12.07.2006 - 9:57 a.m.

My boss tells a story about a paper he got back from a teacher once. It had a big red line run through it, with the note "I stopped reading here" written next to it.

I do not know if this was a paper he actually wrote, or if it's merely a good story he's passing down; he's Texan, and certainly not one to get in the way of a good yarn.

I haven't been quite so blunt with my students, but then none of them have turned in anything quite that bad. I have discovered, though, that I have a bit of a teasing side. As proof, I refer you to a selection of things I have written on actual student papers this semester:

"So where are the other two pages of this paper?"

"By telepathy, I have deduced that your thesis is _____. You may want to assist those of your readers who are less gifted than I."

"To compare your growth as a person to your learning to write is commendable--but I'm not giving you extra credit for it."

"What did the comma ever do to you?"

"Holy unending paragraph, Batman!"

(This last is my personal favorite.)

-stonebridge

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