Entitled or hardworking? Lecturer at NTU class questions student's request for consultation... on a weekend night

[Update April 14]

The student David Lee quoted in this story has emailed AsiaOne to explain that lecturer Lee Yuet Lai was telling the class that students should only consult her during office hours as she had encountered instances in the past where students had requested for consultations over the weekend.

David Lee said that no "student in our class (including myself) have requested for any such consultation over the weekend".

He added that "I thought it would be funny to respond in this way just for fun" and that he has always been mindful to never intrude upon others' personal time over the weekends.

He said that he would like to clarify that "throughout my university life thus far, I have never asked any professor for a consultation late at night nor during the weekends."

David Lee, an undergraduate from NTU, confirmed that the video did take place during an NTU class.

Meanwhile, an NTU spokesperson told AsiaOne that it is aware of the TikTok video.

"The incident was an opportunity to discuss boundaries, which is a useful life skill. The student apologised for the post, and the video has since been removed," the spokesperson added.

*This article has been updated for clarity.

Most educators appreciate it when a student reaches out to them with questions.

But not late at night on a weekend surely? 

During an online class for Nanyang Technological University (NTU) students, lecturer Lee Yuet Lai highlighted this by posing this question and referring to a student who had requested for a consultation on a weekend night.

"Student who asks for consultation [during] wee hours at night on a weekend. Is it right or not?" she asked.

A 30-second video of this was posted on TikTok on Tuesday (April 12). The video and account have since been deleted.

Student David Lee then responded: "No lah, I thought like you will love us cause you call us your kids mah, prof. Then you say you don't want to give us your weekend ah."  

He took it a step further by jokingly saying that he doesn't quite know if he "can call her mummy already or not".

Some netizens, however, failed to see the humour in his reply, arguing that there should be clear boundaries set in such situations.

"Disrespectful as f***," a TikTok user wrote, along with a clown emoji to add what they thought of him.

Others argued that the lecturer deserves her own personal time.

Last November, the Minister for Education Chan Chun Sing said in Parliament that the workload of teachers has "more than doubled" to keep the school system going during the Covid-19 pandemic

To address this, school leaders have been providing guidance on avoiding parent-staff communication after school operating hours except for urgent matters to "minimise the blurring of lines between work and personal time".

He also outlined various short-term and long-term measures that the Ministry of Education plans to put in place, including systematic breaks for teachers to recharge themselves throughout the year.

So, the next time you think about asking for a request from your professor or teacher, have a look at the calendar first.

AsiaOne has reached out to NTU for more information.

ALSO READ: 'Nothing to do with marks': Singapore Poly lecturer gets real on school grades during online lesson

amierul@asiaone.com