School induced Insomnia

[Griddles]

So it is 4:15 and I am awake writing two papers for tomorrow. Neither one is particularly interesting, mostly because I do not know what either one is about, much less what it is supposed to be about. I hate these professors who give you open topics, because they are clearly looking for on set of ideas to come across no matter what the individual toopic happens to be.

 

Oh, well. just grasping for sympathy I guess.

 

Anyone else have thoughts?

[LouieB]

Yea..in 30 years none of this will matter....enjoy college while you are there....

 

LouieB

[Guest Jules]

Yea..in 5 years none of this will matter....enjoy college while you are there....

 

LouieB

[Griddles]

Try telling that to some of the people in my classes, much less the professors.

[kimcatch22]

Maybe I'm cranky today... I remember how draining school was at times... but I really take issue with statements like "I hate school." You should stop and take a look around, realize how privileged you are to even be in school. College is not a right (nor a rite) as too many students seem to think these days. I'm guessing no one's holding a gun to your head and forcing you to be in school. If you hate school so much, quit. Otherwise stop complaining, because there are millions of people for whom college is not even remotely a possibility.

[Guest Jules]

Maybe I'm cranky today... I remember how draining school was at times... but I really take issue with statements like "I hate school." You should stop and take a look around, realize how privileged you are to even be in school. College is not a right (nor a rite) as too many students seem to think these days. I'm guessing no one's holding a gun to your head and forcing you to be in school. If you hate school so much, quit. Otherwise stop complaining, because there are millions of people for whom college is not even remotely a possibility.

wow.

[Reni]

Amen Kim!!

 

I LOVE school! This is why I am heading into my mid-30s and am still in!!

 

I dread the day I graduate though and have to pay back all those student loans.

 

(all that said, I have to go now.....and study)

[bjorn_skurj]

I quit school once and worked six months at a gas station. Then I went back to school.

[kimcatch22]

wow.

Told ya I'm cranky today. It's not this particular person I'm picking on; in general this is a big issue of mine. Higher education is a privilege and while I can understand complaining about having 4 papers due at once (although that's something a little time management can resolve,) I absolutely loathe statements like "I hate school." Especially since college is far beyond the realm of compulsory education. I'd have to dig around for statistics, but the percentage of Americans with college degrees is much lower than you'd probably think. I just don't understand how anyone can sit in good conscience and make statements about hating the gift of education that they've been lucky enough to receive -- and that no one's forced them to undertake -- while so many people go without that option at all.

 

I LOVE school! This is why I am heading into my mid-30s and am still in!!

I love school, too!! Professional student for life, I am.

[Griddles]

Well. It is not that I hate school (keep in mind it was four in the morning when this topic was started). I do feel privileged to be getting a higher education. I understand, as my professors continually tell us, that in completing a college degree one becomes part of the top 1% of people in the entire world. What that top 1% is, or how it is researched I do not know.

 

While I do not hate school I really dislike many things about it. Such as a lack of consistency in what is expected. For example in elementary school I all learned how to both print and write in cursive. In middle school all the teachers had us write in cursive, because, "that is what teachers at the high school will want." when I got to high school no teacher asked for cursive, they just wanted it to be legible. In high school I was taught the five paragraph essay because, "that is what college professors will want." For the last two years at college, professors have been beating the five paragraph essay out of myself and my companions. As for cursive writing, I barely turn in any hand written work, and when I do it is mostly just checked for completion. The only time I use cursive is to sign my name and to amuse my self during boring lectures.

 

It is things like this that make me question the true value of a higher education. Is it just the slip of paper that says you showed up every day for 4 years, or is there real knowledge to be gained? I believe at this point many classes are just happy to have people show up, and thus pass them.

 

I could add more but it is time to finally sleep.

[kimcatch22]

Well. It is not that I hate school

Then maybe you should change the subtitle of your thread.

 

And go to class so you can learn to construct an argument, because I can't follow any of what you just wrote. Your middle school cursive example does not support your question about the value of higher education.

[Guest Jules]

Kim, only a few more days. You can make it.

[bjorn_skurj]

I am a bit irked at all the time spent learning cursive myself.

[kimcatch22]

Kim, only a few more days. You can make it.

You know there's gotta be a thread that annoys the hell outta me. And since I now only visit the Lost one to drop off info and leave, I guess this is the winner.

[a.miller]

I agree with Kim -- college is a wonderful resource to have. I just accepted a position where I will be much happier than I am now, but with way less pay. This new position would not require a college degree (which I have). However, I know that I will always have my degree to fall back on. Always. That calming piece of insurance in the back of my mind is worth the small fortune I paid for my degree. So, yeah it does suck you have four papers to complete. What doesn't suck is that fact that when you have a construction job and want to say fuck it, you can apply your degree to something and bail yourself out. And I can assure you, pushing papers around a desk from 9-5 everyday isn't any more fun that writing essays at 4am. Enjoy it while you can.

[Reni]

I worked in a cubicle job for a year before returning to grad school. I can easily say that I would take overnight study marathons, difficult research projects, intense exams and long papers ANY DAY over the mind numbing number punching and paper shuffling I did.

[MattZ]

Jeez. Hasn't every kid in history said that he/she hated school? This is a tough (and unfair) crowd.

[Tweedy's Gurl]

i'm in college right now, so i understand where you're coming from.

 

i hated high school and elementary while i was there. it was a drag. yeah, it's true, with the system they just teach you what they think the higher level wants. sure, some of it might not be relevant eventually, but you run that risk with anything. college is hard. no way i or anyone else he is gonna deny that. it's easy to get frustrated and overwhelmed. if you really feel like you hate what's going on....maybe you should try studying something else. the papers only get longer as you go on, and they may as well be about something you're passionate about, otherwise the life really will be hard.

 

core classes will be done and over with soon. they're not the most fun, but you can get something out of them if you want to.

 

i for one love the open topics that you have to apply certain things to....it makes all of the little wheels in my head spin, in a good way. it's teaches you how to learn, rather than shoving facts down your throat. like i said, though, if you don't want to write about those topics, if it doesn't inspire you, change what you're studying! this is a time when we can take any class we want. it's a great opportunity to just have fun and expand.

[caliber66]

Yeah, I think we could all stand to lighten up a bit on Ed.

[kimcatch22]

Jeez. Hasn't every kid in history said that he/she hated school? This is a tough (and unfair) crowd.

It's not kids I'm talking about. They 1. don't know any better 2. are still under compulsory education, so I completely understand them saying that. What I'm talking about is people who go on to higher education -- something that not everyone has an opportunity to do -- and then complain about that thing they've chosen.

Being a recent college grad myself and now working at a university, I see it all the time: students today are in school for what I think are the wrong reasons. The pursuit of knowledge is secondary to the obscure idea of getting a degree to get a career. Students are lazy researchers (last year my advisor told me she had 4 freshmen in one class hand in papers citing wikipedia as a valid source even after repeated library research seminars and in-syllabus explanations about peer-reviewed sources,) and they seem to think they're entitled to A's and B's just because their tuition dollars "purchased" those grades. So to me, saying you "hate school" when it's a privilege to go falls under the same umbrella as the behaviors I've just described.

But that's not even what I was saying in the beginning. All I was saying was people should think twice about statements like "I hate school" with regards to higher education, because not everyone has the opportunity to go.

[bjorn_skurj]

Truth be told, I really wanted to go to Apex Tech to learn how to fix things, but my parents made me go to a real college. So in revenge, I got a shitty job in a dying field and will eventually hit them up for money.

[caliber66]

But that's not even what I was saying in the beginning. All I was saying was people should think twice about statements like "I hate school" with regards to higher education, because not everyone has the opportunity to go.

I think you're being a little hard on the guy and reading his statement more literally than he intended. I can relate to his predicament, as I had everything-induced insomnia while at college, and there were times that I hated the fact I was at UVA despite recognizing that it was a great privilege not available to everyone. I (really) hate brussels sprouts, too, but that doesn't mean I'm disparaging those who can't get 'em.

[cryptique]

And go to class so you can learn to construct an argument, because I can't follow any of what you just wrote. Your middle school cursive example does not support your question about the value of higher education.

Nah, I see his point ... it had to do with inconsistency, which recalls his original post.

 

I hate to rib you about this, Kim, but if you're going to tell the boy to go back and learn something, make sure you don't leave yourself open to the same:

 

I just don't understand how anyone can sit in good conscious and make statements about hating the gift of education

"conscience"

 

[kimcatch22]

I think you're being a little hard on the guy and reading his statement more literally than he intended.

I'm not gonna let him skate by just because his profs apparently are.

 

"conscience"

 

Ah. Thank you, darling. I've always had a hard time with those two and have to stop and think about them carefully. Apparently the "thinking" part failed me today, in my cold meds trippin' state.

 

Is this the new RTT?

[ponch1028]

While I agree with everything kimcatch22 has stated (and for the most part, everyone has contributed well to this topic), I must chime in and add my $0.02.

 

Maybe "hate school" was a bite harsh, so can't we move past that and get to the real issues at hand. First, as someone who works at a graduate school, has one masters degree and is hoping to start a second, not all teachers / instructors / professors are equal. Some stink at their jobs and don't deserve their position. University professorships are also a privilege and we students pay an awful lot and should expect excellent quality. Yes, some (or many) students are lazy, apathetic, and unmotivated. You know what? They should fail and make way for motivated students who don't have the opportunity. What are the excuses for lame professors? Do we get our money back when our teachers SUCK? It works both ways. How many professors are truly inspired by and motivated for the good of the students? Maybe I'm being a bit harsh, but the pendulum can swing both ways.

 

Second, not all students learn in the same fashion. I suck at exams. I could research and write term papers all day. Am I a better student than someone else just because it is easier for me to write research papers? Or are they a better student than me because timed exams are easier for them? Personally, I think students should be given the option of choosing one or the other. Are some students lazy and unmotivated or just frustrated by the system? I honestly don't know the answer.

 

Third, I get what edwar591 was referencing in regards to cursive writing. The purpose of education should not just be technique or method (or securing a vocation) but also the development of critical thinking tools. When pressed for time, most of my classes gutted the development of critical thinking. Why are some college graduates the dumbest people I know? Because they were able to pass through college without ever really developing their minds and brains (if they had any to begin with).

 

Finally, I hate the entitlement that has crept into education where mediocrity is the new "above average" and everyone feels entitled to an A or B. But you know what, I HATE even more the spineless institutions, professors, and administraters who concede, give such grades to undeserving students, and then lament about the crisis of education. Professors and institutions are either a part of the solution or a part of the problem. There is no in-between. Someone plagarizes, flunk 'em or kick them out.

 

Personally, I loved every minute of college, every cold piece of pizza I ate, and every movie night I hosted in my dorm or apartment. I also appreciated MANY of my professors, you know, the ones who cared about the students and the class and were not there just to stroke their neurotic and narcissistic self-importance and own issues of status and entitlement.

 

I hope all those invested in education on both sides of the coin appreciate the privilege and do their part to preserve (or enhance) the quality and availability of a college education (man, I just sounded like I was running for office or something).

 

Cheers!

 

P.S. If I came across as cranky, I plan to hit the gym later tonight so hopefully any aggression will disappear.