I opened my syllabus for the Inquisition in order to see what the assigned reading for tomorrow is. The answer?
Primary Document Analysis #1 Due.
What? What Primary Document Analysis? I then pored through the syllabus for more information. What did I find?
- 3 exams
- 1 twenty-page paper
- Mock Inquisition Trials
- 2 Legal Briefs
- 2 Book Reviews
- Document Discussion
I have four problems:
- That list does not include “Primary Document Analys[es]”. Is the Primary Document Analysis one of the legal briefs? Or something else? Is it, in fact, due tomorrow?
- I don’t remember these book reviews or these legal briefs – and I was there at the day of syllabus review. Moreover, I never forget such things.
- The class is a joint 397/597. I’ve a full schedule, so I picked the easier 397 variant. Which of these assignments are only for the 597 students? All of the legal briefs? All of the book reviews? Just the extra twenty pages on the research paper? I do not know!
- Let’s pretend that all of these assignments are required of 397 students. That’s more than any other class I’ve ever taken! and it’s a 300 level! I almost exclusively take 500s in history! Note my excessive use of exclamation points! I am not pleased.
In short, I am baffled. I have the highest esteem for this particular professor. One of the best in the department. I say the following, then, with that in mind.
When this syllabus was written, he must have been drunk. (okay, not really. just expecting a lot from his students. I mean, really. Make students WORK for their As? Puh-lease!)