What is your Minecraft username?: Minister Fudge
Do you have any previous bans/warnings?:
Complete warn history:
Warn x2 - (Metagaming): Posting CCTV footage w/o perms. + Joining petitioning efforts to compel the Government (unsuccessfully) in-game to release said CCTV footage. NB: These warnings have expired and are the only warnings I've received.
Complete ban history:
No bans. N/A
What is your time zone?: –AEST (GMT +10) - Sydney Australia
What is your discord username and discriminator? crystallizedgene
Link all previous applications you made on the server:
Denied - History Teacher https://schoolrp.net/threads/gener-history-teacher-application.62584/ ; Accepted - Governor https://schoolrp.net/threads/governor-ministerfudges-application.62864/
Describe your activity on SchoolRP: I am online for a couple of hours 'every other day' except Thursdays
Describe your roleplay experience with SchoolRP and other roleplay networks in general:
I did join the Government Faction but, full disclosure: that character’s ideology was incompatible with the faction’s rules, and was promptly fired for it. Part of the controversy involved Onrain posts that could fairly be said to have the potential to bring the government into disrepute.
Outside of that, I have in fact (unsuccessfully) tried out for the Bobcats Cheer Team (HS) so that I might provide a friend good company in their (also unsuccessful) tryout.
Taken together, I think we can all agree the roleplay experiences canvassed both involved errant choices that ought not to be repeated. At the time of writing, I understand no professor positions are available but nonetheless have seen fit to make an application given the novelty of what I aspire to teach.
Otherwise, I simply am going about my day as a peaceful Grade-12 student.
What are your current roles on SchoolRP:
I have no roles other than [Grade 12]
What is the subject you want to teach?:
Jurisprudence!
It must be stressed this IS NOT LAW. It obviously has a connection being about legal theory but these are very different things.
TRIVIA SECTION
What is your motivation for becoming a professor?:
I would say my motivations are that I’ve actually been taught jurisprudence at an undergraduate level and have a mountain of knowledge and indeed MATERIALS to draw upon (and make accessible for laypeople; adapt for a Minecraft RP community). I very much enjoyed this subject and did extremely well in it. I would not really be able to teach it as effectively as a regular teacher and so I am applying here to become a professor so I can have full creative control over how the course content is taught (subject of course to those responsible for reviewing what is taught). Presuming there are no issues, you can expect me to go on an absolute field day teaching topics you would absolutely not expect to be taught in a Minecraft server such as, for example, Critical race theory, feminist legal theory, Marxist legal theory, and frankly literally everything I was taught in Jurisprudence that I might reasonably get reviewed by the College Dean (or other relevant authorities) as acceptable topics. At any rate, the main corpus of jurisprudence could be taught without eyebrow-raising. Anything deemed too controversial will simply not be taught (here you can see I’ve learned from my experience in the government faction; we love to see personal growth here on SRP, very epic).
Otherwise, you can expect to see me teach about all other things you might expect to encounter in critical jurisprudences. Of course, these will be toned way down for simplicity but HEY the novelty would not be lost and frankly I suspect it would be amazing given the materials at my disposal.
Work out two interactive classes you will host if accepted:
- [More theoretically heavy, with some interactivity]
A simple question may be: Provide examples of the principle of formal equality being breached in society
A moderately more difficult follow-up question may be: ‘Is [that particular] breach good or bad and why? Are all departures from formal equality bad? Explain’.
A properly difficult question (that may be posed in a follow-up class and would rarely be sprung on students) could be: ‘Does true equality require there be no discrimination permitted by law, as a fundamental commitment of constitution-building and legal reasoning, if we are ever to even approximate equality in practical life?’ (To students who say yes) ‘How should we think of affirmative action in this context?’.
Creative or factually correct responses can be rewarded. Those participating in or encouraging a discussion may also be rewarded. Jurisprudence is a subject that by its very nature encourages debate and makes it extremely challenging for people to just google the answers 100% of the time.
You can see from these questions Jurisprudence is an incredibly rewarding subject to teach because YES it can be incredibly straightforward: Administer a reading and drill students with straightforward questions BUT, also, additionally it can get extremely theoretically dense and devolve into huge loaded discussions. It’s fantastic.
2. [Majorly interactive class]
Students could be confronted either after reading (perhaps a copy of the Karakura Constitution) or just immediately confronted with a ‘POV moral dilemma’:You are sitting on the bench of Karakura’s court deciding on a constitutional case. The plaintiffs maintained the Karakura Hospital infringed on the rights of their child by giving him a blood transfusion to save his life despite their protest and this infringed on their religious beliefs that they (including the child) made abundantly clear. You must decide if the hospital infringed any Constitutional rights’.
Students are encouraged to identify how their response to this question might be informed by any particular legal theory if possible; and if not, how they came to their conclusion (their reasons). They can offer a response or ask questions by raising their hands
The discussion will be led by students who raise their hands to offer a response. It will be my role to inform students how their response lands in terms of legal theory if they can not do it themselves. In this way, the class is dynamic in that I am lecturing students while also actively seeking responses from them.
For example, a student who simply cites the Articles of the Constitution is more in keeping with ‘legal positivism’ but if they argue ‘No, human life is precious and the Constitution and any law made by Karakura’s Government are simply inferior or lesser in comparison’ it is more in line with natural law theories, especially if the student based the argument on, say, some supernatural or extra-legal source (e.g. God’s will, the laws of nature). My role would be to hear students out and inform them of schools of thought most in line with their responses.
Work out a field trip (meaning a class outside school grounds) you will host if accepted:
A trip to TOWN HALL (or really any place designed for public speaking) to visit a [member of the legal profession or Karakura government] to learn about their respective roles and functions or ask questions.
Students will have had the (non-mandatory) opportunity to attend a prior class about LAWYERS’ PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY. I will have drawn upon jurisprudential literature and legal texts with varying views as to what the role of a lawyer even is. For example, according to Oliver Wendell Holmes's jurisprudential philosophy, the law is nothing but prophecies and it is the role of the ‘bad man’ (the lawyer) to predict what a court may do and advise their clients accordingly! Of course, HLA Hart had many criticisms and there is also the litany of perspectives you may draw upon from the critical jurisprudence (Marxist legal theory, etc) who may argue lawyers have a role in advancing social justice causes, fighting inequalities through pro-bono representation or what have you. A class that simply briefly explores these ideas and introduces them to students, hearing what they all have to say… would be helpful in preparing students to ask questions from members of the Karakura legal profession.
I would observe here though, I am simply drawing upon jurisprudential themes as they relate to LAWYERS. I can also do the very same with respect to JUDGES and am very much across HLA Hart’s theory of adjudication in his seminal text The Concept of Law as well as other perspectives as to the role of judges so… what I’m saying here is: I can absolutely prepare college students to sound like 800 IQ geniuses and it would be amazing.
SCENARIO SECTION
Your character would encounter a group of college jocks surrounding a bobcat jock, what would your character do?
Presuming there is no actual violence, Cornelius Covell would call upon the college jocks to compose themselves and not to let their passions overwhelm and dislodge their anchors of reason (in these exact words). He would use his authority appropriately to call the jocks to order and go on a full-length lecture about how surrounding this bobcat jock in these circumstances may well be tortious, in fact, it may constitute false imprisonment and such violations of civil society reflect poorly on this group of college jocks and they ought to treat their fellow human beings with kindness and not become ‘slaves to their passions’.
Depending on how the jocks respond, this could go MANY ways
- The Jocks respond violently (towards the bobcat jock): Cornelius would follow the appropriate procedures of Karakura with respect to violent students
- The Jocks plainly bully (the bobcat jock) because of his appearance: Cornelius would (aside from disciplining students as appropriate in accordance with Karakura’s procedures) may go on a whole lecture about Masculinities theories and feminist legal theory to stress the conduct he is witnessing is plainly indicative of patriarchal roles being reproduced by forlorn souls who would, had they any respect for the dignity of their fellow human beings, stop.
- Cornelius may start using Stoic Philosophy to appeal to the group of college jocks to stress that no matter what negative feelings they may be feeling about the (surrounded) bobcat jock; it is up to them whether or not they act on them, and it would reveal a lack of self control and good character on their part should they occasion any harm to someone who presents no risk of harm to them.
Your character would be supervising detention, one of the students constantly disturbs by asking stupid questions, what would your character do?
Cornelius would politely caution the student to, if it is a lecture being given ‘save questions to the end’. Otherwise, the student would simply be disruptive and thus can be asked to stop asking the questions and be politely informed that, should they continue, they may be made to leave ‘for the benefit of their peers’.
Cornelius would be polite, but clear in his message and stress the unfairness in disturbing the education of others; bringing the other students to the attention of the disruptive students.
Your character would be hosting a class, and a group of cheerleaders keeps on playing songs on the phone and call out other students in the class, what would your character do?
This question implies the group is able to be identified. In these circumstances, the cheerleaders will be politely asked to turn off their phones and cease calling upon other students immediately.
Cornelius would further call upon all students with phones to disable them during the class (turn them off) and ‘if any phone is spotted after [TIME HERE] I may well mistake you for playing music and remove you from the class; I would not want that, so please help me out here’.
In other words, having your phone out (at all) after the period would mark the offending student with suspicion. Cornelius is actively calling upon the class to make it easier to identify further disruptions. A very utilitarian solution.
Your character would be walking on the school perimeter and encounter a fight between a couple of students, your character tried to break it up but it didn't help, what would your character do?
Cornelius, who is knowledgable vis-a-vis stoic philosophy clearly understands in these circumstances he can not physically prevent the students from fighting. Thus, he would call for (appropriate) assistance and warn passersby of the potential danger. Outside of this, he would seek to not ‘break up’ the fight but simply use words to get all aggression by the students to cease until assistance arrives. Once assistance does arrive, Cornelius would be extremely administrative in approach and follow the appropriate reporting and disciplinary procedures in these circumstances. In accordance with the principles of administrative law, he would make an effort to ensure these procedures allow both sides the opportunity to be heard (Audi alteram partem). His demeanor towards the students would be non-judgmental, but expressing strong disappointment in any senseless violence.
CHARACTER KNOWLEDGE
Tell us everything you know about the character you will be playing in a few paragraphs. What does they look like? What makes them unique and different? What is their outlook on Students? What about the other teachers? What is their personality like? What is their plan for the future?
Cornelius Covell is virtually always wearing a pinstriped greyscale suit, black tie, and long jet-black traveling cloak with black penny loafers, and a black bowler hat. He has a chalky white complexion and grey hair.
On occasion, a golden pocket watch may be seen on his person.
He is extremely well-read and, to the dismay of some of his colleagues, often refuses to let others forget this fact. However, he is extremely well-manned and cognizant of his responsibilities in presenting arguments impartially; especially being a jurisprudence professor where views can often diverge quite dramatically and need to be mediated in an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect. He hopes to use the meager confines of his position to instill criticality in students; but, outside of the Academy, is a committedly revolutionary figure (at least as far as the laws of Karakura reasonably permit him to be) and does not want to see his pupils graduate and become ‘good disciplined liberal subjects; quick to see in one another an obstacle to the furthering of their rights’.
Indeed, his views on the role of education are incredibly different from his colleagues; subscribing as he does to the ideas postulated by Paulo Freire and much of Michel Foucault’s comments on the education system. Moreover, one of the texts he has long wanted to see taught in Karakura is ‘An Appeal to the Young’ by Peter Kropotkin as that text captures many of Cornelius’ own views and is effectively addressed to the very people he is charged with educating. But of course, his broader plan is to instill criticality in students as far as reasonably practicable and intends to do this not through indoctrination or zealous advocacy of his own views; but by making students co-creators in the broader process of education and introducing them to the ideas that have hitherto not yet been taught in Karakura.
Describe how your character ended up becoming a teacher and their previous life. It is optional to include earlier life but recommended.
Cornelius grew up in Australia and studied law/education, becoming a university lecturer. However, his early childhood was spent indoors as he was homeschooled for a great portion of his life and brought up in the Catholic faith by parents who were heavily affiliated with Opus Dei. Slowly, his faith began to dwindle; especially at the Australian Catholic University where, during his tenure as a lecturer, he grew disillusioned with the broader faith and officials of the University after they refused to rename a building honoring a disgraced Catholic Cardinal. This, combined with the things he witnessed during childhood that he is extremely reluctant to talk about led to him wanting to flee his home country to a ‘completely different culture’. Japan, with its population who are largely subscribers to Shintoism; especially in Karakura, a largely remote prefecture proved to fit the bill and so Cornelius moved there promptly.
He is confident in his abilities to teach irrespective of location; and has a clear view on the philosophical role of education that he acquired while getting his degrees at university with like-minded students.
IN-CHARACTER SECTION
1 - PERSONAL DATA
Full Name: Cornelius Covell
Title (Mr, Mrs, Miss): Mr.
Given Name(s): Cornelius
Preferred Name: Cornelius
Age: 38
Gender & pronouns: Male, he/him
Religious Denomination: Undisclosed
Marital Status: Not married
Nationality: Australian
Current Location: Karakura, Japan
SECTION 2: Academic Details
Teaching Experience (# of years): 4 YEARS
Post ( Name and type of school): Australian Catholic University
Date from: 3 / Mar / 2016 Date to: 3 / Mar / 2019
Ages Taught: Typically 18-30
Fulltime or Partime :
X - Fulltime
0 - Partime
Subjects Taught & Responsibilities:
Subjects taught included ‘Legal ****ysis and Critique’, ‘Foundations of Australian Law’ and, my pet subject, ‘Jurisprudence’ which is typically an elective subject law students can take later in their degree. I taught up to 80 law students albeit in classes scheduled at different times throughout the weeks of any given semester. Classes themselves typically comprised around 30 students.
Reason for leaving:
My contract ended and I decided not to renew it after the ACU Chancellor refused to alter the name of the ‘Pell Centre’ on the Ballarat campus; being named as it was after a disgraced Catholic cardinal. I have moral principles so I elected to take my teaching abilities elsewhere.
Working Experience (# of years): 4 YEARS (see above)
Academic Degree:
I have (3) degrees
- Laws (LLB)
- Criminology (Bachelor)
- Education (Bachelor, secondary)
Year of Graduation:
| Place of study (School, University, College, etc) | Date From | Date To | Fulltime / Partime | Qualification with Grade, Class / Division | Subject Specialism(s) | Age Range |
| Homeschool | 1990 | 2003 | Fulltime | Australian HSC | N/A | 5-18 |
| Australian Catholic University | 2004 | 2007 | Fulltime | Bachelor (Education, Secondary) | N/A | 19-22 |
| Australian Catholic University | 2011 | 2015 | Fulltime | Bachelors of Laws/Criminology | N/A | 26-31 |
Major(s): N/A
Minors: N/A
Native Languages: English
Other Languages: Japanese
Preferred Teaching Subject: Jurisprudence
Extra N/A
Additional notes about your application (if any):
It has been updated on the same day it was posted to be compliant with the newer format that, at the time of writing: Was last edited by a moderator: Aug 2, 2023.
I have had regard to the fact the format has been changed with respect to '# years' for past teaching experience. The number has been provided as the format requires, along with the information that would have been provided in the other format. I suspect the application reviewers are not so pedantic and punitive to frown upon such a decision.
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