"But say you need to check out several books, now that is a problem to where books have plenty of information and it could get heavy, especially for girls."
. . .
"Although, it may seem that the e-book reader are heading to an extension, it’s probably wrong there just improving by combing there interests with consumers’ devices like the cellphones."This is a course for sophomores and juniors - COLLEGE sophomores and juniors.
I don't blame the students. I blame the public school system for allowing kids lacking in basic communications skills to graduate. I blame the higher education system for allowing - nay, not just allowing, but encouraging - kids without those basic skills to not only be admitted, but to progress upwards.
And I guaran-damn-tee that these same kids will graduate from college without acquiring those same skills.
What's that? Why, you ask, do I allow these students to pass my course? Good question.
I used to insist on high standards. That was way back when I was young (well, relatively young) and idealistic. Then I found out that the university where I was employed - the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) - could care less about the quality of their graduates. All they wanted was a steady stream of bodies crossing the stage to grab their sheepskins, so that the university could fatten its coffers from tuition and formula funding. Since I was adamant in not passing students who couldn't demonstrate mastery of basic skills, I was a threat to UTSA's revenue stream.
So we parted ways.
Now I'm at another Texas public university. And I'm faced with the same dilemma.
I may be slow, but eventually I learn. I have gone mainstream and lowered my standards to conform with expectations. I'm not proud of it, but my family comes first. Food on the table, a roof over our heads - these are more important to me than making a futile stand.
It does, however, drive me to drink - for which I am exceedingly grateful. It dulls the pain, and it makes grading much more tolerable...
3 comments:
Look, I'm well aware that I'm not the smartest cookie out there. I cruised through high school on a 2.6 GPA and a 1210 SAT score, and I somehow made it through college with a 2.9 GPA.
I'm only a decade out of high school, but I remember that my teachers always worked to make sure we knew how to communicate properly. The resources were there if we will willing to absorb the information. This is also keeping in mind that we didn't have our noses constantly buried in cell phones, butchering the language in order to keep under a 140-character limit, like today's average student.
I know I’m not always 100 per cent with it (sometimes by choice), but I like to think that my grammar and word usage is a hell of a lot better than these kids you cite in these posts. How on God's green earth are these clowns planning on making it through life if they can't put together a coherent sentence? In this age of spell-check, grammar-check and auto-correct, how is this level of ineptitude even possible?
Just reading about what you put up with makes me want to drink, so I certainly understand. I agree and am also disappointed with today's education standards (or lack thereof). Colleges are worried more about dollar bills than educating, which is sad. Alas, the point of any business is to make as much money as possible while utilizing minimal resources, so we shouldn't be surprised.
Bear, I imagine your college GPA went down during hunting season and up in the off-season.
Honestly, I never gave that any thought, but you're more than likely correct:)
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