I agree with Thomas H. Benton when he argues that “more and more, I think the student culture of incivility is a larger impediment to their success than anything they might fail to learn about Western civilization or whatever it is I am teaching.”

When Professor Benton’s “Remedial Civility Training”¹ appeared in The Chronicle of Higher Education, I had just received a series of e-mails from four students claiming that I was unfair, unreasonable, and a poor teacher. The foible that prompted these accusations was the fact that I had had the audacity to offer these students incompletes so that they could revise their papers in order to meet the course requirements.

I admit I was shocked not only because these students turned down my offer but also because of the abusive language that was used to vilify me. Sadly, I am sure that three of the four students were equally shocked when, after my formal evaluation of their papers, they failed the course.

After his initial e-mail, the fourth student sent me an apology. As a sleep deprived father of a newborn, he had over reacted and for that he was sorry. A few days later, this student told me that the fact that I offered to work with him—especially after his initial response—said a great deal about my character. I believe that his kind apology in which he accepted responsibility for his actions instead of trying to blame his life’s circumstances said even more about the quality of his character. It is easy to graciously accept an apology. It is much harder to admit one’s faults and to make amends.

I am no longer surprised when students do not take responsibility for their actions, expect special accommodations on the spur of the moment, or blame me for their failure. And I have experienced the same students whom Professor Benton encounters “who refuse to address us appropriately; who make borderline insulting remarks in class when called upon (enough to irritate but not enough to require immediate action); who arrive late and slam the door behind them; who yawn continually and never cover their mouths; who neglect to bring books, paper, or even something with which to write; who send demanding e-mail messages without a respectful salutation; who make appointments and never show up.”

Professor Benton argues that ”Just as we help new students acquire writing skills, we must spend more time teaching them how to behave in a classroom.” One effective way to begin such an educational process is to share Professor Bill Taylor’s “Letter to My Students” with our own students; something I do at the beginning of each semester.

One thing I especially like about Professor Taylor’s letter is that he does not focus on what students have to do to act with integrity in the classroom. Instead, his focus in on what “we”—both students and teachers—need to do. Each of the six sections begins with an explanation of what “I” need to do to show integrity in that area. Only then does he state the student’s responsibility.

Something else I frequently do on the first day of class is to ask students what they expect of me as an instructor who strives to act with integrity. As they go through their predictable lists of “being prepared,” “treating everyone fairly,” and so forth, I am able to discuss classroom expectations in a non-threatening, non-condescending way because we begin with me modeling the behavior.

Yet, while I join Professor Benton in bemoaning the incivility of youth culture, I do not forget that it was me and my buddy who—when we got bored in political science—would leave, mid-lecture, to go have a beer at the Peanut Barrel. As we take up the task of teaching civility, we must not take up the often repeated refrain from Bye Bye Birdie: “What’s the matter with kids today?”

¹Dr. Benton’s article is password protected. Schoolcraft College students, faculty, and staff, can obtain the password by contacting the Schoolcraft College Library.

–Steven L. Berg, PhD