Today I did two things I almost never do. One is that I lectured in Honors Core I. I do that once per year (and once again in Core II). Two is I let my 1:00 class go with an assignment. I was too exhausted to teach. Outside was beckoning the students. They so did not want to be there.
My lecture seemed to go pretty well. It was, still, only 20 minutes long. And most of it was cribbed from Donald Murray. But I think I put it together nicely. The students seemed to enjoy it. I made them do open-ended writing, even. Put away their computers and write on paper. And they played along with me like troopers. This may be, all in all, the best Core I class I have ever seen, including when I was a student here. The new application process weeded out a lot of people who were not interested, I think. So we have people who "get" the idea of Honors.
Now I have to go home and pack. Which is a pain, but not a huge one, since it is just me & no kids. Even when I went to VA, I had to make sure the kids were sorted out before I went. This time, the kids are at home, so they are their father's problem.
So this afternoon, I am off to Petit Jean with no kids, and without the book read that I am supposed to have read. Wow, it is almost like being a student again...
2 comments:
you know, i'm swamped, too. i've realized there is no possible way to do all the required reading in grad school. just no way. so i've been skimming and *gasp* sparknotes-ing some stuff (not a lot, though. and just to give me kind of a clue what's going on.) then i underline the passages we discuss in class and go back and re-read those. i'm not sure if this is a good strategy or not, but at this point, it's the only way to keep my head above water.
have fun at petit jean!
I had a blast at Petit Jean. Someday we'd love to have you come along on an alumni retreat.
I think you have found the only sane way to deal with the reading load. I have done similar things, I hate to admit (when reading Tristram Shandy, I vamped about humor in general, which I picked up-- got me a B). Shoot, I still do that sometimes. I read some and then lie in wait to talk about what I read.
Bottom line is that you can only do what you can do. And I really believe that you can do more than most people ; )
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