Another view on Professional Standards
Editorial
Issue date: 4/4/06 Section: Opinion
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As I attended the informational meeting on how to join the Professional Standards Committee about a month ago, I wondered why it was starting well before 12:05 PM, as the Standards requires meetings to begin on time. As the meeting continued I heard plenty of discussion on how to handle academic dishonesty and what the process is for discipline. While this is important, I thought it was a waste of time to speak hypothetically about a process that is rarely used. Why weren't we speaking of how to get professors to start and end on time, enforce Standards in the classroom, and share our Standards with students from outside of the MBA and LFM programs who take our classes? Why not discuss how to get people to silence their phones? Well, here are my thoughts.
First and foremost, communication to students regarding Standards should come from student leaders and not administrators. This is a fundamental law of group behavior - group members tend to listen to their peers over perceived authority figures. The same goes for professors - if it doesn't happen already, any correspondence to the faculty should come from someone on the faculty. The Standards are demeaned when they are viewed from the perspective of authority rather than community.
Standards need to be shared with anyone taking a Course XV class - no matter who they are. Professors need to be reminded as well. When a phone goes off, the professor needs to say something about it right away. Yes, it will disrupt the discussion temporarily, but the number of incidents and the silent ridicule from others will deter the carelessness going forward. In truth, the discussion is already somewhat disrupted. I would like to challenge my fellow Sloanies to say something after class to their friends, or others they feel comfortable confronting, who come in late and make noise, forget to silence their phones (by the way, vibrate mode does not equal silent mode), and create other disturbances. Let me know next time one of my side conversations disturbs you. The change has to start somewhere.
First and foremost, communication to students regarding Standards should come from student leaders and not administrators. This is a fundamental law of group behavior - group members tend to listen to their peers over perceived authority figures. The same goes for professors - if it doesn't happen already, any correspondence to the faculty should come from someone on the faculty. The Standards are demeaned when they are viewed from the perspective of authority rather than community.
Standards need to be shared with anyone taking a Course XV class - no matter who they are. Professors need to be reminded as well. When a phone goes off, the professor needs to say something about it right away. Yes, it will disrupt the discussion temporarily, but the number of incidents and the silent ridicule from others will deter the carelessness going forward. In truth, the discussion is already somewhat disrupted. I would like to challenge my fellow Sloanies to say something after class to their friends, or others they feel comfortable confronting, who come in late and make noise, forget to silence their phones (by the way, vibrate mode does not equal silent mode), and create other disturbances. Let me know next time one of my side conversations disturbs you. The change has to start somewhere.
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