As I'm grading a simple newspaper assignment for my Biological Psychology course, I am amazed at the distribution and range of insight and ignorance. Students with dismal midterm scores are coming up with some very bright, fresh, and insightful applications of newsworthy scientific articles, while those who have mastered memorization and regurgitation of terms and concepts can't seem to generate any original thoughts of their own.
I have learned quite a bit from these students; having been an undergrad myself not so long ago, I also tried to "stick it to the man" in my personal reflections whenever possible by mentioning the stress we brave students are coping with the best we can. However, through grading these free-form written assignments I have come to know, and appreciate, some of the devastating and insurmountable obstacles that many of these youngsters (and some mature students) are enduring between assignments and exams. Not limited to the usual stress of university life, some students are incredibly honest in their compositions, revealing a personal connection to some of the illnesses and afflictions covered in the course. I am also sympathetic to students that clearly struggle with the subtle nuances and complex grammar of the English language, and am even more impressed with their ability to produce articulate and incredibly well-structured reflections in a novel foreign language that the course teaches is even more difficult to learn following the critical period of infancy and childhood. I am even more shocked, and dismayed, at the lack of creativity or depth of thought demonstrated by monolingual native-English speakers... c'mon canada, where u at??
Most importantly, from the many lessons I have taken away from this teaching/learning experience, it is to remember that phrenology (the archaic pseudo-science of correlating skull shape with cognitive, emotional, and behavioural attributes) is not a current method in 'accurately and scientifically' classifying mental illness, no matter how convincing the student's writing is.
I have learned quite a bit from these students; having been an undergrad myself not so long ago, I also tried to "stick it to the man" in my personal reflections whenever possible by mentioning the stress we brave students are coping with the best we can. However, through grading these free-form written assignments I have come to know, and appreciate, some of the devastating and insurmountable obstacles that many of these youngsters (and some mature students) are enduring between assignments and exams. Not limited to the usual stress of university life, some students are incredibly honest in their compositions, revealing a personal connection to some of the illnesses and afflictions covered in the course. I am also sympathetic to students that clearly struggle with the subtle nuances and complex grammar of the English language, and am even more impressed with their ability to produce articulate and incredibly well-structured reflections in a novel foreign language that the course teaches is even more difficult to learn following the critical period of infancy and childhood. I am even more shocked, and dismayed, at the lack of creativity or depth of thought demonstrated by monolingual native-English speakers... c'mon canada, where u at??
Most importantly, from the many lessons I have taken away from this teaching/learning experience, it is to remember that phrenology (the archaic pseudo-science of correlating skull shape with cognitive, emotional, and behavioural attributes) is not a current method in 'accurately and scientifically' classifying mental illness, no matter how convincing the student's writing is.