Recently a student asked for some guidance on a project:
"Sorry to bother you again about the project, but I was wondering if you gave anymore guidelines for the project? What kind of format, how long you are expecting it to be, etc. It's been a while since I've written a paper, so the more guidelines I can get the better."
So I gave a utilitious reply.
"I want a cover page, table of contents, and citation. I prefer Chicago style citation, just because! Each section does not need to be longer than it needs to be, but not shorter either."
It has become a pet peeve of mine, but mandating that a paper be of a certain length, rather than of a certain LOGICAL DEVELOPMENT is common in academia. This encourages wordy, snow-filled papers that mask the barrenness if some students minds. Pity!
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If there is no mimumum length, the least of ones' efforts becomes the maximum. If there is no maximum length, the project loses focus and dicipline. Tame those students, give them rigid guidelines. They need to be taught with a whip!
ReplyDeleteI get all of these "artist" writers who discard our "foolish" guidlelines because we have yet to recognize their obvious and enormous talent. In the end, their work is never the best one has to offer. I had an English teacher in high school, Mr. Casey (whose probably in his seventies now), who wrote on the blackboard rather sarcastically, "If work requires your maximum, give it your minimum. If it requires your minimum, give it your maximum." It wasn't until I became an adult that I understood where he was going with that. I hope Lord Pollard receives this, lol. -Mike.
I see your point, however, the student in question here is a fundamentaly different student than the over-praised, under achieved lot you in particular encounter. (Yes, I know where you work.)
ReplyDeleteThis student is a very motivated returning student that already craves success and has an ambitious career goal.
I suppose that there is a judegment call here: When is a student in need to rigid guidelines so that they can learn to reach basic goals? When is a student in need of a non-concrete goal so that they can learn to identify a need, assess what will meet the need, and how to obtain the solution. I hope to help guide the students in this particualr class to the latter.
But we shall see.