Raising a Uni-Ready Kid

For my day job, I teach at a university. Some of my classes are first year, some second year, and some third year, so I get a front row view of how students progress from beginning to end. Needless to say, I have also gone through the progression, myself, so I observe these changes with no small amount of nostalgia/annoyance/amusement.

I have often set my mind to lessons I learn about parenting from watching my students. Today, I thought to write them down. Take them for what they are worth, as being from a parent to a young child and a teacher, but not a child development expert by any means. But recent public discussions about education has fired my thoughts on this matter, so I thought I might share my observations and opinions.

Recently, the issue of "zero zeros" policies in public schools have made it into the news. It seems a high school teacher in Alberta was suspended at the end of the last school year for defying the principal's orders that no student ever receive a zero. In fact, today that teacher, Lynden Dorval, will attend a hearing to learn if he will ever teach again.

The basic theory behind this is that the failure to hand in assignments is a behaviour issue, and not an academic one, so teachers cannot dole out absolute fails for a student's refusal to do the work. They also say it's a way for each student to learn at their own pace, and not be penalized for falling behind, as well as reduce stress for students. (The idea being that punishing a student for poor behaviour or late work will reduce their overall learning, prejudice their permanent record against them, and discourage them from even trying.) The teachers are obligated, within these systems, to convince the student to eventually do the work, to offer extra time for them, to allow them re-write times, to set extra-credit work, to consult with parents about the behaviour, and/or to mark whatever was handed in, and to make the final mark out of that by dropping the non-assessable assignments. In some districts, teachers are obligated to offer re-dos/re-writes if the homework is plagiarized or the tests are cheated on!

You can probably imagine my misgivings about this policy. I can see that the theorists have their hearts in the right place, and I admit they know more about educational theory than I, but I can't help but think that deadlines (i.e. time management, attentiveness, and dedication) are part and parcel with education. I also question the practicality and long term effects of such policies.

How can you mark a student based solely on academics, when you require them to display the "behaviour" of handing something in at some point? What if the student hands in nothing? What does "unable to assess" mean in the long run?

How much work would I have done in school if I knew there were no consequences to doing nothing, and that other students were getting the same (or even better) marks for doing less than me? I know how I'd feel - like a sucker for doing any more than I had to.

On top of all that, how will parents know their 9th grader isn't doing any work unless the grades start falling?

I was rather shocked when these stories started hitting the papers, since this was certainly not the policy when I was in school. I was in high school in the 90s, so I did benefit from the early-onset of the "no child left behind" policies of extra help, peer tutors, extra support for students with special needs, etc, but we had many deadlines, and we certainly got zeroes when we earned them. Likewise, in university, classes run the same way - accommodation for special needs is plentiful, tutors abound, profs offer extra help, and medical and sympathetic re-writes and extensions are certainly not rare. Most professors are open to discussing time crunch grounds for extensions if they are needed to allow students to do their best, if they are approached correctly and maturely, and the decisions can be fairly and uniformly enforced. But, we do give out Fs and zeroes as warranted. I find this reasonable, and I am baffled by the public school policy of no-zeroes, even when the student fails to show for tests without excuse.

One of the main concerns I have is how on earth these policies are expected to mesh with university policies, into which many of these highschoolers are expected to file after graduation from public school. I can tell you, from what I've seen so far, they do not mesh at all.

In recent years, the number of students who complain about failing courses, despite their failure to complete the work, has risen. The number of students expecting re-writes, extra-credit assignments, re-weighting, etc, without any medical/sympathetic cause is astounding. The expectation on the part of students that all grades are negotiable is, well, infuriating. Until I learned of the public schools implementing this zero-zero policy, these trends didn't quite make sense.

Now, they do.

On an official level, many universities are also noticing a major increase in the percentages of first year students who "wash out" (get such a low GPA that they are asked to leave) or get placed on academic probation. I would not be surprised if this, too, was related to the no-zero trend. After all, if you managed to cruise through four years of public high school without doing the work, how much cumulative knowledge will you miss? Could you handle university calc if you never did any high school math homework in your life?

Finally, the amount of remedial assistance required for first and second year students is increasing. University profs are doing more grammar, basic research skills, citation introduction, composition crash courses, etc, than we ever did before. We simply can no longer assume students have written research papers before attending university. When I started at university, it was assumed we had these basics from high school, and that we knew how to write an essay. That way, profs could focus on their subject, rather than on the nuts and bolts. Not so today.

This is not to say I blame the high school teachers, whatsoever. If policies like this disallow strict grading and force public school teachers to give up their own time to track down assignments, etc, I don't know how much more we can expect teachers to do, and I suspect that many are just as frustrated with this as some college/uni instructors are.

So, where does this leave us? I suppose it is now, perhaps more than ever, in the hands of parents to aim towards a university-ready child. Now that I have a child of my own, I watch public school theory much more closely, and I have become convinced that it is up to me to do what the teachers are not allowed to do - which is have high expectations of my child, for his own sake.

From my experience, both as a student and a teacher, there are a number of things that seem to hold true:

Too Much Money = Too Much Booze.

(If not booze, then some other distraction, perhaps, but most likely booze. Booze flows like water on campuses, and students do tend to go a bit nuts on it the first few months, at least.) While it is certainly true that students who must work more than 10-20 hours per week at a job during term can suffer a resulting decline in their GPA, I must say the opposite can also be true. Students who have unlimited funds often fall prey to their privilege. My advice - pay the tuition if you can, buy them a meal ticket if you wish, maybe help with the rent if you have extra, but never hand over the Gold Card and tell them to have fun. Consider making all spending money their own responsibility, no matter what your finances are like. Summer jobs, at the very least, never killed anyone, and a steadily dwindling bank account has served as a good reminder of the costs of binging to many a student. (On a personal note, paying my own way through school from the ground up made me value it more, for what it's worth.)

Freedom Can Be Horrible.

This is not to say that "constant vigilance" is the right answer, either. On the contrary, I've seen students with strict parents explode the moment they move into a dorm and realize mom isn't there. Others despair over being alone and making so many decisions, all of a sudden. The best course is to steadily increase freedoms/responsibilities/privacy from early childhood, so by the time they get to university they don't go wild with the heady thrill of forbidden joys, or decline due to lack of supervision. Free range is not just for granola munchers, and is not antithetical to the other opinions here, if you think about it. (On a related note, for the love of all that's holy, teach them how to do their laundry well before they go off to university! Also, how to cook, clean, grocery shop wisely, change a fuse, bank, do simple car maintenance, etc, etc. Advancing slowly and incrementally towards adulthood needs to be the focus for years prior to attaining it.)

Not Everything is Negotiable.

Some of us born to Baby Boomers and the subsequent generations have grown accustomed to parental negotiation. I'm not talking about simple ones, such as "Can I have a raw carrot instead of cooked veggies?" or other matters of preference, but of negotiated expectations, rules, regulations, even punishments. While, naturally, everything must be flexible to some extent, and every situation is unique, some things should remain non-negotiable. One example I have heard recently was a person who got a third speeding ticket in her parents' car, an event which she had been clearly warned would result in a set duration of grounding. It just so happened that the grounding period fell during the wrap up of her senior year, and she negotiated with her parents to proceed with the grounding, but still allow her to go to every single senior-year event. She even got them to let her use the car to attend them! Basically, this limit was so negotiable, it was pointless. Like the law, employers, and universities, only set limits you are willing to enforce; otherwise, they teach nothing but that every limit is negotiable - a lesson that will backfire in the "real world."

Reasonable Tough Love is a Gift. 
Reasonable Expectations are a Part of Tough Love.

The meaning here should be self-evident. Children raised with consistent, stable love, affection and attention develop the confidence required for later success. However, this doesn't require you to be your child's "best friend" instead of a parent, and placing loving, transparent, reasonable expectations (and consequences) upon them can and should be a part of this from preschool to high school, and, thus, beyond. As long as you are, indeed, reasonable (via ample communication, information, and observation), expectations can be a sign of love. Knowing your parent expects a certain level from you should be taken as a symptom of their pride and trust, and there is no feeling quite like rising to meet that expectation. People will rise, or stoop, to expectations from the people they love, and these things should not be undervalued, because, in the end, this is how they will learn how to expect things from themselves.

The Best Perspective: "Your Future = Your Responsibility."

I cannot overemphasize the importance of self-reliance, responsibility, and self-direction, since university exists on these qualities. I have seen students forced to go to university against their will, and this is a shame. I have seen many complain how hard it is to do their work without their parents riding them to do it, or without their mothers hovering over the Master Calendar to remind them of their obligations at all times. In my experience, students should understand their own agency in their lives by understanding their future is in their own hands. Thus, that's where the decisions and responsibilities should lie, as well. Associated with this is a firm suggestion to parents to back off as much as they can. (If you are paying all the bills, do what you need to do in regards to seeing the grades, but please understand the execution of university education is solely on your "child.") I had a colleague who had to deal with a student whose mom was doing his homework, which is ghastly. I myself have had calls and emails from parents "checking in," asking me for special conditions, and/or demanding explanation of grades - one, even, who decided to negotiate an F the student earned on an assignment that had been plagiarized! My response to these is, and must be (according to university policy), "Due to confidentiality, I cannot discuss grades with anyone but the student." Repeat after me: University is not grade school. There are no parent-teacher conferences here, so you best prepare your scholar for this by making sure they understand to rely on themselves and take charge of their own futures.

~*~

A lot of the above can really be summed up by a healthy work ethic development, and an awareness of self-entitlement, and how to balance an understanding of self-worth with a necessary community rationality. Everyone is entitled to basic respect and rights, but no one is de facto entitled to rewards, by definition, and believing otherwise can be harmful. That is, a kid who says, "I am valuable, loved, and I have potential and responsibilities" is wonderful; a student who says, "I'm the center of the universe, so hand me what I want" is not. One will work because she owes it to herself. The other will not, because the world owes it to her. One sees the work itself as important; the other sees only the pay off. One views his profs as his guide, and demands that their prof help them foster their own future. The other views his profs as servants, and demands the profs hand him the credits he (or his parents) have paid for. One learns from zeroes, even if they sting. The other will only complain about them.

I know most parents know this, because I still see streams and streams of hard working, engaged young people in my work. But, believe me, I also know it is not always easy to strike this balance. Tough love can sometimes spark tears, and I understand that each tear the child cries comes at an emotional price to the parent. I wonder if less parents will be willing to pay this cost, just as less schools seem to be willing to give a zero where it's needed to send home a message.

The only advice I can offer is start them young, remain aware, make the most of every "teachable moment", seek help/information, be transparent and consistent in your expectations and reactions, and keep your flexibility (and sense of humour) intact. Know that failures come and failures go, but maintain hope and trust, and those expectations. Remember the old, "Give a man a fish..." chestnut? Basically, this is what I'm driving at. Give your child the ability to fish, and they should do alright.

And, finally, ask your child's school about the no-zero policy, as many do not inform the parents it is in place, and act accordingly. If your school is not challenging your child adequately, you may have to pick up the slack, which might involve finding supplemental or alternative education. But, above all, find out directly from the school, and communicate with your child about how the policy makes him/her feel about doing the work, and react as you see fit.

Anyway, just some rambling food for thought in keeping with the "Back to School" season. Keep your eyes on the prize, folks, and best of luck!

Teacher Crushes, Anyone?

Continuing my celebration for the release of Textbook Romance, let's discuss something - falling in love with Teacher.

Now, Textbook Romance involves a mature student and a university prof who fall in love, but it isn't a "teaching the teacher" kind of book. I have nothing against those, really, but that's not at the core of this one.

Still, I have to admit there is a sort of special attraction to teachers. I myself had a couple memorable teacher crushes, particularly in high school when all the boys around me where less than intellectually stimulating.

One of them, we'll call him Mr M (just in case anyone puts two and two together in the vast interwebs of embarrassment), was at the tail-end of my senior high sentence. In retrospect, aside from his startling blue eyes, he was no heart throb, but he was so gorgeously intelligent. Being a word-inclined teenager in a very rural place, where most people considered the TV Guide their favourite literature, this was overwhelmingly attractive. He and I even went on a little field trip together once, to complete an advanced project I was doing in Library Sciences (yes, I was a dork), just he and I. sigh.

Alas, I was a chicken, and never said anything, and he, well, he was a professional adult who likely never even noticed me beyond the "enjoyable, well-behaved, keener-student" level. Still, Mr M has skittered around the edges of my imagination ever since.


Thanks to all those teacher-crushes, I developed a strong belief that intelligence and maturity are essential in who I see as an attractive person. School teaches us a lot more than we even realize at the time; way beyond Library Sciences.


So, stop by and tell me about your teacher crush in the comments below.


Remember, all comments here between Friday and Monday morning will be entered to win an ebook copy of my new contemporary romance novel Textbook Romance, courtesy of Pink Petal Books. (Over 18 only, please.) Contest ends Monday, June 25, 2012, at 12pm EST.

Loss

While brushing up my final lecture for my spring term course, I recalled, in the back of my mind, an article written before I was born by one of my favourite professors from my undergrad days. Off to Google I went. I found enough of it to add a little note to my lecture, and then decided to Google the prof himself, wondering why we ever lost touch.

Tom was not just my favourite professor, but one who had left an indelible stamp on me. If not for him, I would not be where I am now. I know people say that a lot, but it's fact in this case. I simply would not have a PhD in this particular field had he not been one of my first mentors in the subject. His enthusiasm, joy, off-beat perspective and keen mind opened so many more doors for me than dozens of other, less fiery profs could/had done. He was also kind and forgiving with me when I likely didn't deserve it, and stern with me when I needed it.

His questions still shape my scholarship.

When I was deciding to go on for my MA, he bought me dinner and counseled me, honestly and lovingly, like a colleague and a friend. Then, a while later, when he and I had both left the university where we first met, and we were provinces apart, it was to him that I reached out, via email, wondering if I really had what it took to do a PhD. I received a telephone call immediately. His guidance, approval, voice was important to me, I realized.

He was The Teacher I Wanted To Be.

We drifted a part after that, I admit. I was busy, and so was he, and he wasn't really a Facebook type of guy, I guess. I often thought about him, but rarely took the time to contact him. Once or twice in the five or six years after that, I think. I don't think I received a response the last time I did.

Still, he lived in my mind.

Tonight, upon Googling him, I discovered that Tom died two years ago. Two years. And I never knew. Two years ago, and I feel like it just happened. Because I didn't know.

Around the same time I was becoming a PhD, he was becoming... something else, I suppose. (Not even a PhD is enough to answer some questions, I admit.)

Every major academic thing I have written since then, I have dedicated to him, or acknowledged him in some fashion, and I will continue to do so. When my first academic book is published, it will be in his memory.

To Tom, who was there for me then, and is still, and will be, long after death.

Educating is a powerful calling, and a calling with power.

Tips from Beneath a Stack of Marking on Writing Academic Essays

Normally, I stick to blogging about writing, romance, books, and so forth. I don't talk a lot about my teaching work here, partially because it's exhausting work and so much more fun to talk about romance in my off-hours, but partially because I think fiction is what I know I have in common with the folks reading here. But, yes, in real life, I teach. This term, I have 125 first year university students. It's enjoyable teaching, but a lot of work. Especially this week, since I am currently struggling to finish marking 125 short essays. Golly, but that soaks up the time.

On Twitter today, as I marked, I was sort of Tweeting a few tips here and there, in case any university students were reading. I was kind of throwing out what I consider the most common freshman/junior essay writing errors or weaknesses, from my nearly ten years marking experience in classes at these levels. Frosh classes have their own personalities, of course, but it almost seems like the basic common issues never change.

Then I thought maybe these are use to more than just university students, as I saw more than a few reviewers, writers and editors re-Tweeting or agreeing. In actuality, these are tips that apply to fiction writers, as well, for the most part. Therefore, I have decided to post them here, along with a few new ones.

Likely the most common error is not editing and proofing adequately, of course, but that is something that comes with care and attention, and is easily fixed - just re-read the damn thing before hitting print! What I normally tell students to do is read it aloud, to avoid skimming. However, another common problem with frosh writing is that comes off as too conversational, which makes for difficult reading, so you can't always just rely on reading it aloud, either. For papers worth a hefty percentage, get another pair of eyes to check for clarity, if you can.

Another common flaw, especially seen in students fresh from high school, is the apparent desire to write like "a smart person." The sentences come out clunky, awkward and often unintelligible. This also leads to loss of content marks if your argument suffers or you end up saying things you didn't mean because you were using words you didn't full understand. Basically, don't use "big words" if you are hazy on their meaning. Communicating effectively is more important than "sounding smart." It usually has the exact opposite effect, and it misses the point of writing a paper. In academic writing, as in most writing, clarity and effective communication of thought/experience/knowledge/research is your central goal. Appearance means nothing if I can't understand you.

One of my personal pet peeves is overreaching generalizations. Firstly, generalizations just don't work in the humanities, because we try to question everything - thus, I am programmed not to buy them. Secondly, once you say things like "all humans..." or "never" your argument is immediately invalid, because assertions like that are almost never totally correct. (See how I softened that up there?) What I really hate is when a student starts a paper with one, as if that is the hook - a grand epic sweep of the subject: "For millions of years, ever since the first human walked the earth, questions of ethics have plagued him..." Really? Not only is that non-provable, it is also completely meaningless. Avoid windy rhetoric, and just get to the point - this is much more effective.

Further, word lengths are there for a reason. If you are unable to write a long enough paper, you have not done enough research, you didn't pick a strong enough thesis topic/question, or you haven't given yourself enough time to think about the topic - or you are just plain rushing the writing phase. Similarly, if you are unable to get the paper in under the maximum, you might need more editing or clearer thought - or, more likely, you have not picked a narrow enough thesis. It is far better to cover fewer things and do it very well than to try to cover everything and have to do it in shallow strokes. No paper can tell the prof everything you know in the world, so don't attempt it.

I do appreciate brevity and conciseness, but I also want to see the significance of the points you raise - give them time to gestate, stick to your strongest points, and cut away the fat as needed.

This relates to another tip for students - don't spend the first page or two wandering around the issue and talking yourself into an argument. This is very common for academic writers, and totally fine if that's what you need to do, but I, the reader, shouldn't see it. Do it if you must, and then cut ruthlessly if need be.

As to general content, try to sense what the educational purpose of the assignment is and do it. I don't recommend people rely on their ability to psyche out the prof, but it is central to (1) read the instructions, (2) consider the instructions, and (3) fulfill the instructions. And lead the prof through the stages carefully. Also, consider the instructions in the context of the class. What I mean is, consider the essay as if it were an exam question - the prof wants to see what you have learned, and what you know or have researched, so make sure that is the bulk of your paper. When using terms, show that you know what they mean. Use your research to display your prowess in the course focus. And make sure you are doing every part of the assignment. Never spend too much of your paper just regurgitating long quotes, but put them in your own words, and exhibit your own thought. Show us you have learned something, and we're much happier.

Finally, give each stage adequate time and attention. The conceptual stage, the research phase, the writing process and the editing work all need to be done well to produce a quality paper. Scrimp on one, or don't leave enough time to do all of them, and the paper will suffer. And don't crowd them - researching while writing at the same time, for example, can lead to accidental plagiarism, which is so not worth it. Trust me.

So, those are my learned tidbits from marking undergraduate papers, and maybe they will be useful for all writers - or not. There are other things, such as "if being a day late will produce a better paper, take the late penalty," or "provide a reference everywhere I might ask how did you know that?", but those things are idiosyncratic. In general, be clear, concise and do your job - whatever that is for that particular paper, along with the universal goal of communicating effectively.

In any case, back to marking... Sigh.

Have a good Wednesday, folks!

On Teachers

As summer turns to fall, and all the little scholars are trudging off to class, my mind turns to my own school days. It's hard to believe how long it's been since I first started school - 28 years now, since I first braved those school bus steps. And now it's been almost ten years since I first started teaching (first, as a grad student TA and now as a prof), and over a year since I finished work on my terminal degree by turning in my doctoral dissertation (almost a year since I actually got the sheepskin). That's a long time to be in the school world. None of it feels like it was a waste, though there were days during that I wondered where it was all going.

My school career was rather lackluster for the first while. In the fourth grade, I had a teacher I adored, and she got me interested in writing short stories (and busted me *hard* for my first and only act of academic dishonesty when I copied an essay on dragons from one of my encyclopedias - whoops!). Other than that year, I didn't start reaching my potential until the sixth grade, when we moved to a small school with only five classrooms and no gym. My teacher was also the principal. There, I began to flourish. I realized - hey, I'm pretty smart, and I can do this writing thing pretty well! It wasn't that my ego just turned on; it was because my teacher made me believe in my skills, and helped me foster them through encouraging me to work hard.

I took that into junior and then senior high, where I developed into a (head)strong, independent, young woman, confident in my brain and my creative abilities, and ready to face the world. Four or five high school teachers, joined later by a handful of university professors, really stand out in my mind as significant, life-long influences on me; those who encouraged, challenged, cultivated, disciplined, praised, bullied, and befriended in just the right amounts, and told me that the world was open to me - me! Me, who grew up in a loving but desperately poor family out in the middle of nowhere. I could do anything I wanted!

And I have.

I can honestly, and truly, say, in the deepest gratitude, that nothing I have done in my life would have been accomplished without them. My mother set my feet on my path by valuing books, but my teachers directed me in that path. Without them, I'm not sure I would have found my way. It likely wouldn't have even occurred to me to even try to find it.

So, to teachers - what you do is important; as important as doctors, law enforcement, or any profession that gets paid out the ears. It is a profound responsibility. We all should stop and value you more than we do. To students - make the most of it. These people have a way of sticking with you for life. It's been a long road for me, but I've had the best of help. I'm thrilled to now be helping new students. Teaching may be the ultimate form of paying it forward.

Have a great term, everyone!