Xref: utzoo comp.edu:1559 sci.math:5112 sci.physics:5156 Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!whuts!homxb!homxc!bgt From: bgt@homxc.UUCP (B.TONGUE) Newsgroups: comp.edu,sci.math,sci.physics Subject: Re: Student and Course Integrity (was Rising cost of textbooks) Summary: alternatives Message-ID: <4550@homxc.UUCP> Date: 12 Dec 88 18:18:14 GMT References: <4526@homxc.UUCP> <6388@killer.DALLAS.TX.US> Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Holmdel Lines: 72 In article <6388@killer.DALLAS.TX.US>, elg@killer.DALLAS.TX.US (Eric Green) writes: > in article <4526@homxc.UUCP>, bgt@homxc.UUCP (B.TONGUE) says: > > This is a double-edged sword. The potential is there, but it > > cannot be solely the professor's duty to offer support - students > > must be receptive as well. I remember one of my professors > > offering extended office hours after 1/2 half of the class > > failed the first hourly (senior-level course) - not one person > > showed up! Great incentive for a continued interest in "reaching" > > the students! One of my meetings concerned "Departmental Policies - > > voice your concerns!" Six students showed up, and four of us > > were the officers! With those kind of conditions, it's under- > > standable that professors at times believe the students couldn't > > care less - it's admirably demonstrated time and time again. > > Note that the average student of today is NOT the average student of > 20 years ago. I am 24 years old, work, and live in a house 3 miles > from campus. While I try to go to each instructor's office at least > once during office hours during the semester, often that simply IS NOT > POSSIBLE. I'm sorry, but I just can't buy that. However, let us first look at the basic premises - each math class (on the average) meets for 3 hours per week. Assuming that each semester is 12 weeks long, that's 36 hours of classtime not counting recitation. It's always amazed me that students can muddle through classes, attend office hours *ONCE* and expect to absorb a semester's worth of material. But that's another issue entirely; let me now address the non-possibility of office hour attendence at all. > For example, I was not able to make a single ACM meeting > this entire semester -- they were all held at 3pm or 4pm in the > afternoon. Either I lounge around campus for 3 hours after my last > class, which is a total waste, A total waste??? Ever hear of bringing your homework, that material for which is the purpose of office hours, and working on it until the professor arrives? That's a great way of having the questions fully formulated in your mind, which gives meaning to the study! > or I come back to campus 3 hours later > -- which means interrupting whatever work I'm doing, then coming back > to it an hour later. The days when students were all between 18 and > 21, all lived in dorms, and all could attend activities on campus at > any time, are long since gone. Let's get one thing straight here - office hours are not "activities" like club meetings or social events; like seminars in the corporate world they exist to provide the tools (understanding) for you to do your job (comprehend and pass with a respectable mark your course) in a better fashion than is otherwise possible. So what if they are not at a convenient time! That's life! If you need the extra help, you make sacrifices to attend. Period. If you absolutely cannot attend then you call during hours and work the questions out over the phone. Professors are obligated to have office hours, students should be obligated to use them. Making up an excuse, however reasonable, is just that - an excuse. If the phone lines are cut, you schedule hours with another professor - I have *never* met any professor in mathematics at Rutgers who was not willing to help me when I asked (and there were times that I gave a new meaning to the word, dense.) The help is there. Lack of interest on the part of the students is what makes it difficult to find. -- %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% %% The Speaking Tongue, AT&T %% C Code. C Code Run. Run, Code, RUN! %% %% (..att!..)homxc!ela0!bgt %% PLEASE!!!! %% %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%