As York University becomes more and more technologically enhanced, online courses have started popping up. A recently new advent, these courses offer students like me a chance to earn our credits while working around our life schedules. These courses can range from the mundane, as in a simple course website with announcements and a reading list, to the highly interactive, as in a discussion board and audio lectures. This shouldn't surprise many people; everything is web-based nowadays. But what is surprising is the lack of technological awareness the professors who conduct the courses have, and how they choose to conduct themselves in this environment.
Last year, I took an online marketing course as one of my electives. This course was taught by Professor W., a woman who insisted that we corresponded on a listserv. Since the course required that we each (as in 50 students) respond to a set of questions for each unit covered (ten in all), our inboxes flooded quickly, and it became increasingly difficult to manage each post. Several students suggested that she move our discussion to the WebCT, a server hosted by York University, which handled discussion groups in a more organized and simplified way. Professor W. refused. Two weeks later, she moved the discussion to the WebCT, not once acknowledging that she might have been wrong.
Later on, a student posted something that was deemed rude and offensive, and Professor W. tried to mediate the discussion by threatening him. This is the offensive thread:
----- Original Message -----
From: "K."
Sent: Friday, January 16, 2004 9:46 PM
Subject: Re: [COURSE] Societal Marketing Concept 1.9
B. I cannot believe how insulting you are I think its time someone told you. "be smart enough" is that what you said. Wow.
Quoting "B." :
i'm making a general statement, be smart enough not to take it so literally.
B.
Quoting "S." :
That is, of course, under the assumption that everyone watches TV. :)
S.
Quoting "B." :
Date: 2004/01/13 Tue PM 05:06:27 EST
To: COURSE
Subject: Re: [COURSE] Societal Marketing Concept 1.9
television has replaced the good ol book. it's sad what we fill our minds with.
B.
This is Professor W.'s remarks about the student:
Quoting Professor W. :
I am happy to see that the verbally abusive student has dropped the course. It would be charitable of us to believe that perhaps he is very angry over some things in his life and it was coming out in his postings. Whatever his reasons, it was inappropriate language for a classroom and I am glad he has decided not to stay in the course. But make no mistake, if he had decided to stay, he would have had improve his language or he would not have been allowed to stay.
Professor W.
B. apologizes:
From: "B."
Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2004 10:27 PM
Subject: Re: [COURSE] Offensive marketing
i apologize to all again for my offensive remarks to anyone offended. i will offend no more is my objective for this course.
But then notices Professor W.'s previous e-mail:
From: "B."
Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2004 11:27 PM
Subject: Re: [COURSE] Offensive marketing
first of all, do not assume anything about my life, when you do not know me personally, how bout i assume your a miserable old women on no facts, same thing.
B.
Professor W. notices that B. has apologized:
----- Original Message -----
Thank you for your apology, B.; it goes some way to fixing the harm done. I have learned from many years on the e-mail that we have to cut off unkind language quickly or the whole system implodes.
Professor W.
But then notices that B. has called her a miserable hag:
To: B.
Student Number: 20xxxxxxx
COURSE Winter Term
Having just sent a message to the listserv thanking you for your apology to the listserv for your previous abusive language here, I now open the mailbox to find this appalling e-mail from you.
You had written several abusive e-mails to the listserv and I, on checking the registration list had thought that I had seen that you had dropped the course. I was happy, because it is often best for the group if one abusive person decides to drop the course. I tried to give the group the kindest interpretation I could of what might have motivated your previous abusive language.
I am forwarding a copy of this to the Director of the School of Administrative Studies, to the Dean, to the Centre for Distance Education, and to my Union Steward to report this behaviour. You simply may not speak to a professor in this way, and it must stop.
Professor W.
Cc: Director School of Administrative Studies, Dean's Office, YUFA Union Steward
Bcc: Our whole friggin' class
While B. was obviously being very rude, Professor W. did not conduct herself in a much better way. First, she was very condescending towards him, and assumed things that were beyond her grasp. Second, she decided to send the last e-mail to our whole class, with B.'s student number on it. I'm sure that if she had somehow gotten her hands on his address and girlfriend's name, she would have posted those tidbits too. Although I completed the course, I would not recommend that anyone else enroll in her class.
After years of waiting, I finally landed a spot in an online creative writing class. Hurrah! Now everyone would be subjected to my bad poetry!
Unfortunately, the class wasn't quite what I expected it to be. While perusing www.ratemyprofessor.com, I found some unsavory reviews of Professor F., the man responsible for the class:
"Easy course but F. is bloody out there. He retreated from a real job to "coach" writers via the Internet. His droning, hypnotic lectures are sometimes insultingly childish and I wouldn't be surprised to learn he's a cult leader. Surreal."
And:
"It's great that he designed a really awesome course and all, but it's unfortunate that the TAs seem to give all the feedback, very disappointing feedback! Be prepared to have your writing misinterpreted and congratulated with 1 line comments like 'fine'."
And these people were right. After two weeks in the class, I decided to drop the course. Not only was there virtually no feedback from the professor (only the teaching assistants, who were probably dipping into his stash), but apparently grammar and punctuation aren't integral components in a writing course. Advice ranged from the cryptic ("HI L. YOUR VOICE IS UNIQUE AND QUIRKY. FINE. CLEVERNESS MAKES THESE DISTANT. BE MOVED.") to the outright useless ("YOU CAN START TOSSING OUT ELLIPSES NO NEED FOR ... THEY ARE A FRONT FOR THE JUICY GOODS HIDING BETWEEN YOUR FINGERS WRITE-TYPE THROUGH THE PAUSES AND SEE WHAT SPILLS OUT CHEERS"). In fact, the teaching assistants and Professor F. all basically write in this type of prose. This probably isn't the best place to start showing off your lyrical prowess, but then again, maybe I'm wrong - after all, I'm on one side of the screen and they're on the other.
The next blow came when Professor F. decided to get a little insulting with a student because she didn't like his "writing stance," a seriously meaningless assignment given to us to justify the $1,000 spent on the class. When she said that she didn't like the "writing stance" and preferred to sit in front of her computer any damn way she wanted, he had to say this:
"slouchy comfy, eh? glad you like the heads up, and it seems you writing voice is quite flexible. good
as for the stance being uncomfortable, when we were used to being slouchy comfy apes, to straighten up like a humans was harder for some than others. so bye bye neanderthals. evolution is not all fun. good luck."
Is this what higher learning is all about? Being able to manage disses from professors as soon as you don't agree with them, and navigate shoddy, crappily-made websites? Needless to say, Professor F. would probably give me an F for this article. I don't really care, though. I'd give him an F for being such a bad teacher. ¤ C.Ho.
