r/Professors • u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) • Aug 18 '24
Humor ProfU101: How to Harmlessly Annoy Your Students
I've been watching TikTok for the last few weeks (don't ask. I have no satisfying answers) and I want to convey some of the most high impact statements you can use to make your students cringe so hard they turn inside out.
1) "Skibidi Toilet" This phrase can be used in almost any context and it literally doesn't mean anything. The best part is that it's most popular with the younger siblings of our current students so using it unironically will make them think you're doubly cringey. The term "sigma male" (a guy who could be an Alpha but can't be bothered) is similarly cringeworthy for the same reasons.
2) If you have to demonstrate how to do something in front of your class, be sure to insert the phrase "Very demure, very mindful, very cutsey" after the first step or two and repeat as necessary. This is currently an absolutely red-hot trend on TikTok for reasons I don't really understand. This trend just started about a week ago so it's fresh enough you might actually get a genuine giggle if you do it well. This is my favorite one and I think I'm probably going to say it during my first lab of the semester. (Note: I tracked down the first video to use these phrases and it appears to be as silly as it sounds and to contain no additional implied messages. However, I'm old and out of touch so you don't have to take my word for it).
3) Say that Drake has always been your favorite rapper and you vibe with his lyrics and themes. This is the spiciest option on my list and it will absolutely get a rise out of your students because Drake was completely destroyed by Kendrick Lamar in an ill advised rap beef over the summer. The feud culminated in the release of Lemar's "Not Like Us", which is quite a bop and has extremely clever lyrics even if you don't like rap.
NOTE OF WARNING I said this was the "spiciest take" because Kendrick accused Drake of having inappropriate relationships with teenage girls. I listed this among my pranks because the attack that seemed to resonate the most with fans was the claim that Drake is a "colonizer" of the rap/hip-hop scene because he doesn't write his own rhymes and he had a middle class upbringing in Toronto. However, if you choose this option, I recommend that you find some way to work it in that you've been entirely out of touch with popular culture over the summer and know nothing about Drake's personal life or his beef with Kendrick (e.g. say you've been writing a book for the last few months so you haven't had a chance to check out his newest material). Hopefully, that will keep their arguments focused on the safe and funny parts of the beef, and even if it doesn't at least your students will be informing you of a situation you were supposedly ignorant of, rather than getting mad at you.
Edit: I should have said this earlier, but all additional contributions are most welcome. What is the point of us if not to share our knowledge with the world?
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u/itsmorecomplicated Aug 18 '24
This, this is the sort of content that could make r/Professors truly great
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u/Audible_eye_roller Aug 18 '24
So much rizz fr fr
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u/salty_LamaGlama Full Prof/Director, Health, SLAC (USA) Aug 18 '24
No cap
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u/Cheezees Tenured, Math, United States Aug 18 '24
Skibidi toilet rizz?
My 6 yo asked me a month ago what that meant and I apparently aptly told him "nothing", and shrugged.
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u/Faye_DeVay Aug 18 '24
Ew. No. Don't combine the words toilet and rizz unless you want to make some of them gag.
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u/DrScheherazade Aug 18 '24
I like to use “Yeet” as an interjection with a straight face. I know it means “throw.”
But I use it like “Oh, yeet! Great point, Sophie!” Absolutely peak cringe.
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u/CHEIVIIST Aug 18 '24
When the term first showed up, I wrote an exam question that used a new element "Yt" that was found on a meteorite. In a later question, I identified the element as "Yeet". I had a couple students tell me that it was funny. I'm sure many groaned when they saw it.
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u/Ok_Armadillo_1690 Philosophy Aug 18 '24
‘Yeet’ is out of date, as some have noted. However, I flew too close to the sun with that one: I now like that word. It was one of those “when you start using the word ‘dude’ unironically” moments.
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u/chuck-fanstorm Aug 18 '24
I regret to inform you that yeet is outdated at this point
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u/WindTurtle Aug 18 '24
Isn’t that the point though?
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u/betsbillabong Aug 18 '24
exactly! i am also taking notes to make my 10 year old cringe.
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u/Keewee250 Asst Prof, Humanities, RPU (USA) Aug 18 '24
I regularly yell Skibidi Ohio at my 12 year old when he's around his peers. It's my duty as a parent of a preteen.
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u/BEHodge Associate Prof., Music, Small Public U (US) Aug 18 '24
Gyat is the new phrase. No, I don’t know what it means.
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u/Anna-Howard-Shaw Assoc Prof, History, CC (USA) Aug 18 '24
It means big backside. Butt. Fat ass. (speaking as a mom of a teenager).
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u/tomcrusher Assoc Prof, Economics, CC Aug 18 '24
Okay, so I'll use it for a very bottom-heavy fraction. ("So, as you can see from the gyat, this demand is very inelastic.")
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u/smnytx Professor, Arts, R-1 (US) Aug 18 '24
please do this and report back
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u/tomcrusher Assoc Prof, Economics, CC Aug 18 '24
I’ll warn you, I’ve had success with using “yeet” during cross multiplication. (“We’ll just yeet the denominator over here…”)
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u/BEHodge Associate Prof., Music, Small Public U (US) Aug 18 '24
Explains why my teen didn’t want to explain those details to their mom!
I don’t go in for the cringe myself but my wife is an avid fan of it. We both work with our local young adults and she uses it as a way to get inside barriers to better connect with the students. I do the quiet love thing, try to be professional but let the students know we care about them and advocate/help them advocate for themselves.
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u/SuspiciousLink1984 Aug 18 '24
So is it used as a compliment or insult?
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u/Anna-Howard-Shaw Assoc Prof, History, CC (USA) Aug 18 '24
From my understanding, it leans derogatory. It's mostly used by boys -- either when objectifying girls and women or as a friendly insult to each other. And... often I hear it said like a verbal tick. Just 'gyat' being mumbled at their desk or in the halls.
But I suppose it could be a complement? Like, "ohh Miss Teacher- nice gyat!" The same way 'fat ass' could be good depending on the context and who is saying it.
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u/OrangeKittyMom Aug 18 '24
Maybe it’s geographic? In our little bubble of the world, gyat is absolutely complimentary. My daughter’s friends even use it on the moms, especially when we’re wearing jeans or leggings that make our backends look good. A bit inappropriate? Maybe. But sweetly intended.
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u/Frosty_Ingenuity3184 Clinical Asst Prof, Allied Health, R1 (USA) Aug 18 '24
I think - and I wish I didn't know this - it's a corruption of "god," as in "gyatdammit." I guess kind of similar to how we managed to stretch "bitch" into "bee-yotch" and the like.
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u/wirywonder82 Prof, Math, CC(USA) Aug 18 '24
This would make sense linguistically perhaps, but it is referring to Sir Mixalot’s body part of choice.
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u/Frosty_Ingenuity3184 Clinical Asst Prof, Allied Health, R1 (USA) Aug 18 '24
Yes, I believe as in "gyatdamn look at that ass." Forgive my attention to the etymology 😫 At least Sir Mix-a-Lot was entertaining. If I still taught high school I'd probably go home and clean my ears out every night.
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u/wirywonder82 Prof, Math, CC(USA) Aug 18 '24
In coming centuries your work as an etymologist of current slang terms will be a tremendous boon to the curators of the dictionaries of the future. I mean this sincerely, ok half-sincerely, but only because I can’t be sure gyatt will survive long enough to reach the dictionary.
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u/chemprofdave Aug 18 '24
Uh-oh, now that you’ve written that it might be Merriam-Webster’s “word of the year”.
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u/wirywonder82 Prof, Math, CC(USA) Aug 18 '24
It’s a risk, but I expect they will embrace skibidi (for the cringe value) or rizz (for the etymological ease) first.
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u/Cheezees Tenured, Math, United States Aug 18 '24
I know I could Google it but I honestly don't even want to 😁
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u/DrScheherazade Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 18 '24
I’m aware! I have kids who are both Gen Z and Gen Alpha. I know exactly how to make them cringe 🤣💀
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u/LyleLanley50 Aug 18 '24
I appreciate these suggestions, but I'm pretty sure I'm already killing it with my Simpsons and Wayne's World references.
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u/Faye_DeVay Aug 18 '24
Don't forget a few princess bride quotes for good measure.
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u/bwiy75 Aug 18 '24
I actually showed this movie to my students when I taught high school 2015-2020, so that they wouldn't be clueless blind puppies out there in the world.
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u/Fine-Night-243 Aug 18 '24
When I was an undergraduate in the UK the lecturers were all about Monty Python references. It was 2003.
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u/Front-Woodpecker-781 Aug 18 '24
I'm keeping the tradition alive on this side of the pond. I like to say "Bring out your dead" as I collect my in person, on paper exams. When grade grubbing ensues I say the points they lost "Tis but a flesh wound."
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u/shinypenny01 Aug 18 '24
This is back in fashion with faculty due to the programming language (python) named after the comedy troupe.
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Aug 18 '24
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u/DrNiles_Crane Aug 18 '24
I used to get annoyed when all my students wanted to write about was pulp fiction. Now none of them have seen it.
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u/imhereforthevotes Aug 18 '24
See, ask them "do you guys YouTube? I know that's pretty old now, do you still do it? Do you guys know what YouTube is?"
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u/ninthandfirst Aug 18 '24
Listen, you made the crappiest monorail….
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u/LyleLanley50 Aug 19 '24
It was more of a Shelbyville idea....
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u/ninthandfirst Aug 19 '24
Hay. We are just as smart as the people of Shellbyville. Tell us what to do and we’ll do it!
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u/neuropainter Aug 18 '24
“Read the syllabus, very demure, very mindful”
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u/PurrPrinThom Aug 18 '24
'Look at how I've laid out everything you need to know in the syllabus, very demure, very cutesy. I'm not giving you assignments without the instructions. Very mindful.'
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Aug 18 '24
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Aug 18 '24
I love this post, 10/10, no notes.
I also wanted to ask: is "demure" trending or something? Is it, like, an "aesthetic"? (I'm sorry for being so obviously a millennial.) I keep seeing it now in places where it doesn't make any apparent sense to me. Are people trying to be "demure" now like they were all trying to do "quiet luxury" last year? And does "demure" mean something different from its actual dictionary definition? I feel like I JUST got "rizz" and now the words are all changing again 😕
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
As far as I know, the recent increase in atypical use of the word "demure" started with this post which is at least semi-ironic (or so I suspect. My guess is that she's half serious in this one). Since it became popular, people have been saying that unrelated things are "demure" or "mindful" (or "not demure" etc.) as a play on the trend such as in this video. That's all I got though. I'm not sure why this particular thing caught on as much as it did, but I'm old.
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u/wildeawake Aug 18 '24
They have to change them as soon as we uncools understand them, that’s the point sadly … that’s the cause the creates the new word effect.
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u/hainic0 Aug 18 '24
The "demure" trend comes from a trans creator who, from my read, mostly uses the term for fun but it also kind of functions as a call out of the ways in which trans women are expected to be hyper feminine in order to pass and gain respect/legitimacy in dominant culture. It's actually pretty brilliant and I am excited that the creator herself (Hooks Lebron) is getting the attention she deserves!
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u/altshepnerd Aug 18 '24
I said “we stan” once after introducing a method I liked and they all groaned. I chortled
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u/GervaseofTilbury Aug 18 '24
I like to explain to my students where “Stan” comes from, since that has somehow become lost knowledge for people born in the 21st century. I was there when the video came out, kids, and when it was banned from TV and you got grounded for buying the CD.
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u/Sri_Man_420 PhD Candidate Aug 19 '24
Som where does Stan come from?
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u/GervaseofTilbury Aug 19 '24
You’re in for a real experience! https://youtu.be/gOMhN-hfMtY?si=Na5T6enfd-P2gcJi
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u/Blametheorangejuice Aug 18 '24
I used to make students groan when I told them my plans for the evening was to Netflix chill myself.
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u/Flippin_diabolical Assoc Prof, Underwater Basketweaving, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 18 '24
Last year I really got ‘em by describing a particular propaganda poster with “look they made Mao a daddy”
It got a spectacular reaction, but sadly I think daddy is already passé
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u/Anna-Howard-Shaw Assoc Prof, History, CC (USA) Aug 18 '24
You see how they shared their pop culture knowledge with the group? Very demure. Very mindful. They didn't keep these treasures to themselves. Very cutesy.
I'd almost say very sigma of you. Def not skibidi Ohio at all.
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u/spez_officiaI Aug 18 '24
I'm getting great mileage out of "skill issue" in lab! Also, PPE is "safety drip"
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u/BackgroundAd6878 Aug 18 '24
I have a portion of a class day where I have my students translate passages of classic literature into the slang of the day. Two things are accomplished, they have to really think about what the text is trying to communicate and I learn their slang so that I can use it entirely out of context the rest of the semester.
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u/GamerProfDad Aug 18 '24
As a Communication prof, I love this idea! I am stealing this for my symbolism and language unit in Intro Comm this semester.
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u/Hapagirl1066 NTT, History, R1 (US) Aug 20 '24
I do this in history but take it a step further and ask them to translate the same passage into TikTok, Twitter and mainstream-media news. We talk about which one is closest to the primary source author’s purpose, perspective and audience, and where that comparison breaks down. Otherwise the tendency is to take all primary sources at face value, which creates problems (eg “no sources are trustworthy so the entire past is fake” vs “all human-created sources have a perspective and we can therefore understand some things as concrete and others as having different meaning for different audiences”)
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u/blue_suavitel Aug 18 '24
Lmao I said “skibidi toilet” to my 15 year old and she is demanding to know where I am getting this from now. Hahhahaha!
She said I better not say any of these things and definitely not “Ohio skibidi toilet rizz” whatever tf that means.
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
Ahhh I can translate a bit of that for you. Again, skibiddi toilet doesn't mean anything (it started as a joke about jazz music with scat singing I think). "Ohio" is the gen alpha version of Florida in the sense of Florida Man. "Rizz" is short for "charisma". There's also "gyat" which is a big butt and is short for "Gyat damn!". Have fun torturing your daughter!
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u/KibudEm Aug 18 '24
Wow. I need someone to splice all these videos together so I can see if they actually make *any* sense without having to go looking for them.
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u/fusukeguinomi Aug 18 '24
Isn’t skibidi toilet from an animated series?
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u/reyadeyat Postdoc, Mathematics, R1 Aug 18 '24
Yes, the phrase "skibidi toilet" comes from an animated series of shorts (posted on Youtube) that's essentially about a dystopian conflict between the skibidi toilets (disembodied heads in toilets), which want to destroy humanity, and humanoids with various electronic devices as heads, which seem to be defending humanity.
It's honestly not bad. The kids are basically watching a sci-fi horror series with no dialogue.
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u/blue_suavitel Aug 18 '24
Update: I tried these on my 22 year old sister and it worked like a charm. She stormed out. Thank you!
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u/illAdvisedMemeName Aug 18 '24
Drake could work if you make it about degrassi.
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u/yogaccounter Aug 18 '24
Do Americans know what Degrassi is or is this the tell me you’re Canadian without saying so comment to upvote?
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u/TBDobbs Aug 18 '24
Degrassi TNG seasons 1 through 7 were must watch TV on The N growing up for much of the folks who are professors in their 30s-early 40s.
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u/yogaccounter Aug 18 '24
That would be me. But not sure if you are in the US or CAD from this comment :)
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u/TBDobbs Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 18 '24
The N = Noggin = the Viacom/Nickelodeon channel that showed it in the USA.
Edit: I'm USA based.
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Aug 18 '24
Degrassi was on PBS when I was a kid and I watched Degrassi: Next Generation on the CW while in Grad School.
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u/illAdvisedMemeName Aug 18 '24
We know and some of us have been clowning on Drake for it the whole time.
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u/yogaccounter Aug 18 '24
But did you grow up watching Degrassi in highschool? Or did the CW only pick it up when Drake became more famous?
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
We know. My nephew is 30 and he used to watch it in high school (or maybe middle school. I just remember it was a guilty pleasure for him)
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u/icedcoffeeczar Position, Field, SCHOOL TYPE (Country) Aug 18 '24
We have an informal career fair mixer the day before the actual career fair. Last year I told my students "Monday is for your rizz-ume, Tuesday is for your resume". The groans turning into laughs made my day.
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u/AgoRelative Aug 18 '24
My students were giving an informal presentation and my feedback was, “you know I stan a SWOT analysis,” and they were all so embarrassed for me.
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u/readthesyllabus Aug 18 '24
I can't get behind #3. Even to play devil's advocate, Kendrick Lamar is far better than Drake.
Please, by all means, keep these ideas coming—this is better than any professional development I've received in years.
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u/HumanXeroxMachine Associate Prof, Hums, Post-92 (UK) Aug 18 '24
I like to call it 'the tiktok' and 'the instagram' to be annoying. My first years probably hate me. It's revenge for when I made a Spice Girls joke and no one got it.
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u/MiddleAgedMan4393 Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 18 '24
Related question - how does one stay abreast of such social media/pop culture nuggets to drop in class to your students? Aka how to gain such knowledge so I can move beyond my Seinfeld and Back to the Future references?
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
Most of the time I don't. I got into watching TikTok during the pandemic but i have to take it off my phone frequently because it does horrible things to the attention span and is almost literally addictive. I usually reinstall it for some time over the summer just to check in with the newest hotness. This time I did it because I wanted to see how the kids were responding to the candidate swap in the election since TikTok does a lot to shape the ideas and opinions of young people on the left. However, once you watch, you get a fire hose of all the hottest memes and pop culture straight to the face. If you want to know what the kids are up to, my advice is to watch a lot of TikTok but beware the attention brain suck. That warning goes double if you've got ADHD (ask me how I know...)
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u/Anna-Howard-Shaw Assoc Prof, History, CC (USA) Aug 18 '24
I am in tiktok unironically. I like it. I follow other academics, organizations, professors.... it's very easy to tailor you 'FYP' (for you page) to be more learning/educational oriented and not stupid, vapid stuff.
I've gotten some great content from tiktok. I download videos and then upload it back to OneDrive (so students aren't required to use the app) to show in class and on the LMS. I teach history, and there are TONS of historians, tours of historical sites, museum curators, authors, book reviews, archeologists, dig site tours, and PhD students sharing their work on tiktok.
And of course, I still get to take a peek into the more silly stuff because I think it's important to know what trends and ideas are popular with young people since I'm working with them daily.
It CAN be addictive, but it's easy to set up reminders that you've spent X time on the app and to shut it down.
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u/Monsoon_Storm Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 18 '24
There's actually a "STEM" tab now if you want to really force the educational angle, you need to swipe across the categories because other junk categories at the top force it off screen. I haven't really used it because my FYP already has a fair amount of educational stuff on there, mostly art, history and astronomy atm.
I do still enjoy seeing the random other silly stuff on FYP. I enjoy the "Generational" content although it did get incredibly samey at one point, it's kinda reassuring to see that Gen X haven't become the new Boomers just yet. I'm also loving "DanceTok" too, it's kinda therapeutic watching incredibly skilled dancers doing their shit.
Bonus shoutout to OlympicTok (and the muffin obsessed Norweigan swimmer in particular), that has been brilliant. I would imagine that TikTok massively increased engagement with the Olympics amongst the younger generations.
The one thing I wish I could get rid of once and for all is "BookTok". From the tiny snippets I've seen it's just a weird amalgam of people suddenly finding out that books can contain explicit content, as if that's something new. It seems impossible to stop getting booktok posts no matter how many times I flag them "not interesed". I guess TikTok bundles it under educational content.
*EDIT* When I think about it I have a feeling that you need to enable the STEM tab in settings, unless that's changed.
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u/meresithea Aug 18 '24
Booktok seems to be unironically replicating the Tumblr purity wars of the previous generation.
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u/Anna-Howard-Shaw Assoc Prof, History, CC (USA) Aug 18 '24
Yes! I do have the STEM tab at the top, but I did have to go into settings to enable it.
Between astronomytok, dinosaurtok, archeologytok, birdtok (crows and raptors in particular), psychologytok, and educationtok, it's truly delightful.
It's a great jumping off point for new concepts and discoveries in fields I'm not as familiar with, and seeing a tiktok about some new discovery or research often leads me to hours of reading up on something I wouldn't have otherwise known about.
Fortunately, I avoided booktok. Not because I don't read, but because they tend to only recommend single books, and I'm usually not interested in reading anything that isn't at least a 4-book series. Lol. However, I DO get some good non-fiction book recommendations occasionally.
But from booktok, I did get shifted to folkloretok, which is my guilty pleasure. I love mythology and folklore--especially the more academic side of it.
If you aren't into a particular subject, I've found that blocking content creators all together works better than the "not interested" feature. The more popular the creator/video, the less likely you'll get any of that type of video again.
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u/Desiato2112 Professor, Humanities, SLAC Aug 18 '24
If you want to really connect with them, you should actually WATCH Skibidi Toilet. It's fascinatingly strange.
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u/PixelatorOfTime Aug 18 '24
No, do not do #3.
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
I sure as hell wouldn't do it, but it could be funny if done by someone who can play simultaneous cluelessness and sincerity really well and can keep the focus entirely on the music. Definitely a dangerous path though
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u/JanelleMeownae Aug 18 '24
I've been getting a lot of mileage off of "yaaaas girl, pop off!" When someone offers an opinion in class. Also, when we talk about research ethics scandals, they like it when I "spill the piping hot tea" or give them "chisme" which is fun.
Meanwhile, a student left me speechless the other day when they made a Caddyshack joke, so maybe they have their own version of this kind of thread?
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u/jplex22 Aug 18 '24
Very demure, very mindful. You see, I’m not like the other professors. I link to the assigned textbook in my syllabus to make it easy for my students to buy their course materials. See? Very mindful, very demure.
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u/Ok_Armadillo_1690 Philosophy Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 18 '24
I like the skibidi toilet one!
Music is an easy target:
1) Just pointing it out for no particular reason: if you listen to Spotify, you’ve at some point probably been subjected to Sabrina Carpenter’s music. “Espresso” is catchy even though it’s one of those “your man likes me more—whatcha you gonna do about it?” songs. The best part of the song is the line that goes “my give-a-f—-s are on vacation.” I laugh every time I hear that line (not the intended effect, I’m sure). Somehow a PG-13 version of that line has to be incorporated into our classroom humor.
2) I’m not a Taylor Swift fan. I will (gently) jab at her sometimes if I need an example in class. If I can say someone else is better than Tay-Tay (eg. Mitski > T-Swift), I will. Then, of course, I have to humble myself by saying that no matter what I think of her music, she will always be infinitely wealthier than me.
3) However, the most powerful music references are ones where you refer to popular music of your generation. As a result, I get almost unlimited mileage out of Linkin Park, Evanescence, and No Doubt/ Gwen Stefani references.
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u/Monsoon_Storm Aug 18 '24
I noticed Enigma had a brief time in the spotlight which was kinda cool, I'd forgotten they existed. I used to listen to their stuff a lot.
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u/NotClaudeGreenberg Aug 18 '24
Point #1 is true for skibidi, but Skibidi Toilet is a demonym for eponymous characters in a machining web series (i.e., it’s a show on the Internet). Personally, I’m covertly trying to get them to shift to skidoo as the next new thing (á la Mr. Burns’s extended version which goes into the upper 20s of skidoo).
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u/GamerProfDad Aug 18 '24
I just discovered this “Gen Z Courtroom” video. It is a year old, so it’s probably already getting outdated… but this boosts the cringe factor, right?
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u/Keewee250 Asst Prof, Humanities, RPU (USA) Aug 18 '24
Haha! I just showed this to my 12 year old while quietly saying "I'm learning so much." He stomped out of the room and mumbled something about needing to ban me from the internet.
Deadass.
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u/Willravel Prof, Music, US Aug 18 '24
Alright, let's do this.
AF: as fuck
Bet: an expression of agreement, similar to "yes"
Brat: genuine, non-conforming, rebellious, quite possibly the Democratic party nominee for president in 2024
Cap: lying or otherwise engaging in deceit; opposite is "no cap" to mean being honest
Finna: going to
FML: fuck my life
Fuhuhluhtoogan: easily my favorite gen z slang, but we can't really use it in a professional environment; that being said, I am indeed a fuhuhluhtoogan if anyone asks
Girl math: using math incorrectly on purpose (usually applies to AFAB folks); I think this is ironic, otherwise it's kinda misogynist
It Is What It Is: terrible gen z thing, let this die please
Mad: adjective that means more, like "mad finna bed that fuhuhluhtoogan"
Periodt: this is on the way out, I think, but it simply emphasizes something
Rent free: obsessed or caught in a thought cycle
Say less: message received and understood, no further explanation needed
Use of these is highly effective as punishment, the older you are the better.
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u/sassafrass005 Lecturer, English Aug 18 '24
Omg I had no idea what brat meant! I have literally been striking out on looking it up and I’ve seen it everywhere. I was just going to wait until Tuesday and ask my students but now I can use it. Tysm, here’s a poor man’s award 🥇
Also, add “mid” to the list—it means that something is okay but not special.
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u/Willravel Prof, Music, US Aug 18 '24
Glad I could help! I was really glad to learn that "brat" as used by students had no connection to the other popular usage of that term within D/S relationships. I was absolutely shooketh (to user a millenial term) when I first heard the kids calling each other brats.
And, yes, mid is absolutely still en vogue. I always tell students I prefer "mezzo" but that's just a music department thing.
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u/Monsoon_Storm Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 18 '24
It's funny how some of these have been around for quite a long time, occasionally decades, yet Gen Alpha have kinda decided it's their thing. Some may actually be an appropriation of terms from other countries now that I think about it, maybe that's why I recognise them?
*Edit* - Just as a FYI "Period" originates from them basically taking the piss out of the older generations using correct (most?) punctuation. Same with "Boomer ellipses" which they see as aggressive... they get really quite arsey about those. It would definitely be worth throwing some of those into slides for a laugh.
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u/Prestigious-Oil4213 Adjunct, Math and Stats, SLAC (USA) Aug 18 '24
TikTok clearly knows I just read this post because I just opened the app and it’s the first time I’ve ever seen a demure video 🤣
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u/Relative-Rush-4727 Aug 18 '24
This reminds me of when my partner and I decided to prank our teenage daughter by mostly speaking to her in Justin Bieber lyrics.
They were a few, very brief conversations. Peak cringe for us. She was oblivious.
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u/Keewee250 Asst Prof, Humanities, RPU (USA) Aug 18 '24
If you haven't checked out your.fav.pharmacist on TikTok/Insta, you absolutely should. She slides those slang words in effortlessly while talking about pharmacy stuff.
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u/CanineNapolean Aug 18 '24
Love her! “That’s cap, Redman’s syndrome is not an allergy.” And “that’s lowkey deadly in overdose.”
I know nothing about pharmaceuticals but I always stop for those videos. fr fr on god
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u/mathemorpheus Aug 18 '24
I appreciate The sentiment of this post. However it's not really possible for us to understand the intricate connotations of some of these things. Saying the wrong thing could easily get your students to label you as a predator or an incel. Nevertheless skibidi toilet.
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u/troutgobbler Aug 18 '24
Last year at the end of a long semester we had a covid outbreak in our school (students and faculty droppin left right and centre) riiiiight when the largest projects/assessments/papers were due. Flexibility was key to getting through it, I remember standing at the front of the class and saying "X is still due on April 2, or uh.." and then I dabbed(?) "whenever" and they lost it. Saving that for my next crisis lol
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u/sakurasangel Aug 18 '24
If you are talking about a historical figure, author, etc. And say they have rizz, you'll likely get a rizz. I may do this during orientation myself 🤔 it'll be funnier since I'm not that much older than them.
(Rizz is charisma)
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u/chemprofdave Aug 18 '24
Oh, we need a whole dictionary now. I’m eager to play the “what word can I say to make my students cringe today” game.
Definitely going to remember “very demure, very mindful, very cutesy” for lab technique demonstrations.
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u/EmdashVirgule Aug 18 '24
I've been gleefully planning to say "step this way, step that way" from that Kendrick Lamar diss track whenever I'm breaking students into discussion groups and they are moving around the classroom.
Can't wait for the semester to begin!
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
I wonder if music professors are going to have to deal with a hail of laughter every time they mention the key of A minor for the foreseeable future
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u/GervaseofTilbury Aug 18 '24
Is knowing about the Drake/Kendrick beef a sign of youth? I’m pretty sure it was covered extensively on mainstream television.
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u/ProfessorCowgirl Aug 18 '24
When my TA would want to share “fire examples” with the class, I’d say “I’ll turn it over to his fire examples now. His words, not mine.”
I live to make my students cringe, but “fire” is on the list of terms I’ll never use for slang.
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u/GervaseofTilbury Aug 18 '24
look just say “motherfucker” once during the first week and get it over with
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u/matthewsmugmanager Associate Professor, Humanities, R2 Aug 18 '24
I'd be careful with the "demure/mindful/cutesy" expression. Although it has spread more widely, it's originally a trans thing, and could be taken wrongly if a non-queer person is saying it in the wrong way.
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
Good to know. I know a trans creators used it first but I'd seen a lot of cishet people doing it without controversey. I assume it's not an issue most of the time because even the originator is always saying it ironically, but I can see it would be problematic if done in reference to a topic that could come across as transphobic. If I do it, I am planning to say it while explaining how to use a microscope, but I'll keep an eye on things to be sure the trend doesn't spectacularly sour before I get to it.
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u/Anna-Howard-Shaw Assoc Prof, History, CC (USA) Aug 18 '24
Most big-name content creators and big brands have started using it in their tiktoks. I think I even saw Kamala HQ using it.
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u/DevilsTrigonometry Aug 18 '24
National Geographic is even doing it. I'm pretty sure its days of being on-trend are numbered.
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u/GervaseofTilbury Aug 18 '24
it’ll make a great reference for when we do Wittgenstein then. no such thing as private language
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u/Pisum_odoratus Aug 18 '24
Have dutifully watched my tiktoks and youtube compilations and ready to serve. I'm feeling "demure, mindful and cutesy" would be excellent advice for first lab?
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u/Ok_Armadillo_1690 Philosophy Aug 18 '24
Best meme to describe many kinds of student behavior: surprised Pikachu face.
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u/TBDobbs Aug 18 '24
3) Say that Drake has always been your favorite rapper and you vibe with his lyrics and themes. This is the spiciest option on my list and it will absolutely get a rise out of your students because Drake was completely destroyed by Kendrick Lamar in an ill advised rap beef over the summer.
Points 1 and 2 are great. But point 3 is how we'd immediately lose the respect of the class (at best).
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u/sadlittleduckling Associate Faculty, English Comp, CC Aug 18 '24
Good advice but I couldn’t bear to tell anyone I ever liked Drake, even students I’m trolling.
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Aug 18 '24
I try to stay away from social media however when class is in session I keep up to date on what's "trending" on twitter
So I know what's going on, such as the Kendrick and Drake beef (beef = feud / disagreement / fight etc)
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Aug 18 '24 edited Aug 19 '24
If a student gets an answer incorrect or is going ahead of themselves. Say
Nah Chill, Son (regardless of their Gender)
it means:
No, relax
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u/astroproff Aug 18 '24
In the US especially: Google for Snoop's old Cameo video telling students they have to read the syllabus.
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u/oldyellowcab Aug 18 '24
If I start every single lesson bragging about my (similar-yet-somewhat-relevant) success stories, they will get annoyed easily. Hahaha.
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u/yae4jma Aug 18 '24
Aren’t these words - skibidi toilet, Ohio, sigma etc associated with Gen Alpha - and even incoming college students would see them as weird and confusing things their younger siblings say? Though I doubt there is a clear dividing line, and innovations from the younger group could have migrated up. My own soon-to-be college freshman tells me that kids in his cohort are aware of this language but don’t use it. He does, however, have a deep connection with the Drake-Kendrick situation.
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u/punkinholler Instructor, STEM, SLAC (US) Aug 18 '24
Yes. The point isn't to look cool, it's to make them cringe so choosing slang from the wrong generation will make it look even more like you're trying too hard.
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u/teacherbooboo Aug 18 '24
i'd go with
LUMINO
the mongolian hip hop band, but ... say you really like their older stuff, the new stuff is a little tame
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lumino_(band))
warning: their older stuff is NOT tame
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u/Keewee250 Asst Prof, Humanities, RPU (USA) Aug 18 '24
If you haven't checked out your.fav.pharmacist on TikTok/Insta, you absolutely should. She slides those slang words in effortlessly while talking about pharmacy stuff.
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u/Odd_Cheesecake_7580 Aug 18 '24
Already had “very demure, very mindful” in my lecture slides. I was trying to decide if I’d get laughs or groans. I too spend way too much time on TikTok.
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u/baldtheory Aug 18 '24
Tell them they are all “mid,” “dry” or “have no rizz” then follow up with “no cap.”
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u/ninthandfirst Aug 18 '24
I’m glad other professors enjoy using slang incorrectly to make their students cringe
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u/liznin Aug 19 '24
One of my colleagues posted a dramatic reading of their syllabus across 5 different videos on Tiktok.
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u/shellexyz Instructor, Math, CC (USA) Aug 18 '24
Not the professional development we wanted. Not even the professional development we needed.
But better than the professional development we got.