Frustrated with CC, Leaving (rantish)

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by Griffin, Aug 11, 2009.

Loading...
  1. Griffin

    Griffin Crazy About Psychology

    I've just decided to leave my current CC early, in favor of attending TESC full-time. I had hoped to finish up one more quarter here, but it is just not working out and I don't want to take my chances having another bad quarter here.

    Last semester, I had one good class and one class that had zero instruction. This semester, I have one class that is good, one class that is zero instruction and one game of "guess what the real requirements are" that is cleverly disguised as a class.

    I hate to rant on this topic, especially since I am very close friends with an instructor who does distance learning (elsewhere). But I honestly can't say I am fond of the instruction here. The "simple" research paper turned into a nightmare the day after the withdrawal period ended. Instead of being a Sophomore-level assignment, it now required:

    --Original research within a population
    --A hypothesis
    --An empirical source that matched the hypothesis, with an approved "methods" section
    --A really long research paper that wove them all together, in dumbed-down language
    --And each step had an approval process rivaling the DMV

    And this is in addition to the vague "Exam" requirements. The prof said that it needed to be in essay format. After grading harshly (virtually everyone failed it outright), let us know that they really meant that each question had to be it's own essay of at least a page each. So I got a 40%. :(

    The averages are visible and if they hold, everyone will be lucky to earn a C. I elected to not complete the final exam or project and instead work on my other classes (the ones I have a snowball's chance of passing). Had I completed the final project and exam with a perfect, I'd still have a high F.

    If this were an isolated prof, or if this prof hadn't gotten away with being overly, intentionally, VAGUE for 6+ years here, I would shrug it off and move on. But most of the profs I've had here have been vague, changed requirements, refused to teach (and no TAs here), used double standards, assumed you were taking one class ONLY (theirs), wanted excessive amounts of work, made open judgments about people who worked while attending school, made open judgments about people who DON'T work while attending school, specified excessive amounts of time that they expected you to do work ("at least 20+ per week"), etc...

    Last semester I filed a complaint against a prof (who out and out refused to teach at ALL). Only afterwards did I realize that the dean hadn't taken my name! :eek: I'd rather pay a little more at TESC and get my money's worth than languish here for another semester.

    And literally no oversight as to teaching. Whether the syllabus covers any of the requirements of the class is also a crapshoot.
     
  2. Shawn Ambrose

    Shawn Ambrose New Member

    It sounds to me that you have a prof who is frustrated because he/she is teaching at a community college v. a four year school.

    One of the things I do as a CC teacher is to write an extensive syllabus. All class assignments, grading criteria, hours students spend in the class (not pulled out of thin air, but from evaluations from my students)...and then I stick to it.

    I hated teachers like this when I was in school, so if you have to switch, then do what you need to do.

    I don't know what classes you need, but if they are CC classes, take a look at Clovis Community College. (www.clovis.edu). Very low tuition, with a great online class selection.

    Good luck!

    Shawn

    PS - my daughter has completed 4 classes at Clovis and my son has completed 2. So far their experiences have been great!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 11, 2009
  3. Griffin

    Griffin Crazy About Psychology

    Wow, you took the words right out of my mouth! It can be so discouraging to have one class that takes all of your time and you get almost nothing back.

    I'll look into Clovis, but if TESC gets my eval done in the next couple of months, I will probably just go on to them since that's where I'll get my BA done anyway.
     

Share This Page