Challenge Authority (an ode to graduation)

by Sandy Antunes, PhD

Carefully, the students picked their way across the verbal mindfield (*a sort of mental hazard course, hence the malapropism). "We think this one class we took with you was not as good as this other class we took with you, so you should change that first course next year." Pretty bold words, considering I held their chance of graduating in my gradebook-holding hands! Dare they challenge my authority to rule the classroom as I see fit?

For those too impatient to read all of this, the answers are (1) yes, they do and can challenge us professors, (2) we expect it of our brightest, and (3) the real question is how to get more students to challenge us. But if you decide to read on, know there will still be 1 classical Greek reference and at least 1 profanity in this column remaining.

Back to task. There are two meanings to “a challenging student.” One is a student who has great potential but is having trouble with the material, and thus, they are a teaching challenge. The other is a student who exceeds expectations, and thus, keeps professors on their toes by asking, nay, demanding a high standard of class quality. This requires we step away from the idea of professor as “learned master” (*snort*) and into a more reasonable stance of professor as “coach.”

Likewise, there are two goals in a college education, one external and one internal. The external one is the degree, a certification by Capitol Technology University that the student has met or exceeded expectations in the core material required for a given career. That's easy to assess - A's, B's, C's. The more subtle skills are critical thinking and understanding the need for lifelong learning. That can be coached and nurtured, but there isn't a grade scale for it. Yet, more employers tell us those skills are what they are really looking for when hiring.

This means teaching students to challenge authority. One problem professors face is power. Yes, it's a #$%&ing problem because it requires unteaching lots of high school lessons. By virtue of the title “Professor,” we scare students (at first). We have to spend the first couple of years of our students’ college time convincing them to speak up in class, even to catch professor math mistakes (always due to haste in writing on the blackboard, but worth catching nevertheless). That's where those internal goals appear. There is no recipe for building student confidence and love of inquiry, but there are best practices for encouraging that in students.

The classic Greek sin was “hubris,” as evidenced by the many classical Greek works (and the Percy Jackson young adult series by Rick Riordan). It means excessive pride, and for professors, it means when we put ourselves above our students. Since our goal is to create the next generation of world-builders, we should strive to put our students above us--maybe not in freshman year, but definitely by senior year.

Penn (of magician pair Penn & Teller) was asked if he got bored doing the same act night after night, and his reply was essentially, no. He gets the chance to hone and improve his act night after night, for pay. Likewise, I'll argue that we professors get the chance to face a new crop of students and improve and adapt our work, in hopes that they will achieve beyond what we do.

I get to serve as marshal for Capitol's graduation ceremony, which has 3 parts: I start the ceremony, I end it, and I carry a mace. In many ways, that is the journey students make--to begin, to end, and to kick butt as needed. Let us hope we teach them that well.