The Kids Are All Tired

This week was a first: About 1/2 of each of my classes just … stopped … when they finished the FIRST STEP of the essay instructions.

They wrote THE INTRODUCTION.

One paragraph.

It was an “in-class” essay (due via Canvas instead of Blue Book, but still, designed to be a draft completed during the class period and submitted for revision during workshop) and it would not have surprised me if some students didn’t finish in the time allotted or if some people had questions and wanted me to go over the assignment instructions with them again (I allow that flexibility with drafting, most of the time).

I asked a couple if they got stuck at that point and they said no, they just … stopped reading. As in the instructions.

I didn’t even know what to say to that. Why would you STOP READING halfway down a page of instructions? What did you THINK that would do to the outcome?

I guess the kids, too, are TIRED.