OT: The dumbest question I've ever been asked as a teacher
Since it's a slow day, I thought I'd share a conversation with a student the other day. We've been studying Vietnam for the last month. The conflict, the protests, the war, etc., and I was just finishing up talking about how hundreds of people who die from land mines left behind from the war each year.
Then I was hit with this: "So, is it land mines, or land mimes?"
About half the kids snickered, but the others didn't, leading me to believe she wasn't the only one who had this question.
All I could think of was that I'm a really crappy teacher....
February 26th, 2012 at 4:53 PM ^
Land mimes are silent killers....
February 26th, 2012 at 4:55 PM ^
February 26th, 2012 at 5:36 PM ^
February 26th, 2012 at 5:44 PM ^
In the grand scheme of things, I don't consider knowing the names of revolutionary-era Presidents' estates to be terribly important.
February 26th, 2012 at 6:18 PM ^
True, but still, President Monticello?
February 26th, 2012 at 6:25 PM ^
Sounds just as plausible as President Millard Fillmore.
February 26th, 2012 at 6:48 PM ^
NO POLITICS ON TEH BOARDZ!!!1!!
February 26th, 2012 at 11:57 PM ^
An avid Millard Fillmore supporter eh.
February 26th, 2012 at 6:29 PM ^
They probably thought it was Monty Chello, or something along those lines.
In fairness, some of those 19th-century presidents are hard to remember. I mean, Chester Arthur?
February 26th, 2012 at 6:32 PM ^
Any fan of the Die Hard series will always remember President Chester A. Arthur as the 21st president.
February 26th, 2012 at 6:56 PM ^
solely from the Simpsons song about the Mediocre Presidents
"There's Taylor, there's Tyler;
there's Fillmore and there's Hayes;
there's William Henry Harrison:
'I died in 30 days!'"
February 26th, 2012 at 8:04 PM ^
The Presidents in the post-founding/pre-civil war era were largely insignifcant secod rate men, the leading political figures were in Congress. To get us to remember these names, my high school history teacher informed us that they were the "gay presidents" becasue "Tyler Polk(ed) Taylor and Filmore Pierce(d) Buchannan."
February 27th, 2012 at 10:54 AM ^
I learned my presidents from the best possible source.
February 26th, 2012 at 10:18 PM ^
glad I'm not the only one to immediately think of Die Hard when Arthur is mentioned
February 26th, 2012 at 11:08 PM ^
The policies we want, the muttonchops we need.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:05 PM ^
Gives new meaning to the phrase 'silent but deadly'...
February 26th, 2012 at 7:55 PM ^
I teach and coach as well at a local high school rich in football tradition. I teach P.E. and a student shot an airball and said " I hate these rims". It was not a question but the comment left me scratching my head.
February 26th, 2012 at 8:13 PM ^
Maybe he was being witty, as in "these clubs are terrible".
February 27th, 2012 at 1:45 AM ^
I come for the Michigan sports news/analysis, I stay for the witty comments.
February 26th, 2012 at 4:54 PM ^
damn mimes area killer. But seriously it is sad that our younger generations are so far behind other countries.
February 26th, 2012 at 4:55 PM ^
I dunno, you gotta admire the way kids honestly ask questions without worrying whether they're 'dumb' or not. I think we've all had those kinds of questions at some point.
February 26th, 2012 at 7:19 PM ^
I always tell my students there are no such things as asking stupid questions, just stupid people just asking questions.
February 26th, 2012 at 4:55 PM ^
So the signals must have gone through the land and she is probably correct, at least partially if signal transmission uses cables or land lines.
February 26th, 2012 at 4:58 PM ^
He's a teacher! Boo him!
February 26th, 2012 at 5:00 PM ^
That really isn't that bad of a question
February 26th, 2012 at 5:49 PM ^
Seriously. I ask dumber questions than this every day.
February 27th, 2012 at 7:02 AM ^
Yeah, give 'em a break. They're just kids. I once had an adult tell me he didn't speak Canadian.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:00 PM ^
The United States is one of the few counties in the world who is not a signatory member of a UN resolution banning land mines. They kill thousands of innocent people (mostly children in the poorest of countries).
Might be a good time to bring in the ethics of using them, whether the US *should* sign on, the reasons why we aren't.
One of the most memorable moments of my college career was when a teacher in one of my classes realized that we had no idea about various acts of genocide going on around the world. He brought in a person from Amnesty International who gave a terrific overview. The images of those mass graves was haunting.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:15 PM ^
February 26th, 2012 at 6:09 PM ^
And you think European students are just soooo much more worldy than Americans? In their ability to discuss European matters yes (because many countries are the size of US states), but in reality, they are pretty much the same as US students. Looking to go out, get, drunk, drop out, and bitch about not having a job when they start looking for one with a C+ average from an average school.
And I'm guessing you're a supporter of the UN and their wild successes as well...
February 27th, 2012 at 7:33 AM ^
Well, when North Korea stops being crazy, we can remove the landmines (not mimes) from the DMZ. Until then, I wouldn't expect the US to sign that resolution.
And it isn't just landmines that are a problem. They still find unexploded bombs in Europe leftover from ww2. Back in December there was a 1 ton bomb found during some construction work , in Germany.
February 27th, 2012 at 10:02 AM ^
I have no idea why the above was marked flamebait.
It is a fact that unexploded bombs are still found in Europe.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16018659
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unexploded_ordnance
My point is that it isn't just landmines that can kill years after they are found. Unexploded bombs are also a threat.
I have no idea why a post explaining that the problem is BIGGER than just landmines is "flamebait." I'm not belittling the issue at all. I'm trying to say that unexploded ordance is a broader problem and goes beyond landmines.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:04 PM ^
When I was a kid, we'd listen to the Lions on the radio, and there was a regular sponsor called "Health Alliance Plan."
I seriously thought it was "Help the Lions' Plan." In other words, because the Lions sucked so badly, I thought they were constantly soliciting fans' ideas for how to win.
Only much later did I realize the sponsor's real name.
I think kids can be very literal in their auditory interpretation.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:50 PM ^
around a roller in the night.
Or, at least my best friend in highschool thought so.
February 26th, 2012 at 7:58 PM ^
Okay UMich87... I STILL don't know what the real words are to that song. Can you help?
Everytime I hear the Diana Ross and the Supremes song, "You Can't Hurry Love" I swear she is singing "You Kangarilla". Doesn't make sense but it sure sounds that way.
February 26th, 2012 at 8:54 PM ^
"Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night."
February 26th, 2012 at 8:59 PM ^
Knowing the correct words would spoil the song.
February 27th, 2012 at 12:57 AM ^
Once knew a guy who thought that TLC song went, "don't go Jason Waterfalls."
February 27th, 2012 at 12:54 PM ^
I now know it's something like deuce....but still....
Metallica: Never free...Lemonade...
February 26th, 2012 at 9:07 PM ^
I thought I was the only person in the world who heard "Help The Lions Plan." I honestly thought we were helping the Lions front office scout talent, suggest trades, etc.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:01 PM ^
Reminds me of the time in freshman (HS) English somebody referred to a promiscuous character in one of our assignments as "acting like the h-word."
February 26th, 2012 at 5:39 PM ^
whorrible.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:02 PM ^
I once asked a teacher in the 3rd grade why babies are born naked. In a very stern way, she responded by saying that women don't have closets in their bellies....The memory still haunts me
February 26th, 2012 at 5:11 PM ^
Ha, I don't know why, but I fould this hilarious.
Side note: As a fellow teacher, I'd like to point out that non-teachers always have their horror stories about "bad teachers." Remember that someone's opinion of this "bad teacher" was formed when they weren't exactly at their peak of maturity.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:04 PM ^
At least they didn't think it was Land Memes that are dangerous.
February 26th, 2012 at 5:09 PM ^
land sharks are what you really have to worry about
February 26th, 2012 at 5:16 PM ^
Only good thing in the world to come from Jimmy Buffet...
February 26th, 2012 at 6:00 PM ^
This is the type of land shark I worry about.
Always remember it isn't a dolphin no matter how polite it is.