The Blue Monkey Review

I am writing this just before my final exam. Students have been taking tests for a couple of weeks already. Even though my students are all in their first year and so part of the new system, many teachers have chosen to stick with a version of the old method. They have separate tests for the first and second half of the course, but these come a week or so apart. Those of my students who either didn’t take or failed my mid-term will take it again tomorrow. Everyone who wants a first or second chance at the final has the opportunity twelve days later. Stan Surbatović tells me that, while cramming is well-known in the U.S., it takes on a life of its own here. The word they use for it is a verb formed from the word for a military campaign.

In my class student attendance fell sharply after my mid-term. This actually made holding class easier since I didn’t have a large pool of socializers in the back. One week soon after the mid-term a small group of young men were apparently trying to improve their chances with some young women near the back of the room. It annoyed me enough that at one point I said, “Gentlemen, please, either be quiet of leave.” They settled down for a while but soon enough they began again. It hadn’t quite reached the point for me to tell them to go when one of my students addressed me. “Can you stop for a minute?” Then she stood up, changed to Serbian, and tore into the monkey-boys. When she was done, they were quiet. They left soon after.

The students who have come most faithfully are obviously the most interested or motivated. But they have also participated very well in class discussions. They’ve learned a lot, most of which I can’t assess on any kind of test. And, of course, I’ve learned as much from them. Maybe more.