Seriously? How cussin’ hard is it to write a report, especially after I’ve explicitly told you how several times now? Maybe if you actually committed yourself to learning and read a journal article once in a while, you might actually figure it out. Maybe if you actually looked at my comments in addition to your grade, or listened in class rather than admiring your classmate’s yoga pants you might learn something.
Is writing an abstract rocket science all of a sudden? What the hell is the matter with you? Not sure what you want to do? Not ready to take on the work load of a University student? Just here to get a piece of paper so you can get a better job? Figure it out and be prepared before you come here and waste your money and my time. News flash a-hole, a university degree is toilet paper if you can’t rub some words together and make a proper sentence.
I don’t know, maybe it’s just me. Maybe my expectations are just too high. Pshaw to cohesive sentences and grammar. Pshaw to proper format and structure. Pshaw to clarity of ideas. Let’s just start presenting research through comic strips.
—Your Frustrated and Defeated TA
This article appears in Dec 3-9, 2009.
Kids these days….lol..
But, serioulsy, I know two people that teach at the university level, and they express the same frustration. Students bartering for a better grade, making excuses for the assignment being late when they had weeks to do it.
I blame the public schools in NS. Why in the hell should a student be rewarded an exemption from writing an exam for something as fundemental as showing up to class? There is no emphasis on the work done in classes. Heaven forbid you actually grade the student and crush their feelings. Come on!
This translates to the work world too. These youngins do not want to take responsibility for anything. They feel they should be compensated just for showing up (not on time, mind you).
ARGH!
I don’t know why, but undergrads really struggle with writing abstracts.
So fail them if it’s not done right.
Just fail them. I do.
I blame some of this on the word “abstract”.
Sorry, but it just does not convey any sense of structure. 🙂
Also, the comic strip idea is not bad.
“picture worth 1 000 words” and all that…
LOL Dogma!
Research presented through comic strips, I actually think that’s a brilliant idea… KAPOW!
oh great… now kids are all gonna have to be able to draw!
are stick men the equivalent to txtng and picasso to tolkien?
I smell a slippery slope here…
and it smells funky.
I’m with the OP. Writing a 50-word paragraph that summarizes the entire text is not that difficult.
Those damn LuLu’s… My theory is that they were made by feminists to distract the male population in school thus we fail, more women gain degrees… You women are a crafty folk…
Kids these days! Tsk tsk…
Basically, society is expecting a lot more for doing a lot less, and really, what’s wrong with that? It’s all about working smart, not working hard. Hard work is a waste of time if you ask me. Hard work keeps us from doing things we either like a lot more (unless you’re one of those workaholic weirdos) or that need to be done, and therefore reduces efficiency and productivity. If students are able to convince their professor to give them a better grade, good on them! Shows they have some good and valuable negotiation skills.
But hey, what do I know? I’m one of those lazy 20-something year olds and a product of the Nova Scotia public education system.
Lulu’s don’t distract me. And there are some lovely hotties in my program. Maybe the women in my program don’t have to dress “up” to be noticed.
I’ve done editing for group projects and other students in general and…I feel sorry for my profs. Seriously.
They always wonder why I do so well, and then I let them read over my marked papers and they get it. In the past 5 or 6 papers I’ve written I think I had maybe 2 grammar mistakes corrected. The reason WHY my writing is so good now is because I worked hard at it and went to my profs and asked them questions and took their comments under advisement — I didn’t just say “I got a C because the prof’s an asshole”…most profs don’t intentionally try to screw you over. Thing is, very few students do the work required to get their work up to snuff. It’s not hard to visit the writing centre or go talk to your profs and get their input.
Also, shit happens and people end up passing things in late, myself included, but DAMN don’t make excuses. Just pass it in late and take the grade cut. I’m as big a procrastinator than anyone, but you also have to take responsibility for your actions. Students are the sneakiest fuckers on the planet.
Further, I’ve worked in university libraries and it’s amazing how many 4th year students have either never checked out a book or searched for a journal article. I knew how to do that shit my first year! And these are the types of people I get stuck in groups with…it’s no wonder I just do the whole project myself ffs.
lulus aren’t “dressing up,” NGFatso.
Sure they do amazing things to one’s ass, but…like the bitch in the mall on saturday with a pair of LLLs on and a pair of heels…LLL-wearing is dressing down, people!
It’s like the bitches who go to the gym in full make up and their hair done up….ffs. It’s amazing how these same people DON’T SWEAT when they work out…when I go and work out I go to work out and sweat my ass off. But I guess when you’re there to pick up men, a 10 minute treadmill session isn’t really going to do much in the way of cardio-resistance build up.
But still, I live in my LLLs, honestly. I wear them to class, work (granted, my job is VERY casual), damn I haven’t worn a pair of jeans in three weeks! but see, my philosophy is: why bother dressing up when you don’t have to? LLLs are comfy as fuck, and as someone who has a staunch hatred for pants…well, these things are a dream. It’s like not wearing pants at all! I’d much rather wear a pair of LLLs a tank top, hoodie and a pair of sneakers than some of the ridiculous outfits I see some people wearing to class these days.
Trust me. Bitches think Lulu’s is dressing up.
I know, but they isn’t!
Tell dem hoes that.
Lol thanks PK, anyone who thinks lulu’s are dressing up have more issues at hand… Wearing them for attn to ones ass, perhaps, but hopefully not many have the delusion of dressing up with them…
I do always get a kick out of people who make the attempt though, as for the “bitch” with them and heels on… Trashy, but priceless for the laughing onlooker.
Shit, Logic, I wear them for COMFORT. I HATE PANTS WITH A FIREY PASSION OF A THOUSAND…FIRES (yeah that was lame). I hate pants so much my apartment has become a “pants free zone.” But damn LLLs are like wearing no pants at all!
I was totally all “LLL is just a rip off” and then I tried on a pair of their pants and…*addict*
I could honestly care less how hot they make my ass look, they’re comfy as fuck.
Pants free zone… kitty, does that apply to the guys you invite over? If so, I have had many misconceptions about you.
Writing a good abstract is pretty hard, actually. It’s the hardest part about writing the paper.
Doesn’t apply to NGF, Dr. F.
It’s more or less only pants free when a) I’m home alone or b) when I’m drinking with a good friend of mine from Acadia. We invented pants free drinking back in the day.
Great, now I get to spend my evening thinking about PK and her LLLs, tank top and sneakers.
Especially the sneakers.
Oh yeah, students are lazy, lulu pants are a mixed blessing, etc.
This thread makes me think of Homer saying, “Don’t you hate pants!?”.
pants free zone… drinking with friends… it’s sounding more like an orgy with every post.
next you’re going to say that shirts are too restrictive and condoms are the proffered method of cock-warmer….
because, well you have to be safe and warm…
Yeah, most students, especially those who began university in the past three years, are entitled brats.
This is due to several reasons 1) lowered standards of university admission, 2) lowered standards of highschool graduation, 3) Mommy and/or Daddy pay the bills so there is little appreciation for work ethic, 4) the university is a business: more students=more money, and 5) individualism (political and social) puts primacy on the value of the person, therefore creating a culture of people who are inherently entitled because of their “inalienable” human rights, which is becoming more and more prominent in the younger generations (owed, in part, to commercial industry).
I never took an extension, never handed anything in late, maintained an A+ average, and was extremely sucessful in my field. Part of it was obviously natural skill and intelligence, the other part was from hard fucking work.
I’d fail students who didn’t do the work in a heartbeat. Also, students who bitch that they can’t get a job in their field after they graduate are the ones who probably only achieved B or C range grades in University.
The jobs go to the hardest working, most intelligent, and most suitable candidates. DUH!
Nice bitch, T.A. Your students are goofs.
LOL zZz, it’s all in good fun! 🙂
Halifox10: I think you have it right with the lax standards of HS graduation and university entrance. All you need is a 65% to get into most universities these days. THAT is sad. I told a guy I know from Germany who’s doing a year abroad and he was appalled that a 65% gets you into university. NA standards are pretty sad compared to the standards in a lot of European countries!
The problem you’re identifying, is one of a generational shift. We’re now seeing the kids in university who were never failed in school, even though they couldn’t read by grade 6, the kids who were never told ‘no’, the kids who were given prizes just for participating, and the kids who’s parents/teachers were OMG SO CONCERNED about their self esteem that they basically licked their ass than discipline them/tell them something negative. And it’s not just the past 3 years, I’d posit that it’s the last 5-6, even. In my last degree I had classmates out of HS who were exactly like how you describe, Halifox10. And it’s actually not uncommon these days for profs to get calls from parents demanding to know why their precious johnny or jannie got a C on their paper (when a C was probably generous)! It’s REALLY frustrating knowing the type of students I went to school with only 10 years ago, and the type that’s wondering around now and knowing how fucked up students have become. I blame their parents, to be perfectly honest. I’ve worked with people on projects who couldn’t make a major decision without contacting their mother first. This same person expected us to halt progress on the project because they couldn’t reach their mother right away. This person was 22.
One point I *will* make though, is, high grades does not always denote intelligence. Certain degrees/schools are well known for inflating grades (think high school on the highway in some disciplines). I know a few people who’ve taken the degrees I refer to who are dumb as bricks, yet maintained an A average. It’s very disheartening because these kids think they have a real university education, when it’s all bullshit.
PK I totally agree about the lowering standards because of self-entitlement. When I applied to university, I had to have an 85% average to attend the university of my choice. I applied to three, and got into all of them. However, by the same token, some students who got in the same year as me took sciences… and by third year couldn’t remember how to write a complete sentence – just like I couldn’t remember how to do calculus anymore, because I was doing an arts degree. Then in your third and fourth year you take some electives because you needs some classes to round out your schedule… and bam, you’ve got science student in a history class with no sweet clue how to write a history paper, and you’ve got me in economics doing all the equations the long way because I can’t remember calculus.
But I digress… because these sorts of stories aren’t really the majority and probably aren’t what the OP is talking about. But I think NSCC has it right when they require students to take a communications course so they can effectively write when they’re in the working world. That sort of thing is definitely lacking in universities.
Yeah I can tell you a program that allows dumb-as-shit people to get Honours degrees: Saint Mary’s psych department. I talked to a TA in one of my fiancee’s classes, man, I wondered how she managed. Every word, was like, awesome!
Fuck school! Fuck work! Just give me money! AAAHHHHHHHH!
It’s called “book smarts,” Dr. F.
You know, the kind of people who don’t know shit unless they’ve read it in a book. They’re the same people who probably can’t even tie their own shoe or apply what they’ve learned to anything other than what they’ve read.
Most of them rely on memorization, I’m convinced, and couldn’t put a sound argument together on anything if their lives depended on it.
Also, I dunno about the NSCC comms course, but a certain university Dr. F. may have mentioned makes their commerce students take a communications course and…*facepalm* 80% still can’t put a legible sentence together by the time they graduate. Sadly, I think it’s partly due to the fact that a lot of the curriculum in some professional programs are taught too theoretically, as opposed to a practical form. I just finished a course, where, knowing the theory was great, but I doubt I’ll ever use all that theory when I get out on the job. I think NSCC should be given props for some of their advanced diploma programs in that respect because it takes a more practical, hand on approach. It’s just too bad it doesn’t go into more depth (and maybe extend its advanced diploma programs from one to two years for those with degrees).
Me am edumacated. Me have degree. Me likey school. Me need job.
I too, qpmasfdadsfkajhaewuhfaewhateverthefuckyournameis.
Ahhh, the whole thing is messed up. So many students don’t know what they want. It’s not their fault entirely, they were told to enter university because “that is what needs to be done”. But it is difficult to work hard towards something for which you do not see the end. And they were only 18 when they started. And now they feel obliged to stick to the path. I wish the universities took a greater responsibility in helping students appreciate what sorts of jobs (other than teacher, doctor, lawyer, and engineer) are out there for their programs and which ones would best suit their skills and personalities. Like the high-school guidance councilor that never was… even in high school (i.e. they existed… but I think as ghosts! Perhaps because they were not given the time or resources to do their job completely). One suggestion – every program has a course in the second year devoted strictly to job exploration in the area, exposing students to 1000’s of possible outcomes and connections. At the same time, writing and presentation skills important for 3rd and 4th year classes are practiced. Then again, I am almost certain that students will complain about such a course and say it is a waste of time… that is our nature as humans. Everything seems a waste of time until we find out what we really want. And alas, as Halifox10 states – the higher education systems have their own monetary agendas.
The other suggestion is that we start instilling hard work ethic at age 5 again. Children on the farm fields dusk till dawn except for the happy “learning breaks”. Nooo, not the right solution either 🙁
Yes though, it is frustrating. Not if they make the mistakes the first time… they are there to learn after all… but if they are too apathetic to try avoiding the same mistakes the tenth time. Poor little sheep.
Go, Goat, go!
I also say the solution is to have more guidance counsellors doing better jobs.
…and the mandatory degree/field job option course idea is a very, very good one. It might take the advantage away from kids who have Mommy and Daddy to point the way for them because they are in the know. …and that could serve to shake up the whole job market and better match the best jobs to those who deserve them instead of those with privileged info.