Like many conferences, the lessons to be taken away from Academic conferences often have very little to do with anything that people actually spoke about. In this particular case, one of the lessons to be taken away is how Queer Studies, Gender Studies, and African-American Studies appear to have successfully sealed their own death sentence.
Power and Humor
Did you know that when you make a joke, you are attempting to control a relationship? Yeah, I bet that was foremost on your mind as well.
Whither the Race Debate
Sometimes it’s difficult to understand what’s truly at stake with race relations when it comes to Affirmative Action.
Yes, Virginia. There is such a thing as a Stupid Question
I knew that when I returned to the classroom I was going to be subjected to all the familiar stupid student questions, but even I wasn’t prepared for this: “If I don’t turn in my paper, will I still get credit for it?” While many students have asked similar questions in class, this was the first time I had ever gotten it so blatant and overt. And so insane.
Philosophy of Grading
Perhaps there is nothing more controversial in a classroom as the grading procedures. I have long been an staunch critic of the traditional “percentage” system of grading, for a number of reasons. As I enter the classroom yet again, my controversial system is again called in question, and I feel that perhaps this might be a useful description of why and how I grade the way I do.
The Big Deal About Cheating
We’re told often that cheating is a bad thing, that it will only hurt the cheater in the long run. Cheating is like masturbation – everyone’s done it but no one admits it. If it is self-abuse (I’m talking about cheating now) then why should we care? Why do we get upset over someone who cheats?