The second part of my last blog entry has nothing to do with algebra, but my distaste for the slacker culture in general.
This takes us back to our own education experiences – when we were sitting behind student desks instead of being the classroom guru, the sage on stage so to speak.
Those of us who are educators, teachers, professors, and perhaps trainers mostly do this: we teach how we were taught. If we really liked how one teacher or professor taught something, we do it. If we really didn’t like how another educator did something, we don’t do that thing.
I first decided I wanted to become a Geography Professor while enrolled in Mr. Russel’s Physical Geography class. I really liked how he taught and how he made the class easy to pass.
When I say easy to pass, I mean Mr. Russel’s expectations were clear: Attend each meeting. Show up on time and stay till the very end. Pay attention. Complete each assignment. Read each textbook chapter. Study the topics which will be on the midterm and final exams.
I also liked one particular thing that Mr. Russel did to help us improve our grades, and that is something that I used to do in my own Geography class. But I no longer do that thing for obvious reasons: slacker culture.
Mr. Russel let us drop our lowest homework and exam score if that improved our final grade.
I offered it to my students too. Then slacker culture put a fly in that ointment.
I found that students were not completing homework assignments. When I called them out on that, this was their response: You know how you let us drop our lowest homework score? I will drop the zero score for the homework assignment I didn’t do.
I found that students decided not to show up for the midterm exams or the final. Same thing: You know you let us drop our lowest exam score? I will drop the zero score for the exam I didn’t do.
I discovered that outsmarting slackers was difficult since I don’t think like a slacker. I tried and failed.
I required that students put in writing their request to drop their lowest scores, or zero scores for assignments and exams not done.
Then I had so many written requests to keep track off, which was time consuming and made my grading more difficult.
I added a requirement that zero scores for assignments or exams not done could not be dropped – only scores for completed exams.
Then I got tired of slacker culture and stopped doing it altogether. I already give my students plenty of opportunities to pass my class: Attend each meeting. Show up on time and stay till the very end. Pay attention. Complete each assignment. Read each textbook chapter. Study the topics which will be on the midterm and final exams.
Another instance of slacker culture which I experienced prior to teaching college was during my short tenure as a seventh grade social science teacher. This experience taught me to never assume anything or underestimate slackers. I also learned construct expectations very carefully.
Mason, one of my students was a slacker who by no surprise, was failing my class.
He asked me the last Friday of the school year if there was anything he could do to pass my class.
Underestimating Mason, I told him that for every piece of extra credit he turned in, he would earn ten points toward his final grade. Mason had the weekend to complete his extra credit assignment.
I believed that Mason would complete only the bare minimum of extra credit – just enough to earn a passing grade. After all, Mason put in less than minimal effort for the entire school year.
I certainly learned my lesson and extra credit in my college class now has many restrictions.
The social science class had just completed our unit on Medieval Japan and one of their assignments was to write Haiku.
I told Mason that he would earn ten points of extra credit for every Haiku he turned in. I gave him no restrictions, because I believed he was lazy.
Mason proved me wrong. He was busy all weekend writing Haiku. On Monday he turned in stack of Haiku, and if I say the stack was an inch thick, I would not be exaggerating.
Mason earned enough extra credit to raise his F grade to an A.
And I had no choice but to honor our agreement.
Lessons learned. I learned never to assume. I learned to carefully construct agreements and make my expectations clear.
I learned to never underestimate a slacker. They can rise to the occasion when it is expedient for them to do so.
Very importantly, I have learned that slacker culture is real and not going away any time soon.
