I have to admit this guy seems like the English professor I like. Perhaps a little arrogant but he seems to be the type that knows his subject and teaches it will and with vigor.

However, I see what you're saying about the commitment thing, and I largely agree. On the other hand, there are those students who tend to learn well on their own or who know most of the material covered in the beginning, but who do not wish to miss a pop quiz/test announcement. Everyone learns differently, and I think that's something to keep in mind. So, while someone may miss several classes/show up late, they may still do extremely well in the course. Again, if they are not disruptive about being late (come in and sit down, that's it), then who's to say them being late shows them as being less committed? If you get/know something, why sit and listen to what you already know? Maybe that sounds dismissive and rude on behalf of the one trying to teach you something, but again, everyone learns at a different level, and if the end goal is learning, then if they choose not to come for the first half because they already know something, why make an issue of it? Also, there are other outside mitigating factors to take into account: someone's car may have broken down on the way to class, for example.

In any case, $2700 at my college will pay the salary one adjunct lecturer for teaching one course for one semester (including a little of the fringe). So basically what I'm saying is that your so-called state tuition fee covers almost nothing.

And "tautologically speaking," is an adjunct is as valuable as 100 gallons of liquid soap (at current wholesale prices)?

Okay, then explain to us why you are here? If this supposedly website is for "poor students", then why is a "smart" student here? Please enlighten us, O Smart one!

It is pathetic that so many respondents misconstrued what he said. He is NOT pushing politics down anyone's throat. What he is doing is questioning, challenging and probing. He is asking his students to THINK about the foundation of their beliefs, and he asks this of students at every end of the political spectrum. This means he does NOT force politics down people's throats. It means he is asking people to think about what they say and what they claim to believe. The fact that he does this with all of his students means that he is not using his position to push a point of view on his students, unless of course the point he is pushing is to think about what you say before you say it. Since when was that NOT the job of an English professor?

As for the eye-rolling thing, unless you have some incredibly good reason for strolling into a class after it has started, you deserve more than an eye-rolling. You are disrespecting him, your peers and, ultimately, yourself.

It is pathetic that so many respondents misconstrued what he said. He is NOT pushing politics down anyone's throat. What he is doing is questioning, challenging and probing. He is asking his students to THINK about the foundation of their beliefs, and he asks this of students at every end of the political spectrum. This means he does NOT force politics down people's throats. It means he is asking people to think about what they say and what they claim to believe. The fact that he does this with all of his students means that he is not using his position to push a point of view on his students, unless of course the point he is pushing is to think about what you say before you say it. Since when was that NOT the job of an English professor?

As for the eye-rolling thing, unless you have some incredibly good reason for strolling into a class after it has started, you deserve more than an eye-rolling. You are disrespecting him, your peers and, ultimately, yourself.

It is pathetic that so many respondents misconstrued what he said. He is NOT pushing politics down anyone's throat. What he is doing is questioning, challenging and probing. He is asking his students to THINK about the foundation of their beliefs, and he asks this of students at every end of the political spectrum. This means he does NOT force politics down people's throats. It means he is asking people to think about what they say and what they claim to believe. The fact that he does this with all of his students means that he is not using his position to push a point of view on his students, unless of course the point he is pushing is to think about what you say before you say it. Since when was that NOT the job of an English professor?

As for the eye-rolling thing, unless you have some incredibly good reason for strolling into a class after it has started, you deserve more than an eye-rolling. You are disrespecting him, your peers and, ultimately, yourself.

It is pathetic that so many respondents misconstrued what he said. He is NOT pushing politics down anyone's throat. What he is doing is questioning, challenging and probing. He is asking his students to THINK about the foundation of their beliefs, and he asks this of students at every end of the political spectrum. This means he does NOT force politics down people's throats. It means he is asking people to think about what they say and what they claim to believe. The fact that he does this with all of his students means that he is not using his position to push a point of view on his students, unless of course the point he is pushing is to think about what you say before you say it. Since when was that NOT the job of an English professor?

As for the eye-rolling thing, unless you have some incredibly good reason for strolling into a class after it has started, you deserve more than an eye-rolling. You are disrespecting him, your peers and, ultimately, yourself.

It is pathetic that so many respondents misconstrued what he said. He is NOT pushing politics down anyone's throat. What he is doing is questioning, challenging and probing. He is asking his students to THINK about the foundation of their beliefs, and he asks this of students at every end of the political spectrum. This means he does NOT force politics down people's throats. It means he is asking people to think about what they say and what they claim to believe. The fact that he does this with all of his students means that he is not using his position to push a point of view on his students, unless of course the point he is pushing is to think about what you say before you say it. Since when was that NOT the job of an English professor?

As for the eye-rolling thing, unless you have some incredibly good reason for strolling into a class after it has started, you deserve more than an eye-rolling. You are disrespecting him, your peers and, ultimately, yourself.

As to childhood beliefs, I still think most people don't know what the heck they are talking about, and to quote a dear friend: "go about their business like headless chickens".

That said, I believe it would be more constructive if he channeled all the energy he wastes questioning people on their political beliefs into questioning the literature he teaches and encouraging his students to do the same. If the literature is political, either change the name of the class to "Politics and English" or change the literature.

The world is already full of hypocrisy, lies and busybodies; isn't it ever enough?

english is Free Free Free at library, borders, google yahoo Net.

Free Free Free. no need for money, time to study this.

The fundamental problem is the service attitude expressed in Winfield's trolling, "you are paid for a teaching service, so you have to teach to my specifications". (Who cares that these little soundbites represent almost nothing of actual views/attitudes/practice, that would make this whole site irrelevant. Erm.) Essentially you forget the part about the teacher knowing what he's working towards; so let's have the student whining from his narrow perspective.

The majority of Anglosaxon unies are crumbling because of this attitude/financing model (e.g., payment per degree delivered –> staff cannot fail anyone however incompetent –> devalues all other students' degrees).

Sorry, stopped reading after sentence two. Charming attempt at making the public agree by including them in your "all". For now, you'll get an F; please return amended version.

Reading this site is very eye-opening though. One can certainly see why the students are the students and the profs are the profs. Profs can't seem to win – as long as one student gets a grade of C or lower, they'll be on this site complaining about whatever.

/not an English teacher
//feel for those who are

feel free to vent about iron-fists and sadism, if you like, but dont belittle the profession.

P.S. Being a high school teacher is not nearly the same as being a professor.

Some things are "right" to say and some things are not. The professor acts as both referee and guide. Almost all viewpoints are encouraged in elementary school. Through the course of education, we narrow the idea of what constitutes valid opinion. A great teacher shares her own viewpoint with students and engages in reasoned and logical debate about that viewpoint within the classroom. That's what professors are paid for. By definition, each professor is a unique scholar with a point of view (i.e., a dissertation) different from all other scholars within her discipline. This point of view she has professed (made public), defended satisfactorally, and that she continues to defend (insofar as she still holds to those opinions).

Politics enters every aspect of culture. You can't discuss Galileo from a historical point of view without mentioning a political stance that might rub certain students "the wrong way." And one can't properly discuss Literature, Marketing, Economics, Art, etc., without bringing up politics.

As for the politics issue, yes, books deal with them and it's good to discuss them in context of what the literature concludes about them. It is NOT okay to shove your political viewpoint on others or dictate what is and isn't right. Professors are meant to teach, and to teach well, they should ask students to draw their own conclusions, not dogmatically force those conclusions on their students. A good teacher asks questions and encourages students to consider ALL viewpoints, he does not share his own within the classroom.

Show your post to your parents, and see if they don't think that they don't put in a full-day's work. HS teachers prep, do curricular development, go to meetings, take classes, correct papers, etc. Profs do much of that too (plus research and publication). Haven't you paid attention to what it is your folks do every evening?

Prof-abusers are about as frequent as HS-teacher-abusers (or abusers in the general population). Ask the 'rents if they abuse their students.

You have an underlying disrespect for what it is your parents do. You should know better. I think you're angry at someone here . . . . I wonder who?

Let people vent here, and quit trying to justify sadistic and iron fisted professors who will never be in true control of anything but their class.