Don't Kill My Back-to-School Buzz |
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I don’t know about you but I’m buzzing with back-to-school excitement.
Last night, I attended a faculty meeting for adjuncts at the community college where I teach. There were 10 new adjuncts in our department (apparently the media isn’t lying about community colleges booming during the recession).
During the meeting, we had some free time to talk about syllabus ideas and I was just JAZZED by how creative, intense and student-centered the department and everyone in it are.
The department in major experimentation mode – replacing exit exams with portfolios and faculty consultation cohorts, bringing in an ed tech coordinator to prepare teachers to use blackboard and the new SMART boards, and (simple but effective) color-coding handouts for courses students often take at the same time.
On top of that, everyone was brimming with ideas and education philosophies. It was great to see the different approaches we all take and what new things everyone is putting to the test this term.
I’ve been working on integrating video instruction to my online course, focusing on fewer texts and putting some pop culture in the curriculum to make it less stuffy. Another teacher told me about 55-word short stories that get across all the major literary techniques. Simple though it seems, another teacher uses cute pictures to make her syllabus more accessible.
Not only was it great to compare notes and get some new ideas, but the night made me realize why summer break is SOOO important for educators. You need time to reflect and re-realize the excitement you have for what you do and how you do it. My burnt-out self from May wouldn’t even recognize me today!
My goal for this semester is to keep this outlook alive (at least in the back of my head) when I’m bogged down with grading and complaining and the “working two jobs” blues.
How’s your outlook for the new year? Have you got a new lease or are you already counting down to summer 2010 (180, 179…)?
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