Comment by sudosteph | Hacker News Reader

Comment by sudosteph | Hacker News Reader

Oh good timing, I've been writing poetry for the first time ever for the past week. Not about to share it anywhere.

But, they both look like mostly honest perspectives from particular types of people.

I see the first one and think of all the out of touch HS teachers I had who were so convinced their class was important and they were going to teach me an important life lesson and save me from underachieving by being hard on me in some way (usually being super strict on deadlines, or the guy who let me turn in my test with the back side not complete and didn't tell me or let me retry for partial credit - both my fault, but they taught me nothing). They had no concern for the fact I was just trying to get through the day. They just saw someone with potential who needed to learn from their mistakes by being held accountable. But I had missed deadlines in every class I ever took since middle school, if I could have just taught myself executive functioning and how to have a stable home life, I would have.

The second reminds me of a lot of some of my friends. They are anxious wrecks, obsessesing over the news constantly, meanwhile compulsively using social media to make calls for action and bring important things that they can't really actually impact to light. All the while, their personal life and mental health is a wreck, which they also loudly proclaim on social media.

So I think both poems were great insights into those perspectives. It's just that those perspectives are not exactly interesting and are sometimes a bit annoying.

Both poems could be read as satires of exactly the type of people you describe and I think that would that would cause them to wrap around and be good again. And I'm not entirely sure what to think of that— it's simultaneously an example of how works can't really be divorced from the context in which they were created, but also an example of "the art" being created in the space between the author and the reader.

It reminds me of https://poets.org/poem/antigonish-i-met-man-who-wasnt-there where in-context the poem is mediocre. But without the context it's really good, it conjures in your mind all kinds of strange interpretations.

> strict on deadlines, or the guy who let me turn in my test with the back side not complete and didn't tell me or let me retry for partial credit - both my fault

This is confusing. How can you argue that those experiences didn't teach you anything?

Because that would imply I had the capacity to change my future behavior based on those experiences. In reality, I had already faced consequences for late work and poor attention detail many times over my school career. Actually, that happened in nearly every grade and class I'd ever taken. But I was a good test taker and preferred to read in class rather than talk, so nobody bothered to evaluate me for ADHD. No amount of facing consequences for your mistakes will suddenly make ADHD go away. And if your home life is chaotic and unsupportive, you're not going to just be able to develop sufficient coping mechanisms on your own to function on par with expectations, even if you have strengths in other areas.

But those experiences did teach me a little something. They taught me to be grateful that most teachers are decent, forgiving individuals with policies for partial credit when you're late, because they'd rather see you engaged in learning than discourage you from even trying to finish the assignment. These days schools mostly aren't allowed to dish out straight 0s that can't be improved. And FWIW, nearly all of my college courses had policies for partial credit too.

Now I actually have ways to manage my natural executive functioning deficits, so I'm better at that kind of stuff.

As someone who can relate somewhat, I don't think you are accounting for the fact that accommodating these symptoms is nearly impossible in an academic environment.

> These days schools mostly aren't allowed to dish out straight 0s that can't be improved. And FWIW, nearly all of my college courses had policies for partial credit too.

The state of pedagogy is in turmoil. Grade inflation and downright academic fraud are at all time highs. Students leave high school and college knowing less than ever.

Please keep in mind that I understand how hard it is to operate with an executive function deficit. I just don't think you're considering the ramifications of implementing your preferences beyond their impacts to you. I think there are plenty of "decent, forgiving" teachers that still enforce reasonably strict requirements even if they don't double check the back page of every test or give partial credit for habitually late work.

I have been asked to leave jobs before due to executive function issues and the same diagnosis. Trust me I'm not denying that this issue exists and that it's real issue for you personally.

You asked me why I didn't learn anything from those experiences and I explained. I'm not claiming to have the answers on how schools should be run or demanding my preferences implemented. I'm explaining my own perspective and acknowledging that the common view on these policies has changed since I was impacted by them. Personal viewpoints and anecdotes are still welcome on HN last I checked.

And if you knew one of the specific teachers I was actually referring to, and what he did and why he got fired, perhaps you'd understand why it's difficult to consider him "decent". As a result, I don't assume all teachers mean well by default. But that particular anecdote is not one for HN, and this conversation is boring me as much as that poem.

I do hope you found some help for your ADHD though. There are lots of medicines and lifestyle changes that make it possible to function even in extremely demanding roles, though getting it all nailed down is tough.

I think your response to the previous poster highlights your victim mentality. And they do not have a duty to entertain you - nobody cares if their conversation bores you. You seem very self-centered and having mental issues. Perhaps this is likely to have shaped your skewed perspective of an otherwise reasonable education system.

Yea I was really trying to be direct and empathetic because I think the questions around how to accommodate students and the changing classroom environments is under appreciated, important, and concerning. Your comment is harsh but I agree with it completely.

I am genuinely disappointed you took the discussion in this direction rather than respond to my concern about accommodations.

I don't understand why the other commenters are telling you off. Your initial point was restricted and well made and there doesn't seem to be any relevance to the tangent he tried to go off on after you restated it at his request.

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