Here we go again...

Unreasonable is ignoring conventional wisdom.

Unreasonable is questioning why things that are considered normal are
considered normal, and then figuring out how they really should be.

Unreasonable is about thinking thoughts without editing them so as to be unreasonable.

I finally finished Lemberg's Be Unreasonable. The lines above come from Appendix A, "Unreasonable Summarized."

I like these three best.

Years ago, I asked my mother why re-arranging the living room was so difficult. She replied that the goal was to make the television easy to see from as many angles as possible. My ill-timed and poorly-worded (trust me, it was both) question was "why are you so obsessed with that stupid box?"

Let's just chalk that experience up as one of my first forays into "unreasonable-ness," and let's also know that I've improved when it comes to wording and tact.

So rather then turn my eyes on others, it's time for some self-reflection.

UNreasonable is ignoring conventional wisdom.
Conventional wisdom. So far, I've been trying to figure out just what "conventional" really is when it comes to the classroom. I've discovered, you see, that what makes sense to me is not the same for others -- and, of course, that comes down to personal style as well as training.

For example, I can't stand the idea of using elementary- or secondary-level activities with adults. I'm very conscious of not making my students feel as if they're in "13th grade."

Conventional wisdom, though, somehow seems to demand that we engage our students in such activities despite themselves.

I have a few tricks in my bag to engage the student learner, most of which involve small groups and discussion topics. I've learned that, generally, they do enjoy being subdivided and handed worksheets -- provided that the "worksheets" allow for personal opinion as well as fact.

I refuse to hand out skeletal outlines, reading guides, and cutsie games. I officially tossed out the "resource file" from college... the one filled with clever little activities to get the students up and out of their seats. I do not do handstands or verbal dance routines.

I now "unreasonably" lecture for a little bit each day. They, the students, want me to. I unreasonably listen to the customer over the experts, knowing that the two ought to be the same anyway.

I unreasonably make it a point to ignore learning styles at times. Employers will. For all the empowerment and nurturing that some engage in, addressing the learning style of every employee is simply too cumbersome and, depending on the job, sometimes impossible. My students need to learn how to adjust to whoever the instructor is, whether at work or in school.

It seems unreasonable to send my students into the world thinking that their employers will change to suit them.

UNreasonable is questioning why things that are considered normal are considered normal, then figuring out how they really should be.

Why do we have dress codes? Why can't we put flextime in place? What if we quit accepting excuses? What if we tightened up our attendance policy? What can we standardize? Destandardize? What if we added one more chapter to the materials covered this term? What if we tried what others are trying -- even if it's not working there, it might work here.

Things should be a lot of ways. Most of the time we want to employ adjectives such as smooth, easy, calm, and organized. But what if we didn't make organized a requirement? What if calm equated with mundane?

Right now, I'm drinking tea while I sit in my cube. Right now, I'm not working. Not in the traditional sense, anyway. I'm calm and unhurried. Those are, frankly, two healthy adjectives for any human.

I'm pondering as I write, and I've decided that the question I have to pose is this: why do I insist on building one or two days into my schedule as "cushions"? They are there "in case I lose a day" somewhere. They are great excuses to allow myself to fall behind, to be slightly less prepped, and to go off on tangents.

To practice what I preach: next term, no cushion.

Thus, I have to be ready for every class and disciplined enough to keep myself on task. If I don't, if I'm not, I won't cover all of the material.

UNreasonable is about thinking thoughts without editing them so as to be reasonable.
I want the fairy tale.

I want the classroom where taking notes and paying attention come first and texting friends comes second. I want cell phones OFF, and I never want to see another doctor's excuse for as long as I teach. I want classes where there is a 100% passing rate of every exam. I want a term where the only "F" given is when I write fantastic work.

I've decided to see what I can do about all of those wants.

Admittedly, I'm getting there was a few of them. Prior to leaving my last job, I had exactly one failed exam out of five weeks and four courses. I'm at the point where cell phones do not ring in class, though they do vibrate. The last time I saw a doctor's excuse was last January.

Everything is a gradual process, helped by one's professional reputation, demeanor, and experience. (Those lovely contracts that I hand out help, too.)

Simply put: some expectations should not be flexible.

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What I like best about all this is that it really does fall on me first and the students second. Being "unreasonable" makes me stretch myself at both personally and professionally, which is really how it should be. I have to walk that talk, so to speak, if I want my students to follow and be equally "unreasonable."