I was taking a term ending exam of the undergrads. There were 12 students, of which I should have known ten because they were in my unit. I could recognize some of them who used to attend the clinics. Two of the twelve were taking the exam because they had missed their exams due to some reasons. I did not know them. One of these latter sat in front of me, ready to fire off answers (at least he seemed like that in the beginning).
"What is this instrument and where is it used in Obstetrics?" I asked him, pointing to Sims' speculum.
"It is Sims' speculum" he said. Then he got stuck on its obstetric uses. I waited patiently. He put on an expression of deep thought, made some faces indicating the mental effort he was making to recollect the answer. I tired of waiting and pointed to another instrument.
"What is that instrument and where is it used in Obstetrics?" I asked him.
"It is a curved artery forceps." He said. Then he told me one use of that instrument.
"Any other uses?" I asked him.
"...." he repeated the previous routine. I was getting really tired of waiting. But I wanted to give him a fair chance to answer the question.
"Look here. I will go to sleep right here in my chair. When you remember the answer, wake me up." I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. A minute passed. I was beginning to feel good when he said,
"Sir."
I woke up and asked, "What is the answer?"
He mimed the thinking process again.
"You woke me up without finding out the answer? Don't do that again. Wake me up only when you have the answer." I went back to my dozing.
"Sir" he said after a minute. I woke up.
"You have the answer? Good!" I said. "What is it?"
It seemed he did not have the answer. He just kept quiet.
"See this guy?" I complained to my Assistant Professor who was taking exam of another student nearby. "He does not answer my questions. I told him I was going to sleep, and he should wake me up when he thought of the answer. Twice he woke me up, and both times he did not have any answer. Is that fair?"
The Assistant Professor smiled.
I had known Professors who put the students to sleep by their lectures. Some students sleep in my classes too. But I had not known any student who put his Professor to sleep by his silence, and then woke him up, not once, but twice. This surely is a case of cruelty by a student to his Professor?
"What is this instrument and where is it used in Obstetrics?" I asked him, pointing to Sims' speculum.
"It is Sims' speculum" he said. Then he got stuck on its obstetric uses. I waited patiently. He put on an expression of deep thought, made some faces indicating the mental effort he was making to recollect the answer. I tired of waiting and pointed to another instrument.
"What is that instrument and where is it used in Obstetrics?" I asked him.
"It is a curved artery forceps." He said. Then he told me one use of that instrument.
"Any other uses?" I asked him.
"...." he repeated the previous routine. I was getting really tired of waiting. But I wanted to give him a fair chance to answer the question.
"Look here. I will go to sleep right here in my chair. When you remember the answer, wake me up." I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. A minute passed. I was beginning to feel good when he said,
"Sir."
I woke up and asked, "What is the answer?"
He mimed the thinking process again.
"You woke me up without finding out the answer? Don't do that again. Wake me up only when you have the answer." I went back to my dozing.
"Sir" he said after a minute. I woke up.
"You have the answer? Good!" I said. "What is it?"
It seemed he did not have the answer. He just kept quiet.
"See this guy?" I complained to my Assistant Professor who was taking exam of another student nearby. "He does not answer my questions. I told him I was going to sleep, and he should wake me up when he thought of the answer. Twice he woke me up, and both times he did not have any answer. Is that fair?"
The Assistant Professor smiled.
I had known Professors who put the students to sleep by their lectures. Some students sleep in my classes too. But I had not known any student who put his Professor to sleep by his silence, and then woke him up, not once, but twice. This surely is a case of cruelty by a student to his Professor?
