“Mieeeeess!”

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Clarissa

April 5, 2012

This interesting post on how students address their teachers really hit home with me. I don’t care how I’m addressed as long as students don’t use this very annoying “Miss”, which they pronounce as “Mieeeeess!” It takes all I’ve got not to bark that I haven’t been a “Miss” for longer than they have lived.

I also can’t wait to announce in my classes that I am now exactly twice as old as my 18-year-old students. I already see some male members of the student body making googly eyes at me, so this should be a sobering reminder that I’m an ancient old boring lady. In exactly two weeks, I will be able to make that announcement. (This is a hint that people should remember to wish me a Happy Birthday on April 18.)

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6 responses to ““Mieeeeess!””

Siobhan Curious

April 5, 2012

I clearly remember the day when I realized that the age difference between me and my students was the same as the age difference between me and my mother. It put a lot of things into perspective…

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1. bloggerclarissa
  
  April 5, 2012
  
  Since you are here, Siobhan, I wanted to mention that I love your blog and really admire you. Say hi to our beautiful province from me. 🙂
  
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redwraith

April 5, 2012

Mies is a german word and translates to bad, poor, mean or rotten 🙂

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1. bloggerclarissa
  
  April 5, 2012
  
  And in Spanish it means “grain.”. 🙂
  
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hngeparti

April 6, 2012

I really think it is the responsibility of the teacher to make clear what terms he or she is comfortable with. As a student, it is sometimes a pain to try and guess how formal you are supposed to be.

I did a semester at a university in China – in general, my teachers insisted on being called ‘teacher’ in combination with their family name. In return, they addressed us students by our family names, transliterated into Chinese. Coming from a university culture where i refer to my teachers by their first name, that was indeed odd, but it felt sensible in the context.

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Private Miss

April 10, 2012

Well I prefer miss to ma’am as it sounds more respectful than other choices “hey you”, or “dude”. A lot of people seem to think that someone addressing them as ma’am makes them feel matronly as in old, etc. I really don’t know how to address people, so that they don’t get angry or offended and people seem to be highly over-reactive to such things. Maybe people should just tell others their preference right off the bat, but try to not take it personally if everyone doesn’t get it right the first time.

If I had a choice I think I would prefer “Oh Esteemed Goddess”, or “Oh Brilliant One”. Of course, then I would think they were a charming clown, but humor is often appreciated.

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