Professor X has written a wonderful piece on his troubles in a very low level English 101 class. He has studied the matter up close and personal and has some wise words on the subject.
For I, who teach these low-level, must-pass, no-multiple-choice-test classes, am the one who ultimately delivers the news to those unfit for college: that they lack the most-basic skills and have no sense of the volume of work required; that they are in some cases barely literate; that they are so bereft of schemata, so dispossessed of contexts in which to place newly acquired knowledge, that every bit of information simply raises more questions. They are not ready for high school, some of them, much less for college.
He has other indications. The look of pain on some people's faces when they get confronted with something new and difficult to learn. I think that is the missing level zero class for every student above a certain age. Learning is painful if it is really going on. The truth is that most people can't stand the pain. What students need to know is that the pain is inevitable and must be endured for however long it takes. If learning is to become life long the pain is essentially forever. With the occasional breaks allowed for rearming for the fight.
The key to learning is to be comfortable with the discomfort of ignorance. That should be lesson zero.
Wow. When I was at CWRU as an undergrad in the late 70's, the President of the University, one Louis Toepfer, got raked over the coals in the school newspaper for allegedly saying, "Learning is suffering." He averred that he actually said, "To learn is to suffer." Either way, I knew then that he was right. At least I was ready for college, and got through it in 4 years with a degree (still seems sometimes astonishing to me) I did see a few people who were in clean over their heads back then. I hate to imagine what it might be like now. What are those admissions people doing, anyway?
M. Murcek · June 11, 2008 04:04 PM
I disagree; learning for me was and is sort of a runner's high; the steep part of the learning curve always had me "psyched". Although I must admit, in a formal setting, my mind tended (and still tends) to wander. But in small group, informal, or one-on-one (or diy) learning I hit my stride.
Charlie · June 11, 2008 05:34 PM
Speaking as someone with a long-time elementary teacher as a spouse, one of the greatest disservices that has been an outcome of politically correct education is that, in effect, correcting (in particular) minority kids' speech in an effort to give them Standard English is seen as damaging to their self esteem -- if not perceived as discrimination -- thereby depriving of the one tool that is even more fundamentally valuable than literacy.
newscaper · June 11, 2008 11:34 PM
Indeed. Learning for me has always been fun. Yes, it hurts the head at times, but it's fun.
Of course, this is true of stuff you like and can absorb; not so true of stuff you can't wrap your head around.
The Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler
Don?t bang your head!
My favourite hire? The 50+ year-old widow.
If you're hiring anybody under the age of 30, there's a reason you're doing so. They haven't found their "fit" yet.
And, they're not likely to on your dime, either. (I posted on why I think this is going to be the likely case for years to come over at my house.)
I went through my youngest's graduation over the past weekend. Plenty of talk about the Millenial Generation demanding Change!
Ray!