There’s a new movie coming out (with the very uninspiring title, Larry Crowne) that features a community college speech instructor who clearly doesn’t want to teach, who pours vodka into her yogurt shake, and who falls for a student.
Oy vey. Alcoholism. Anti-intellectualism. Sexual Harrassment. Covers it all.
See for yourself:
From the Mixed Up Bloggings of Annie Em 
FAIL!
OMG. I cannot WAIT until one of my freshmen chooses this movie for the “analyze how a popular film represents the college experience” assignment. It will be beyond hilarious.
New Faculty Majority tweeted that Roberts plays an ADJUNCT, making the whole “I hate teaching so much I drink” and flirting with a student all the more obnoxious. Also, Hanks supposedly wrote/financed the piece. All rumor at this point…. But yes, FP, that will be a fun assignmet! What film choices do you usually give them??
They’re allowed to pick any film they like, as long a significant chunk of it takes place on a college or university campus. I do usually try to warn them against writing about Van Wilder or Old School, since those papers are almost universally terrible. I have seen good papers on Accepted and (occasionally) Animal House, but usually they seem to find drama easier than comedy, and I tell them so. Rudy and other college-sports movies are perennial favorites, as is Good Will Hunting. I think The Social Network will be another popular one. It always makes me happy when someone picks The Paper Chase or The Graduate, and I will probably melt into a warm puddle if anyone ever writes about Educating Rita (they haven’t yet).
Oh, I agree: loved Educating Rita!
One of my undergrad professors used to pour shots of alcohol into her throat during student conferences. Not even cloaked in yogurt.
But I digress. Movie premise: pllllllllp.
um…I actually teach the course she looks like she’s “teaching” and she’s doing it wrong. But what do I know, I don’t make movies.
Shots of alcohol during conferences? Not that I haven’t THOUGHT of that, but really, Ink? Didn’t she offer you any?
And RL: public speaking?? argumentation? It’s difficult to tell from the clip, but definitely something in communications ( from the size of her purse, I’m guessing she doesn’t grade many papers, but then, if she only gets 10 students in a cc class when enrollment nationally is booming, she must truly be a miserable prof–but of course, this is assuming Hollywood, and the screenwriter, Tom Hanks (!!) care about reality).
Looks like public speaking. And given that all 3 of my PS classes are packed AND one is even overloaded with students, and we do lots of speeches and have tests–all of which must be graded….well she’s really doing a disservice to my field. Oh and WTH is up with that bell? Talk about defeating the point of the class.
Where’s the white board and smart board? and for the love of God WHO teaches by standing at a lectern? None of my colleagues. Ugh.
Clearly Hollywood didn’t consult with any actual speech profs at cc’s or elsewhere. And yes: spring term start Mar 28th, and the wait lists for every section of public speaking are double the class size. I’d also argue that our speech profs are some of the most popular profs on campus, too, with their winning combination of pizzaaa, good humor, fabulous teaching.
No, she didn’t offer me any. But that was ok: I didn’t want her too close since she’d probably burn me with her cigarillo that sported the longest ash ever (she never used an ashtray…she just smoked the thing until a grey column fell onto the floor).
True story.