righteous anger? more like whining and proselytzing the youth.
So it's common knowledge that the UC's are in a friggin' big crisis because our budget is getting cut (hacked to pieces, really). One way this is affecting me (I find more and more reasons every day) is that our class sizes are getting bigger. Classes that are called seminars are not truly seminars anymore. Introductory classes are packed beyond capacity. Basically, we have more students than our faculty are capable of handling.
Instead of hiring more awesome faculty, or promoting the talented people that we have as lecturers, the administration's solution is to increase class sizes.
This sucks. For many reasons (less interaction with the professor, crowded classrooms, less discussion). As I sat in one of my so called seminars today something new struck me. If my seminar, which is supposed to hold 16-18 students at most, is over crowded with 20-30 people then less people get to talk.
This is especially difficult if your professor is a big talker and the lecture portion of class is curtailed. There's nothing wrong with a professor teaching, mind you, but because of the great number of students time has also become a hard-to-come-by commodity. If we're all trying our best to speak up in class, every moment counts.
Often, our moment doesn't come. By sheer numbers, we can't all speak up very often in class. Take into account that some talk more than others and their tendencies unfortunately become a monopoly of the discussion floor. Other students are marginalized and their voices are heard less often, if at all.
This contributes to the growing number of students who simply pass through university without getting to know a professor individually, or graduating without a sense of being a part of their university's intellectual community.
Part of my dissatisfaction and disillusionment with the UC's (which is deeply affecting my view of academia as well) is because I'm beginning to feel like my voice will never be heard in class. This is partly, maybe mostly, my fault because I naturally don't talk that much. Still, what did I come to university for? It was to join a community of thinkers. A community has dialogue and, ideally, seeks to incorporate the view points of its members. In a community, you shouldn't be a nameless face or another essay to grade.
Not to over use a quote from a TV show, but a community is where "everybody knows your name."
If all these fiscal and economic factors affect the time allotted for you to discuss readings in class, I think everyone suffers. ~~~
Blagh. I hope I make sense. I just felt really angry coming home, but touched that someone said that every time I speak in class they listen.
I realized a bit later that she was the one who got to share her views on the text, not me.
Instead of hiring more awesome faculty, or promoting the talented people that we have as lecturers, the administration's solution is to increase class sizes.
This sucks. For many reasons (less interaction with the professor, crowded classrooms, less discussion). As I sat in one of my so called seminars today something new struck me. If my seminar, which is supposed to hold 16-18 students at most, is over crowded with 20-30 people then less people get to talk.
This is especially difficult if your professor is a big talker and the lecture portion of class is curtailed. There's nothing wrong with a professor teaching, mind you, but because of the great number of students time has also become a hard-to-come-by commodity. If we're all trying our best to speak up in class, every moment counts.
Often, our moment doesn't come. By sheer numbers, we can't all speak up very often in class. Take into account that some talk more than others and their tendencies unfortunately become a monopoly of the discussion floor. Other students are marginalized and their voices are heard less often, if at all.
This contributes to the growing number of students who simply pass through university without getting to know a professor individually, or graduating without a sense of being a part of their university's intellectual community.
Part of my dissatisfaction and disillusionment with the UC's (which is deeply affecting my view of academia as well) is because I'm beginning to feel like my voice will never be heard in class. This is partly, maybe mostly, my fault because I naturally don't talk that much. Still, what did I come to university for? It was to join a community of thinkers. A community has dialogue and, ideally, seeks to incorporate the view points of its members. In a community, you shouldn't be a nameless face or another essay to grade.
Not to over use a quote from a TV show, but a community is where "everybody knows your name."
If all these fiscal and economic factors affect the time allotted for you to discuss readings in class, I think everyone suffers. ~~~
Blagh. I hope I make sense. I just felt really angry coming home, but touched that someone said that every time I speak in class they listen.
I realized a bit later that she was the one who got to share her views on the text, not me.