As part of my ongoing trudge towards the completion of my degree I was faced with my own Cranky Professor moment today...
One of those required courses I am enrolled in is a Strategic Reading class. Now keep in mind these are all college students, and the majority of the class are of the "adult learner" demographic, meaning they SHOULD be somewhat past the point of teenaged stupidity.
The weekly assignment involved a rather delightful short story of the vaguely horror genre (think H.P. Lovecraft) by Jorge Luis Borges. Keep in mind that this was an obviously fictional work involving a protagonist, a book and a descent into madness.
So come the weekly comments.
Not one.
Not two.
Three different people in the class start their discussions with variations on the "If this book is real how come no one has heard of it, how can a real book do all these magical things?" etc....
I seriously had to go back and read things twice to make sure I was right and that these people had NO clue the story was fictional.
And these are our higher education students...
4 comments:
Isn't that the kind of heart-warming classroom experience that makes you want to slam your own head in the door repeatedly, so you can see it their way?
Yes it reminded me yet again why I don't have the patience to be a teacher, as much as I'd love it - the urge to publicly mock and then throw into the stocks such specimens would be overwheleming...
I'm thinking Book of Sand or Library of Babel - been too long since I read anything of his.
Why I couldn't teach full time.
It was Book of Sand - and it's been too long for me as well, this story was a great reminder.
Post a Comment