Louis Schmier wrote, "Carol, as it happened, that very thing happened today. It was just one of those days. I just wasn't in the mood. I walked into class, small talked a few minutes, and told them I wasn't in the mood like sometimes they aren't. "Let's go home," I said. We did. It doesn't do any good, it accomplishes nothing, if you force it; if you're there physically but aren't there emotionally or mentally."
I find that action to be extraordinarily unprofessional. Aside from the fact that many students have driven an hour to get to the class or invested in the class in other ways, I know that I cannot afford to voluntarily give up any of my valuable class time for such a silly reason. I don't know about others but I NEVER have enough time to get through everything I want to get through in a semester. In any other employment setting, that sort of cavilier attitude would get you fired. Louis is all about teaching life lessons and responsibility. I seriously doubt that this episode would teach anything other than, "If I don't feel like doing something, I don't have to bother even if it adversely affects others." Just FYI, I have never missed a class for any but the most dire situations. I taught all this week with an excrutiatingly painful "dry socket" after a tooth extraction. I taught the day after my vasectomy (against doctors orders but I probably should have listened to him). I even taught 2 classes while having a heart attack. The idea of not teaching because "I just didn't feel like it" is pretty outrageous to me. If I found that temp or probationary faculty member had done that, there would be hell to pay. Ed Edward I. Pollak, Ph.D. Department of Psychology West Chester University of Pennsylvania ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Husband, father, grandfather, biopsychologist, & bluegrass fiddler...... in approximate order of importance. --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: arch...@jab.org. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=1094 or send a blank email to leave-1094-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
