Observation of a friend on my classroom antics.

When he taught high school science, my father also combined emphasis on organization and professionalism with wacky jokes.

So, I texted several friends who had had him as a teacher, to tell them that I thought I was channeling my dad with the bitching-the-kids-out-for-disorganization-then-the-Cher-mask-gag thing.

My one friend who runs an integrated homelessness - domestic violence shelter replied -

Good Lord!  You're your dad.

. . .

Classroom antics (2 of 2): Needed levity.

At my main school, I nicely bitched the freshmen writing kids out for 10 minutes over their disorganization and how they should get their shit together since that kind of stuff is *exactly* the thing that factors into whether they get recommendations or not, and I want them all to do well.

They were very grave, and the mood was low afterwards as we began to discuss some writing issues and then segued into discussion of their drafts.

Luckily, the previous night I had been with some friends to a Wed. night outing where drag performers were doing Cher songs, and at the door they had handed cut-out faces of Cher (4 varieties!) attached to popsicle sticks, and I was able to collect all of them.

So, I had them ordered and laid face down on the table right in front of me to my left, and after the 2nd of the 6 students had discussed their draft, I was like, "Man, the mood is down in here, do you guys want some levity?", and they all nodded.

I then turned to the next student up and was like, "So, are you ready to discuss your paper with everyone?", and when they said yes, I repeated myself more insistently, and then they said yes again, and then I finally was like, "No, are you *really* ready to discuss your paper?".

When they said a final yes, I was like, "Okay, now....   Cher!", and at that moment I held up the 1st mask to all the students.

Everyone really laughed, and then I heard 2 students discussing whether the other masks were also Cher (which they of course were, and which I used in turn on the 3 remaining students in an interesting order, where the 2nd one was weird, the 3rd an 80s short hairstyle, and the 4th and final a dramatic gold headdress).

I also did the Cher mask thing for the next group of 6 students afterwards, but it was late and they were tired, so after the 1st mask, I said I'd show them what the other masks were if they promised to try to focus on the next paper, and they did that, so I re-did the promise thing again before each remaining paper.

Classroom antics (1 of 2): Self-correction.

In my sex class at the art school, I made an aside about how lesson plans for the 1st day are a bitch, since you have to do stuff the entire 3 hours but you can't expect anyone to read anything.

"Actually, I shouldn't perpetuate degrading language towards women like that," I was like.  "What could I say that's male-associated?  Maybe that lesson plans for the first day are an asshole?"

So, I began again, "You know, lesson plans for the first day are an asshole..."

Bacon frying.

The other night I was frying up a bit of bacon and bread, and I happened to throw in the pan a few pieces of mostly meaty bacon from a larger piece that had fallen off the end of the slices.

As I fried it, the flat patches all tightened and became convex, and in that same moment I realized that the bacon was a muscle tensing.

Response of 2 teacher friends to the art students' slams.

My one friend who teaches modern Czech lit had this to say by text -

Badge of courage.  Mediocre people react to difference with fear which becomes anger very quickly.

- and -

But how can they be so shallow as to think they need not understand other forms of thinking.

- while my one recently graduated (white) (straight) (raised in Rust Belt poverty) friend who teaches composition at a public school in the southwest texted -

Sorry to hear about that.  Students are finicky, like many women and some trannies.

. . .

Ouch - half my art students from fall *slammed* me in my evals.

The big criticism?

They're artists, not scholars, so they shouldn't have to learn to write like a scholar, and I should be more open to different perspectives.

You always get that from students, who misunderstand that you're writing in a certain *register* and not "for always" (something I do say), and who think that observations in class discussion shouldn't be challenged.

But, rather than being a handful of students, it was honestly like half the class.

I think part of this might be it's the fact that they're art school freshmen, where they're all hyped to take studio classes as the bulk of their schooling, whereas older students understand the need for writing more.

I also learned that this response is typical, and that like a third of the first-year students are lost through attrition every year (which means that like half of that response might be from people who might not even be here next year?).

Also, I got a few complaints that the course was unrelated to what they do, so when I began re-teaching the class, I stressed even more strongly the necessity of writing and observational skills, as well as how in academic discourse creativity enters in in some ways but ideas are always challenged, etc.

I did do that before, but I def. started doing it more this time around.

I guess we'll see what happens when I get this round of evals!

Disgust at my Kitchen.

Lately, too, whenever I stand in my kitchen waiting for coffee to perk or for toast to toast or whatever, I stare at this huge pile of comestibles sitting on the countertop in one corner, a pile of like 6lbs of pasta, and two 20lb. bags of rice (one medium grain, one jasmine), and a huge thing of potatoes, and a 5lb. jar of honey.

And, on the one hand I think how fortunate I am, but on the other hand I just get deeply disgusted while I'm thinking how unfair it is that I'm able to just hoard all this food, when so many people the world over can't even get access to sufficient food for the day.