No More Teachers, No More Books!

This is the last day of final exams for my students...and for me, as their professor.  This semester flew by!  I think because the beginning of the semester was so chaotic, with Don's surgery, and Maddie and I combating one illness after another.  I didn't seem really prepared to roll out my courses and put on my sage-on-the-stage face, but I made it through.  In the end, I think it turned out to be a pretty good semester.  Almost all of my students did very well and I am proud of their hard work. Almost all...



Done for another semester!

What does the end of the semester entail for a professor?  Lots of begging, generally.  Begging for extensions, for opportunities to make up missed assignments from January and February, for opportunities to re-do work, and begging for just "a few extra points."  Yeah, it gets old. I used to feel sorry for them and offer to give them extensions and incompletes, but once you've been in the college classroom for a few years - and you've been burned a few times - your heart hardens a wee little bit.

My favorite quote of the semester came in the form of an email that arrived in my inbox last weekend: "Dr. Benton, I have an F in your class.  What can I do?"

I didn't even know how to respond, but I wanted to say, "Try building a time machine."

At this point, you have to have a good excuse for an extension or an incomplete. Ain't nobody got time for last ditch efforts to pass on the last day of finals!

What do you remember from your days in college and finals week?