Evening all,
Apologies for my absence. Frankly, it's been a bit of a shitstorm of this, that and the other, and I've struggled to garner the energy to write. I'm sure many of you know all too well how it feels. I certainly sympathise with you at the moment.
After being buried waist deep in various types of hellish ooze, I'm going to turn to the topic that pushed me to start wacking the old paws at a keyboard again. The kids. They are...not so good.
I'm not sure if it's the recent Sturgeon moon that happened here last week, something in the water, or just random chance, but student behaviour (in the non-academic sense) is off the chain at the moment. An absolute barrage of questionable behaviour that, while mostly not crossing grave lines (thankfully) shouts that something is up. Whether it's online or in person, it seems to me that a higher percentage of uni students at the moment are lacking some of those basic skills that normally help one avoid approbrium, or getting punched in the head by their peers.
Because the young folk (sadly I'm no longer among them) are so online I naturally assumed (like a fool) that Covid would have simply meant more time doing what they do online, but watching the full bloom of weirdness in a uni setting, I'm rethinking that. I'm coming around to the idea that a huge chunk of kids have missed out on some serious formative social...stuff, and now they're learning how to fuck up like kids do at high school, but at uni. And yeah I know, kids normally fuck up at uni. It's to be expected. Ideally kids would feel comfortable fucking up because we've created an environment where it's ok to do so (in the best sense). But this is like Turbo-fuckup stuff. The kinda stuff that makes me turn my head like a dog hearing a cheese packet rustle.
Is anyone else seeing this?
Anywho, it's late night and I have an awfully long to-do list, but before I go I'll leave you with this in the hope that kids do chart a trajectory to alright.
In other news, I've recently hired a new team member for my (I hope) happy tribe. Within a week he's demonstrated the value of hiring not for what you're doing today, but what you need for tomorrow. With any luck we'll be speaking at the Australian Academic Integrity Forum in September where we expect to blow minds. Watch this space.
On a final brief note, Rick Morton wrote a highly entertaining and enlightening article about shenanigans at my former employer. What a binfire, and Morton even missed the juiciest gossip! Anyhow, give it a read. You may have to go twelve feet up a ladder to peep over the paywall.
Until next time, which is hopefully sooner than the last interval,
KM
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