Re: Holding Students Accountable for Language

Michelle,
	Let's get right to the heart of the matter and cut the
philosophical bull. It seems that these students, like so many today,
view anything but a privileged and affluent lifestyle that they can
impress others with as slavery. It is a shame that they use terminology
so loosely. Dirtying one's hands is hardly slavery, and it is a slap in
the face to anyone who has endured slavery or has an ancestor who has.
These students should be asked to do a definition essay on "slavery" so
that they learn the value of appropriate vocabulary and are held
accountable for their language usage. Please realize that you are not
alone. We all suffer these situations. Let's not baby these buffoons.
Leadership praxis to many of them means an executive suite with a rich
boss or a fawning secretary. They should be thankful to have as concerned
a teacher as you seem to be, but they just don't get it.

Richard

On Thu, 6 May 1999 12:49:46 -0500 deramo@vt.edu (Michele James Deramo)
writes:
>I am grappling with how to handle a situation and look to my colleague 
>for
>advice:
>
>I am teaching a Leadership Praxis course that involves first year 
>students
>in service-learning activities.  The students also write a journal for
>their praxis which is read by upper division student leaders.  Over 
>the
>past week, I've noticed several students stating in their written work 
>that
>they feel like "slaves" at their service sites.  This term has 
>appeared in
>a variety of contexts:  the journals that are read by the student 
>leaders,
>once in a class reflection paper that I assigned, and once on an 
>evaluation
>form.
>
>First, let me state that I am very involved in both of the sites where
>these students are working and can say with great confidence that the
>students are NOT being taken advantage of.  The one site engages 
>students
>in a series of work days  which always end with community 
>meals--prepared
>and served by members of the community.  Occasionally students' work 
>at the
>sites have involved hard work like clearing brush or cleaning out an 
>old
>refrigerator as part of a Rec Center restoration--but nothing than any
>homeowner with a yard wouldn't do on the weekend!  The other site, 
>whose
>members are descendents of REAL slaves, involves students in 
>collecting
>oral histories, writing articles, and formatting a newsletter for the
>organization.  Much of this work occurs in the home of a community 
>member.
>
>Second, let me state that the use of this term usually appears in 
>writing
>that the student did not hand in to me--journals for their peer groups 
>or
>the anonymous evaluation form.  Only now, after the class has ended 
>and I
>am reviewing their class portfolios and peer group assessments, has 
>this
>become evident.
>
>The fact that four different students described aspects of their 
>service
>work as "slavery" is highly offensive to me--not only because it is an
>irresponsible use of language, but also because the sites have given 
>so
>much of themselves to these students, AND I've worked so carefully to 
>study
>their community service work in relation to course concepts of 
>grassroots
>leadership, systemic action and thought, and the critical habits of 
>being
>(as presented in the Commonfire text).
>
>I don't think this is something to let go.  I've addressed the issue 
>of
>language whenever the term appears in papers and journals.   However, 
>I am
>most troubled by the appearance of the term in the anonymous 
>evaluation.  I
>KNOW for a fact who wrote the evaluation and feel that this student 
>must be
>held accountable for her language, but feel that I can't approach the
>student directly.  I am thinking of writing a general letter to the 
>class
>and enclosing it with their portfolios.
>
>One final point:  despite their complaints about working hard, all of 
>the
>students gave very high praise to their overall experiences and
>demonstrated some good connections in their final papers.  Perhaps 
>this is
>all the more reason to address their use of language.
>
>Well, thanks for reading through this long missive during such a busy 
>time.
>I welcome any advice or comments.
>
>
>        Michele James-Deramo
>        Director
>        Service-Learning Center
>        Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
>        202 Major Williams (0168)
>        Blacksburg, Virginia 24061
>        540/231-6947
>        deramo@vt.edu 
>
>
>

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