The character of a university lecturer

The character of a university lecturer

“Man, if you wanted to know you should have asked her. Are you a Minister for Nyumba Kumi or the new Caring Brother. If your intention is to care why then do you care about only particular individuals and not others?

BY MUSYOKA NGUI

You have lived with them for some years now. One, two, three, four, five or even six. Some have bored you stiff for three hours saying nothing. Others have riveted you and you have failed to notice why time flies so fast. But, what exactly makes a university don? Today we venture into the unexplored world of university teachers. This article does not address anyone in particular and the parallels I draw are purely for informational purposes not personal.

The good

There is a caliber of university lecturers who inspire students to be better than them. They are like the good coaches who find delight when their players score in a game and actually go ahead and win. Like football managers, these lecturers give their all to students so that they may come up as intellectuals not mere cramming zombies.

They are firm, fair and tough. Some students may not like them at present because they are always on their necks about this mediocre assignment or that plagiarized work or poor class attendance. They want their students to be original, honest and time conscious.

Such dons come to lecture hall with internalized content. They do not keep gazing confusedly into notes and voluminous books. They already have made sense of sophisticated courses for the students to understand. They are a darling of the students.

I have met quite a number of encouraging lecturers in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities. They may not be necessarily our regular types. Some teach literature, others English and even others lecture totally unrelated disciplines but somehow they come to connect issues within the Media School.

One offered to review my novel manuscript and make useful suggestions. Another whispered to an Eve, “you have a rare talent. Your voice is for radio. You have confidence and command of language that is beyond expectations.”

The bad

I have come to hate sadistic dons. They will give you ambiguous instructions and when you mess up your exams they say you did not listen. That you were too busy and lazy enough to listen to them (dons). They derive pleasure in crises and suffering. When majority of students get mixed up by the lecturer’s poor sense of articulation they smile in satisfaction that their little trick has yielded much casualties.

There are others who are trivial, ethnic, shallow and at worse personal. They will crack tribal jokes to amuse learners who outgrew such humour. The latter do not get the joke. Better still, the lecturer is not funny. In an attempt to psyche up the class, they end up boring.

On being personal for the wrong reasons; it is better to draw distinct lines between professional and personal stuff. How does for example, what I ate in the morning concern the day’s lecture? Some cross the border of professionalism under a hideous guise of “because I care”. They justify the never ending questions of where is so and so? Has she not come to class for the last month? Does she have a boyfriend? Is he married?

Man, if you wanted to know you should have asked her. Are you a Minister for Nyumba Kumi or the Caring Brother. If your intention is to care why then do you care about only particular individuals and not others? Does it shame you that the student body is often hit by disasters at the softest part of the belly and that death has a poor sense of timing? If your list of caring would include those who worry they may never sit for their end-semester exam because of fees balance, because of being orphaned or because of government loan bureaucracy you would be tackling issues not persons.

I am not downplaying the need to be your sibling’s keeper. In fact, nothing satisfies me more than helping humanity however and whenever I can. I admire those who pull all the stops to ensure a difference is made even if it is an inch. This is neither a wholesale condemnation; there are good professors out there. But like any other profession, there are rotten apples among you who are spoiling the good name of the rest.

The ugly

The most intriguing faculty of your life yet is your dressing style. Someone told me books are dangerous drugs. They may make you forget fashion and hygiene. All of us have seen lecturers clashing colours. Others wearing twisted ties and undergoing mid-life crises. How else would you explain a male lecturer who insists on reliving his teenage in a lecture hall? He unsuccessfully attempts to ape bad boy syndrome, Sheng and offer outdated tips on how we the youth of today are getting it wrong in dating and relationships.

Bad philosophy has gotten into the intellectuals’ mind. They believe in warped theories. They hate love. They love hate. They don’t recognize or accept God. They are too preoccupied with questioning that so much to appreciate has by passed them.

Due to changing dynamics of education we are privileged to be taught by young and vibrant lecturers. They are less rigid and more understanding. They don’t feel threatened by technology. They blog notes and course content online for us to download. They are on social media and reply emails without arrogance. In short, they are accessible. Thank you for your kindness and enduring love even when we are tad too demanding.

The writer is a student of Bachelors of Arts Degree in Communication and Media at Chuka University. He blogs at musyokangui.blogspot.com

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