[Chirag]

Originally Posted by Mark Lenders

Same here, I'd not be able to get through uni without my laptop

Laptops arent allowed here but we chat about random stuff and play games like Hangman which are a lot of fun

[Kat_YYZ]

Originally Posted by Chirag

Wow if you sit in the back it means you arent interested in the lecture I somewhat agree with Lenders and Noserer ,those lecturers really spout random nonsense Half of which is not even important

And for Trip who asks why I attend my classes , its because of the minimum attendance required to sit in the exam

or maybe just that all the seats in the front were already filled when you arrived

[August]

Originally Posted by BroTree123

Same here. Still though, I do wonder why I even bother turning up for the lectures in the first place

Why not to go to lectures? As long as you can do something interesting like read MTF on your laptop or phone in case the lecture is boring, why not go to lectures. Even if you read MTF, you may remember something from the lecture.

[hat__boy]

I just sit near the door so I can make a hasty exit to contemplate why I'm paying to have a fucking textbook recited to me.

[Sophitia36]

Originally Posted by tripwires

"Tourists". What do people do if they don't graduate though? In Asia, you'd be severely disadvantaged in job hunting without a university degree. Is it the same in France?

By the way, what do you teach?

I teach English. For the moment I teach mostly language classes and tutorials, but in the future I hope to teach Irish history and culture. I'm doing a PhD on Northern Ireland.

My students don't come to class with laptops because they're not the types of class you can bring a laptop to... I expect if I give lectures someday, they will, but I will be annoyed. I think it's very disrespectful, and it's also a problem because more and more students have zero ability to focus, in part because of this habit (I'm bored? It's difficult? Let's just surf the Internet instead).

I must admit, this is my own type of snobbery : I don't despise uneducated people, but I do tend to despise people who have no interest in education, and even more those who are lucky enough to get it for free and can't be bothered to make a little effort to take advantage of this huge privilege.

Originally Posted by Chirag

Wow if you sit in the back it means you arent interested in the lecture I somewhat agree with Lenders and Noserer ,those lecturers really spout random nonsense Half of which is not even important

Well, sometimes, you do have very bad lecturers, I cannot deny this. It happened to me too. I still tried to make the most of what they were saying, and if necessary, I read textbooks to make up for their incompetence.
Most of the time though, students blame their lecturers and teachers for their own failings. It's happening more and more, they don't do the work, they don't listen to you, but they somehow assume that they have a natural right to pass their exams. They are often very arrogant, no matter how bad their level really is. And they get angry at you for giving them the marks they deserve.
If they choose to fool around in class and live for a year at the state's expense without doing anything, fine, but at least, they should accept the consequences.

Originally Posted by Chirag

And for Trip who asks why I attend my classes , its because of the minimum attendance required to sit in the exam

I'm really against minimum attendance requirements. I tend to believe that, even though they're young, students should be treated like adults. They should be clever enough to know that if they don't come, they won't go far (unless they are really very talented but that's rare). Or if they aren't, then they will learn this at their expense, and that will make them grow up.

Basically, coming to class without having done the homework, and just so you can spend the whole class surfing the Internet or chatting with friends, is almost exactly the same as not coming at all.
Actually, it's even worse than not coming, in my opinion. I noticed recently that the proportion of tourists and clowns in my class was not that high, and that I had plenty of really nice students that I often did not notice, because clowns tend to attract your attention more. I was thinking, if only I could get rid of 5 or 6 people out of 40, this class would be great. But even if I start kicking out students, I doubt I could kick out 5 or 6 on a regular basis

[Sophitia36]

Originally Posted by hat__boy

I just sit near the door so I can make a hasty exit to contemplate why I'm paying to have a fucking textbook recited to me.

Well, from my own experience working with students, I can give you the answer : because most students are too lazy to even contemplate reading a textbook by themselves

I don't know how many lecturers really recite textbooks. I guess some of them do, some of them even read textbooks they have written themselves.

But I remember hearing a lot of my classmates claiming that this or that teacher was "just repeating what's written in that book"... and usually those students just didn't realize the difference between reciting textbooks, and offering students a synthesis of many books. Normally, that's what good lecturers do.

You cannot make up the knowledge, unless you're a great researcher teaching your own favourite subject. What you can do, though, is read all the main books about a topic and give the students a synthesis. And doing this is real work, and yes it really saves time for the students. Still, if a student picks up a well-known textbook on the same topic, they'll see that the chapters of the book, or some passages of it, basically talk about the same things that were in the lecture.

But then again, many students don't know the difference between research and plagiarism, or between paraphrasing and analysis, so it's funny to hear them accuse a teacher of "reciting a textbook".

Of course, ideally, a lecture should be some kind of meta-analysis of the various textbooks on the topic, in which the researcher gives his own brilliant and groundbreaking analysis on an issue to enlightened students who have already read all the main textbooks by themselves. But I don't really need to point out why that wouldn't work, do I?

[BroTree123]

Exactly. What it basically means that you're expected to have read up on the topics before you attend the lectures. Basically what lectures are, is a refresh of what you've read up to ensure that what you know/learnt (from reading textbooks) is solidified and/or any misconceptions are cleared up. Not that I do, most of the time anyway. But that said, whether or not you want to attend lectures or not, is really up to you.

[Shinoj]

Education is over rated in our modern World anyway. More often than not they Stifle Creativity,Spontaeinity, Out of Box Students who are stifled to get in line with the Group.. They do not encourage Free Thinking Anyway.

[GOATsol]

Originally Posted by Shinoj

Education is over rated in our modern World anyway. More often than not they Stifle Creativity,Spontaeinity, Out of Box Students who are stifled to get in line with the Group.. They do not encourage Free Thinking Anyway.

Done the right way, education does the opposite.

[tripwires]

Originally Posted by Punky

im not Surprised b/c i know a lot of israeli love doing their MA around the world.
why ur only MA?

I'm not doing an MA but an LL.M.

i cant stand my job but i wont quit until i will find another one, i cant b/c im still an intern so its a big problem.
i totally can do better (my pay is pretty great) but i need a Challenge.

So you're working and studying at the same time?

i did a double degree (BA in Economy and Industrial and Management) that was a mistake, i should have done one but i couldnt Decide.
then i studied for a Dual license in Portfolio Management and Pension counseling, again a double
now im doing my MBA.

Haha I can totally relate to the cannot decide thing. Happens to me all the time too. Are you doing your MBA in Israel then?

why do u study? cant u study it back home?

Well, I've always wanted to study overseas but never had the chance to, and I wanted to get a degree from an internationally-reputed school, so I came to London. Yeah I could've done it in Singapore but I really wanted to experience the world outside of Singapore and Asia, and I wanted a different perspective on the issues that I studied in school. There are only two law schools in Singapore, one established one and one new one. I went to the established one so I didn't think it made sense to go back there again for the Masters; and the newer one simply isn't established enough for me to take it seriously () so I didn't even consider it.

Originally Posted by Chirag

Wow if you sit in the back it means you arent interested in the lecture I somewhat agree with Lenders and Noserer ,those lecturers really spout random nonsense Half of which is not even important

And for Trip who asks why I attend my classes , its because of the minimum attendance required to sit in the exam

Whoa, forced attendance. I hate those. I'm actually really appalled that my professors are forced to take attendance in my Masters class...I mean, aren't we all adults here?

Originally Posted by Shinoj

Education is over rated in our modern World anyway. More often than not they Stifle Creativity,Spontaeinity, Out of Box Students who are stifled to get in line with the Group.. They do not encourage Free Thinking Anyway.

That sounds like education in Singapore.

[Dr. Frankenfed]

Sometimes a simple "Be quiet!" is not enough.


It was always important for me to have a nice atmosphere in my
classes. So I tolerated some noise but I was also very strict if it went overboard. Unfortunately a lot of young students can't stay focused for
90 minutes. So you have to school them first how to concentrate properly by pacing the lecture accordingly.

[Punky]

Originally Posted by tripwires

I'm not doing an MA but an LL.M.

you did ur first degree in law also?

im definitely thinking about expand my knowledge on the subject

Originally Posted by tripwires

So you're working and studying at the same time?

yes.

Originally Posted by tripwires

Haha I can totally relate to the cannot decide thing. Happens to me all the time too. Are you doing your MBA in Israel then?

yes, i cant imagine leaving the country for so long.
i hd the chance to move to london a few months ago and work in "the city" my bank has a branch there but i turn it down..its not for me and i can go for a few weeks but no more.

i think if i could decide b/c i started all of this my life could have been more easy. a lot more.

Originally Posted by tripwires

Well, I've always wanted to study overseas but never had the chance to, and I wanted to get a degree from an internationally-reputed school, so I came to London. Yeah I could've done it in Singapore but I really wanted to experience the world outside of Singapore and Asia, and I wanted a different perspective on the issues that I studied in school. There are only two law schools in Singapore, one established one and one new one. I went to the established one so I didn't think it made sense to go back there again for the Masters; and the newer one simply isn't established enough for me to take it seriously () so I didn't even consider it.

its not hard leaving everything behind?how do u deal with home sick (if u have) and being so far from ur family and friends? ru going back after u will finish ur studies?

[Orange Wombat]

I'm much too paranoid to post on MTF during a lecture

I agree that too much emphasis is placed on grades and rubrics insead of the actual content

[156mphserve]

I do this on a daily basis, instead it's not in class, it's at home at 4 am in the morning to the people living upstairs who think it's approiate to party 10 PM- 4 AM every single night right above my bedroom

[GSMnadal]

You're such a badass GOAT=Fed.

I wish I had your stones, man.