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Nobody In My Life That Cares About My Future
Some young people of the underclasses are so courageous that they don’t even know it. ___ Because we English teachers assign essays, sometimes asking introspective questions, we often end up playing...
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Education Is Unmanly
The first male in his family to attempt college will often find himself pestered about his masculinity. ___ I want to tell a story about an intriguing young man I’ll name Christopher. My experience...
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The Valuable Lesson of Mortality
The questions we dread are the same ones everyone else dreads. They’re better asked and contemplated in community. ___ This is a terrifying sentence: among the forces that inspired me to become a...
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5 Annoying Things Male Teachers Hear
Teaching is still considered to require or reward qualities we consider inherently feminine. ___ The male teacher, even a community college teacher like me, is still a topic of consternation for a...
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The Myth and False Lesson of Independence
Why are we afraid of teaching young people how they relate to the network of human interaction? Why do we value our independence over our dependability? ___ Should a teacher teach wisdom? In an...
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Sex Education, Please
The worst case scenario of a poor sex education is not an unhealthy sexual identity. It’s the unplanned birth of a child. ___ My students here at the community college aren’t really afraid of writing...
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When’s A Guy Good Enough?
A cab driver presents a rhetorical question and warns us about the dangers of higher education for men. ___ I heard a moving story from a taxi driver this week. When a public bus failed to arrive...
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My Son Got Arrested But It’s Not His Fault
Parents mean well when they call professors to offer excuses, but they end up revealing more than they intend. ___ In the decade I’ve spent teaching here at the community college, I have had three...
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Why Is It Wrong To Be Sexist, Racist or Homophobic?
It’s a good question. Right? ___ While most of the classes I teach here at the community college are writing and reading courses, I also teach an Intro to Film. This is easily my favorite class to...
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Tal Fortgang, Privilege and Unintended Ironies
Community College instructor Gint Aras responds to Tal Fortgang’s dismissal of his white privilege. ___ If you haven’t heard, this past week Time Magazine picked up an op-ed by Princeton student Tal...
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The Young Man With No Guests At Commencement
Some students defy the odds. Their common denominator is natural curiosity. ___ This is final exam week here at the community college. The faculty and guests will attend a commencement ceremony in...
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Punishing Creativity
Our education culture suffers from a desire to standardize and censor. ___ This week, a high school student named Paris Gray of Jonesboro, Georgia was disciplined and made headlines after her...
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If You’re So Smart, Why Ain’t You Rich?
It still remains true, especially for men, that we are valued primarily for what we earn. ___ A Chicago bar that I really like and often write in has a sign in the corner that reads, If you’re so...
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When Should You Accept Failure or Admit Success?
A student asks the most difficult question a professor ever had to handle. ___ “I want you to tell me straight up,” the young man asked. “Should I bother trying to get a degree?” This was the most...
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How To Teach a Man or a Boy
Among the most harmful things we do to men and boys is leave them to their own devices. ___ How can you teach men to be independent if you don’t make them learn things on their own? This is what a...
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I’m A Man Who Teaches Like A Catholic Nun
It’s time to get back to the basics, whether we like it or not. ___ This week I’ve been provoked by a New York Times Op/Ed titled The Fallacy of Balanced Literacy by Alexander Nazaryan, senior writer...
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Don’t Have a BA? Apply Anyway, Guys
An interview with a business man who’d hire you without a BA. ___ Earlier this summer, I had a frank conversation with a man—he’s in his late 30’s and I’ll call him Bill—whose small business has been...
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I’m Not the Only One Who Sucks?
Just what sort of company does misery love, anyway? ___ I’m currently attending the SLS literary seminar here in Vilnius, Lithuania where I’ve had the pleasure of meeting a variety of accomplished...
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An Egalitarian State Lets Everyone Learn
Feel smug about your level of skill, but don’t consider your smugness a sign of your education. ___ The following quote is attributed to Joseph Sobran, about whom you can read a little bit here. While...
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The Most Dangerous Word
A run in with a former student who believes schools fail youth. ___ The most dangerous word in education is success. I know some readers will be shocked: shouldn’t the whole purpose of education be a...
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