April 25, 2008

Part-Time Instructors Are Not the Problem

To the Editor:

The issue of the accessibility of part-time instructors is a straw man in the complex problems arising from decades of exploitation of part timers ("Keep Adjuncts Away From Intro Courses, Report Says," The Chronicle, April 4). In 20 years of adjunct teaching, I've held regular office hours, whether provided with decent office space or not, and throughout that time, about the same number of students have come in unbidden.

Most adjuncts — who, in the