#ive come to respect teachers who ask for long writing assignments written by hand instead of computarized and printed bc it makes sure that

[nightmares-like-thunder]

I was going to rant on the tags but i got fired up writing them so here goes instead

I'm taking a class on comprehension and production of scientific texts and we're studying a paper about why university students can't write and it argues that students hate writing because during their formative years the education system never gave them the tools to understand texts and write correctly, it was more of a "oh just focus on the content and you'll learn the format later, in the next grade" but then they were never taught and so students get to college and they have to do research or a thesis or long writing assignments and theyre evaluated on something that was never taught to them, so they struggle

And so in class we're arguing about this and chat gpt comes up and students say "hey i love that thing", bc of course people invented the machine-that-writes-what-i-tell-it-to-write, and not only does it do the work for them but it also fixes what they write so they assume this is foolproof, but they dont have the ability to distinguish something that is well-written from something that isn't, and teachers honestly dont have the time to proofread every single assignment so they get away with it

So what at first was "i know the content but i dont know how to write it" becomes "i dont need the content because something else is already going to write it for me" and so they stop learning altogether, theyre not reading or writing or taking notes because they have the school-machine right there in their phones

It's extremely frustrating because they see reading and writing and something that they need to do for the teacher instead of for themselves, like dude idk how to explain to you that the teacher already knows this stuff, youre the one that needs to learn this, you signed up for this degree voluntarily (and im an astronomy student, research is the entire purpose of the field), and they get defensive saying like "what so am i just supposed to fail if i cant write a paper?" YES FOR FUCKS SAKE IF YOU CANT PUT YOUR THOUGHTS INTO WORDS YOU NEED TO TAKE CORRECTIVE ACTION, YOU NEED TO LEARN HOW TO READ AND WRITE AND DO RESEARCH BECAUSE THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE INTERESTING FOR YOU

It's simply fucked up how people are okay with not being able to read or learn through anything that is not a teacher talking to them like theyre 5, or now, a tiktok with subway surfers playing on the back while AI reads a reddit post, like fr youd realize that your degree is extremely interesting if you had the willingness to get a little bored and a little frustrated

The teacher said she struggles to find papers that are short enough for us to analyze in class because she knows we can only read a few pages and anything too long will just be put through chat gpt and summarized, so the longest thing we've read has been around 12 pages

People who cannot read more than 12 pages are reaching college level classes and forcing teachers to dumb down their content bc if they failed everyone (AS THEY SHOULD) it could jeopardize their jobs

This is,,, more than ever,,, the bad place

do you have any ideas about why so many students are struggling with literacy now? I know that illiteracy and reading comprehension have been issues for years and most americans read at like a 5th grade reading level but I’m curious why it seems to be worse now (pandemic? no child left behind?)

It is everything. There’s not one answer. I could talk about this forever so instead I set a five minute timer on my phone and wrote a list of as many of the many things that are causing this on a systemic level that I could think of:

It’s parents not reading with their kids (a privilege, but some parents have that privilege to be able to do this and don’t.)

It’s youtube from birth and never being bored.

It’s phasing out phonics for sight words (memorizing without understanding sounds or meaning) in elementary schools in the early aughts.

It’s defunding public libraries that do all the community and youth outreach.

It’s NCLB and mandating standardized tests which center reading short passages as opposed to longform texts so students don’t build up the endurance or comprehension skills.

It’s NCLB preventing schools from holding students back if they lack the literacy skills to move onto the next grade because they can’t be left behind so they’re passed on.

It’s the chronic underfunding of ESL and Special Ed programs for students who need extra literacy support.

It’s the cultural devaluing of the humanities in favor of stem and business because those make more money which leads to a lot of students to completely disregard reading and writing.

It’s the learning loss from covid.

It’s covid trauma manifesting in a lot of students as learned helplessness, or an inability to “figure things out” or push through adversity to complete challenging tasks independently, especially reading difficult texts.

It’s covid normalizing cheating and copying.

It’s increasing phone use.

It’s damage to attention span exacerbated by increased phone use that leaves you without an ability to sit and be bored ever without 2-3 forms of constant stimulation.

It’s shortform video becoming the predominant form of social media content as opposed to anything text-based.

It’s starting to also be generative AI.

It’s the book bans.

what did I miss.

[basketcase789]

Written in the Stars IV

“Handwriting is more connected to the movement of the heart.”

- Natalie Goldberg

Group: BTS

Member: RM

Genre: soulmate au

Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

You were working hard on your assignments and other homework, but Namjoon was always there at the back of your mind.

It was getting harder and harder to stay away from him, you were finding. Not only was he easy on the eyes, he had a kind personality too. He was always thinking of others before himself. You felt butterflies in your stomach recalling the day of your hangover and how he had stuck behind after class to make sure you were okay. Not to mention his smile brightened up your week just by seeing it.

You were struggling with your poetry class assignment. You had no problem completing it - no, the topic wasn’t the problem. There was just no way you could submit a handwritten copy and let Namjoon find out you were soulmates. But you were afraid of the consequences if you didn’t follow his instructions. He would likely dock your grade for it.

You debated asking your roommate to hand write the assignment out for you. That would solve the issue - you would submit a handwritten assignment, and Namjoon wouldn’t know the difference. But your roommate was busy enough with her own midterm assignments and exams. You couldn’t ask her to take the time to write yours out for you. Not to mention it would require you having to explain the whole situation to her.

You had two copies of your assignment laid out in front of you. The first was your original handwritten one, and the other was a typed document that you had printed.

On the day the assignment was due you packed both copies into your bag, unsure of which you would submit in the end.

You arrived to the classroom, and you were surprised to find a woman sitting at Namjoon’s desk at the front of the room.

When class was scheduled to start, she stood and handed out a sheet to everyone. “I am a colleague of Professor Kim. He will be in shortly, but first we’re asking you to fill out an assessment sheet. Professor Kim is applying for tenure, and we are conducting his annual review. Please take your time to fill out the form thoughtfully. We ask that you do not fill out your name and instead leave it anonymous.”

You began answering the questions, leaving good reviews of course. He’d been an excellent teacher thus far, always having his students’ success as his top priority.

You weren’t too concerned about someone in the faculty putting two and two together that your handwriting was the same as Namjoon’s - the odds of it getting noticed amongst all the other forms was slim.

After all the papers had been submitted and the woman left, Namjoon entered the room.

“I hope you all left me positive comments,” he said with a chuckle. If you weren’t mistaken, he seemed a little unsure of himself. It was a stark contrast to his usual confident demeanour, but then it was gone as quickly as it came. “Alright, today’s the day, everyone. Please hand in your midterm assignments.”

You opened up your bag and stared at the two essays you’d prepared.

Namjoon was trying to become a tenured professor. Of course he would, you thought to yourself. It was probably every professor’s goal.

Having a soulmate who was a student would definitely complicate things for him. If he found out about you, you were sure the faculty would also find out eventually. You could only keep things secret for so long. Then what would happen to his chances of getting tenure?

You reached into your bag and pulled out the typed up copy. You couldn’t burden him with knowing the truth, even if it was at the cost of your grade for this assignment. As you added your essay to the pile of papers, you only hoped he didn’t make future assignments with the requirement to be handwritten as well.

You couldn’t help but bite your lip nervously. It had been a week since you handed in your assignment and you were dying to know your grade. How many points had Namjoon deducted for failing to meet his handwritten condition? Considering how lenient he had been to you signing the attendance sheet instead of printing, you assumed - hoped - it wouldn’t be too serious.

You had to sit through the entire next class, until he finally returned assignments at the very end.

“If you have any questions, feel free to come see me during my office hours to discuss. I’ll see you all next week.”

You took in a deep breath before looking at your grade. You’d really worked hard on the essay, going very in depth about your appreciation for Namjoon’s father’s works. You only hoped your grades reflected the quality of content, and not how it was delivered.

You flipped your assignment over and were met with a 0/100.

You felt like your world was crashing down around you. You’d never gotten a zero in your whole academic career, and you hadn’t even considered the possibility of getting a zero on this essay. You tried to do a mental calculation of what the best grade was that you could now achieve in this class… what percentage of your final grade was this assignment worth again? If you got a poor grade in this class overall, how many points would your GPA go down?

You’d have to make Namjoon reconsider your grade somehow. Or else you could kiss your scholarship goodbye.

A few days later you’d had enough time to calm down and come up with a game plan. Your heart was racing the entire walk to Namjoon’s office - what if you weren’t able to convince him to give your essay another shot? You’d lose your fully funded scholarship and you’d have no choice but to get a job. But working would significantly affect your academic performance, you were certain. Not to mention you wouldn’t have time to do volunteer work in the community, which was something highly valued by the school. How were you going to make a good impression on the professors who could potentially help your career in the future like that?

You’d worked your ass off too hard for it all to crash and burn like this.

Upon arriving, the door to Namjoon’s office was shut and you could hear men’s voices from within, so you waited in the hallway outside. You didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but you could clearly hear everything they were saying.

“We’ve concluded your annual review, Namjoon. Unfortunately at this time we cannot grant you tenure.”

“Can you at least tell me why this time? I got my degree at this very school, and I’ve been teaching and contributing to the school ever since. I’ve been publishing research papers and-”

“I’m sorry, Namjoon. I know you’re trying to follow in your father’s footsteps and become tenured. He was a good man, and highly respected by the university. But at this time... it’s just not possible. My advice? Continue using your good looks to promote student enrollment and try again next year.”

The door to the office opened, and a man you recognized as the dean of the Arts faculty stepped out. You gave him a friendly nod, despite your disbelief of the words you’d just heard coming from his mouth, and he left.

The office door remained open, and you hesitantly glanced inside. Namjoon was facing the window at the back of his office with hands on his waist, head lowered.

“Namjoon?” you said.

He turned around, and once spotted you he offered a small smile.

“Is this a bad time?” you asked, knowing full well it was, but still needing to discuss your grade.

“It’s a good a time as any I suppose.” He sat down at his desk with a sigh and motioned to the empty chair in front of him. “I’m assuming you’re here to talk about your paper?”

You sat down, placing your bag on your lap. “Why did you give me a zero? Was the content not strong enough? My sources-”

“Your grade reflects the fact your paper didn’t meet the requirement of being handwritten, as laid out in the assignment instructions.”

“I recall you once saying yourself it’s okay to break the rules sometimes,” you countered.

He let out a chuckle and leaned back in his chair. “Not on an assignment.”

“Then what did you mean?” you said, feeling frustration overcome you. He was sitting there laughing while your world was falling apart. “Why does it matter whether it was handwritten or not? Our work should be graded based on the final product and not the means it was delivered, shouldn’t it? I followed every other requirement down to a T. Was my essay not up to your standards?”

“I didn’t read your essay, to be honest. I saw it was typed and appropriately gave it a zero.”

“But why does it matter?” You could feel the beginnings of tears in your eyes.

He leaned forward and folded his hands on the desk. “Do you know how many students I’ve taught who’ve tried to make it look like they were my soulmate? Too many to count. I had one student who went so far as to copy my writing and turn it into a font, typed out a document and pretended she had written it to prove we should be together. All to get a better grade. And I believed her at first. That’s why I have students print their name on the attendance sheet, and why I make assignments that require them to be handwritten. So I know the truth from the very start.”

“But I’m not trying to prove anything.”

“Aren’t you?”

He’d caught you off guard, and you felt your cheeks burn. From his perspective, your not following his rules would make it look like you were stringing him along. Being a tease and leading him on.

He glanced away, before saying, “I won’t change my mind about your grade.”

Before you could make more of a fool of yourself, you reached into your bag and grabbed the original handwritten copy of your essay that you’d brought along with you. You tossed it onto his desk. “How about now?”

And you ran from his office before you could see his reaction.