She had a system. If you used the word "got" in an essay, you failed the paragraph. If you turned in a paper without a title, she threw it in the trash—literally, in front of you. She gave a 200-question midterm with no multiple choice. Essay only.

The answer is the modern accountability system. In the last twenty years, education has been hijacked by data, surveys, and the customer-service model. The student is no longer a student; the student is a "client." The teacher is no longer a sage; the teacher is a "facilitator."

Tricky Mary gets terrible reviews on RateMyProfessor. Parents complain that she is "mean." Administrators panic because her failure rates are high (even though her students learn the most). In a system that judges teachers by pass rates and "student happiness," Mary is a liability.