Teacher as Scholar

My claim to fame in the world of scholarship is an essay I wrote a few years ago titled “Coming Up Empty: Exploring Narrative Omissions in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” which was included in Twain’s Omissions: Exploring the Gaps as Textual Context, a collection of essays published in 2013 by Cambridge Scholars Publishing.  Of course I wasn’t paid anything for my contribution, nor was I even given a copy of the book; it retailed for $40 so I didn’t buy it.  It was enough to have my essay published.  More noteworthy, however, is the fact that another scholar (Andrew Levy) referenced this essay in the bibliography of his 2014 book Huck Finn’s America: Mark Twain and the Era that Shaped His Masterpiece.  Thank you Google for revealing this tidbit to me.  It feels good to be cited as a source…

I put a lot of work into that essay, although I’m not exactly a Twain scholar by any stretch of the imagination.  My interest in Huckleberry Finn came out of a class I took in grad school on Twain, Howells and James for which I wrote an essay titled “What Humor Hides in Huck Finn.”   When I wrote that essay, it had been years since I had done any literary criticism (as an undergrad at Purchase College in the 1980s I majored in literature).  I thoroughly enjoyed the process of researching and writing that essay and felt compelled to look for additional opportunities to do literary criticism.  This opportunity presented itself in the form of a call seeking papers by the Mark Twain Circle for a panel at the SAMLA convention in 2012.  When I read that “call for papers” (through U-Penn), I knew I had to give it a shot and got to work drafting an abstract.  Ultimately, I was chosen to present on the panel, and although I could not do so, my proposal was accepted for inclusion in the book.

My interest in literary criticism has remained strong, and I frequently consult https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu to find another “call” to answer.  I recently came across one that caught my eye, inviting “contributions that consider new interpretations or approaches to reading or teaching To Kill a Mockingbird.”  When thinking about how I might approach this topic, it occurred to me that a parallel might be drawn between Atticus Finch and Huck Finn.  If I can argue this successfully, I will be able to demonstrate that while Harper Lee and Mark Twain both put the spotlight on racism in their novels, neither was very successful in making a case for equality.  In that way they were both rather tepid attempts to create real awareness, let alone initiate change.  A contemporary review of To Kill a Mockingbird seems to bear this out.  The Chicago Tribune claimed that the novel “is in no way a sociological novel. It underlines no cause. It answers no questions. It offers no solutions. It proposes no programs. It is simply an excellent piece of storytelling.” 

If my proposal is accepted, I will be embarking on a journey that I know I will enjoy.  This will entail close reading of the texts and investigation into what other scholars have to say.  What will my research uncover?  How will I enter into the dialogue?  Most importantly, in what ways can I contribute something valuable to the scholarship?  Because that’s what the “call” is all about –new interpretations.  This is, after all, the ultimate goal in conducting academic research.  And it’s what I try to help my students understand as they go about their own research.  It takes time and it takes practice, but it is well worth the effort.

On old friends and Facebook

Yesterday I had lunch with an old friend who I’ve known since junior high.  We both shook our heads in amazement over Long Island Iced Teas at the Cheesecake Factory in Danbury when we realized that eighth grade was 40 years ago.  Diana and I were close friends throughout high school, sitting next to one another every morning in homeroom for three years.  She was the friend who knew instinctively what kind of mood I was in based on whether or not I had used a curling iron that morning (straight hair = depressed).  We frequently went out for lunch in my red VW Beetle to nearby Italian Pavilion where we always got a slice of Sicilian.  In the years since, I’ve never had Sicilian to equal IP’s.  We smoked cigarettes and talked boys and laughed (she cried too) when she realized she had missed an entire section on the English Regents Exam in our junior year. 

Diana and I stayed in touch through college, and I met my husband through her (he was her boss at Radio Shack where she worked during her breaks from school).  She went to my wedding; I went to hers.  And then almost 15 years went by until yesterday.  But we’ve been FaceBook friends for several years – I learned that she had married again; she saw pictures of my three boys growing up to be men.  We “liked” one another’s photos, occasionally commented on some, but we never got together.  And then one day she messaged me with this: “I've seen a few of your posts lately, and want you to know I do think of you and really do miss you and our friendship - I know life happens and family/work priorities + distance has made it hard for us to get together - I'd love to see you so let's see if we can schedule something.  Love your old friend, DC.” 

So we met, and we hugged and we laughed and all the years washed away.  And when you’re with someone who knew you when you were trying to know yourself (because let’s face it, isn’t that what adolescence is all about?) you understand that there is a powerful context for that friendship.  Maybe that’s why people of a certain age have the need to connect with old friends on FaceBook – we want to maintain a connection with those we knew when we were young.  We want to know where they ended up in life; whether their lives turned out the way they thought they would.  Presumably they want to know this about us as well.

Maybe there’s a better question we should be asking ourselves, though: Am I the person I want to be?  As I sat there with Diana catching up on our lives over lunch, I wanted her to know that I am, in fact, the person that I want to be.  I never thought I’d be a teacher, but as it turns out, I love teaching.  And I needed my old friend to understand this – that the girl who was trying to figure herself out all those years ago, finally did.  So thanks, FaceBook, for facilitating not only a walk down Memory Lane, but for an opportunity to reestablish an important friendship.  Sometimes old friends make the best friends.

At the Mid Point

Yes, I am the evil teacher who assigns her students work over spring break – but I don’t feel too bad because to this point in the semester the work load has been entirely manageable.  They’ve mostly been doing short reading responses and reflections.  Unfortunately, the major portion of their grade will be earned during the second half of the semester.  I did this by design, however, as we have been building toward the one research essay to be completed in this course.  I decided to tackle academic research in stages this semester by showing them how to implement reading strategies and then moving them into analysis and finally into research.  The spring break assignment is, in fact, to create a research plan.  I even provided them with a sample plan.

I too will be doing school work over the break.  Following a mid-semester course evaluation that I administered last week, I am faced with implementing some changes that I believe, in the long run, will go a long way toward making the class better.  For ideas see https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/gradhacker/mid-semester-evaluations.  The students were asked to answer four questions:

What’s going well?

What needs improvement?

What can the students do to improve the class?

What can the instructor do to improve the class?

As most of the students identified that improvement on their part would involve participating more (I agree 100%), I decided to partially turn the class over to them, at least when it comes to discussions that follow assigned readings.  Since participation counts for 10% of their grade, it seems fairly important to give them an opportunity to earn this grade, as they’ve made limited effort to do so thus far.  So here’s my simple idea – to divide the class into six groups, having each group assign a reading from our text along with a discussion question.  Groups will be tasked with deciding how to best lead the rest of the class in a discussion.  At the very least, this forces every student to participate on one side of the equation.  Although I can’t predict whether the students will be more likely to engage in a discussion led by their peers, I believe it’s worth a try. 

I think what’s important here is not so much whether the students actually participate in the above scenario, but that I am creating an opportunity for them to do so.  In other words, I am responding to their suggestions.  I am showing them that I care about what they are thinking.  I am taking their evaluations seriously.  So now it’s up to them to make the most of this chance to engage with the material and with one another.  I hope they rise to the occasion...

Dr. Michael C. White Publishes New Novel

Michael White, founder and former director of Fairfield University’s low-residency MFA Creative Writing Program, has just released his seventh novel, Resting Places, which won the Tuscany Prize for Best Novel.  His six other novels include Soul Catcher, which was a Booksense and Historical Novels Review selection, as well as a finalist for the Connecticut Book Award; A Brother’s Blood, which was a New York Times Book Review Notable Book and a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers nominee; The Blind Side of the Heart, an Alternate Book-of-the-Month Club selection; A Dream of Wolves, which received starred reviews from Booklist and Publisher’s Weekly; The Garden of Martyrs, also a Connecticut Book Award finalist; and Beautiful Assassin, which won the Connecticut Book Award. A collection of his short stories, Marked Men, was published by the University of Missouri Press. White has also published over 45 short stories in national magazines and journals, and has won the Advocate Newspapers Fiction Award and been nominated for both a National Magazine Award and a Pushcart.

Here’s a synopsis of Resting Places:

After receiving the devastating news of her son’s death, Elizabeth ekes out a lonely and strained relationship with her husband, Zach. While he takes comfort in support groups, Elizabeth becomes withdrawn and seeks solace from the only thing that helps her forget: alcohol. A chance meeting with a man on the side of the road spurs her to travel cross-country to the site of her son’s death in the hope of understanding what had happened.

Dr. White's upcoming reading/book signing schedule (all begin at 7:00 p.m.)

March 22, Bank Square Books, Mystic, CT
March 29, RJ Julia, Madison, CT
April 5, Fairfield University, CT
April 7, Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT
May 21, Blackstone Library, Branford, CT
May 25, Guilford Library/Breakwater Books, CT
July 15-24, Fairfield MFA residency, Enders Island, Mystic, CT

For more information, visit the author’s website at: michaelcwhite.com

How Am I Doing?

Like it or hate it, ratemyprofessors.com is the go to site for many students as a way to screen potential teachers.  Based on ratings posted on the site, students rely on other students’ opinions and experiences to make decisions about whether or not to enroll in our classes.  While there is, of course, always the possibility that a student might post something negative about a professor out of spite, it seems more likely that students believe providing an honest assessment about a teacher might help other students.  After all, why post a good review if not to encourage other students to take a class with a favorably rated professor?   

I finally made it to ratemyprofessors.com last semester.  Although there are only three reviews from the same class, each one rates me positively.  If I were a student reading these reviews, I would want to take a class with Professor D’Ascoli.  Apparently my class was enjoyable, and I am funny and helpful.  Of course, three students’ opinions hardly represent a fair sampling; formal student evaluations provide a broader perspective.  Unfortunately, students are not required to complete the online evaluations, so it’s virtually impossible to get a full perspective. 

Administrators obviously review formal student evaluations of teachers.  But do they ever look at reviews posted on ratemyprofessors.com?  As I perused the poor reviews of a colleague, I found myself wondering whether anyone other than students had read these reviews.  And what about the teacher?  What had she thought while reading students’ comments that described her as spiteful, rude, and unpleasant?  Perhaps she had the good sense to avoid the site altogether.  On the other hand, perhaps she dismissed the ratings as rants posted by dissatisfied students.

I think if students are willing to be honest by providing genuine feedback that a teacher can use to improve, then it makes sense to encourage them to do so.  As a writing teacher I provide students with feedback all the time, and it’s not all good.  But I’d be a poor teacher if I only praised their writing and failed to suggest how they might actually make their writing better.  I’d like to offer my students the opportunity to rate a specific aspect of my teaching, such as my ability to communicate effectively so that a student understands the goals of an assignment and sees where he or she has either met or failed to meet those goals.  This is useful information.

Ed Koch was noted for asking his constituency, “How am I doing?”  No doubt he hoped he was doing well and if not, they’d let him know.  I think it’s a fair question to pose to students.  Sure, there are those who might be taken aback by the question and wouldn’t answer honestly for fear of reprisal.  There are others, however, who would relish the opportunity to engage in such a dialogue.  Sometimes they just want to be given an opportunity to be heard.  If this can result in a better learning experience, then why not listen?  Feedback beats ratings any day.

The Professor Who Blogs

If you enjoy reading The Chronicle of Higher Education, you’re probably familiar with the blog “Lingua Franca.”  Lucy Ferriss, writer in residence at Trinity College and author of 10 books, including 7 novels, a collection of short stories and a memoir, has been writing for the blog for almost five years.  Lingua Franca was originally a magazine about intellectual and literary life in academia; after it folded, Chronicle editor Heidi Landecker decided to turn it into a blog and invited Ferriss to be one of the initial bloggers.   213 blog posts later, Ferriss still very much enjoys writing for Lingua Franca.

What’s blogging like?  Ferriss explains that because blogging is a short form, a writer needs to learn how to make a point concisely – the goal is to prompt ideas.  Speaking of ideas – Ferriss says that she gets ideas everywhere, because language is everywhere.  “I find interesting tidbits in the news, in the classroom, in emails that friends send me.”  

Ferriss’ most recent post http://chronicle.com/blogs/linguafranca/2016/02/17/me-myself-i-and-yourselves-too/ (2/17/16) examines the use of “the reflexive pronoun in a non-reflexive way.”  I appreciate this post because I find myself correcting my son when he refers to himself as “myself.”  It may be, according to Ferriss, that speakers are resorting to this usage to avoid the “pretentious or narcissistic I” or the misused “me.”  Take a look – you’ll enjoy it!

Here’s what Ferriss has to say about the process of blogging: 

When I begin a blog post, I'm rarely aware of how far it will take me down any number of paths, be they etymological, political, or cultural. Blogging in general feels like a different form for writing, and it took me a while to get the hang of it. Much depends on the links you provide to material elsewhere that either informs your thinking on the subject or suggests another path that a reader might want to pursue. It's not quite the same as footnotes, because the conversation is more "live," more interconnected via the Internet.

The “live” nature of blogs is directly related to the interactivity inspired by the form.  Reader comments are, in fact, integral to a blog’s success.   Ferriss says that she is fascinated by the comments she receives.  “Often these are quite witty and entertaining and lend a lot to the dialogue. Sometimes, as in the comments to my post on "manspreading" -http://chronicle.com/blogs/linguafranca/2015/01/06/otiose-manspreading/ - I'm simply flabbergasted.”  

She and the other Lingua Franca bloggers appreciate responses to the posts as well as suggestions for language topics.  Ferriss encourages readers not just to check out the blog, but to comment and to let their voices be heard.

Ferriss, who has been at Trinity since 2000, has taught literature as well as creative writing, and for some years she taught a course on sentence diagramming that was highlighted in the Chronicle of Higher Education. In addition to writing her weekly Lingua Franca posts, Ferriss is currently writing a historical novel set in New York State in late 17th century, during the transition from Dutch to English rule.  Visit her website at www.lucyferriss.com.

Teaching Resource

I've found a great online teaching resource - Faculty Focus - Higher Ed Teaching Strategies.  Today's Enews features insight on the use of rubrics.  I've generally found rubrics to be helpful for students; after reading this article, I think I'll make a more concerted effort to use them this semester.

Here's the link for those interested:


http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/effective-teaching-strategies/rubrics-an-undervalued-teaching-tool/?utm_campaign=Faculty+Focus&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=26244894&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_s_1csi5TUNxvrIh7myctCI16z83ZV1xzl8aByIM2b1KER6lPgCAZz-fsZSlb5nQIRusPQBM6sEMWfwqBh_5MXi21EpQ&_hsmi=26244894

Likable Me

Four weeks into the spring semester and I’m finally getting to know my students’ names.  And this is without the benefit of student photos which I had no clue I had access to until last week!  I’ve got 72 students in three sections of Academic Writing II, and each class has its own particular dynamic.  I find that while I have the same lesson planned for each group, I make subtle adjustments in the second and third classes based on what I consider the relative success or failure of strategies implemented during my first class.  In that sense, they are my guinea pigs.  They are also the most difficult of the three to connect with – not sure why.  Sometimes all it takes is one wise guy to throw off the balance of the class.  Such is the life of a teacher.

But how should a college instructor deal with a wise guy?  I suppose the syllabus should function as a guide, so if it includes zero tolerance policies on using cellphones, being disruptive, or falling asleep (none of my students ever fall asleep probably because I’m so loud), then it will dictate proper consequences.  When a student has what can only be described as an attitude, however, it’s hard to know what to do.  Overt disrespect should not be tolerated, of course.  Perceived disrespect seems a bit trickier to handle.  Is it disrespectful for a student to wear a hood in class?  Is it disrespectful for a student to talk to you with a flossing stick in his mouth?  Yes, a flossing stick.  Even when I attempted to shame said student by noting that I found it a bit disgusting for him to do that, he continued to chomp away. 

I find myself wondering what an appropriate reaction might have been.  Should I have told him to take it out of his mouth because it was disruptive to me and possibly to others?  I suppose I should have talked to him after class and debriefed him gently on classroom etiquette.  But it seems ridiculous to have to even do that.  College students are ostensibly adults.  As such, they can be asked to leave class due to inappropriate behavior.  Asking a student to leave is always awkward, though, because it casts such a negative pall over the class.  While some students might applaud the wise guy’s removal, others might find it a bit harsh.  It’s hard to say.

Reflecting on what is likely a non-issue to other professors (they’d probably kick a wise guy out in a heartbeat) makes me realize that I need to work on classroom management techniques.  If a student doesn’t like me because I set down some rules, then so be it.  I know that gaining the students’ respect is more important in the long run.  My problem is this: I try very hard to create a climate where students feel comfortable, and I’ve always equated this with the idea that I do, in fact, have to be likable.  I also feel that if students can connect with me they will be more likely to want to do well in the class. 

Ultimately, their desire to do well in my class is outside my control.  It’s not my job to motivate the students.  That has to come from within.  I can encourage their participation and ensure that they understand the material and help them make sense of readings and assignments when they are confused.  I can offer guidance and provide suggestions on how to improve their writing.  The rest is up to them…

On the Periphery

I am an adjunct, and like most adjuncts, I have more than one job.  Apparently I had eight jobs last year.  As I sorted through the W2s and 1099s that have recently arrived in my mail, I discovered the real breadth of my 2015 employment.  I had actually forgotten some of the “gigs” I had; it turns out that last year I worked as a college writing instructor (at two colleges), a paralegal, a substitute teacher (at two high schools), an SAT prep course instructor, a proofreader, and a stable hand (yes I mucked horse stalls).  While it’s hard to gauge how many hours per week these various jobs translated into, it’s easy to see that when I add the numbers up, my “salary” is nowhere near where it should be.

The question is what should my salary be? As someone whose career looks like a battered patchwork quilt, it’s hard to say how much money I ought to be making at this point in my life.  I’m 53 with a Master’s degree in English education, but I am fairly new to teaching (it’s my fifth year).  Before teaching, I worked for many years as a freelance journalist; prior to that I did medical transcription; prior to that I was employed as a legal assistant.  Oh yeah – and I’m a law school drop-out.  Woven in between and around these endeavors were many part time jobs ranging from telemarketing to tutoring.  I’ve led book discussions and writing workshops.  I’ve called myself a publicist and an editor.  I can’t claim to have worked at a real “full time job” in more than 25 years.  That’s what having three children does to a woman who wants to stay home and raise a family. 

But I am not complaining.  I am actually one of the lucky ones – I don’t have to support myself. 

And the truth is, I actually like having a number of jobs.  It keeps life interesting; it allows for a certain amount of freedom.  But maybe it’s only the illusion of freedom.  I mean, in order for adjuncting to work at all, I need to do something else.  Obviously, I’ve given up on the idea of teaching full time, as it appears unlikely that this opportunity will ever present itself.  And I think I’m okay with that because when I try to imagine what my life would be like now if I had been tenured faculty for the past 25 years, it seems impossible that I could have maintained that status.  It would have meant making a serious commitment, and I’ve never been very good at that. 

What I am good at is taking on new challenges.  And it is a challenge to work, as I have, on the periphery.  But it’s the place I feel most comfortable, most myself.  In the end, we have to be true to ourselves.  Every semester I relish the challenge of learning new names and making important connections with individuals into whose lives I will only briefly pass.  So yeah, I’m an adjunct (and lots of other things too) and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

Adjunct Nation

I've recently subscribed to several newsletters of interest to higher ed faculty and came across Adjunct Nation.  For those who don't know the site:

AdjunctNation.com serves higher education readers across the United States, Canada and Europe. Whether readers hold full-time or part-time temporary teaching appointments, AdjunctNation.com can keep them up to date on the latest higher education news, and connected to the professorate like no other online resource for temporary college faculty can. AdjunctNation.com is read by temporary faculty from two- and four-year colleges and universities because we’ve got all the resources temporary faculty (all college faculty, really) need in one place.

What's In A Name?

When I was an undergrad in the mid 1980s attending SUNY Purchase, I called most of my teachers by their first names.  I never thought about why they didn't want to be called "Professor So & So" or "Dr. So & So" and it didn't seem disrespectful to call them Lee or Louise or Bob (three of the best literature professors I had at Purchase).  Maybe it was the times, maybe it was the campus climate (the college is best known as a performing arts school), maybe it was because they were young.  In the years since, I've considered what my own career might have looked like had I pursued a place in the field of higher education after getting my BA, and I know that with a PhD, I would have expected students to call me Dr. D'Ascoli - a hard won, well deserved title.  Alas, that is no longer in the cards. Nonetheless, I am a college writing instructor, albeit "contingent faculty" and I frequently find myself wondering whether I should, in fact, be referred to as "Professor D'Ascoli."

On some level, it doesn't feel right asking students to call me professor.  Although I tell the students to call me Mrs. D'Ascoli, many students do, in fact, call me Professor D'Ascoli.  Here's where the dictionary helps (or not).  One definition for professor is "a faculty member of the highest academic rank at an institution of higher education."  Another definition is "a teacher at a university, college, or sometimes secondary school."  Clearly, I have the right to be called professor.  But I am an adjunct, which literally means "something joined or added to another thing but not an essential part of it."  Anyone who is an adjunct knows that this is anything but true.  We are, at this moment in history, absolutely essential to the successful functioning of institutions of higher learning.

According to a recent study, adjuncts make up more than 75% of the faculty at colleges nationwide. Are we not then in many ways more valuable than our esteemed full-time, tenured colleagues?  And with such value, should we not be considered just as "professorial" as they? Perhaps my fellow adjuncts take no issue with the designation "professor."  Why should there be any distinction when we are, in fact, doing the same jobs as full time faculty?  On some level, I agree.  It's a small enough reward for a job that pays poorly and has no security or benefits.  I think it is because adjuncts are so marginalized that I can't quite consider myself a professor.  How can I take myself seriously when my attachment to the field of higher education is so tenuous?

The answer is simple: I can take myself seriously because I am serious about teaching.  I don't stand in front of my students in a transient capacity - I put my heart and soul into the endeavor.  I care very much about making a connection and imparting knowledge and helping students see the value of learning and thinking critically.  And I want to grow in my profession by learning more effective ways to engage with students.  I have only begun to understand my value as a teacher, but I believe my students see how much I care about the job I am doing.  If that's the criteria for holding such a lofty title as professor, then I guess I deserve it after all.