Subject: Men are from Mars? Women are from Venus? Looks that way!
For teachers... or any of us who have had to write an essay!
You will get a real charge out of this one. Remember the book - "Men
are from Mars, Women are from Venus"? Well, here is a true life example
from the University of Phoenix. An English Professor assigned his
students to a joint writing exercise that quickly degraded - check it out...
"Today we will experiment with a new form called the tandem story.
The process is simple. Each person will pair off with the person sitting
to his or her immediate right.
> > >As homework tonight, one of you will write the first paragraph of a
> > >short story. You will e-mail your partner that paragraph and send
> > >another copy to me. The partner will read the first paragraph and
> > >then add another paragraph to the story and send it back also sending
> > >another copy to me. The first person will then add a third paragraph, and so
> > >on, back and forth.
> > >
> > >Remember to re-read what has been written each time in order to keep
> > >the story coherent. There is to be absolutely NO talking outside of the
> > >e-mails and anything you wish to say must be written in the e-mail.
> > >The story is over when both agree a conclusion has been reached."
> > >
> > >The following was actually turned in by two of my English students:
> > >
> > >Rebecca (last name deleted), and Gary (last name deleted).
> > >----------------------------------------------------------------
> > >
> > >THE STORY:
> > >
> > >(First paragraph by Rebecca)
> > >
> > >At first, Laurie couldn't decide which kind of tea she wanted. The
> > >chamomile, which used to be her favorite for lazy evenings at home,
> > >now
> > >reminded her too much of Carl, who once said, in happier times, that
> > >he
> > >liked chamomile. But she felt she must now, at all costs, keep her
> > >mind
> > >off Carl. His possessiveness was suffocating, and if she thought
> > >about
> > >him too much her asthma started acting up again. So chamomile was
> > >out of
> > >the question.
> > >
> > >----------------------------------------------------------- (second
> > >paragraph by Gary)
> > >
> > >Meanwhile, Advance Sergeant Carl Harris, leader of the attack
> > >squadron
> > >now in orbit over Skylon 4, had more important things to think about
> > >than the neuroses of an air-headed asthmatic bimbo named Laurie with
> > >whom he had spent one sweaty night over a year ago. "A.S. Harris to
> > >Geostation 17", he said into his transgalactic communicator. "Polar
> > >orbit established. No sign of resistance so far..." But before he
> > >could
> > >sign off, a bluish particle beam flashed out of nowhere and blasted
> > >a
> > >hole through his ship's cargo bay. The jolt from the direct hit sent
> > >him
> > >flying out of his seat and across the cockpit.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >He bumped his head and died almost immediately, but not before he
> > >felt
> > >one last pang of regret for psychically brutalizing the one woman
> > >who
> > >had ever had feelings for him. Soon afterwards, Earth stopped its
> > >pointless hostilities towards the peaceful farmers of Skylon 4.
> > >"Congress Passes Law Permanently Abolishing War and Space Travel,"
> > >Laurie read in her newspaper one morning The news simultaneously
> > >excited her and bored her. She stared out the window, dreaming of
> > >her
> > >youth, when the days had passed unhurriedly and carefree, with no
> > >newspapers to read, no television to distract her from her sense of
> > >innocent wonder at all the beautiful things around her. "Why must
> > >one
> > >lose one's innocence to become a woman?" she pondered wistfully.
> > >--------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >Little did she know, but she had less than 10 seconds to live.
> > >Thousands of miles above the city, the Anu'udrian mothership
> > >launched
> > >the first of its lithium fusion missiles. The dimwitted wimpy
> > >peaceniks
> > >that pushed the Unilateral Aerospace Disarmament Treaty through the
> > >congress had left
> > >Earth a defenseless target for the hostile alien empires who were
> > >determined to destroy the human race. Within two hours after the
> > >passage
> > >of the treaty the Anu'udrian ships were on course for Earth,
> > >carrying
> > >enough firepower to pulverize the entire planet. With no one to stop
> > >them, they swiftly initiated their diabolical plan. The lithium
> > >fusion
> > >missile entered the atmosphere unimpeded. The President, in his
> > >top-secret mobile submarine headquarters on the ocean floor off the
> > >coast of Guam, felt the inconceivably massive explosion, which
> > >vaporized
> > >poor, stupid, Laurie and 85 million other Americans. The President
> > >slammed his fist on the conference table. "We can't allow this! I'm
> > >going to veto that treaty! Let's blow 'em out of the sky!"
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >This is absurd I refuse to continue this mockery of literature. My
> > >writing partner is a violent, chauvinistic semiliterate adolescent.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >Yeah? Well, you're a self-centered tedious neurotic whose attempts
> > >at
> > >writing are the literary equivalent of Valium. "Oh shall I have
> > >chamomile tea? Or shall I have some other sort of F***ING TEA??? Oh
> > >no,
> > >I'm such an air headed bimbo who reads too many Danielle Steele
> > >novels."
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >A**hole.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >B****.
> > >-------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >Get screwed.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >Eat sh**.
> > >
> > >--------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >SCREW YOU - YOU NEANDERTHAL!!!
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >GO DRINK SOME TEA - *****.
> > >
> > >**********************************************
> > >(TEACHER) A+ - I really liked this one. Only group to get an A.
<![endif]>
For teachers... or any of us who have had to write an essay!
You will get a real charge out of this one. Remember the book - "Men
are from Mars, Women are from Venus"? Well, here is a true life example
from the University of Phoenix. An English Professor assigned his
students to a joint writing exercise that quickly degraded - check it out...
"Today we will experiment with a new form called the tandem story.
The process is simple. Each person will pair off with the person sitting
to his or her immediate right.
> > >As homework tonight, one of you will write the first paragraph of a
> > >short story. You will e-mail your partner that paragraph and send
> > >another copy to me. The partner will read the first paragraph and
> > >then add another paragraph to the story and send it back also sending
> > >another copy to me. The first person will then add a third paragraph, and so
> > >on, back and forth.
> > >
> > >Remember to re-read what has been written each time in order to keep
> > >the story coherent. There is to be absolutely NO talking outside of the
> > >e-mails and anything you wish to say must be written in the e-mail.
> > >The story is over when both agree a conclusion has been reached."
> > >
> > >The following was actually turned in by two of my English students:
> > >
> > >Rebecca (last name deleted), and Gary (last name deleted).
> > >----------------------------------------------------------------
> > >
> > >THE STORY:
> > >
> > >(First paragraph by Rebecca)
> > >
> > >At first, Laurie couldn't decide which kind of tea she wanted. The
> > >chamomile, which used to be her favorite for lazy evenings at home,
> > >now
> > >reminded her too much of Carl, who once said, in happier times, that
> > >he
> > >liked chamomile. But she felt she must now, at all costs, keep her
> > >mind
> > >off Carl. His possessiveness was suffocating, and if she thought
> > >about
> > >him too much her asthma started acting up again. So chamomile was
> > >out of
> > >the question.
> > >
> > >----------------------------------------------------------- (second
> > >paragraph by Gary)
> > >
> > >Meanwhile, Advance Sergeant Carl Harris, leader of the attack
> > >squadron
> > >now in orbit over Skylon 4, had more important things to think about
> > >than the neuroses of an air-headed asthmatic bimbo named Laurie with
> > >whom he had spent one sweaty night over a year ago. "A.S. Harris to
> > >Geostation 17", he said into his transgalactic communicator. "Polar
> > >orbit established. No sign of resistance so far..." But before he
> > >could
> > >sign off, a bluish particle beam flashed out of nowhere and blasted
> > >a
> > >hole through his ship's cargo bay. The jolt from the direct hit sent
> > >him
> > >flying out of his seat and across the cockpit.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >He bumped his head and died almost immediately, but not before he
> > >felt
> > >one last pang of regret for psychically brutalizing the one woman
> > >who
> > >had ever had feelings for him. Soon afterwards, Earth stopped its
> > >pointless hostilities towards the peaceful farmers of Skylon 4.
> > >"Congress Passes Law Permanently Abolishing War and Space Travel,"
> > >Laurie read in her newspaper one morning The news simultaneously
> > >excited her and bored her. She stared out the window, dreaming of
> > >her
> > >youth, when the days had passed unhurriedly and carefree, with no
> > >newspapers to read, no television to distract her from her sense of
> > >innocent wonder at all the beautiful things around her. "Why must
> > >one
> > >lose one's innocence to become a woman?" she pondered wistfully.
> > >--------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >Little did she know, but she had less than 10 seconds to live.
> > >Thousands of miles above the city, the Anu'udrian mothership
> > >launched
> > >the first of its lithium fusion missiles. The dimwitted wimpy
> > >peaceniks
> > >that pushed the Unilateral Aerospace Disarmament Treaty through the
> > >congress had left
> > >Earth a defenseless target for the hostile alien empires who were
> > >determined to destroy the human race. Within two hours after the
> > >passage
> > >of the treaty the Anu'udrian ships were on course for Earth,
> > >carrying
> > >enough firepower to pulverize the entire planet. With no one to stop
> > >them, they swiftly initiated their diabolical plan. The lithium
> > >fusion
> > >missile entered the atmosphere unimpeded. The President, in his
> > >top-secret mobile submarine headquarters on the ocean floor off the
> > >coast of Guam, felt the inconceivably massive explosion, which
> > >vaporized
> > >poor, stupid, Laurie and 85 million other Americans. The President
> > >slammed his fist on the conference table. "We can't allow this! I'm
> > >going to veto that treaty! Let's blow 'em out of the sky!"
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >This is absurd I refuse to continue this mockery of literature. My
> > >writing partner is a violent, chauvinistic semiliterate adolescent.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >Yeah? Well, you're a self-centered tedious neurotic whose attempts
> > >at
> > >writing are the literary equivalent of Valium. "Oh shall I have
> > >chamomile tea? Or shall I have some other sort of F***ING TEA??? Oh
> > >no,
> > >I'm such an air headed bimbo who reads too many Danielle Steele
> > >novels."
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >A**hole.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >B****.
> > >-------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >Get screwed.
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >
> > >Eat sh**.
> > >
> > >--------------------------------------------------------- (Rebecca)
> > >
> > >SCREW YOU - YOU NEANDERTHAL!!!
> > >
> > >---------------------------------------------------------- (Gary)
> > >GO DRINK SOME TEA - *****.
> > >
> > >**********************************************
> > >(TEACHER) A+ - I really liked this one. Only group to get an A.
<![endif]>
