American Students Are Lazy!
Education in the U.S. It’s time for a rant – I know I’ve been gone for awhile… the summer was crazy, the Fall started with the Dougster moving in and it’s already Halloween….before we know it, the holidays will kick in and it will be time for a new 36 days of Christmas posting! In addition to expanding my household by +1 this Fall.
I started teaching online. As such, I have a rant and I think it’s justified, warranted and sadly true. Most of the population of American students is comprised of lazy dumbasses. Sorry, but it’s true. My sister is an elementary school teacher in New Jersey. I am teaching accounting online (I’ve taught in years past in the traditional setting as well). Between the two of us, we agree – students these days, regardless of (1) socio-economic background (2) subject (3) age or (4) geographic location feel entitled and don’t think they should have to work too hard to earn their grades.
If a student fails a course, it reflects poorly on the teacher – never mind that the student can’t manage to turn one assignment in on time, do the reading, do some research, NOT blatantly plagiarize or participate in a discussion. They should still get an A, right? Fuck that. Guess what people – if you’re in school, you earn your grade. If you earn an F – what did you do, or not do, to earn that letter? Rarely can you put all the blame on the instructor. There are tutors. Learning Centers. Accommodations made for Special Needs.
What all do you need us to do to try to get you guys to absorb the knowledge? We walk you through examples; we repeat the key phrases/definitions at least three times each lecture – just because your learning curve is flatter than Cameron Diaz’s chest doesn’t mean that’s my problem! Let’s back up a second. I have invested almost 9 years into my secondary education. I have earned my BA in Business Economics, my MS in Accounting and my MBA. I’ve done it traditionally (“brick and mortar” school) and non-traditionally (online). I have worked full-time through most of those 9 years. I have had a household to run and manage and family obligations to fulfill. Sound familiar? Shove your excuses!
It’s amazing to me that there could be so many deaths in such a short time frame. And isn’t it funny how the flu/pneumonia/bronchitis is taking its toll on the class – which never meets face-to-face? Not to mention the sick mothers, new handicaps, computer viruses and motherboard-crashes that have occurred across the nation in the last few weeks? The demands of family, the six kids you’re raising (didn’t you ever hear of birth control?), the job hours (you’re going to school online for flexibility because of those job hours), blah blah blah.
How about this? Rather than come up with some creative excuse, why not be honest? “I won’t be turning in my assignment on time because (1) I’m lazy and haven’t started it yet (2) I haven’t paid attention all session and don’t even know what’s due yet (3) I feel like getting trashed, not turning in my homework (4) I got too busy sucking my boyfriend’s dick to finish the homework (5) I’m a drug-dealer and the homework got in the way of my dealing.”
Seriously folks – if you or your kids are in school – great. But how about the American student population, from grade school through graduate school, try a new concept called ACCOUNTABILITY. YOU are responsible for your performance. YOU are responsible for your grades. YOU actually have to EARN the degree you are persuing. There are no gimmee’s in life – what the hell makes you think you should get one in school??
Prof A
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As a university level instructor of more than 25 years of experience, I totally agree! Now that feminism has completely taken over the k–college school system, we have firmly in place a 'non-accountability' pact with universities. Feminists wanted a system where women didn't have to compete in the harsh environment of 'males'. Over the last 30 years they have succeeded in expunging the 'male' traits of competition, grades, comparisons, judgment (as in being judged), winners & losers, linear & logical/mathematical reasoning, or anything they considered 'anti-women' out of the US school system. Of course, that meant that all the rigor was removed from math, science, English, history, civics, etc. Studies show that US school children now spend less than 50% of their day on the traditional core subjects, spending most of their time on 'team building' or going to 'bullying workshops', etc. Part of this time is spent on PE, which I highly recommend, given millions of US school kids that are obese. But the rest of this permissive system is just plain non-sense. So of course when kids reach college they are totally unprepared to become responsible for their own progress. When you spend 12 years singing, 'I am special, I am special, look at me', and having teachers give you an 'A' for inhaling and exhaling, then facing college courses that expect you to 'do' something is quite a challenge. Feminists would howl that I am 'blaming the victim' (ironically, the victim of their own infantilized system), but I am saying, that as unfair as it may seem, these students are responsible to compensate for the shortcomings of the 'progressive' system they were exposed to. In fact, human history is rife with such examples. When blacks were freed from the barbaric system of slavery in the US, it became their responsibility to become productive members of society and demand the help they needed.
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