University of Oklahoma Paper Controversy

[NotJoeBiden]

I don’t think calling trans people demonic and citing the bible as evidence is a thoughtful reflection of a paper on adolescent gender development.

you are wrong

a reaction by definition is based on personal feelings -- those feelings could come from the bible, the Quran, the teachings of the buddha, from the philosophy of the old Kung Fu tv series, from teachings of atheist parents, from Mr Rogers, from Homey D. Clown, from an influential 4th grade teacher, from your experience in the military ... or from anywhere else 

just because you put no credence in the bible doesn't mean other people don't 

perhaps she has read the bible from cover to cover                    
perhaps she had read a few bible commentaries                 
perhaps she has put a lot of thought into the bible's teachings over the years                 

one thing is for sure, the professor wouldn't have failed a conservative muslim student who wrote the same paper and cited the Quran as evidence 

no way the school would want to be accused of being anti-muslim

---

You haven't included the link or the terribly written essay (C.S. Lewis, GK Chesterton, or even Karen Kingsbury this student is not), but having read about this, the graders were very clear that the grade was *not* based on the person's religious beliefs or the offensiveness of their statements, but rather for an infantile (unclear) writing style, poor argumentation (not thoughtful), and failure to engage with the article (unclear tie-in). One grader expressed disagreement with what the student said and stated they found it offensive, but clearly stated the grade was *not* based on either of those things, and also clearly stated what the grade *was* based on. Other graders checked the grade and agreed with it.

In summary (my comments in bold):

GRADING: Reaction papers are graded on a 25-point scale, and are evaluated based on the following:
1. Does the paper show a clear tie-in to the assigned article? (10 points) No.
2. Does the paper present a thoughtful reaction or response to the article, rather than a summary? (10 points) No. 
3. Is the paper clearly written? (5 points) No.

How your can look at the assignment instructions and the essay and conclude that the essay met the assignment requirements is beyond me. Your explanation of your judgment is not based in the particulars and therefore feels like an argument to support a predetermined conclusion, whether that's the case or not.

As an aside, it's evident from the student's subsequent behavior that she was looking for a way to get her trans TA in trouble and/or fired while also getting to play the victim and become an ideological grifter like so many who have gone before her. There are plenty of clear cases of religious discrimination in the world. This is not one of them.

As another aside: Mods, does this post belong in Off-Topic? I know that other threads that are related to education, but not to educational pursuits or to schools with their own subforums, have gone there (e.g. the recent discussion about teacher qualifications in the U.S., etc.)

did you even read the assignment ?

Possible approaches to reaction papers include: 
1. A discussion of why you feel the topic is important and worthy of study (or not)

that is EXACTLY what her paper was 

>  but rather for an infantile (unclear) writing style, poor argumentation (not thoughtful), and failure to engage with the article (unclear tie-in).

everything you said here is incorrect                 
her writing was very clear, her arguements were fine and thoughtful (based on her religious beliefs), she enganed with the article completely and said it is WRONG and gave her reasons                  
you can disagree with those reasons, but she was thoughtful and gave reasons from the bible                
you may not think the bible is a credible source -- who cares ?                  
no source or citations were required 

> it's evident from the student's subsequent behavior that she was looking for a way to get her trans TA in trouble and/or fired while also getting to play the victim and become an ideological grifter 

ah, add mind reader to your signature 

> How your can look at the assignment instructions and the essay and conclude that the essay met the assignment requirements is beyond me.

because I actually read the assignment

Well for starters, the bible doesn’t say what she is attributing to it.