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About 30 minutes ago, I send privately, a rather glib but mild
response to the poster and while I in no way wish to retract my
message to him (her?), I would like to post some comments on the
list.
When and where I went to school, we were encouraged to question
everything.
- If a prof threw out a statement that we didn't agree with, we were
to say so and it would lead to a dialog where EVERYONE learned
something.
- If a prof threw out a statement that we didn't understand, we were
to say so and it would lead to a dialog where EVERYONE learned
something.
Maybe something has changed, and maybe because of this change,
processes ARE more important. With a defined process, you don't have
to analyze, you don't have to figure things out, you are encouraged
to NOT adapt, since if you initiate a path not included in the
process flowchart, you aren't told where to go next.
I'd like to address that large chunk of the "> ...the thousands of
university students, both undergraduate and graduate..."
If you sit there like a sponge, never opening your mouth because you
don't know how to phrase a question that won't make you look stupid,
absorbing everything your instructors tell you, you stay that way...a
sponge and we all know that sponges don't add anything to a
situation...only empty cells surrounded by inert, fibrous matter.
Take the list and the mentioned SIGs. A list, a SIG, any situation,
without interaction, questioning, discussion, passionate discourse,
has one future. Failure, because for it to continue, it must grow,
and it grows on information.
--- ASUE Tekwrytr <tekwrytr -at- hotmail -dot- com> wrote:
>
> Why would anyone lurk, and not post messages? For the same reason
> he or she joins innumerable STC SIGs--information.
>
> Why would a lurker leave the list? Lack of useful information.
>
> Of the thousands of university students, both undergraduate and
> graduate, a
> large chunk are lurkers, here or on the STC boards. Why don't they
> contribute more? For the exact same reason they all fill in "it was
> flippin'
> wonderful" when asked--every semester in every class--to comment on
> the class and instructor. Because every good student knows that
> every good instructor keeps track of who says what, and those
"evaluation comments" can come back to haunt you.
You think those are good instructors? The ones who penalize you for
opening your mouth? Then I feel sorry for you...you don't know what
good instructors are.
What comes back to haunt you is not questions, not evaluations, but
stupidity. You think you invented school? We've been there too. We're
still there. We're in our 30's, 40's, 50's and we're still there. It
just happens that we're there to learn, not just soak.
> Does anyone really expect openness and honesty, on this forum, or
> in a university evaluation?
Absolutely. I want instructors who thrive on discourse, who live for
the "Why?".
> Consider--if I rudely shoot down a poster for something I consider
> utter
> drivel, then find out later that the poster is the hiring manager
IF you were practiced in intelligent discourse, you would know that
it is possible to not only shoot it down, but make the person know
that they've met their intellectual match, and you can do it without
rudeness...but you'll never know how to do that because you won't
take the chance.
> Sure, we lurk. We are trying to learn, because to a great extent,
no, you're not...you're trying to get through by leaving the least
possible wake. You're a bystander and you are watching your field
pass you by because you think by regurgitating previously processed
information, it is going to make you seem equally informed. The real
world knows better....and we can recognize it when we see it.
> hold--and we
> are better trained, better educated, and better motivated than many
> of the
> current group of tech writers who seem to have gained employment in
> (what used to be)a high-demand employment field.
As I said in the post that I sent to you, I'm not
worried...collectively, I've seen your stuff.
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