Every Spring the faculty and staff have to sit through some kind of presentation.
This year, they brought in a speaker to give a talk on "How to deal with Disruptive Students" in anticipation of the roll out of two new policies and stiffened enforcement of the no tobacco policy. We're getting ready to institute a dress code and a no profanity policy.
The speaker was actually very good (most of them are dull as dishwater). He's a college lawyer who also teaches poly sci, so he's got experience in the classroom and with all the legal issues.
He created sub categories of Helicopter Parents.
The Black Hawk. This is the parent who is "large", intimidating, and obvious. They're the ones who register the students for classes, pick the majors, do all the legwork short of actually showing up and taking the class. These are the ones who are most likely to call up and demand little Johnny's B get moved up to an A because he only "missed it by 3 points."
The Cobra. These are the stealth helicopter parents. They strike quickly and without warning. "Don't tell little Debbie I called, but" Primarily they just want to be a safety net. However, they can turn into Blackhawks without warning.
The Gilmore. These are the Helicopter parents who want to be their kid's best friend. They're concerned, vicarious and invested. And in extreme cases, they like to move into their kid's dorm room and buy beer for the other kids in the dorm.
(This is a real example btw. Administration found out when the other kids reported it . . . because this was just too creepy).
The speaker actually gave us a lot of really good tips on how to handle disruptive students, most of whom are Millennials. However, after the presentation was over, it became obvious that most of what he said went right over the heads of my colleagues.
The task force that developed the new dress code and profanity policies held a panel after wards. Some of the faculty got fixated on an example the speaker used regarding his cell phone rules in his class. Our campus policy already forbids cell phones in class yet the faculty kept going on about minutiae about how to create and enforce cell phone rules.
Guys! Get a grip! It's already against the rules to have cell phones in class. You don't have to create new ones. Just enforce the one in the Student Handbook!
Then another colleague complains, "How am I supposed to stop and enforce the no smoking rules when I have to park in the North 40, and have less than ten minutes to get to class." Note: all employees are required to enforce the no tobacco policy
Uhm. Dude, how about you come to campus more than 10 minutes before your class starts. But if that's too hard, how about just be a few seconds late. How long does it really take to say, "This is a no tobacco campus, I need you to put out your cigarette." If they comply, you win! Even if they just light up when you leave, you still made them waste a cigarette.
Then there was the gal who said, "I don't feel comfortable asking a student for their college ID. It's like invading their personal space."
OMG, lady. Grow a pair! You're a state employee. You're on state property. You have the authority to politely request their ID, and it says right on it that it is college property and must be surrendered on demand.
These are the same people who complain tougher policies are a waste of time because no one will enforce them.
Bonus treat: when the speaker was talking about how to get a disruptive student out of the classroom, he mentioned a video about a student actually getting arrested in class. Apparently, the whole thing started out as an argument over a test question (these kinds of arguments is why I don't do test review in class anymore). She got mad and threw a water bottle at another student. A student behind the disruptive one got video of what happened next with his iPhone.
Student Arrested in Class
This year, they brought in a speaker to give a talk on "How to deal with Disruptive Students" in anticipation of the roll out of two new policies and stiffened enforcement of the no tobacco policy. We're getting ready to institute a dress code and a no profanity policy.
The speaker was actually very good (most of them are dull as dishwater). He's a college lawyer who also teaches poly sci, so he's got experience in the classroom and with all the legal issues.
He created sub categories of Helicopter Parents.
The Black Hawk. This is the parent who is "large", intimidating, and obvious. They're the ones who register the students for classes, pick the majors, do all the legwork short of actually showing up and taking the class. These are the ones who are most likely to call up and demand little Johnny's B get moved up to an A because he only "missed it by 3 points."
The Cobra. These are the stealth helicopter parents. They strike quickly and without warning. "Don't tell little Debbie I called, but" Primarily they just want to be a safety net. However, they can turn into Blackhawks without warning.
The Gilmore. These are the Helicopter parents who want to be their kid's best friend. They're concerned, vicarious and invested. And in extreme cases, they like to move into their kid's dorm room and buy beer for the other kids in the dorm.
(This is a real example btw. Administration found out when the other kids reported it . . . because this was just too creepy).
The speaker actually gave us a lot of really good tips on how to handle disruptive students, most of whom are Millennials. However, after the presentation was over, it became obvious that most of what he said went right over the heads of my colleagues.
The task force that developed the new dress code and profanity policies held a panel after wards. Some of the faculty got fixated on an example the speaker used regarding his cell phone rules in his class. Our campus policy already forbids cell phones in class yet the faculty kept going on about minutiae about how to create and enforce cell phone rules.
Guys! Get a grip! It's already against the rules to have cell phones in class. You don't have to create new ones. Just enforce the one in the Student Handbook!
Then another colleague complains, "How am I supposed to stop and enforce the no smoking rules when I have to park in the North 40, and have less than ten minutes to get to class." Note: all employees are required to enforce the no tobacco policy
Uhm. Dude, how about you come to campus more than 10 minutes before your class starts. But if that's too hard, how about just be a few seconds late. How long does it really take to say, "This is a no tobacco campus, I need you to put out your cigarette." If they comply, you win! Even if they just light up when you leave, you still made them waste a cigarette.
Then there was the gal who said, "I don't feel comfortable asking a student for their college ID. It's like invading their personal space."
OMG, lady. Grow a pair! You're a state employee. You're on state property. You have the authority to politely request their ID, and it says right on it that it is college property and must be surrendered on demand.
These are the same people who complain tougher policies are a waste of time because no one will enforce them.
Bonus treat: when the speaker was talking about how to get a disruptive student out of the classroom, he mentioned a video about a student actually getting arrested in class. Apparently, the whole thing started out as an argument over a test question (these kinds of arguments is why I don't do test review in class anymore). She got mad and threw a water bottle at another student. A student behind the disruptive one got video of what happened next with his iPhone.
Student Arrested in Class
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