General Discussion

I think the student did respond to one or more of the (very broad) prompts. She talked about why she thought the topic of gender isn't worth studying. If the instructor wanted more rigorous responses they should have given stricter instructions.

I agree that the essay was poorly written and reasoned, but it didn't deserve a zero. The teaching assistant/instructor seems to have taken offense and overreacted.

If it's true the instructor is trans, then I suspect that the student deliberately targeted them with a provocative essay designed to cause a reaction. She hit pay dirt with the grade of 0. If she'd gotten a 70 we wouldn't know any of this had happened.

I do think it was planned in advance. Right wing students have been planting themselves in classes they deem to be overly "progressive" in the hope of catching an instructor being "unfair" for a couple decades now. It's a common tactic and most university instructors are alert to it.

The governor of OK is on a literal crusade to wipe out woke in "his" state, so this is assured of getting lots of publicity. Extra points for targeting a mean old trans instructor. I imagine the student is blonde. Was she a cheerleader in high school?

The instructor has been canned and I'm sure the failing grade will be erased from the student's record. She could easily have handled this at the departmental level but why miss a chance at a big public lawsuit and maybe a Fox News gig. A girl's got to think about her future.

Why is this student in college - and majoring in psychology of all things - if she doesn't want to learn anything different from what she already thinks she knows? My guess is as good as anyone's. My assumption is she's seeking a husband.