I entered my lecture hall at 10 a.m. sharp this morning, mentally girding my mental loins for a lecture on the null hypothesis. As I tripped merrily down the stairs, I noticed that my students were uncharacteristically silent. What, I thought, could render this garrulous crowd completely silent? Did all 100 of them have hangovers? Were they all reviewing their notes?
Then a young woman who sits in the front row screamed, scaring the crap out of me. She was yelling into her cell phone, and the rest of the class had, apparently, been enjoying one side of the soap opera that is her life.
“I’m tired of cleaning up after you!” (Pause.) “I’m tired of you taking advantage of me!” (Pause.) “Just get up and go to class!” (Pause.) “Why do I have to do all the work in this relationship?” (Pause.)
I reached the lectern with what must have been an incredulous expression on my face, because the class broke their silence and began laughing. This, apparently, was the moment they’d all been waiting for. The young lady didn’t seem to notice she was the center of attention (nor that she was being laughed at by 100 of her classmates)….