Naturally, I was interested because I’ve done
the very same thing on my own site…a lot.
The principal difference between Natalie Munroe and me is that I’m
sufficiently afraid of my bosses to do so anonymously.
I do have other reasons for blogging under a
pseudonym. One is that I am a reserved
person who doesn’t like to attract attention to himself, even in this age of
omnipresent social media and brazen self-promotion. Using a pen name helps me feel freer to
express my views than I might if I used my slave name.
Another reason is that I have a lot of
unpopular opinions, so unpopular in fact that they may lead to unemployment and
social ostracism if expressed in the wrong place, at the wrong time, to the
wrong people. My little community may be
“blue state” in its tastes and avocations, but it’s run by folks with “red
state” values. Sure, my conservative
friends like to kid me about my so-called liberal beliefs, but they would
probably not be so accepting if they learned just how far to the left I really
am.
But mostly it’s because of the apathetic, disengaged,
and worst of all entitled majority of students I deal with in the college classroom that I withhold my true identity. I don’t always have a warm relationship with
these students because I believe it’s my job to teach rather than entertain
them, stroke their egos, feed their narcissism, or encourage their delusions of
adequacy.
Because my institution is run by
administrators who abet bratty behavior, I’m naturally on the defensive. One result is that I seldom discuss my misgivings
with friends and acquaintances. I almost
never share them with colleagues. I most
certainly would never tip my hand in front of my students.
This is clearly a safe policy: Ms. Munroe was
outed by her students. It didn’t matter that many of her blog posts were
about pretty mundane stuff like recipes or being a mom. All it took was one or two where she described her charges as “dunderheads” and “ratlike” to trigger a pattern of official
harassment that culminated in her firing for unsatisfactory performance. The actions of the Bucks County school board
were clearly calculated to create a chilling effect on teachers’ free speech
rights.
Am I chickenshit for saying similarly awful
things while hiding behind a nom de
guerre? Yeah, probably. I'm not always proud of having to skulk behind an assumed name. But like many of my colleagues in both higher
ed and the K-12 system, I am fighting an uphill battle. I can't afford to unnecessarily expose myself
to hostile fire if I want to see it through.
The crux of the problem is how the public
views educators and their work. The de-professionalization
of teaching at all levels is a disservice to teachers and students alike, not
to mention the public welfare. Education
is not a commodity to be bought or
sold. It is a personal attribute that
must be cultivated in an atmosphere of mutual respect between teacher and
student.
Having said this, you can argue that teachers
badmouthing students on the internet is poor form. Maybe it is.
However, the educational climate has grown harsher of late. Privatization of postsecondary education, the
politicization of science, and criticism of the liberal arts and other non-vocational
programs by right-wing politicians hasn’t helped. The last pretenses of civility have fallen by
the wayside thanks to Rate My Professors.com and other websites that allow college
students to anonymously backstab faculty who haven’t sufficiently kissed their
asses. In such an environment, it’s natural to want
to have your own place to vent occasionally.
So, if I’m unhappy with my job, why don’t I try
something else? My reply: Why should
I? I was here first. I’ve committed myself to an academic career. I believe I have something to offer my chosen
profession as well as my students. Moreover,
I refuse to compromise my standards and will not change my methods in the hope
that the students will like me. My
loyalty is to my profession and not the “customer.” I’ll stick it out for as long as I can. To do otherwise is to concede
the field to people and ideas that are abhorrent to my sensibilities. That’s why I don’t do something else.
I wish Natalie Munroe and her family all the
best. She has reminded us that we don’t
suffer alone.
© 2012 The Unassuming Scholar
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