Unlike my Berkeley days when I lacked any courage to go to office hours, I go to the office hours for my statistics TAs every week. Of course, taking this undergrad course had impact on my self-esteem. First of all, it\’s an undergrad course (a stat course I neglected to take at Cal). And second of all, I really am struggling with the material.
I haven\’t done any calculus for more than 4 years! What is an integral again?
So I go to this TA office hours and ask for help. At one point, he asks me and the other student there for our e-mail addresses so that he could send us more information about certain questions. So I give my cmu.edu address without much thought. I leave the office hours early, because I realized that I had to spend some time reading the book myself and it would be a waste of time sitting there not knowing what I was doing. Also a classmate had told me how he had said, \”I don\’t know math.\” Hello? This is a statistics class??? Also, during the office hours, he asked another stat TA for advice. Wait, what?
So a few hours later, I check my e-mail and receive an e-mail from him. Note that his e-mail is only addressed to me (apparently, he doesn\’t know my name because I never said so) and not to the other student. In the e-mail, he first apologizes for not keeping track of time and then he explains two stat problems. Then he says to e-mail him if I have any questions. And THEN he also leaves his phone number as another method of contact. Wait, a phone number?!?! Maybe I am reading too much into it, but who would leave a phone number to a student? And by reading the area code, it\’s definitely not a landline. It\’s some place in New York (yes I am a stalker). A definite cell number.
When I was a RCC, I knew never to reveal my cell number to residents, because they would bother me endlessly. There was one time I was called out of my apartment at 11 pm. Note that I have this sympathetic side, I couldn\’t say no to a plea for help. But it drove me crazy.
Well at least now I know his name. It\’s Kevin. He\’s blond.
Haha, I was thinking of the same thing about never giving my cell# to residents…
if he\’s cute, i say go for it :o)
Hmm, I don\’t have the same sentiments about the cell phone number. He probably just really wants to help and it\’s convenient to get in touch. I\’m tutoring this semester, and although that\’s a bit different than being a TA, all my tutees have my number and vice versa.
the keyword there is: vice versa.
Hm…I\’m struggling with my quantum computation class too. I feel so stupid coz it\’s an ME/Math class, which means that there are a tonne of Math grad students there!! Must work hard to get help from office hours tomorrow morning… In any case, I think it\’s illegal for TA to date their students etc. As a TA, I was told that we should not have \”social\” interaction with students (!= not friendly), but yeah…I guess you\’re too cute that he couldn\’t resist himself =P