This is the end of the first work week of being at home, not under a mandatory curfew. Its Spring Break. It’s pollen season (which in Atlanta is a serious thing, and also makes allergies — dry cough — a bit more exciting than usual).
Like others I want to write about my experiences so I figured I would brush off the blog.
- Im losing track of time. I’ve spent the better part of today thinking it was Monday, when it’s Sunday. It’s really not working in my favour. I’m now contemplating ways to make myself more aware of the days. Its Spring Break and while everyday has been COVID planning day, I think that with less movement from one place to another (the routine of going to work, going to swim) and the intensity of the planning itself, it’s been easy to lose track.
- I’m an Associate Dean, which means that this week has been about working with lots of different people across campus to try and sort out issues and find answers. Sometimes it’s also about making answers, decision-making. I’ve learned this week that I have some discomfort with making decisions, and I’ve also learned this week that sometimes I just have to do it. I foresee much more of that going forward as we continue in uncertain waters.
- On Friday, my colleague and friend, Amy Bruckman hosted a Friday faculty social lunch via Blue Jeans. With all the meetings I’d had that week I wasn’t sure whether I would join. I was so glad I did. It was so much fun to be connected with my colleagues and share our experiences of the week. Lots of discussion about home offices and technologies to support the new working realities. Lots of discussion about how to reconfigure space in the home. On another social media I saw lots of pictures of people’s home office set ups.
- In other social worlds, particularly crafts, there’s been lots of energy. Working from home and knitting. Sewing masks for hospitals. I’ve struggled with that. Not just because I have plenty of work to do. Even when I’ve tried to carve out space, I haven’t felt creative. I have managed one modest top, so I suppose that’s a good thing, but it hasn’t brought me the same joy that I usually experience and I’m sad about that. But also trying to tell myself that it’s OK to feel however I feel. These are very strange times.
- I miss shops and restaurants. Very much. How integrated they were into my way of living. We’d always enjoyed a nice meal out. We’d also moved to a mode of grocery shopping where we stocked up every few days. Both of these patterns have gone for the time being and I miss all the interactions I had with people. It’s not just the food, it’s the people.
OK that’s what I have for week 1. My webcam and gaming headphones are on their way to my house. I foresee an interesting Week 2.
comments, Internet, misogyny
The Mean, Misogynistic Internet—Another Diversity Problem for MOOCs?
In academia, discipline, women on February 6, 2013 at 12:49 pmYesterday I wrote about what made me stay with Computing despite the horrible gender imbalance—the personal encouragement I received from teachers who went out of their way to support me. Today I want to broach another piece of why I’m reticent to offer a MOOC: the comments.
I’ve been looking at comments that others have received on their MOOC offerings. No surprises in some ways, they look like a lot of Internet comments. Some are mean, some are stupid, and some are sexist. Of course there are some helpful comments too, but not all.
A few weeks ago a colleague of mine posted this story about a British female academic who argued a position on immigration and was vilified on Twitter as a result of it. The remarks made about her are vile, with levels of misogyny that are depressing. Clearly MOOCs are not the same as arguing a position on immigration, but the same patterns of misogyny exist. It’s rare, but I have received remarks in my teaching evaluations that exhibit this quality. I see Rate a Prof being used in similar ways. Why should MOOCs be exempt?
In discussing this with a colleague he told me about how a video of his technology that featured a woman received a misogynistic comment about her. He removed the comment, but I’m not sure one can moderate comments about MOOCs. I can see that as appearing problematic. Its easy to imagine being accused of moderating comments in such a way that the course reviews were biased towards the positive. The very commentators who likely want to make their vile remarks might be as angry about having their comments are removed. Censorship and freedom of speech are powerful arguments.
I am not willing to expose myself to a situation where any person can use comments to promote attitudes that defy belief that will subsequently end up in one of Google’s data center forever associated with my name. That’s my name, my reputation. And how will other women see those comments? What will they think of the people who take those classes? That people who like Computing hate women. Great.
On a more personal level, and even if the remarks were removed, I still have to live with the idea that someone out there really hates me, hates what I represent, hates what I’ve achieved. Probably more than one person. I already have moments of self-doubt. And then we add in that these people will chose to express that hatred in the most disgusting of ways. It maybe electronically deleted from the record, but it won’t be deleted from my mind. I’ll still have to live with the idea that someone said that about me. I don’t find that a terribly compelling argument for offering myself up to that situation.
I think this warrants more discussion than its receiving, because of course its not the Internet itself, it’s the fact that its a forum for still far too widespread misogyny that exists in the real world. Further, because of the chronic diversity problem that Computing has, it’s hardly surprising that most of the people promoting MOOCs are just the sort of people who don’t experience the Internet as a minority and would be far less likely to be exposed to the mean, misogynistic Internet out there.