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...I have a new Student From Hell.
Apr. 27th, 2005 11:19 amOooh, that was the most infuriating student I have ever had to work with at the writing center. *shakes fist*
My first appointment was delightful. I've met with her before, she respects my position as a tutor, and I love working with her, as she takes what I say at face value, although she occasionally needs more explanation, and learns from her mistakes. I met with her and thought "yes, today will be a good day".
And then came appointment number two. She was late, first off, which wasn't all that big a deal. She was new to the Center, having never been here before, and so she had no problem when I asked her to fill out the newbie forms and have a seat. Oh no. Our first problem arose when I looked over her newbie form and realized that she hadn't put a course number in for her assignment. I reminded her, she gave me a curt look, and said: "There is no course number."
Bull. Shit.
I eventually managed to get a look at her syllabus and was able to fill in the course number and section for her.
Problem number two arose on the first page of the paper, where I pointed out that she was already not meeting the requirements for the paper. She gave me a scathing look and told me she was unable to find sufficient information. (To which I barely kept myself from replying "Well, don't you think it would have been a good idea to actually look for some?") The session continued. I had to point out numerous comma errors and some wording errors. Every time I stop her, it became more and more clear that she Did Not Want To Be Here and was, in fact, very resentful. Grrr. The real problem came when I pointed out that she switched tense for one word and one word only. (I think the sentence read: "...who is the first..." when it should have been "...who was the first...") I pointed that out and explained why it was incorrect. And. She. Argued. With. Me.
Okay. I'm not saying that my students don't have a right to resent me for actually showing up and making an attempt to help them. I'm not saying that I'm always right. I'm simply saying this: I know what I'm talking about. If I didn't know what I was talking about, I wouldn't have this job and wouldn't have kept this job for as long as I have. She has every right to be unenthusiastic about being forced to come to the Center, but that does not mean she can cause a scene in the middle of an appointment and basically tell me that I have no idea what I'm talking about. Fucking pisses me off.
I calmly explained my position again and assured her that changing the word to past tense would not change the meaning of the sentence ("Just because it says she was the first does not change her position or what she did. She just did it a while ago, that's all, and changing the word would add consistency to the paper..."), and she yelled at me. Aaargh. I gave up and told her she could leave as it was. I no longer cared. I no longer had any real urge to help her. I don't get paid enough to tolerate that sort of thing.
So we continued on. I pointed out the occasional comma error, figuring that she should be able to figure them the hell out on her own by now, and then came the moment of truth. I had to stop her to talk about wording. She had a dangling modifier, and it completely changed the meaning of her sentence. I knew what she wanted to say, but it was confusing and hard to understand. And so I grudgingly pointed it out, made a recommendation as to how she could change it, and waited for the retaliation.
I didn't have to wait long.
Said student looked at me, dumbfounded, for a moment, and then her eyes narrowed and her lips pulled up into a sneer. "You're wrong," she said. Remembering the ordeal from the previous page, I sighed, shrugged, and said "I can't change anything for you or force you to do anything you don't want to do with your paper. If you don't think I'm right, you don't have to do anything about it. It's your choice." She nodded, satisfied, and went on. I continued to point out little errors for a paragraph or two, and then told her she could go.
I made sure to tell her professor, in my write-up, that she "...obviously would not have come to the Writing Center if it had not been required. She resented the help I tried to give her and argued with me on at least two occasions. When I pointed out errors, she did not make any notations, nor did she seem to heed my advice in any way." It won't make a difference, I know, because a lot of the professors don't even read these things, but it sure as hell made me feel better.
The end.
My first appointment was delightful. I've met with her before, she respects my position as a tutor, and I love working with her, as she takes what I say at face value, although she occasionally needs more explanation, and learns from her mistakes. I met with her and thought "yes, today will be a good day".
And then came appointment number two. She was late, first off, which wasn't all that big a deal. She was new to the Center, having never been here before, and so she had no problem when I asked her to fill out the newbie forms and have a seat. Oh no. Our first problem arose when I looked over her newbie form and realized that she hadn't put a course number in for her assignment. I reminded her, she gave me a curt look, and said: "There is no course number."
Bull. Shit.
I eventually managed to get a look at her syllabus and was able to fill in the course number and section for her.
Problem number two arose on the first page of the paper, where I pointed out that she was already not meeting the requirements for the paper. She gave me a scathing look and told me she was unable to find sufficient information. (To which I barely kept myself from replying "Well, don't you think it would have been a good idea to actually look for some?") The session continued. I had to point out numerous comma errors and some wording errors. Every time I stop her, it became more and more clear that she Did Not Want To Be Here and was, in fact, very resentful. Grrr. The real problem came when I pointed out that she switched tense for one word and one word only. (I think the sentence read: "...who is the first..." when it should have been "...who was the first...") I pointed that out and explained why it was incorrect. And. She. Argued. With. Me.
Okay. I'm not saying that my students don't have a right to resent me for actually showing up and making an attempt to help them. I'm not saying that I'm always right. I'm simply saying this: I know what I'm talking about. If I didn't know what I was talking about, I wouldn't have this job and wouldn't have kept this job for as long as I have. She has every right to be unenthusiastic about being forced to come to the Center, but that does not mean she can cause a scene in the middle of an appointment and basically tell me that I have no idea what I'm talking about. Fucking pisses me off.
I calmly explained my position again and assured her that changing the word to past tense would not change the meaning of the sentence ("Just because it says she was the first does not change her position or what she did. She just did it a while ago, that's all, and changing the word would add consistency to the paper..."), and she yelled at me. Aaargh. I gave up and told her she could leave as it was. I no longer cared. I no longer had any real urge to help her. I don't get paid enough to tolerate that sort of thing.
So we continued on. I pointed out the occasional comma error, figuring that she should be able to figure them the hell out on her own by now, and then came the moment of truth. I had to stop her to talk about wording. She had a dangling modifier, and it completely changed the meaning of her sentence. I knew what she wanted to say, but it was confusing and hard to understand. And so I grudgingly pointed it out, made a recommendation as to how she could change it, and waited for the retaliation.
I didn't have to wait long.
Said student looked at me, dumbfounded, for a moment, and then her eyes narrowed and her lips pulled up into a sneer. "You're wrong," she said. Remembering the ordeal from the previous page, I sighed, shrugged, and said "I can't change anything for you or force you to do anything you don't want to do with your paper. If you don't think I'm right, you don't have to do anything about it. It's your choice." She nodded, satisfied, and went on. I continued to point out little errors for a paragraph or two, and then told her she could go.
I made sure to tell her professor, in my write-up, that she "...obviously would not have come to the Writing Center if it had not been required. She resented the help I tried to give her and argued with me on at least two occasions. When I pointed out errors, she did not make any notations, nor did she seem to heed my advice in any way." It won't make a difference, I know, because a lot of the professors don't even read these things, but it sure as hell made me feel better.
The end.
