The Hunt for a Good Teacher
I do have some students every semester that come up to me and tell me that they heard good things about my classes and/or my teaching and that’s why they signed up for my class. For what it’s worth I do always try to meet or exceed the expectations, with which those students enroll.
A Long Waiting List for the IPE Course
I just checked the enrollment for the international political economy (IPE) course I will be teaching in the fall. The enrollment limit is 40. There are 40 students enrolled and 17 students on the waiting list. I doubt that it’s my reputation that has resulted in the long waiting list.
Students’ Lack of Basic Manners?
This has happened several times over the past year—students simply barge into my office when my office door is shut. The door is not propped open or ajar—it’s shut, and some students simply open and walk right in without knocking.
Today one of my students showed up early for an appointment. He was scheduled to come by at 1PM. He opened the door and walked into my office at 12:25PM, while I was having lunch. I sent him away and told him to come back at the scheduled time.
When he came back, he just opened my office door and walked in again. This time, when he sat down, I asked him why he barged in without knocking. He said he wanted to check if I was inside!
I can hazard a guess that the prevalent instant-messaging, Facebook and MySpace culture has knocked down the barriers to privacy and undermined any minimal level of appropriateness, but I’m genuinely puzzled and deeply troubled.
