Tornado Alley (PROG)

[janice shell]

Nothing can--or should--be done about it, but I blame the internet for much of the lamentable ignorance out there. It encourages conspiracy theories and just plain misinformation.

Worse yet, it seems to have given some legitimacy to the "it's just your opinion" people. We've all encountered them here at IHub. You present a fact. They say "That's just your opinion!" They have NO critical thinking skills, and apparently believe a quick google will give them as much knowledge of any subject as experts who've devoted years of their lives to whatever the subject is.

That didn't start recently. Back in the mid-seventies, I taught part time at Boston College. The courses I offered were fairly specialized, though no prerequisites were required for taking them. (I didn't choose the courses; that was the department's choice, and a poor one in my opinion. I was just hired to teach them.)

Toward the end of the second class, a couple of students waved their hands in the air and said they'd like a "discussion period" for the last ten or fifteen minutes of every session. Mind you, the classes were only 40 minutes long.

I thought about that and just said no. I pointed out to them that there'd be no discussion because they didn't know anything about the subject, and so had nothing to discuss. It wasn't what they wanted to hear, but there you have it.