Legal Commentary

Thanks to Dan and the rest of the Prawfs gang for having me back, and best holiday wishes to all.

I thought I would use the occasion of Prawfs' anniversary and my birthday (33), to ruminate on the ways in which I've changed my attitudes and behaviors concerning my job over the past several years.  I've always found Kingsfield to be something of a model and inspiration, and I craved the respect that Kingsfield got, even as he was feared and hated.  So at the beginning of my career I was very demanding in the classroom.  I don't think I was mean, but I intentionally made class sessions challenging.  As a result I quickly got a reputation as being smart but difficult, and I got small enrollments in my electives with most of the students coming from the top of the class.

It turns out, however, that being feared and hated isn't as wonderful as it sounds.  More precisely, I'm willing to be feared and hated by some, but I love being able to have friendlier relationships with the majority of students.  So in subsequent years I have softened a bit, making me, I suppose, a faint-hearted Kingsfieldian, to paraphrase Justice Scalia's remark about his originalism.  I now incorporate more lecture into my class presentations, make efforts to make my classes as clear as possible while still being demanding, socialize more with students outside the classroom, and generally have more fun teaching.

The result has been positive for me, and I think most students enjoy it as well.  I think, though, that I can have fun with students now only because I got a reputation as a curmudgeon in my first few years.  That is, I can be liked and respected by students now only because I was willing to be respected without being liked early in my career. 

At least that's one theory.  As all new teachers do, I lacked confidence in my first years, and perhaps it is the confidence I've gained, and not any reservoir of respect, that has allowed me to do a better job of balancing work and fun in recent years.  But I don't think that's it.  Teachers' reputations last longer than the students do, and I know that students are influenced in their course selection by stories of events that occurred long ago.

What are the lessons for new teachers?  I'm not sure.  Few entry-level teachers who are contemplating how to establish a classroom presence will want to be neo-Kingsfieldians.  Some may be able to "be themselves" and establish a rapport with students from the start, without sacrificing respect.  Others, however, may find it difficult to be taken seriously unless they initially adopt a tough-as-nails persona, which can be adjusted later.  It's probably much easier to be stern initially and then loosen up than to seek belatedly to be taken seriously after one has gotten a reputation as too lenient.  I wonder, too, whether I'll come full-circle in the next stages of my career, becoming ever more crusty over the next thirty years.  Any insight from senior profs?