This comes to me via something called Deadspin: “NYU Business School Professor Has Mastered the Art of Email Flaming.” It’s a little long, but the gist of it is that Scott Galloway, a NYU business professor and entrepreneur-type responded to an email sent to a student who was trying to explain why he showed up an hour late to Galloway’s class (the student was “shopping around” for other classes that met the same night). The response, which includes the advice that the student ought to “get your shit together,” has apparently made the rounds. Allegedly– these emails that get passed around have a way of being embelished.
The responses on Deadspin suggest they think the professor is being a bit of a “dick” (their terminology), but I have to say that I have a great deal of sympathy for Galloway. Granted, I’ve never sent an email to a student that literally encouraged them to “get their shit together,” but that’s not because it never crossed my mind….
I totally understand the concept and rationale for “sampling” classes before committing to one, but the time to sample is the preceding semester. That way students don’t miss out on part of the class for which they’re paying, and they can get a more representative sample. If you’re judging a course on the first class, and even worse, on the first 20 minutes of the first class, you’re an idiot, not a smart consumer. Really, what are you judging the instructor’s syllabus delivery technique?