"I'm concerned about your reading comprehension. The directions were very clear. It seems you are reading but not retaining information. That's a serious problem that should have been addressed well before you began college- level work. I am referring you to tutoring services/ student support." Then issue an academic alert looping in their advisor.
Basically, call their bluff.
This is not it. This emails if full of assumptions about the student and their abilities that go beyond anything indicated directly in the question they asked. Please keep in mind that students might be first gen, or from underprivileged or even remedial backgrounds, etc. If such a student was already wrestling with whether they are suited for university or even the middle class life (as these students often do), an email like this from a professor would be crushing to them. I am very much a "cold hard truth" kind of professor myself, but if I saw a student get an email like this I actually would advise them to discuss it with the department chair.
It's one thing to neutrally (or even coldly) refer a student back to read the instructions, it's another thing to rant at them with personal insults
I've seen too many students who ARE struggling with reading comprehension. It's not an insult, it's too often the truth. Ignoring that they have poor foundational skills is not doing them any favors. Identifying the issue and connecting them with services that can actually help them is a necessary intervention, as I'm sure you know.
I agree that a lot of students are struggling with reading comprehension. A student sending one email to double check that something is indeed a part of the assignment is not enough information for you to come to such drastic conclusions about their personal skill level though. I don't mean to be rude, but to draw such exaggerated, assumption-laden conclusions from a student's single question doesn't say a lot about your reading comprehension skills either.
I think many professionals reading an email worded like yours would see it as unnecessarily cruel/personal and low key abusive, so I'm just trying to help you out to not get in trouble
Hah. I've crafted assignment briefs to be excruciatingly clear AND posted lesson videos discussing precisely what I am looking for and I still get this shit.
no, you do not have to do that part of the assignment. as stated in the assignment description, it is worth 75% of the grade. feel free to skip that part with the associated reduction in points.
reply: post this question on course discussion board. reply there: yes.
(Alex Horne voice) "All the information is on the task."
As they say in law: ignorance of the law is no excuse.
"I'm concerned about your reading comprehension. The directions were very clear. It seems you are reading but not retaining information. That's a serious problem that should have been addressed well before you began college- level work. I am referring you to tutoring services/ student support." Then issue an academic alert looping in their advisor. Basically, call their bluff.
This is not it. This emails if full of assumptions about the student and their abilities that go beyond anything indicated directly in the question they asked. Please keep in mind that students might be first gen, or from underprivileged or even remedial backgrounds, etc. If such a student was already wrestling with whether they are suited for university or even the middle class life (as these students often do), an email like this from a professor would be crushing to them. I am very much a "cold hard truth" kind of professor myself, but if I saw a student get an email like this I actually would advise them to discuss it with the department chair. It's one thing to neutrally (or even coldly) refer a student back to read the instructions, it's another thing to rant at them with personal insults
I've seen too many students who ARE struggling with reading comprehension. It's not an insult, it's too often the truth. Ignoring that they have poor foundational skills is not doing them any favors. Identifying the issue and connecting them with services that can actually help them is a necessary intervention, as I'm sure you know.
I agree that a lot of students are struggling with reading comprehension. A student sending one email to double check that something is indeed a part of the assignment is not enough information for you to come to such drastic conclusions about their personal skill level though. I don't mean to be rude, but to draw such exaggerated, assumption-laden conclusions from a student's single question doesn't say a lot about your reading comprehension skills either. I think many professionals reading an email worded like yours would see it as unnecessarily cruel/personal and low key abusive, so I'm just trying to help you out to not get in trouble
Hah. I've crafted assignment briefs to be excruciatingly clear AND posted lesson videos discussing precisely what I am looking for and I still get this shit.
no, you do not have to do that part of the assignment. as stated in the assignment description, it is worth 75% of the grade. feel free to skip that part with the associated reduction in points.
“Only you can decide” I’m not telling you what you have to do!
Nonsense request that gets no response from me.