1. Do Not Read

Hello, Welcome. I’m Renée Valentina and this is Musing Interruptus. Musing Interruptus is a podcast for sharing thoughts and stories and enjoying idiomatic phrases. You can read along; the transcription is in the description of this episode; click on continue reading to open a Google Doc with the complete transcription. The idiomatic expressions are in italics. Try to get the meaning from the context and then look them up to see if you were right. If you like it, follow subscribe, and share it, but more importantly, continue the conversation. Drop a comment with your answers to today’s questions! I love hearing from you! The background music is called Tall Tell by Blue Dot.

Don’t read. Read as little as possible. Try not to read at all. This is what I think is going through some of my college students' minds. According to the INEGI (2024), the National Statistics and Geography Institute in Mexico, and UNESCO, and other sources, Mexico has a literacy rate between 95 and 99%. In 1975, 25% of the population was unable to read. The subway system in Mexico City is a relic of this. Instead of writing the name of the station, you see a picture. This is great for people who cannot read and makes traveling around the city easier for tourists. The public transportation system in Mexico City is great. I love using it, except during peak hours. Back to literacy, INEGI (2023) reported that 68% of literate people aged 18 years or more read -something- mostly online, some books. The average of books read in Mexico is 3.4 a year. That is two decimals less than a few years ago. 

Let’s remember, the country as a whole can read. This is a beacon of hope. However, as a professor of International Affairs at the National Polytechnic Institute, I have noticed a reliance on the use of artificial intelligence to write papers. This is troubling. Primarily because some of my students have been known to turn their papers in without reading the content or ensuring the activity is in line with the instructions. I have even had students who, not once, not twice… but many more times, have demanded a higher score for these activities, completely ignoring the content or objective of the academic exercise or my feedback.  Continue reading