Will’s View

While heading into one of the buildings on campus yesterday, I overheard a poor fellow saying to one of the girls next to him:

Poor Fellow: No, what I meant was that I don’t see you as the dancing type.
Irate Female: So you don’t think that I can dance?
Poor Fellow: Well, no, I think you can, just that I didn’t think you would be that good at it, hence why you’re only doing a few lessons.
Irate Female: So you don’t think I should even go because I’m going to be so bad at it?!
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--> While heading into one of the buildings on campus yesterday, I overheard a poor fellow saying to one of the girls next to him: Poor Fellow: No, what I meant was that I don’t see you as the dancing type. Irate Female: So you don’t think that I can dance? Poor Fellow: Well, no, I think you can, just that I didn’t think you would be that good at it, hence why you’re only doing a few lessons. Irate Female: So you don’t think I should even go because I’m going to be so bad at it?! (More...)

I’ve done my fair share of teaching at university over the years. Mainly first and second year programming, but a fair few people have been through the doors. Some even commenting on how cool my hair is (I’m still not sure whether they were being sarcastic or not. My hair is cool).

As a direct consequence I know a lot of young ‘uns  around the Computer Science Building. And therefore shouldn’t have been surprised when I walked into a tutorial for one of the subjects I’m studying this year and realised that I had at one time taught about half the class. I was surprised, however, when it turned out that one of my good friends from my teaching days was taking the class.

This was a good thing and a bad thing. Good because it meant I didn’t really have to introduce myself to the class because they already knew me, and also good because I knew it was going to be a good tutorial (this friend happens to be quite a good tutor). Bad because this tutor that I know so well decided to pick on me for the entire 50 minutes and make me answer all the questions. Sure, that’s not too bad really, but the real clincher was what to do about the students I had taught at one time or another.

Should I  ignore them and pretend I’ve never met them before (not entirely wrong, seeing as I’m so terrible with remembering names)?Or should I sit and chat to them about the good old days when they were my students, hoping they don’t bring up the poor quality of my teaching, or blame me for having to re-do the subject?

In the end I wasn’t given a choice, as the tutor loudly announced that I had taught most of the class, and that I would be first name out of the hat whenever people were picked to ask questions. Oh joy.

--> I’ve done my fair share of teaching at university over the years. Mainly first and second year programming, but a fair few people have been through the doors. Some even commenting on how cool my hair is (I’m still not sure whether they were being sarcastic or not. My hair is cool). As a direct consequence I know a lot of young ‘uns  around the Computer Science Building. And therefore shouldn’t have been surprised when I walked into a tutorial for (More...)

Being early March, university students throughout the southern hemisphere are returning to class. With the joys of uni come the joys of watching freshmen wander around campus with their heads buried in maps, trying to find their next class.

Although this year there was something a little different. We saw someone walking around in what was effectively a cocktail dress and heels. She still had the traditional diary and map out, trying to get to her next class, and I don’t have any problem with people look nice for the first day of uni. Even still, the heels were somewhat incongruous.

Uni tends to involve a lot of walking. Not only to classes, but to go and see friends for lunch, or just to the nearest public transport stop. And from what I’ve heard from women, heels are uncomfortable to wear at the best of times, let alone for an entire day whilst traipsing about uni. I imagine it’s a lesson one learns reasonably quickly, and painfully.

But why wear heels in the first place? Surely after so many years at school people would rather be in comfortable clothes rather than ridiculously impractical ones. I realise that appearance is overly important to a large proportion of the population, but surely one can find a middle road with a reasonable compromise between looking like a hobo and getting blisters the size of plates.

--> Being early March, university students throughout the southern hemisphere are returning to class. With the joys of uni come the joys of watching freshmen wander around campus with their heads buried in maps, trying to find their next class. Although this year there was something a little different. We saw someone walking around in what was effectively a cocktail dress and heels. She still had the traditional diary and map out, trying to get to her next class, (More...)