Question from a college frosh

Consolation
Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:39:15 +0000

How about auditing the other section of the class if you need more help with the material? I thought that was an excellent suggestion. Forming a study group is another good step.

Having mommy-the-lawyer call the school is a lousy solution that will reflect poorly on you and on her.

But apparently we should all save our breath to cool our porridge, as the saying goes. I certainly hope that the dean doesn’t cave in to threats. (I also hope that the dean addresses the efficacy of this teaching model with the professor for the future.)

But I have seen, as a result of my H teaching as an adjunct at a less-than-stellar local Catholic college, that such schools admit many students who have no idea HOW to be a student. Even though failing a math class, they will simply copy answers from the back of the book for their homework, rather than actually attempting to work the problems. Given a review for a final in which PRECISELY the same problems that appear on the final, but with different numeric values, are covered, half of them still flunk the final and many of those complain that the material on the final “wasn’t taught” in class! The few students whose homework papers showed evidence of actually working the problems were–not surprisingly–the few students who actually passed the class with respectable grades.

I suggest that you try taking your learning into your own hands in this difficult situation. It will stand you in good stead later.