April Fools' Day FBFF

This week's questions are about blogger etiquette and the rules of engagement.  For more Friend Friday fun, pop over to Modly Chic.

1. Guest posts are a good way to gain new exposure. What do you think is the appropriate way to go about securing a guest spot?
Well, typically our guest posts have been in response to a request for a particular kind of post or have been the result of swapping posts with someone.  I would say that for the most part you shouldn't try to solicit a guest post from a blogger on the blog of someone who you don't have much of a relationship or connection with.  It just seems like poor form to ask to write a guest post for a blog that you don't regularly read or comment on.

2. Leaving comments is essential to growing your blog. But how can you leave a comment without coming across as ‘Follow Me. Follow Me!’?
Well, I comment on a lot of blogs over the course of a given week.  Some blogs I visit daily because I have developed a strong connection with their authors over the course of the past year or so.  Some I visit once or twice a week.  I actually read the content of the post, and I usually try to respond to the questions asked in the post or to say something more than "cute shoes." I know people have different opinions about this, but I usually don't provide a link to my blog because I feel like some might interpret it as pushy, and I don't ever say in my comments "follow me" or "love your blog, follow me back."

3. We’ve all gotten a mass email at one time or another asking for blog exposure, a link exchange, etc… But the mass emails don’t work. How do you make your email stand out from the crowd?
I don't send mass emails as a general rule.

4. In interacting with other bloggers where do you draw the line between seeking support and begging for exposure?
Hmmm.  I occasionally ask other bloggers to participate in events (CFPs etc) we are having here at Fashionable Academics.  I comment on blogs and will sometimes name drop, but, while I love that we have readers and people who comment regularly, I try to keep in mind that this is a hobby for me.  Ultimately, this blog doesn't need "exposure."  I'm not in this for fame or sponsorship or the ability to quit my job and earn a living by blogging.

5. What’s one rule of engagement error you made and how have you remedied that?
During my first couple of months of blogging, I think I probably wasn't as tactful as I could have been in some of my comments and in the way I approached other bloggers.  As with everything, there is a learning curve.

Happy April Fools' Day!  Hopefully none of your pranks go awry.  My back is still playing tricks on me, so I've been rocking a heating pad as an accessory all week.  Hopefully, things will be completely back to normal soon.

The Feminization of the Academy and Grade Inflation?

Today's theme was for the FFB bloggers to talk about a feminist and/or fashion related thing we learnt from someone else, something that changed the way we thought about something or the way we behaved.  I had planned to structure this post much differently, but over the past few days I've been thinking a lot about what I have learned from other academics and not all of it is good....

Recently an adjunct English teacher published a book about his experiences In the Basement of the Ivory Tower, and last week salon published an article including excerpts from Professor X's book.  I agree that many universities face problems with grade inflation and that the reliance on the labor of adjuncts is probably tied to this.  The renewal of adjuncts' contracts is often tied to whether or not their courses fill, and anecdotal evidence suggests that if an instructor has a reputation as being a hard-ass who is willing to fail people students are unlikely to enroll in his/her courses.  Perhaps another factor is that adjuncts often make somewhere in the range of $2500-$3500/course/semester.  Most often the universities that they work for do not provide any health care benefits.  This means that some adjuncts teach classes at multiple institutions in order to make ends meet or so that they can keep a toe-hold in academia while they finish their dissertations (often the fact that they are teaching multiple classes impedes progress) or while they continue holding on to the (slim in the Humanities) hope that they will get a tenure-track job.

However, I balked at certain aspects of Professor X's argument - such as the idea that giving a failing grade to a student impedes progress (ok, perhaps it does sometimes, but I think sometimes it can serve as a wake up call, a call to action, and let's face it, if you don't complete entire sections of one of my exams, I am not going to feel at all guilty about giving you the failing grade that you deserve on it).  I also nearly went batshit crazy over the following passage:


"The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in 1975, 31 percent of college teachers were female; by 2009, the number had grown to 49.2 percent. There are more women teaching in college than ever, and it is quite possible that their presence, coupled with our discovery of the postmodern narrative, has had a feminizing effect on the collective unconscious of faculty thought. Strong winds of compassion blow across campus quads. Women are more empathetic than men, more giving, simply more bothered by anyone’s underdog status. Many of the female adjuncts I have spoken to seem blessed and cursed by feelings of maternity toward the students. Women think about their actions, and the consequences of their actions, in a deeper way than do men. Women may not be quite as inclined to sigh and, with a murmured "fuck it," half-angry and half-miserable, possessed by the fatalism of someone throwing the first punch in a bar fight, mark an F in the grade book. I administer grades fairly, but how difficult it is."


What a crock.  I'm sure that many female faculty do have maternal feelings toward their students, but I'm sure plenty of them do not.  When I was an undergraduate, the toughest grader that I had was a female professor.  I grade more strictly than many men I know if shop talk around the metaphorical water cooler can be trusted.  I am more than willing to help students, to give them a chance to improve, to incorporate revision into my classes when possible because it helps students to learn more than because it boosts their grades, but I am also more than willing to register a 35% on an exam or refuse to accept a paper that's turned in randomly one month late.  Though I admit I might give it 5 extra points if the student has a cool nickname or throws in a battery diagram.  I jest....

I think that empathy and compassion can be powerful teaching tools.  Alas, I'm not always the most empathetic and compassionate person.  Maybe I've never exactly thrown the first punch in a bar fight, but I will throw down this gauntlet.  What percentage of adjuncts are women?  (Right now I don't know the answer to this question, but I'm on a mission to find out.)  Because the percentage of female faculty at R1 and R2 schools sure as shit isn't 49.2%.  Currently, women make up about 37% of faculty in history departments in the United States.  In 2007, women made up 12-13% of faculty members in chemistry departments.  In English, women have reached parity nationwide.

So unfortunately, for Professor X, I would suggest that his argument lacks sufficient evidence (and his nickname isn't really cool enough to warrant bonus points).  Has the post-modern narrative entirely restructured the way zoology and calculus exams are administered and graded?

While we cannot conduct a very scientific study here, I am interested in your anecdotal evidence.  Academics, do you find female faculty members to be maternal toward their students?  Non-academics, were you mothered by your female instructors?  No names, but who do you remember as being the hardest grader that you had in your classes?

B is for Back Pain

I think I threw out my back reading this weekend.   On Saturday I read my kindle while running on the treadmill and then I sat in a strange position while reading a book I had assigned to one of my classes this week.  When I went to bed on Saturday, my lower back was feeling a bit sore, and by the time I woke up yesterday morning it was all out of whack.  It's gotten a bit better today, but I'm still feeling less than great.  Just sitting, standing, lying down, or walking is uncomfortable, but transitioning in between those states of being is pretty painful.  So please forgive me for grimacing more than smiling in my outfit photos.

 Dress - Hazel (Second hand via Ebay and remixed), Cardigan - Target (remixed), Boots - John Fluevog Bondgirls (remixed), Necklace - Wendy Brandes (remixed), Belt - De Lonti (remixed), Watch - New York & Co. (remixed)

I needed to go to campus for office hours, though.  So I opted for a soft cotton dress and cardigan and my stable comfy Bondgirls.  I'm hoping that another day off from running and the application of ice packs and a heating pad will get rid of this pain and discomfort.  If not, I guess I'll have to go to the doctor.  The timing sucks, as this week is especially hectic with extra meetings and trying to organize a conference panel and write a paper abstract in addition to the normal, weekly obligations.  

What do you tend to wear when you're feeling sore or in physical pain?

Rhinoviruses and Jeans

I have been struggling with a cold for the past week or so.  I think I must have picked it up on my travels back from seeing my mom.  I thought I had it beat, but it reared its nasty head back up on Tuesday.  By the time I left campus, I was feeling like shit and had almost no voice.  I spent yesterday working from home in pjs and went for the comfort of an old pair of jeans and a cardigan for teaching today.

(Blouse - New York & Co. (remixed), Jeans - Express (remixed), Cardigan - August Silk (remixed), Shoes - John Fluevog (remixed), Ring - Gift (remixed), Button - University Women's Center_

Fortunately, one of my classes took a midterm today, so I was able to get through the day with minimal vocal strain, but I found it really disconcerting to lecture with one of my ears so stopped up that I could barely hear out of it.  Considering that I was lecturing about the crises of the fourteenth century today, I guess I should just be glad that I'm dealing with a rhinovirus and not buboes....

A Very GAAD Birthday

My birthday was last Thursday.  In recent years, my birthday has fallen during either finals week (quarter system) or during spring break, so I had come to associate my birthday with a day off from academic responsibilities and a day of shopping either with friends or flying solo.

This year was different.  I got up.  I got dressed.  (Unlike SFE, I did not wear my hagiographical green, as being the birthday girl (and one who would punch in exchange for a pinch) exempted me from any potential repercussions.)  I went to campus and taught my classes.  I attended a talk given by a visiting speaker.  Then I picked Bailey up from doggy daycare, since my spouse was out of town, and made dinner for myself and a few friends who came over to help me celebrate my birthday.  I had a lovely time cooking, chatting with friends, eating birthday cupcakes made by a dear friend, and drinking wine.

 (Blouse - JCPenney (purchased in December to wear with suits), Skirt - Sandro (remixed), Tights - We Love Colors (remixed), Shoes - r2 (remixed), Necklace - Gift (remixed), Ring - Boutique in Salamanca (remixed), Watch - New York & Co. (remixed), Belt - from another dress (remixed)

I did not shop.  I'm not sure if I would have been tempted to if I'd had the time.  It's hard to break habits that have become deeply engrained, especially when they're ones associated with special occasions and rituals, but I like to think that I've changed a little bit over the past eleven weeks.  I do know that (online) shopping is no longer my default activity when I'm stressed or bored or pleased with progress.  I'd like to keep it that way.   

P.S. We've gone over to the dark side of the force and switched to Disqus comments so we can more easily respond to individual comments.  

Weekend Wear: Somewhere Warmer

I've been a bit quiet for the past couple of weeks, as I've been finishing a stage of a publication project over the past couple of weeks and also grading mountains of exams and papers.  I even took my work with me the week before last to spend several days hanging out with my mom and her sweet, old, rescue dog in a warmer location than the upper Midwest.

(Dress - Anthropologie (remixed), Cardigan - Say What (remixed), Flats - Steve Madden (remixed)) 

My mom had to work most of the time that I was there, so I dug into my work with breaks each day that I was there for either running or walking outside in sunny 60F weather.  I loved spending time with my mom and goofing off.  

Although I was technically on spring break and do not actually get paid for my labor those days, let the record show that I graded 50 exams, wrote two lectures, and made substantial progress on a research project during my so-called vacation.  But being able to do it in a place where I could walk outside without putting on snow stomping boots or a coat and where I could hang out with my mom made it a wonderful break all the same.

Academics, have you had your spring break yet?  What did you do?  What are you looking forward to most about spring?  Has it arrived yet in your neck of the woods?