“I make sure to get to class on time just for it to be canceled. USE YOUR DAMN EMAIL. Grr”
–Posted on Facebook, 12 January 2012
About 25 years ago, I was horrified as I read the letters which students had written in support of my nomination for a prestigious teaching award. They thought I should have been awarded the Excellence in Teaching Citation because I was courteous. What really troubled me was the realization that if students thought that courtesy was the main reason I should win the award, it meant that my colleagues were not being courteous.
I again thought of those letters when I read a posting that a former student made on Facebook: “I make sure to get to class on time just for it to be canceled. USE YOUR DAMN EMAIL. Grr.” Given the ease of technological communication, I am in sympathy with my student.
I know that there have been times when I have even e-mailed students in the evening to tell them that I was not feeling well and that they should be sure to read their e-mail before coming to class the next day. The following morning, I send an e-mail informing students whether class is cancelled or not. It is a simple act of courtesy that is easy to accomplish.
I am not passing judgment on this particular faculty member. For example, if the professor had been in an automobile accident on the way to campus, it would not have been possible to send an e-mail to the class. But how often do we not send e-mails when we cannot be in class? How often do we not extend even the simplest acts of courtesy when presented with a student in our office, in the hallway, in our classroom, or somewhere else on campus?
About the same time I was reading the letters of recommendation that my students had written on my behalf, I learned the theory that both violence and non-violence were mimetic. I also learned that something mimetic is imitative; that violence begets violence and that non-violence begins a cycle of non-violence.
His professor’s lack of courtesy brought out the worse in my former student; shouting followed by a “Grr.” Unintentionally, the professor taught the students that she or he was not going to treat them with respect. Early in the semester, the seeds of mutual disrespect had been sown. This act of violence might now be imitated by the students in the class.
Fortunately, because students too often have such low expectations of us, it is easy to earn their respect. An e-mail, a friendly word, some penny candy, or any simple act of courtesy can make them think that we deserve to win an Excellence in Teaching Citation.
It’s just too easy
–Steven L. Berg, PhD
Photo Credit: Undeclared Major. Please click on image to see a larger version.
