Jasper Jottings —————————————- The achievement journal of my fellow alums

http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/columnist/story/0,,2206211,00.html

Who’s the hottest teacher in the US?
A poll of the best university and college teachers in the US maybe completely unreliable, but, says John Sutherland, it does raise some awkward questions
Wednesday November 7, 2007
EducationGuardian.co.uk

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Professor Robert Citino

Professor Robert Citino, the best university teacher in the US according to the RateMyProfessors.com poll

Of the 400,000 university and college teachers in the US. Who’s best? Who’s “hottest”? Who’s #1?

Ask no more. MTV gives us the answer. The music channel bought RateMyProfessors.com (RMP) earlier this year. As firstborn of that grotesque marriage, RMP has just issued its inaugural “Annual RateMyProfessors.com Top 50 Rankings”. Hold on to your mortarboards.

As RMP explains: “Millions of college students grade their professors on RateMyProfessors.com and for the first time, we’re using your great input to recognize those with the highest ratings! Now you can see who your peers have rated as the best and hottest professors in the country, and which schools love their professors the most. Don’t see any of your teachers on the lists? Then get to rating them right here on RateMyProfessors.com.”

I looked for my name: alas - not to be seen. Get to rating me, students.

If he hasn’t already peeked, the Muhammad Ali of profs, the queen of the academic parade, the fairy at the top of the academic tree, is - wait for it - Professor Robert Citino.

Prof Citino teaches history at Eastern Michigan University (EMU), and is a specialist in World War II military history. Judging by his students’ feedback cited by EMU, he is indeed an impressive classroom performer. But not, by RMP criteria, the hottest. The hotty accolade (or the “big chilli”, as RMP iconographs it) goes to Maria Disavino, a professor of chemistry at Manhattan College.

Manhattan College. Ever heard of it? I thought not.

What is striking is that none of the top 50 teachers, as reflected by RMP’s 10-million-strong electorate, is affiliated to an Ivy League establishment, or one of those snobby, vastly expensive institutions like Swarthmore, Haverford or Trinity which pride themselves on their teaching.

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I can’t find her in the directory. She’s not listed at the Mount. Help?

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