Comments on: Biters bit http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/ Out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made Sat, 26 May 2012 20:43:10 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Eric Duncan http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/comment-page-1/#comment-138671 Eric Duncan Sun, 15 Jan 2006 20:25:36 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/?p=4199#comment-138671 Rate Your Students (http://rateyourstudents.blogspot.com) does a lot of stuff besides merely giving faculty a chance to vent. There have been a number of recent posts about ways in which faculty and students can come to terms with the sometimes dicey relationship. Good reading. Rate Your Students (http://rateyourstudents.blogspot.com) does a lot of stuff besides merely giving faculty a chance to vent. There have been a number of recent posts about ways in which faculty and students can come to terms with the sometimes dicey relationship. Good reading.

]]> By: Oskar Shapley http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/comment-page-1/#comment-138274 Oskar Shapley Sat, 14 Jan 2006 13:54:56 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/?p=4199#comment-138274 The internet makes lying easy and anonymous. There is also the general rule that people complain ca. 4 times more often than they praise. Rate My Professors is no more representative than an internet poll. Wait, IT IS an internet poll. It's no better tool for choosing professors than the writings in the campus toilet. Anyone who chooses his professors on the basis of "easiness" and "hotness" deserves the education that he will get. So my point is that thanks to RMP we, the non-hot and demanding teachers, will hopefully get only those students who understand what good education means and who want to work hard. This self-selection process in the end works to our advantage and to the disadvantage of the students. Those who want easiness are also those who should have taken the work-intensive courses. RTM gives them the best tool they can get to sabotage their education. The internet makes lying easy and anonymous. There is also the general rule that people complain ca. 4 times more often than they praise.

Rate My Professors is no more representative than an internet poll. Wait, IT IS an internet poll. It’s no better tool for choosing professors than the writings in the campus toilet.

Anyone who chooses his professors on the basis of “easiness” and “hotness” deserves the education that he will get.

So my point is that thanks to RMP we, the non-hot and demanding teachers, will hopefully get only those students who understand what good education means and who want to work hard.

This self-selection process in the end works to our advantage and to the disadvantage of the students. Those who want easiness are also those who should have taken the work-intensive courses. RTM gives them the best tool they can get to sabotage their education.

]]> By: josh http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/comment-page-1/#comment-138253 josh Sat, 14 Jan 2006 05:54:31 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/?p=4199#comment-138253 Funny -- but also sometimes distastefully rancourous (and also somewhat worrying for someone who's looking forward to a career of university teaching). I (perhaps naively) always assumed that professors were supposed to be more mature than their students (though I suppose I should be cured of that misapprehension by now). Complaining about students is a popular past-time among grad students, though we tend not to do it online. Also, grad students tend to complain about everything; that seems to be one of the great joys of our existence. Funny—but also sometimes distastefully rancourous (and also somewhat worrying for someone who’s looking forward to a career of university teaching). I (perhaps naively) always assumed that professors were supposed to be more mature than their students (though I suppose I should be cured of that misapprehension by now).
Complaining about students is a popular past-time among grad students, though we tend not to do it online. Also, grad students tend to complain about everything; that seems to be one of the great joys of our existence.

]]> By: J-Dog http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/comment-page-1/#comment-138111 J-Dog Fri, 13 Jan 2006 19:31:55 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/?p=4199#comment-138111 For a chuckle, check out Dembski's review on ratemyprofessors.com! For a chuckle, check out Dembski’s review on ratemyprofessors.com!

]]> By: willie mink http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/comment-page-1/#comment-138098 willie mink Fri, 13 Jan 2006 18:20:59 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/?p=4199#comment-138098 pharyngula: that wasn't my experience. As someone who wrote to Rate Your Students points out, the postings at Rate My Professors, while peppered with bad ones, do generally represent what the students think of me. I get great evaluations at the end of the semester that match those at Rate My Professors. I did have a lot of fun though reading through the archives at Rate Your Students. It's just a chance to vent, and some whose writings appear there are delightfully inspired by that chance. I recommend going to the first post and reading upwards from the bottom of each month, rather than chronologically backwards. pharyngula: that wasn’t my experience. As someone who wrote to Rate Your Students points out, the postings at Rate My Professors, while peppered with bad ones, do generally represent what the students think of me. I get great evaluations at the end of the semester that match those at Rate My Professors.

I did have a lot of fun though reading through the archives at Rate Your Students. It’s just a chance to vent, and some whose writings appear there are delightfully inspired by that chance. I recommend going to the first post and reading upwards from the bottom of each month, rather than chronologically backwards.

]]> By: Pharyngula http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/comment-page-1/#comment-138081 Pharyngula Fri, 13 Jan 2006 15:15:27 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/?p=4199#comment-138081 <strong>Revenge!</strong> If ever you've looked yourself up on Rate My Professors, you'll appreciate Rate Your Students. (via Crooked Timber))... Revenge!

If ever you’ve looked yourself up on Rate My Professors, you’ll appreciate Rate Your Students. (via Crooked Timber))…

]]> By: Kenny Easwaran http://crookedtimber.org/2006/01/12/biters-bit/comment-page-1/#comment-138049 Kenny Easwaran Fri, 13 Jan 2006 01:40:57 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/?p=4199#comment-138049 It looks like students are having a bit of fun with this too. Here's the ratings for Alexius Meinong at Rutgers: http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/ShowRatings.jsp?tid=216411 It looks like students are having a bit of fun with this too. Here’s the ratings for Alexius Meinong at Rutgers:

http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/ShowRatings.jsp?tid=216411

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