What Every Teacher Needs to Know About Adult Students

The Dreaded Cell Phone Issues:

Today in class- the cellphone jabber and text messages buzzers and beeps, got so bad in my neurology class, that our teacher actually took everyone's cellphones away. She actually had to personally pass around a basket, and made everyone in the class drop there cell phone in it, to be collected by their owners after class. How ridiculous is that? I don't even bring my cellphone to class. Why bother with it anyways? Its not like you cannot be reach in case of an emergency. What does it take, to post the school's office phone number somewhere on the refrigerator. That's what I've done. I figure if my husband and son can push cellphone buttons, they can surely push telephone buttons as well. Besides that.........., what can be so damn important to interrupt a class hour every freaking minute, that also happens to be costing you thousands of dollars, to take in the first place. " Whats for supper?" Seriously......., what is so damn important? I don't get people and their cellphones.

My Surgical Technology schooling is costing me a total of $12,000.00. It is only an eleven month program, and right now we are down to one class a week. Now, I don't know how you would feel; having the teachers voice be muffled by your neighbors cellphone ring or vibrations, when the subject for the day is Neurology. However, as for me , I hate it. Moreover- it really pisses me off.

You'd think that there is would be a certain level of respect, and self-discipline found in adults students verses adolescent children. However, whereas it concerns my experiences with fellow adult classmates, there is not any foreseeable difference. Its like they are a bunch of idiots! Back home where I'm from, my class would be known as a 'Ginny Hens Parade.' They chatter, whine, and stir-up trouble every single second of the day, like Ginny hens locked up in a pin. What's up with that? I'd seriously like to know.

On that note, I'd say the most common, disrespectful, behavioral problem, (which involves my adult classmates) is talking out loud. Which of course is compounded by- loud yawning sounds, social giggling and laughter, and your basic social chatter between one another. Ginny Hens on Parade! Moreover though, is the fact that it doesn't seem to matter if the teacher is talking, or a Hospital Recruiter is talking, or that the time has been set aside for "study time." To them, class time is chatter time, and chatter time, is class time. For example in class today, a former elementary school teacher was chattering so much to her neighbors, that our "adult class" teacher, had to openly scold her in class. Now is it just me, or how bad is that? The ironic thing about "Coach Georgia" is that, she was my second and third grade P.E. coach. If we children, and were caught goofing off in her P.E. class back then, we'd be running laps for days. Therefore when she scolded today, I also wanted to scream in her face to give me 10 laps around the track. Therefore Coach Georgia, "Kindly shut up and give me 10."

However, I bit my tongue and continued to try to listen. Listening is hard work to begin with. It is a known fact that moststudents, only retain twenty percent of what they hear in a lecture. Leaving the eighty percent to be learned by reading, researching and hardcore studying. Which I feel is much harder to do without the aid of having heard the lecture beforehand.

If I could provide my undivided attention to listening to the class instructors, I knew my classmates could too. Listening at anytime, I find to be hard. That is, to truly listen. I especially have problems completely listening, if there is constant sound, blocking out the teachers voice. Currently at my school, my classroom is right next to a (on campus) construction site. Where constant hammering, and blaring country music flows freely across the thin wall of 2x4's, built as a sound barrier. Therefore, I also find listening to be very exhausting work. For the past two months now, every Thursday afternoon I come home, crawl in bed with a massive headache. Moreover still, I can only imagine how my teacher must feel. She's probably addicted to Xanax by now, and this particular teaching I'm referring too, just started teaching my class in January. I cannot even been to imagine, being one the teachers, who has had us all year. I'd seriously have to look at the quality of life angle, and ponder........, "Are these dip-shits really worth it?" If it were up to me- no way. I cannot putt up with my class' bad behavior now, let alone imagine myself as a teacher, having taught us since August 2009. I honestly do not believe that there is a dollar amount, that would make me want to be a teacher nowadays. Kids are bad enough, but if my class is a shining example of most adult classes these days, there isn't a dollar amount high enough. I cannot imagine why they are doing it.

Yesterday at Clinicals (which are held at a hospital of choice)- I was the only student who showed up to work, completely dressed out in my surgical scrub attire, and ready to work on time. I don't get that. Especially since on Wednesday, we get an extra hour to be ready, which is 7:30a.m. verses 6:30a.m. Out of eleven adult students practicing at the hospital where I'm at now, only one shows up on time??? One!......., me. I was embarrassed. I felt like the super-dubber geek, and self-imposing brown noser, of my class that day. As for me, those are not socially plausible attributes, that I would necessary brag about in public. Needless to say, as the only one there, I'm sure it appeared to all the hospital staff I'm that way. In a working environment, that is not necessarily a good thing.

Nevertheless, it is becoming quite clear to me that most adults students, have seemed to have lost their individual sensibly and reason, combined with a horrible work ethic. Therefore, I'm curious is anyone here in adult classes? Are you by chance experiencing the same poor behavioral habits, that I am? What is going on here? What is your conclusion?

As I ponder on this subject, I know this newly developed, lack of self discipline by adults, and extreme disrespectful, behavioral problems, had to be developed somewhere along the way? I can slightly (but barely) understand it with some of my "twenty-something" classmates, but hell far..........., Coach Georgia? Coach Georgia is in her upper 50ty's, and a retired school teacher at that. There is no excuse for her behavior. Or is there, and I just didn't get the memo? It is my direct conclusion that, so-called adult students, are not so adult anymore.

Thereby, I hate my class. That is the 90 percent of them who cannot act their age. At this point, I would not recommend going back to school at forty.