Thanks to VP for inspiring this post

Handling the vague student question.

I get many many emails like this.

From: hotguy69@hotmail.com
To: IPG
Received: 11:59 PM EST Sunday (1 minute before the assignment is due)
Hey teach,

I am confsd. Can u xplain what we r doing this week? i have been working on it all week. i just dont get it.

What I would like to do is respond with...

From: IPG
To: hotguy

I don't know who this is. I have looked extensively in all of my courses and none of the students are named Mr. Hot Guy nor Mr. Guy Hot.
Warmly,
IPG


OR I could respond

From: IPG
To: Hotguy

Nothin' u need 2 worry about. U just got goose eggs.

OR I could respond

From: IPG
To: Hotguy

If you have been puzzling through it all week...how come when I run statistics in the classroom it says you just logged in 15 minutes ago? And why would you wait until just now to send me an email?


I also get these types of responses in the discussion board.
However this is how I usually respond.

From: IPG
To: hotguy

Dear Mr. Guy:
I am unable to identify you by your email. It is unfortunate as I would really like to answer your question. I am sorry that you are confused. Due to the ambiguous nature of discussing things via a text only medium. I am unable to ascertain what you might possibly be confused about. However upon reflection, I am sure that you will be able to respond with a clearer question. One that I will be able to respond to with ease rather than leaving the question so open to interpretation.

Additionally if you would so kindly let me know what your name is. Both your surname and given name would be preferable as it makes it easier for me to identify you. Also please peruse my syllabus, and you will see that I have office hours through out the week that you have been apprised of their times. Responding at the last mere moment before the assignment is late with a vague question does not give you an exemption for tardiness.

Warmly,
IPG

Reflections

I have a Bible study with a really great group of girls on Tuesday nights. It is a great way for me to go spend time with the girls...get out of the house, and learn about what the Bible says to women. This particular group really has a hodge podge of women: single girls, married girls, moms, girls that can't get pregnant, girls that don't want to get pregnant, divorcees, soon to be moms, soon to be divorcees, and soon to be marrieds. One thing I enjoy the most out of this meeting is realizing that everyone is going through something all of the time.

It may not seem like a big something. Perhaps it is sometimg small, but all these ladies have a story to tell. Right now I am struggling because I really do not want to live in Phoenix. I want to stay right here near my mom and daddy. I don't want to trot on the other side of the country. I miss SD fiercely, but I miss my folks too.

The Bible study we are currently doing is called the Frazzled Female. I love it. It has made me start thinking about the baby issue again. People have a pretty narrow mind about what they think about a woman that is not necessarily interested in having children. Some choice stereotypes include: "They don't like kids," or, "They don't have any maternal part of them," or, "They're too career-driven," or, "They're selfish." Something else I feel like is that I have set foot in a political type position I never asked to be a part of. I feel more like "Hey I am just living my life...not making any sort of a political stand." But as my marriage hit that magic 3 year mark the questions started. When? When? When? My marriage also dove tailed with my completing my comprehensive exams. Meaning that I am only working on my dissertation at this point. An alignment of the stars that seems to scream the need to get busy procreating.

In addition is the fact that I work from home. I don't have any jarring reason towards wanting to wait. I just have all these nagging questions. Such as will I still be me? What will happen to the research I love? Will I trade all that in for a discussion about pacifiers and bottle nipples? Will I cease to be Dr. IPG and just have to settle for being Dr. Mom? Will my husband still love the eccentric intelligent woman he married or will I become so dissolved in "mommy brain" that I can't construct an enlightened sentence? Why does it seem like everything involving children is a sacrifice? Where is my mommy gene?

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORK

I have been working and working and working and killing myself today. I had to work so many hours since I got home I just need to sleep so that I can get some semblance of Chapter 1 together by tomorrow.

I had Bible study tonight, and had to miss the Republican National Convention. I hate that, because I always like to watch President Bush speak. Thank goodness for TIVO. I will definitely be watching tomorrow to see Senator Palin. This election season I have had to eat my words. I said I didn't want to vote for McCain, but I have had to eat my words. I have really come around to McCain, and am so pleased with his choice for VP. I don't typically discuss politics, but I thought the speeches tonight were outstanding. I thought I was going to like Fred's speech best, but I loved Liberman's speech.

Ah well...I have managed somehow to get caught up. I hope I don't wake up tomorrow and find I am suddenly behind. :) Amazing how that can occur at times. Gotta love fall semester.

Ok so I took the week off!

I didn't blog from Costa Rica although I did have to work from there. I also visited Nicaragua on my trip. While in Nicaragua, I saw lake Nicaragua, the colonial city of Granada, and a volcano at Masaya (pronounced like Messiah). The beaches on the Pacific side of Costa Rica are lava beaches. They have black sand.

Costa Rica is more beautiful than anyplace really has a right to be in my opinion. It is gorgeous. I got to spend some amazing time with my family. My parents and I are quite close, and they live so far away from us. Unfortunately just as they will be relocating back to the south we will be moving west. It breaks my heart that I can not live closer to them. One of the best things I liked about vacation is that my flight arrived so early on Friday and left so late yesterday I had nearly a day and a half with my parents with out my sister. We are a tight family, and we usually get together en masse. So I rarely get to spend quality time with my folks just me. Also when I go visit them I usually take my husband. It was a rare treat for this oldest child to spend time with her folks alone...I probably haven't done that since I was 3.5. Kidding.

I also had a tearful reunion with my husband. I had been gone 10 days, and I missed him. I believe I have shared here that when I first got married my fierce independence made it difficult for me to adjust. However since late 2006, I have begun embracing marriage with all my heart. My husband is my best friend. He is the one I want to share every detail of my life with. When I am traveling it is difficult to be away from him. It is difficult not to think ...HH would LOVE this. Or I know HH would think that is hilarious too. Coming home yesterday I had an amazing reconnection with my loving man. He met me at the airport with 2 dozen roses. He cooked me dinner, unpacked my luggage, rubbed my feet where I had millions of mosquito bites (and I never ever get bites...this was my first time ever), and checked out the latest horror flicks so I could indulge. I am so happy he doesn't have to work today so we can spend the whole day together.

Work has continued to heat up as all the schools have gone back. I was exhausted when I got in yesterday, but I had to work for 5.5 hours. AND I was not even behind. That was just regular Sunday work! I am going to have to keep that in mind and try to plan better. I work oh so much better in the morning than I do in the evening.

I have got to finish Chapter 1 of my dissertation. I need to quit lolly gagging and just get it done. I don't want to cram it in a few hours before meeting with my advisor. I probably will work on it all day tomorrow and Wednesday to ready myself for my Thursday meeting.

SD is at her paternal grandmother's home. That spoiled little girl is the center of the universe when she is there...last I heard she was getting her hair done and getting a manicure and a pedicure. :)

Alert IPG to Blog from Costa Rica

One of the best things about teaching online is the ability to take off and work from wherever. This map shows places I have worked from...and tomorrow I will be adding Costa Rica to the mix. This map should not be confused with the map I posted a few months ago about all the places I had been.





I even worked during my honeymoon. This is because a.) I am a workaholic b.) I am a workaholic, and c.) it was too easy not to. :D Plus now I can say "I am the only person I know that made money during their wedding. Except for mail order brides." haha

This week I was busy getting ready to go on family Vacation. Also Chapter 1 of that tiny paper I am writing is due on September 4. So I was busy writing up a storm. Oh and I also picked up a new school so had to do all the requisite paperwork. Which made me awfully stressed trying to cram it all in before I took off.

I will be keeping up with the blog on this trip because I still have to log some dissertation writing time each day. And I really want to be keeping better track of the process. Ten years from now when someone like SD wants an organic recounting of how the dissertation writing process (obviously because she is considering writing one...hypothetically) I want to be able to pull my records and give her an honest unbiased, and unrosied by hindsight answer. I also would like to save that answer for myself.

IPG in Atlanta leaving for Costa Rica in 12 hours

For SD

Today I was thinking about my SD. I considered that one day she will get married. It also occurred to me that time goes increasingly fast. So I committed today to start praying not just for her and her teenage years, but for her future husband. Perhaps not just for him, but for his mother, and possibly stepmother too.

But more than my prayers for her, and him...I have my hopes. Not just for her marriage, but for her life.

• I hope that you grow up to chase your dreams, and that you know yourself well enough to identify your dreams.
• I hope that you avoid the temptation of trouble that you could regret.
  
• I hope that the man you marry loves you just a fraction more than you love him.
• I hope his mother makes him say "M'am"
• I hope that you love one another with epic proportions. After knowing your father for 5 years, he is still oxygen to me. When I look at his back he resembles Michelangelo's David. His sweet smile, is all I need for my breath to catch in my throat. And it is possible if you find the right person for that to continue forever. My parents still love each other like that even after nearly 40 years.
• I hope that you major in something at college that will give you a career that you love and not just a job.
• I hope that you drive safely at 15, 16 so that you make it to college.
• I hope that you love to travel like I do. And we can take on the world together.
  

And 1,000 other things. But mostly I hope you are happy.

Insomnia thy name is hysteria- International Party Girl

Random Thoughts

I go to sleep later and later every night. I get up earlier and earlier every morning. Pretty soon I will be getting up before I go to sleep.

My mom has the user name "GobamaXYXYX" for one of her accounts. But people see it and think she means "Go OBama" Rather than "Go Alabama" so she constantly gets IMs all week about her user name. I find that the height of hilarity.

I leave for Costa Rica on Friday. I just might not come home. What is the point really? It is so very nice down there. I could just...sell coconuts and pineapple. Perhaps learn how to braid people's hair.

I am having a plagiarism meltdown in one of my classes. 88% of the students turned in a paper that was at least 70% plagiarized. I will be filling out academic honesty reports until my hands curl up like the wicked witche's feet in the Wizard of Oz.

It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated. Alec Bourne

With having a fantastic dinner last night, friends visit until late, and then really getting some work done today...I am tired. Not tired enough to go to sleep obviously but still very tired.

I have just returned from a venture to campus. Ostensibly I was going to the library for some research that I needed for my dissertation. In reality though it was the T1 connection that was my siren, drawing me to the ivory tower of higher learning.

I spoke at length today with a friend at another university. After wasting 12 months and nearly 9,000 dollars my friend is going to have to replace his/her advisor. It is a painful and political process, but really must be done in order for he/she continued success and eventual graduation. I therefor am feeling quite fortunate as my adviser is an answered prayer.

Additionally HH and I spent a considerable time today tallying up what is required before the house can be placed on the market. While the list seems to be leviathan it should not be impossible to finish in a few months with out killing ourselves to do chores daily.

I discovered that as I write the proposal for my dissertation I write it in the future tense. Then when the proposal is approved, and will become a dissertation I change it to past tense. It would seem to me though that wouldn't it be easier to write it in the past tense to begin with and ignore the future tense altogether? Perhaps I am just tired and rambling but it seems to me that would be superior. If I come up with a good reason for why it is done this way ...I will be sure and edit this post.

Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart. Confucius

I don't make it a big secret that I believe in the power of prayer. I prayed that God would see me through this graduate process, and so he has. Additionally I prayed for an advisor that would show me the way and keep me straightened out! Again an answered prayer.

Some of you must have read my blog and immediately started praying last night. I met with my advisor this morning. I went away from my meeting with:

• A sense of importance- My advisor cares about me. She wants me to do well. She is motivated to help me finish this project with whatever tools she can provide to help me.
• A sense of kindness and compassion- My advisor told me I must walk at graduation. She doesn't want to put all that effort into me with out having the honor of being able to hood me.
  
• A timeline- Chapter 1 is due September 4. So I have a deadline to work with that is firm. That is great! I know I can get it done! :) But now I have a goal.
• An urgency- Merely meeting with her helped me to realize that I had a lot to do. It was time to get going.
• A timeframe- I know I can graduate in May if I literally put my nose to the grindstone on this.
  

All in all a pretty successful meeting! I am so excited. I am actually working on my model NOW! :)

If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn't lead anywhere. Frank Clark

I need prayers of motivation. Or if you prefer feel free to come to my house and just kick me in the behind. I will provide a sign up sheet for whatever list you would like to be on. I need dissertation motivation. Thankfully, I am meeting with my advisor tomorrow so I have been forced to cram today. Apparently I am going to have to make an appointment with her every week so that I can stay on track. I am really and truly in a state of total shock. As I have never had this type of trouble EVER.

I am motivated. I am dedicated. I am dependable. I am a self starter. Where is this lethargy coming from? Where is this TOTAL and complete laissez-faire attitude coming from? I just want to get inspired to start writing. Is that too much to ask? I laid on my floor today...watching revolutions of my ceiling fan...thinking...I will just ask to be awarded a Masters. Take my second masters and run. This insanity has no boundaries apparently. I then let my mind wander...making plans to survive if there were ever a zombie apocalypse. Finally I read several (15) dissertations, and marveled how those scholars could ever stomach their topic again.

I swear I am going to quit my job...drop out of school...and move to Ambergris Caye, Belize, braid hair on the beach or something. Get a sign that says "Will work for Pineapple!"

On second thought I don't even deserve 2 lists. If you would like to sign up to kick my behind in motion feel free.

Every choice you make has an end result. Zig Ziglar

Opportunity costs...my brain is short circuiting today. Literally going into short circuit mode. I have been writing and thinking and working all day. But my motivation factor is like 2%.

Some of the good news. I am going to continue to write for the column. I meet with my adviser Friday. I have a job interview scheduled for Monday. ...

Oh and we now have two otters in our lake. I hope we are going to have some baby otters. Hubby says if I can catch them...I can keep them.

And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years. Abraham Lincoln

I am afraid. I am paralyzed by fear. I have thought for so long that once I got through the classes, got through comps that I would just propel myself through my dissertation with out batting an eyelash. However I swept through comps with flying colors, gave myself a little break. AND NOW I AM STALLED. I don't have a research worthy thought in my head. I spent the last two days 3 hours each day literally paralyzed by the inability to start this paper. I need help. Or a kick in the pants. I would like someone to yell at me. I need a dissertation buddy that bothers me if I don't get something ANYTHING done.

It is a grey day for IPG today. I am going to get through this. I just do NOT know how.

SD First day of School

SD started SIXTH Grade Yesterday.
Here is her back to school pic. ;)

IPG's Newsletter Article

Remember the newsletter I was asked to contribute to? Well here is the first article for the newsletter.

A savvy professor trembles upon hearing the word cheating. It has become a rampant problem not only in online education, but in the ivory towers of the traditional universities as well. The information is available and so easy for students to obtain. For example, there are websites that will write, design, and interpret data for their customers. Students can literally purchase a dissertation on the internet.

While overt cheating does occur the most common type of cheating is plagiarism. Plagiarism occurs when one steals the words or ideas of someone else, and pretends that the work is their own. Perhaps steal is a harsh word, but that is what plagiarism is. It is stealing.

Some students honestly do not understand the rules. They may honestly not know that they should not copy information directly from the internet and turn that information in as their own paper.

However I would point out to such students, what a pointless exercise that would be for your professor to assign. What after all is to be gained merely copying and pasting information? How has that increased knowledge? However some of these students are probably misguided. These days though nearly every school is making plagiarism a priority. Students are bombarded with information about what it means to plagiarize.

Faculty members are put in an awkward position. Some institutions do not make it easy for the faculty member to catch plagiarizers or to punish them. Additionally, the arduous paperwork required for faculty when dealing with cases of academic honesty is sometimes too leviathan a task to ask, especially when they are only adjuncts. In fact some adjuncts are not told of the process for turning in academic honesty reports.

One interesting trick students have discovered is to copy and paste giant chunks of text. As an example, eighty percent of the paper might be copied and pasted. However the student will cite every paragraph from the correct source. Is this student plagiarizing or not following APA guidelines? How should the faculty member handle this incident? One solution is for the faculty member to follow is to take points from the student for not following APA guidelines. The second action the faculty should do is to take points away for not including enough original content. This allows the faculty to circumnavigate the academic honesty process, but does not give the student an undeserving grade.

Finally, in order for a student to plagiarize successfully they must have the mechanics of writing down. It is impossible for a student that can not correctly put a sentence together to turn in a perfectly written paper. Unless the paper they are using was taken in its entirety it is impossible to correct the writing styles of the student's writing with the paper they are stealing. Fortunately for the faculty students have not figured that out yet.

What do you call a grad student who barely squeaks a lousy dissertation past her committee? Doctor

I should rename this blog "Dissertation Deadline Central" Since that is what it is going to become. Because I am planning a move to Phoenix, and because I want to be PHinisheD before I leave Mississippi. It is high time I started writing again, and moving towards graduation. I have devised what will be my schedule until I am officially Dr. IPG.

7:00 AM wake up with hubby
7:15 AM Brush teeth and get ready with hubby to face my day
7:45 AM Oatmeal (it is good for cholesterol, plus I eat it everyday)
8:00 AM Work on dissertation- I am going to spend between 1-3 hours a day working on my dissertation. My goal is to spend 10 hours a week on my dissertation. This means that some days I will be able to spend more than two hours and some days less. Although I would like to spend 45 hours a week on the dissertation I know that is not a realistic number. I am a realistic person. I know that i will work best if I work first. I also know that if I set the goal too high I set it up to fail.

Let me briefly stop to pontificate for a second here. I have often said that education is more about being dogmatic than about being intelligent. With all that said it is important to note here that I will be working from 8 - 11 roughly everyday M-F. I am taking Saturday and Sunday off. As I still would like to spend time with HH. If you know IPG in the real world please don't call me during this space of time. I am going to be blocking off all distractions.

11:00 AM Stop if I haven't stopped yet. From 11 to 11:30 I am going to take care of any of the little chores I need to take care of while researching. I wanted to designate some times for this so that I wouldn't be tempted to do it when I was supposed to be writing.
11:30 am Leave for the gym. Exercise keeps me so optimistic. I have to designate some time for the gym.
1:00 PM Work on my work that pays the bills. I will be doing this until roughly 6 PM most nights. Although I will probably just break for dinner and get back to work.
11:00 PM Lights out. I am going to need my rest to work on my dissertation. I can't be staying up all night like normal.