Erik Scott
@escott76.bsky.social
He/Him. Biracial. English Teacher @ CRLS, Cambridge, MA. Adjunct professor at Bunker Hill Community College. Movie and music enthusiast. Introverted extrovert. BA / MA English, University of Massachusetts-Boston. CAGS English Education, Boston University.
This was one of the more difficult years I've had getting students into Othello, but the train seems to be moving right along to the station in Act III now.
December 5, 2025 at 8:08 PM
This was one of the more difficult years I've had getting students into Othello, but the train seems to be moving right along to the station in Act III now.
Agreed.
i appreciate those kids who thank me for class when leaving — it’s gratifying to know they register our class time as something valuable that they’re experienced
December 3, 2025 at 9:43 PM
Agreed.
I have several assignments in my writing classes I give to fight against what I call "essay-ey" writing and it's SO hard for students to find and embrace their voices with these assignments and to do it without using "I think/I believe" language.
December 1, 2025 at 11:09 AM
I have several assignments in my writing classes I give to fight against what I call "essay-ey" writing and it's SO hard for students to find and embrace their voices with these assignments and to do it without using "I think/I believe" language.
The student never quoted or references the original article beyond calling it "thought provoking" & then employs using outside evidence without synthesizing it with the article she was assigned once. Grade was deserved. University of Oklahoma should be ashamed of itself for removing the professor.
OU student says essay grade was a violation of her rights. Read the essay
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OU student says essay grade was a violation of her rights. Read the essay
In the essay, she wrote traditional gender roles should not be considered stereotypes. What do you think? Read the full essay and professor responses here.
www.yahoo.com
December 1, 2025 at 10:42 AM
The student never quoted or references the original article beyond calling it "thought provoking" & then employs using outside evidence without synthesizing it with the article she was assigned once. Grade was deserved. University of Oklahoma should be ashamed of itself for removing the professor.
Two students who were home for Thanksgiving break dropped in to tell me they were so glad they had me because they were prepared for what was expected of them and shared a lot of their peers were not.
Let. Them. Fail.
If students can’t do the bare minimum, they cannot pass the class.
I’ve struggled with this my entire career. I teach collegiate and advanced courses; I know it’s my job to make them do hard things. If they pass my class and can’t do hard things, I failed.
And I don’t fail.
If students can’t do the bare minimum, they cannot pass the class.
I’ve struggled with this my entire career. I teach collegiate and advanced courses; I know it’s my job to make them do hard things. If they pass my class and can’t do hard things, I failed.
And I don’t fail.
An issue we're seeing at all levels of university is that many students are simply refusing to do *anything*. They aren't reading the syllabus, aren't following assignment guidelines, aren't engaging with material, ignoring deadlines. And this might seem like old news, but it truly has ramped up.
November 29, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Two students who were home for Thanksgiving break dropped in to tell me they were so glad they had me because they were prepared for what was expected of them and shared a lot of their peers were not.
It's going to get worse before it gets better.
November 29, 2025 at 2:53 PM
It's going to get worse before it gets better.
Reposted by Erik Scott
I wrote an essay for @bostonreview.bsky.social about what I learned about close reading when I taught at West Virginia University
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
The Claims of Close Reading - Boston Review
Literary studies have been starved by austerity, but their core methodology remains radical.
www.bostonreview.net
November 26, 2025 at 3:14 PM
I wrote an essay for @bostonreview.bsky.social about what I learned about close reading when I taught at West Virginia University
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
It's nice to read something like that and find some of the same approaches you've been doing in your own classrooms.
I feel like this is the article I've been waiting for!
If you are an English teacher feeling frustrated with how to handle the AI era, this is a worthy read, thoughtful and pragmatic and full of hope.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/25/m...
If you are an English teacher feeling frustrated with how to handle the AI era, this is a worthy read, thoughtful and pragmatic and full of hope.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/25/m...
I’m a Professor. A.I. Has Changed My Classroom, but Not for the Worse.
www.nytimes.com
November 25, 2025 at 10:07 PM
It's nice to read something like that and find some of the same approaches you've been doing in your own classrooms.
Love that in this editorial/profile, there's barely a mention of the real stakeholders in this city's education system which are students & teachers, neither of whom seem to be of serious importance in any of these discussions to either Councilmember Hudson or the CPS administration.
Is Cambridge’s equity-based school system finally facing a reality check? - The Boston Globe
Elizabeth Hudson has tapped into public frustration that, despite lavish spending on schools, persistent achievement gaps in Cambridge remain.
www.bostonglobe.com
November 25, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Love that in this editorial/profile, there's barely a mention of the real stakeholders in this city's education system which are students & teachers, neither of whom seem to be of serious importance in any of these discussions to either Councilmember Hudson or the CPS administration.
Reposted by Erik Scott
New in The Important Work: @thevogelman.bsky.social shares his AI Transparency Survey and writes about what he learned when he asked his 10th and 12th grade students to reflect on their AI usage. Here's a bit of what his students shared. Read it here: theimportantwork.substack.com/p/the-transp...
![Alaina: After a few drafts of my conclusion, there were two sentences that I couldn’t find a clear wording for and I felt they were getting too convoluted for my presentation. I decided to ask AI to give me a few options for ways to rewrite them so I combined some of those ideas to make what I was trying to say more articulate.
Talia: Personally, I do not think AI usage is ethical, especially in a literature situation. . . Everything AI can tell me from a prompt I can learn from my own research.
Smaran: I always use the Microsoft Word Editor after every essay or project . . . Also, I used AI to try to find a scholarly source based on my thinking.
Ainslie: I’m not sure how to use AI in a way that maintains my thinking and voice and the integrity of the project. I also don’t see the [point of ] wasting that sort of energy and adding to my carbon footprint if I could use my brain.
Erin: I do not like AI and do not like using it in regard to my writing. I think it takes away the work of real writers and is harming us a lot more than it’s helping us.
Johan: I used the Google AI on my phone to look for different examples of Norse mythological influences in contemporary media.
Cassie: I didn’t use AI at all in this project. I don’t like using AI because it feels as though I am cheating myself out on my learning. This is an AP class; things are supposed to be difficult.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:a6m5puxjmwuwxhuviabkhg67/bafkreie26xqbeowqke7g5wlejitz2bgnxgjnv427xnov6e6vkvuman6p2y@jpeg)
November 18, 2025 at 1:25 PM
New in The Important Work: @thevogelman.bsky.social shares his AI Transparency Survey and writes about what he learned when he asked his 10th and 12th grade students to reflect on their AI usage. Here's a bit of what his students shared. Read it here: theimportantwork.substack.com/p/the-transp...
Reposted by Erik Scott
#BREAKING: Former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers will immediately leave his role as an instructor at Harvard while the University investigates his ties to child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
Summers Will Not Finish Semester of Teaching as Harvard Investigates Epstein Ties | News | The Harvard Crimson
Former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers will immediately leave his role as an instructor at Harvard while the University investigates his ties to child sex trafficker Jeffrey E. Epstein.
www.thecrimson.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:30 AM
#BREAKING: Former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers will immediately leave his role as an instructor at Harvard while the University investigates his ties to child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.
Dhruv T. Patel and Cam N. Srivastava report.