The NY Times has an interesting piece on a Professor of Organic Chemistry who got fired because the students felt the material too difficult and the grading unfair. They note:
In the field of organic chemistry, Maitland Jones Jr. has a storied reputation. He taught the subject for decades, first at Princeton and then at New York University, and wrote an influential textbook. He received awards for his teaching, as well as recognition as one of N.Y.U.’s coolest professors. But last spring, as the campus emerged from pandemic restrictions, 82 of his 350 students signed a petition against him. Students said the high-stakes course — notorious for ending many a dream of medical school — was too hard, blaming Dr. Jones for their poor test scores. The professor defended his standards. But just before the start of the fall semester, university deans terminated Dr. Jones’s contract.
Now two comments.
First, Organic Chemistry has two parts. The first semester covers bonds, reactions and the like. Good science is it should be easy. At least I found it so. The second semester is a pile of 19th century German reactions that the current authors attempt to explain on basic principles but in my opinion are mostly alchemy! It is a pure memorization semester, plain and simple. Any attempt to make this science is bound to fail. If you can memorize second semester then you can memorize anatomy in Med School. Thus the nexus. You never use any of the second semester in medicine, never!
Second the woke students know everything and they are used to getting medals for anything they do. Instead of attending class and finding out what the instructor wants, they feel that whatever is their opinion is of equal or more merit than the instructor. I have seen this evolving which is why I would never teach again, at least this crowd. They have been indoctrinated into the woke school of feeling rewarded just for showing up. Halfway through a professors sentence they interject their most valued opinion correcting the speaker. A baseless interjection usually, if not always.
Thus this is a clear example of how society is changing, for the worse. Pity.
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