Update: I just received an email with an apology and explanation from a student described below. See, a smile does work! :)
I am still struggling with a group of students I blogged about recently. Thankfully, I don't get as many confused emails and/or looks as I have gotten before but, for goodness sakes, I am giving directions in class, repeating directions in class, and then emailing those directions! Still, can't get through to some students... Are they just lazy, stubborn, or what???
A couple of them are rude, too... We tried online chat today and one student became impatient. I was explaining a concept and didn't answer his/her question right away. It was rude to interrupt my presentation with a question anyway but then, less than a minute later, this person interrupted again, "Will you answer my question?" Honestly, I was seething but kept smiling and typing in the remainder of my explanation. Then I responded to him/her with "I will, in a sec." I made a point of not responding to his/her question until I have answered other students' questions who were following directions and asked questions when prompted. Then I typed in "Here is an answer to your question, Stu..." and included a smiley.
We proceeded with class discussion and I responded to one of the questions with a short joke. I am not the type of person who goes into useless talk and forgets what needs to be discussed. Yet, the same student interrupted rudely with "Will you get back on track?" I responded, with a smiley and "Lighten up, Stu!" Other students cheered and told him/her to relax and enjoy the chat instead of being so sour.
At the end, when I asked if they had any questions and/or concerns about the assignment they were about to complete, this student decided to make the final point, so s/he responded with "I am still confused." O.K! My response was "I am still taking questions so how can I help?" Obviously, s/he did not expect a polite response and so did say anything for a minute or so... Then s/he admitted: "Well, I guess I know how to do it." Alrighty then! I responded with a cheerful "Email if you have any questions" and congratulated myself on keeping cool and not saying anything I would regret later.
However, I did not like this exchange and I won't be surprised if it shows up in my end-of-semester evaluation. This student was testing me and picking up the fight, obviously. It's really not that big of a deal, I guess, but it left an uncomforable feeling... I hope my response made a point and I won't have to deal with this student again. I have plenty going on in my life right now and petty issues like this one are very annoying.
"Know that a smile will rally many to thy cause, while a frown would drive all away."
--Edgar Cayce
I am still struggling with a group of students I blogged about recently. Thankfully, I don't get as many confused emails and/or looks as I have gotten before but, for goodness sakes, I am giving directions in class, repeating directions in class, and then emailing those directions! Still, can't get through to some students... Are they just lazy, stubborn, or what???
A couple of them are rude, too... We tried online chat today and one student became impatient. I was explaining a concept and didn't answer his/her question right away. It was rude to interrupt my presentation with a question anyway but then, less than a minute later, this person interrupted again, "Will you answer my question?" Honestly, I was seething but kept smiling and typing in the remainder of my explanation. Then I responded to him/her with "I will, in a sec." I made a point of not responding to his/her question until I have answered other students' questions who were following directions and asked questions when prompted. Then I typed in "Here is an answer to your question, Stu..." and included a smiley.
We proceeded with class discussion and I responded to one of the questions with a short joke. I am not the type of person who goes into useless talk and forgets what needs to be discussed. Yet, the same student interrupted rudely with "Will you get back on track?" I responded, with a smiley and "Lighten up, Stu!" Other students cheered and told him/her to relax and enjoy the chat instead of being so sour.
At the end, when I asked if they had any questions and/or concerns about the assignment they were about to complete, this student decided to make the final point, so s/he responded with "I am still confused." O.K! My response was "I am still taking questions so how can I help?" Obviously, s/he did not expect a polite response and so did say anything for a minute or so... Then s/he admitted: "Well, I guess I know how to do it." Alrighty then! I responded with a cheerful "Email if you have any questions" and congratulated myself on keeping cool and not saying anything I would regret later.
However, I did not like this exchange and I won't be surprised if it shows up in my end-of-semester evaluation. This student was testing me and picking up the fight, obviously. It's really not that big of a deal, I guess, but it left an uncomforable feeling... I hope my response made a point and I won't have to deal with this student again. I have plenty going on in my life right now and petty issues like this one are very annoying.
"Know that a smile will rally many to thy cause, while a frown would drive all away."
--Edgar Cayce
No comments:
Post a Comment