I spent the last two days grading papers. Not long after posting the grades, I started receiving complaints:
You said that I didn't clearly respond to the questions posed in the assignment instructions. I think that I did.
I posted my paper 3 minutes late and you imposed a late penalty. Unfair!
I followed the recommendations of the grammar checker and you still found grammatical errors. What's the deal with that?
I found myself getting increasingly irritated with these messages. It was difficult to respond with anything other than defensiveness and anger.
What I really wanted was appreciation. I wanted the students to see my intention: to help them learn and develop the skills they need to be successful in the future. I think it's what we all want: to know that our efforts make a difference in the lives of others.
In my own life, this need for appreciation comes second only to my need for self-expression: to be heard and understood. While I recognize that writing can help me meet these needs, I also recognize that it may not.
What I write may never be heard or understood. It may never be appreciated. It may never contribute to the world in any kind of meaningful way. What then? Do I try to fill my cup from a different stream? Or do I stare at the empty cup and allow the frustration and anger to well up in me and then write about that?
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