i suck

no, really, i do. if as a teacher i am judged by how well my students are able to follow directions and do simple things like properly set up a research paper, then judging from the papers i've graded today, i suck. a lot. i'm sure i went over all of the errors i'm catching in their papers, and yet here i am, staring at a stack of papers where not one had earned an A grade. this makes me sad for a myriad of reasons. i need to find a better way to teach this because what i'm doing is not making enough of an impact on them.

and i find myself a bit angry at points, too. one of the papers is nothing but a collection of quotes from various websites cut and pasted into the proper research paper format with citations at the end of the paragraphs. this i KNOW i went over. but they don't get it. and i haven't helped them get it. and i don't think i can do anything now that will help them to get it, which means they will go on into their junior year still unable to write a simple research paper. maybe i'm expecting too much from them, but really, when they can't even get the basic format correct even though we went over it and over it in class, then the onus is on them, right?

whew. good to get that off my chest. here's hoping my other class's papers are better.

another education question: what do you do when a student wants you to fail them? it was recommended to me this week that if i fail a student, then i will be doing exactly what they want me to do, thus reinforcing their undesirable behavior and contributing to their anti-social behavior. so then what exactly are my options?

• i could simply make sure the student passes. this is ridiculous, of course, because while they won't get their desired result, they will still learn that they can do nothing and succeed. and i certainly don't want to start a precedent of passing students just because it would be good for their mental health. so i can clearly not choose this option.
• i could stand over the student and hound them and hound them until they complete all of their missing assignments. however, since one of the issues is the student engages in attention-getting behavior, then i would be falling once again into their trap by giving them the extra attention they want. plus, while it would be nice to give such attention to all of my students, i cannot do this for all the students that need it. so i can clearly not choose this option either.
• i could continue to give the student no credit for missing assignment and let them suffer the consequences of their inaction, even if it means they succeed in failing my class like they want. unfortunately, this will not sit well with either the parents or the administration. and i get the feeling i will be held responsible if the student fails because i didn't do enough to help them to pass, even though i'm willing to work with the student and to take work late (for reduced credit, of course). truly, i have a dizzying intellect.
• i could sit down with the student, let them know i know what they are trying to do and try and figure out why they want to fail my class and show them why that would be an unwise choice and encourage them to actually do the work required. but then again, i fall into giving extra attention, which as we know, we're trying to avoid encouraging. you'd like to think i'm done, wouldn't you?
• i could simply sit at a borrowed computer and type up possible actions, hoping somehow it will all become clear, when deep down i have the suspicion this is one of those damned if you do, damned if you don't things that i'm just going to have to live with. of course, by typing this here, i run the risk of having someone read this and report to either the parents or the administration that i'm writing about a student, which could lead to me being disciplined for being unprofessional. inconceivable, you say? i don't think it means what you think it means.

well, that was fun. and now it's time to call it a day. Æ

Tunes: kate bush - rubberband girl