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Things you just don't get - Page 312

post #4666 of 6533
11/29/12 at 11:47am
I don't know how many points I've deducted from my students' papers this semester for apostrophe errors. I tell them constantly that they need an apostrophe if they are making a word possessive, but they apparently find this idea as difficult as theoretical physics or something. How do you get to university without knowing how to use apostrophes? And how can you continue to make the same mistake over and over, losing points for it every time?
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post #4667 of 6533
11/29/12 at 11:57am
It seems that your students have a lot of flubs, and some of them really horrible. Is this a hard school to get into? Or are people in general just stupid and careless?
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post #4668 of 6533
11/29/12 at 2:12pm
It amazes me how many people work in "salons" or whatever you want to call them that have absolutely no idea how to cut hair. I seek something a bit more "sophisticated" or "skillful" than just a one length regular men's cut, but nothing fancy for sure. How many shitty "run over by a lawnmower" haircuts do I need to suffer through before I find someone who actually knows what they're doing? And what do you do after they cut your hair and you truly aren't satisfied? I've always felt guilted into paying and tipping but in reality I feel as a consumer I should be able to say fuck it, this sux and just leave and never come back.
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post #4669 of 6533
11/29/12 at 3:08pm
^^ When I used to have hair, that drove me nuts. I'd pay for a haircut somewhat better than what Sport Clips could give me, but I always got the same result. Of course I'd rather have my hair back if I could, but I have to admit I don't miss the hassles of dealing with salons.
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post #4670 of 6533
11/29/12 at 3:35pm
Don't be scared to throw down some bones on a good haircut. A bad one can ruin a man's month.
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post #4671 of 6533
11/29/12 at 3:59pm
clippers FTW!
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post #4672 of 6533
11/29/12 at 5:07pm
1. Muscle bound hairy guy at gym that always works out in street clothes.

2. Today, Muscle bound hairy guy at gym that always works out in street clothes is in the locker room using a blow dryer to dry off the sweat from his body. Thank fully with the street clothes on.
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post #4673 of 6533
11/29/12 at 6:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by L'Incandescent View Post

I don't know how many points I've deducted from my students' papers this semester for apostrophe errors. I tell them constantly that they need an apostrophe if they are making a word possessive, but they apparently find this idea as difficult as theoretical physics or something. How do you get to university without knowing how to use apostrophes? And how can you continue to make the same mistake over and over, losing points for it every time?

Your being to much of a hardass. Those thing's are confusing.
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post #4674 of 6533
11/29/12 at 6:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Smith View Post

Your being to much of a hardass. Those thing's are confusing.

You know what 'Steve 'Smith, you might be on to 'something there.
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post #4675 of 6533
11/29/12 at 6:17pm
when I was in college, I had a professor who said he'd take 5 points for every grammatical error on our papers. He didn't fuck around.

We could make up for some of the points we lost by re-writing the same paper but using half the amount of words we did first time around.

I learned a whole lot that class.
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post #4676 of 6533
11/29/12 at 6:39pm
I've got a list of usage errors for which I hold my students responsible. It includes what I think are the errors that no one with a university degree should ever make. There are lots of other errors I don't penalize them for, but of course I correct them when I see them.

I try to convey to my students that they are always making an impression, and that they should be conscious of that. Of course a large part of the impression they make comes from the ways they express themselves. I don't teach at an elite university, and so most of my students did not grow up in environments where they could absorb correct English. That's why I emphasize the importance of correct English in my classes: I think I'd be doing them a real disservice if I did not help them address that deficiency. Of course there's only so much I can do, as I am not an English professor and can't devote the whole class to English usage. But I do what I can.
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post #4677 of 6533
11/29/12 at 6:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by L'Incandescent View Post

I've got a list of usage errors for which I hold my students responsible. It includes what I think are the errors that no one with a university degree should ever make. There are lots of other errors I don't penalize them for, but of course I correct them when I see them.
I try to convey to my students that they are always making an impression, and that they should be conscious of that. Of course a large part of the impression they make comes from the ways they express themselves. I don't teach at an elite university, and so most of my students did not grow up in environments where they could absorb correct English. That's why I emphasize the importance of correct English in my classes: I think I'd be doing them a real disservice if I did not help them address that deficiency. Of course there's only so much I can do, as I am not an English professor and can't devote the whole class to English usage. But I do what I can.

I like that approach because it is a solid path toward improvement. Some in your position would feed their own ego by being pedantic but that would not be helpful to the students. I would like to see the responsible list and the correction list if you have it in a format which wouldn't be too much trouble to share.
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post #4678 of 6533
11/29/12 at 7:00pm
Kudos to you. I applaud you for your approach to teaching.
Quote:
Originally Posted by L'Incandescent View Post

I've got a list of usage errors for which I hold my students responsible. It includes what I think are the errors that no one with a university degree should ever make. There are lots of other errors I don't penalize them for, but of course I correct them when I see them.
I try to convey to my students that they are always making an impression, and that they should be conscious of that. Of course a large part of the impression they make comes from the ways they express themselves. I don't teach at an elite university, and so most of my students did not grow up in environments where they could absorb correct English. That's why I emphasize the importance of correct English in my classes: I think I'd be doing them a real disservice if I did not help them address that deficiency. Of course there's only so much I can do, as I am not an English professor and can't devote the whole class to English usage. But I do what I can.
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post #4679 of 6533
11/29/12 at 7:04pm
I don't get why we can't drink in the office all the time like they do in Mad Men.
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post #4680 of 6533
11/29/12 at 7:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Smith View Post

I like that approach because it is a solid path toward improvement. Some in your position would feed their own ego by being pedantic but that would not be helpful to the students. I would like to see the responsible list and the correction list if you have it in a format which wouldn't be too much trouble to share.

Quote:
Originally Posted by JayJay View Post

Kudos to you. I applaud you for your approach to teaching.

Thanks guys. The analogy is not perfect, but I think of teaching as very much like coaching. My job is to get the best out of the students in my classes. Everything I do pedagogically should serve that goal, and not the goal of impressing on them how smart I am or of fueling my burning sense of righteous indignation at how stupid and lazy kids are nowadays. For reasons somewhat out of their control (and somewhat in their control too, to be honest), they lack a lot of the capacities and dispositions I'd like them to have. But if I'm not willing to meet them where they are and try to help them improve, then I have no business in the teaching profession.

Steve Smith, I've got my list of usage errors in a Word document, which I think I should be able to send in a PM.
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