What I've done
I would first like to think those people who commented on my earlier blog, but I want you all to know something: I'm kind of a dick.
No, it's true. You can't be a teacher and not have that in you because well...you have to grade people, and you can't grade them on how nice they are or whether you like them, which often means that you have to flunk people whom you like. That takes some nerve--which I think I have.
In any case, Plug, I kind of agree with you except that drugs do different things to different people. Also, mis-diagnosis (which happens a lot) can cause things to have totally different effects than planned. Anti-deppressents, for instance, given to the wrong person will cause suicidal thoughts. So, while I agree in spirit, there's no telling what lithium will do to the average college student when mixed with alcohol, pot, or whatever else they're taking. Witness Anna Nicole.
In any case, here's how I handled my class. I reminded them of the possability of an afterlife.
Now, I know that this sounds quasi-religious and so it kind of smacks of crossing the line, but that's not my point. I simply said, "how many of you entertain some notion of life after death." Most of them did. So, I said, "you must believe then in the possability that if you shoot me I will come back for you," and then, "before you bring a gun into my classroom you should watch The Ring as a kind of before and after show of consequences for your actions, because I will be coming for you."
Does this help settle the fears of the students? Eh, maybe. But then, as a teacher, I'm in a classroom for a lot longer than they are. It's MY fears that I'm concerned about.
No, it's true. You can't be a teacher and not have that in you because well...you have to grade people, and you can't grade them on how nice they are or whether you like them, which often means that you have to flunk people whom you like. That takes some nerve--which I think I have.
In any case, Plug, I kind of agree with you except that drugs do different things to different people. Also, mis-diagnosis (which happens a lot) can cause things to have totally different effects than planned. Anti-deppressents, for instance, given to the wrong person will cause suicidal thoughts. So, while I agree in spirit, there's no telling what lithium will do to the average college student when mixed with alcohol, pot, or whatever else they're taking. Witness Anna Nicole.
In any case, here's how I handled my class. I reminded them of the possability of an afterlife.
Now, I know that this sounds quasi-religious and so it kind of smacks of crossing the line, but that's not my point. I simply said, "how many of you entertain some notion of life after death." Most of them did. So, I said, "you must believe then in the possability that if you shoot me I will come back for you," and then, "before you bring a gun into my classroom you should watch The Ring as a kind of before and after show of consequences for your actions, because I will be coming for you."
Does this help settle the fears of the students? Eh, maybe. But then, as a teacher, I'm in a classroom for a lot longer than they are. It's MY fears that I'm concerned about.
posted by Monstro D. Whale at
12:29 PM
4 Comments:
Yeah, but what about that angry-looking dude in the back with the Nietzsche t-shirt, whose girlfriend just dumped him last week for a football player?
But, don't sweat it... I doubt it's the humanities professors in need of kevlar cardigans these days. You'll be safe based on your subject matter alone. When they rebel, it's generally against the "establishment," which means the business school, right?
...which explains my own fear, as I've blogged about before, of firing people. (Search my blog for "Vlad" for that story from long ago.) Lately, we had a guy here at Horn Dog Enterprises (HDE) get dumped by his long-term girlfriend. She was a hot little thing, and he was kind of an oddball chainsmoker type. When she dumped him last month, he kind of freaked -- hasn't shown up for work since. Even before this VT thing, I thought to myself several times per day, "Well, you were always nice to him, so he probably won't shoot you when he shows up here."
Sorry, I just have to respond...
Antidepressants given to the wrong person may cause suicidal thoughts. It's more likely that antidepressants given to someone who is already depressed may increase suicidal thoughts. This is why compliance is so important because part of compliance is going to follow-ups with the shrink and honestly reporting side effects.
The corollary to this is that universities should have the right to require documented followup/compliance as a condition of enrollment - certainly as a condition of allowing one to live on campus. Then people have to do their jobs and check that the person so ordered has followed through. The guy in VA should have been put on court supervision or probation for his harassment and his PO could have followed up. Not a guarantee but would work in many cases. Sorry to have gone on a rant.
I don't think you have to apologize for going on a rant. That wasn't really a rant. In any case, rant if you'd like. I don't mind. It's just nice to get some visitors.
Keep in mind, what you may be describing might be a scenario if people know about the illness. Some people start manifesting their problems right when they get away from home and family. Other people might be letting their psychotic hair down, so to speak now that there's no one around to worry. I mean, it's college. Who knows what's wrong with them? I get letters if my students have reported learning disabilities, but I know that some of my students are not reporting their problems to the university. Doctor patient priviliage. They don't have to. Moreover, I don't know where the university's responsabilities lie. After all, they might make a record that a student is bi-polar just in case, but that doesn't mean they're telling the teachers. Then again, maybe they tell faculty. Great, but I'm not faculty and neither are half the student's instructors because most university departments now operate on slave labor (grad students) to keep from going under. Whomever the university does tell, I imagine grad students are not on that list. That is... assuming the student has made their problem known to the university, or any one at all for that matter.
And like you said, they need to check up. Are they? Or do they think the bong wrips are helping so they don't have to talk to anyone.
It's slippery. That's all I have to say about it.
I feel you. You are absolutely right that many problems manifest only after going off to college - sleep deprivation, shitty diet, experimentation with substances, exposure to new ideas, less structure. If they know when they arrive that they have pre-existing problems, residential life (dorm programming folks) often knows. Not always though. And, you're right that even if faculty knows, the TA's probably won't. Been there, done that. One would hope that the events of last week would spark some serious discussion about everyone's safety. But my cynical self says this probably won't happen. The issue will die before the talks get that far. I'll move on now to other subjects - this topic is what I do, so I have strong feelings on it.
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