Cell Communication
I said I would not complain. But if you do not know what the term
"multicellular" means, nor do you have the capacity to look up that
term, then you should not be in my class. Simple as that.
My Facebook rant from a few days ago seemed simple, at least to me. Until Dann commented on the post:
"Is that like a Verizon family plan?" he joked.
I know Dann wrote the statement as a joke because I know Dann. We went to graduate school together, and he is, by far, one of the most intelligent engineers I know. (He didn't pay me to say those words; I don't think he even knows this blog exists.) I always did appreciate his humor, and I did the other day, too.
And I really should thank Dann for the comment. Because when I read it, the classic light bulb illuminated in my head and I realized exactly what I'm up against as a teacher: technology and a different perspective.
My students, who have an average age of 19, don't know what life is like without a cell phone. They probably knew what a cell phone was before they could talk. Had they even learned about a biological cell, the experience came far later in their lives than their first exposure to cell phone technology. So really, can I blame the person for asking what multicellular meant?
No. But I can blame the student for not using critical thinking skills and looking up the term properly. I am a student in a biology class, this person should have reasoned, therefore, I will look up multicellular with respect to biology. That's what the person should have done, instead of asking me. That action requires common sense, though, and I personally believe our collective level of common sense has an inverse relationship with our level of technological usage.
Of course, I always encourage my students to ask questions, any and all of them, no matter what the question is. And that brings me back again to the point I was trying to make with the Facebook post. If you don't already understand the term, you shouldn't be in my class. You should be taking an introductory biology course, one rife with fundamentals that will serve you for the class I now teach.
But as usual, I've learned something from this interaction: that I need to adapt. Talk about biology--Darwin and the survival of the fittest. If I don't adapt, I'll go crazy. So henceforth, in my biology classes, I will refer to cellular phones as mobile phones and cells can remain the little units of life that they are.
My Facebook rant from a few days ago seemed simple, at least to me. Until Dann commented on the post:
"Is that like a Verizon family plan?" he joked.
I know Dann wrote the statement as a joke because I know Dann. We went to graduate school together, and he is, by far, one of the most intelligent engineers I know. (He didn't pay me to say those words; I don't think he even knows this blog exists.) I always did appreciate his humor, and I did the other day, too.
And I really should thank Dann for the comment. Because when I read it, the classic light bulb illuminated in my head and I realized exactly what I'm up against as a teacher: technology and a different perspective.
My students, who have an average age of 19, don't know what life is like without a cell phone. They probably knew what a cell phone was before they could talk. Had they even learned about a biological cell, the experience came far later in their lives than their first exposure to cell phone technology. So really, can I blame the person for asking what multicellular meant?
No. But I can blame the student for not using critical thinking skills and looking up the term properly. I am a student in a biology class, this person should have reasoned, therefore, I will look up multicellular with respect to biology. That's what the person should have done, instead of asking me. That action requires common sense, though, and I personally believe our collective level of common sense has an inverse relationship with our level of technological usage.
Of course, I always encourage my students to ask questions, any and all of them, no matter what the question is. And that brings me back again to the point I was trying to make with the Facebook post. If you don't already understand the term, you shouldn't be in my class. You should be taking an introductory biology course, one rife with fundamentals that will serve you for the class I now teach.
But as usual, I've learned something from this interaction: that I need to adapt. Talk about biology--Darwin and the survival of the fittest. If I don't adapt, I'll go crazy. So henceforth, in my biology classes, I will refer to cellular phones as mobile phones and cells can remain the little units of life that they are.
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