The Daily Debacle: Lack of competence, or lack of courage?

Another day, another debacle.

Maccah Road, next exit

There are standards in this place, and they are printed on walls and on posters scattered throughout the campus. The first goal on this list is the following: "To instill in students a sense of responsibility, committment and self-discipline." The mission statement posted on the website states: “To equip the youth of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the English language skills needed to succeed in their studies, in their society, and in the world. In doing this, we work in partnership with our fellow educators to instill in the students life-long learning habits and respect for self, others and the environment.” The notion of responsibility is key, since this is linked clearly with learning success. Hence, admin has stated in its own very message:

“The [university] will open up many unprecedented opportunities to self-development. Since instilling the principle of responsibility into students is one of its objectives, the [university] will not act as a custodian nor will it hand you everything on a silver platter. Indeed, it will provide you with the development kit and you have to learn, yourselves, how to make use of the available opportunities. You have to take the consequences of your negligence, if there is any, without blaming it on anyone else.”

That responsibility manifests itself in time management, respect for each other and oneself in language and behavior, consistency in class performance, etc. etc. On the other hand, when students are shielded from the consequences of their actions, the invalidation of responsibility-taking takes hold.

One major project involved the students in conducting (mainly secondary) research on a current social issue, presenting their findings to the class, and then handing in a written paper on the work; this had strict deadlines and rubrics for marking. Today, those deadlines were arbitrarily lifted and extended; presumably, students went to admin and complained about a scheduling conflict: the assignment was the same day as a math exam. Admin arbitrarily directed the project coordinator to inform teachers midway through class about the extension. I had pushed and prodded my students to complete their studies for the last two weeks. Invariably there are laggards, and I sternly was telling them that presentations were to be done by tomorrow, and papers handed in after the weekend would be late. That discussion was invalidated by today’s email.

This is the kind of event that happens over and over. Significant numbers of students were over the 50-class absence, and made their to the admin office. They were promptly given 50% more absences to play with, 4 weeks before the end of classes. Thought it was difficult to get projects and assessments done before? Now just try, with students taking their absences as entitled vacations. In the first couple of weeks, students routinely get teachers removed from their classrooms when the teachers have expectations of performance that are above what the students are willing to expend. We are told to be generous in our marking of exams, and that to hold student output to the rubrics in a fair and standardized fashion is to invite reprisal and sanction.



Butler-teacher, serving education

Some would say this is simply a lack of competence, that admin simply does not realize the consequences of decisions made on the day-to-day class management issues faced by teachers. But admin has said that students are to engage in “self-development”, and that they would face “consequences of [their] negligence”. Tough words. When push comes to shove, it’s clear they are just words. The admin will not stand by its statements. I call this a lack of courage. The admin refuses to stare down the students and maintain standards. Students know through sheer numbers, through their wasta connections, through intimidation and threats (as was the case with the prior admin head who had bottles and shoes thrown at him in a previous ill-fated confrontation), they hold the balance of power.

The admin is afraid of the students. They are afraid of holding students accountable. Students are indeed handed their education on a silver platter. Teachers act as the butlers, and they had better be appropriately attired.

Courage is not to be unafraid. To not be afraid of the consequences of losing your job, or worse, is to be a fool. Everyone feels afraid; the key is what to do with it. Nelson Mandela said, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”

To know what the standards are, to know that imparting these to students is for their benefit, and to knowingly give in, is a lack of courage. Admin, like cowardice, has asked “is it safe?”, and for expediency’s sake “is it politic?” But, to continue Martin Luther King Jr.’s observation: “conscience asks the question: is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular- but one must take it simply because it is right.” Martin Luther King Jr. 1929-1968

BTW, teachers hold no such leverage as the students do. The best they can do is quit, and they are quickly replaced. The lack of continuity is of no concern, because the program goes through several iterations in a given year anyway. As long students are marked present, are happy, and no shoes are thrown, the program goes on. I am surprised that admin even admits to this: “Everyone knows that [this university] is not difficult academically.”

I recall an event from a previous position with the Human Resources Department of a major corporation. They were in weeks-long discussions to change the nameplates on the classrooms, to reflect more modern, quality-assurance lingo. What did not change was the process inside the class, the process for planning what happened in the class, and the responsibilities of all participants generally. The nameplates changed, the realities did not.



Integrity beaten, chained up and slinking away

Tying in with the curriculum plan I described yesterday, the program is changing the descriptors, but the processes are untouched. And integrity, beaten too many times, lacking courage to change the context now, turns tail and slinks into the shadows.