Making the Grade pt. 1

What to Do

Right away I was impressed at how hip and well organized RateMyProfessors.com is. I guess for some reason I associate professors with plain white web pages from the 90's. Nevertheless, it looks very sleek, almost Twitterish. At the top of the page there is an option to search for a particular professor or just browse them by school. So I typed in Columbia College Chicago and used the drop down menu to select "English."

Sure enough, there he is, Dr. Schiff himself. Of course, there's no photo, but he has been rated six times, and his overall rating is 4.5 out 5. That's just about where I would put him. So let's grade Jeff Schiff together.

That's him on the left (ha ha)

First question: Easiness

Easiness? I would hate to describe one of my professors as being "easy." Now classmates, that would be interesting. Maybe we can start up RateMySorority.com. Hold on, let me Google that...what d'ya know, there are a few results. No definite site, but there is a blog by that name, and it looks as though someone has purchased the domain. Nevermind. Anyways...Jeff's not too tough, but he certainly isn't easy. I'll give him a 3 on this one. I definitely agree with some of the comments people left in regards to this question.

Second question: Helpfulness

Let's give 'em a 4 in helpfulness. Although I am not very timely with the assignments, I would have to say this class is probably my favorite of this semester. It has helped me become acquainted with writing online, more specifically, blogging. This is something I've wanted to do for quite some time, but never had the motivation. Now it's a requirement. I have learned a lot about how to connect with an audience and make your blog more presentable. Jeff's pretty good at constructive criticism when it comes to commenting on the blogs. Other times, I post something he probably has no idea on how to grade. He's a very smart guy, and the most useful information I obtain from the course comes not from the work, but directly from him. I take a lot of notes, and every week I learn an assortment of new and exciting words and phrases, like "visceral," "ineffable," "flippant," or "more than one way to skin a cat." I play a lot of Scrabble, so I'd say Jeff is pretty helpful. The lowest choice is 'useless,' with the highest being 'extremely helpful.' Until he does my taxes, writes me a letter of recommendation, cosigns on a loan and lifts the financial hold on my account, I wouldn't consider anyone "extremely helpful."

Third Question: Clarity

Ah yes, Clarity. My favorite Jimmy Eat World album. Also an essential part of teaching. Teachers must be able to communicate the subject to the students in a clear and concise manner, otherwise, there is no point in showing up. Jeff does this well. I would argue that one of his best qualities is holding our attention, which a lot of teachers at Columbia, especially in gen-eds, struggle with. Sometimes it's because they don't know what the hell they're talking about, but more often then not it's because they're from a foreign country. I've had someone from Kenya, India, and most recently, Russia. That one's not so hard to understand as it is hard to stop imitating. "I must break you." My only bone to pick with Jeff's diction is that sometimes it's too good. He likes to use a lot of obscure words and phrases that small-minded folk like myself have a hard time wrapping our heads around. But because you can never have too much of a good thing, I'll give him a 5 on this one. "Crystal Clear." Great job!

Fourth Question: Interest Level

This one's for the interest level prior to class. It sounds like they mean before the semester officially begins, however I'll grade it on what I think they mean: Am I interested in the course outside of class? The answer would have to be yes--very much so. I am constantly thinking about what I am going to post in my next personal blog. First, I'll come up with a concept in my head. This usually happens while I am at work. So then I'll get a blank sheet of paper and begin writing. That sheet will get stored away in my class folder until I am ready to type it up into the blog. Though I am very interested in the class, I have a lot of other things on my plate, and I cannot consider WFNM "my world." 4 out of 5.

Fifth Question: Textbook Use

Low. There is no textbook! Woohoo! Thank you for not making me go to the Columbia book store halfway through the semester to pay an arm and a leg for a book I might only use once. Thank you sooo much.

And that's all there is to it. The only other questions are whether or not attendance is mandatory, whether or not the professor is still teaching, and whether or not you find them attractive. I have no opinion from a physical standpoint, but just for fun I clicked "hot" because hey, intelligence is sexy.