Please, please, think about it… don’t leave us…” “Goodbye, ex-professor… :’(“ and emails telling me how sad they were and that many of them chose specifically those sections of Docu because I was in charge of them. One of my fifth year students told me the other day “Profe, that’s because the students asked about you and everybody told them good things”.
And apparently they hate their new teacher. Every day, really EVERY DAY one of my former Docu students approaches me to complain about why I left them, that the new professor is no fun at all, that her classes are boring, she’s so distant and she screams at them and she scolds them constantly and criticize them in a very rude way.
Well, I know the professor in question very well. In fact, I love her dearly, she’s kinda my adoptive mother and I worked with her many years as her T.A. I’m sad to see the students don’t like her. She’s not a bad person at all, she can be sweet and funny. It seems to me she doesn’t know how to handle first year students, so she reacts in a hard way to them.
But I have to confess that I’m also so flattered and really surprised to see that my students seem to think so highly of me. I never dreamt of that. I'm touched, truly touched. That's why students never cease to surprise me. God, I love my job.
In other news, Concepción is under a HUGE STORM. Streets are flooded, roofs are flying, there's thunder and lightning and hail going on for HOURS. I haven't seen a storm so strong in many years. In fact, the University is closing due to bad weather. So I better get going now.
If this rain stops, tomorrow Rodri, Connie and I will travel to Curanilahue: yesterday Edita's daughter was born. The first granddaughter of Uncle Mingo. I know he's watching her with a smile on his face, but I would have preferred to see that warm smile and to share his happiness...