I figured my physical science class was chaotic only because it was the first day and the professor had not yet arrived – at least that is what I hoped.
He strolled in, looking confused, like it was his first day teaching a class.
It was obvious to any one who had a functional ear that he was of East Indian decent. He began with a “good afternoon.” I understood him but no one else could. Right then, I knew this was the beginning of a long semester and the rise of a batch of disruptive students.
I must have won the lottery, because I had the best seat in the house that entire semester.
I was fortunate enough to sit directly in front of the most loud-mouthed, obnoxious and disruptive student in the class.
Who needs Maury as a host? This guy could talk for hours, and he did. It would never be about science, and it hardly was ever about school unless he was making fun of our professor, who sounded as if English was his second language. He must have been practicing to be on ComicView or Def Comedy Jam because he had jokes for days. I admit some of the remarks he made were humorous, but he was too disruptive.
I could barely understand our professor when it was quiet, so you know it was an impossible mission to hear him with the class clown sitting behind me.
Some of the most racist comments against people of Indian decent that I have ever heard came out of his mouth. The reason why he insisted on calling him an A-rab or Ghandi is beyond me. His priority every class was to make sure he said something disrespectful about the professor that caused laughter.
On the other side of the class were some of those “FAMU thugs.” They always came late, not 10 minutes late. They would arrive “late-late,” as in 25-minutes-into-the-lecture-late. Upon entering they gave there shout-outs to those they knew. There were times when the professor would confront this disruptive behavior, but it only yielded additional ridiculous behavior.
Whoever said there are no stupid questions must have never heard or asked a stupid question.
The type of questions I hear never ceases to amaze me. There always seems to be a student who breaks the flow of the class by asking a dumb question.
All the disruptions that occurred in that class made me feel like I was back in high school. Back then, there were at least five clowns in every class. Now there is at least one. But in any given class there could be plenty of disruptors surrounding you and keeping you from absorbing the lecture.
At times some of us are rude to teachers, but there are always those who will go out of there way to make a joke about the teacher or even flat out tell the professor to go to Hell.
It is apparent that some of us forget at times that Florida A&M University is not free, FAMU is an investment not a nuisance.
Disruptive students should stay home and allow those of us who want to learn something in class to do so.
Siraaj Sabree is a senior newspaper journalism student from Miami. He can be reached at famuanopinions@hotmail.com.