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January 21, 2005
tj 205: week 1
brilliant decision #1: have the 2nd day of class in the cluster (especially nice when the cluster's next door to my office instead of across campus and it's -12 degrees outside), to 1) let students "get their hands dirty" doing something instead of spending the whole 1st week listening to me talk b/c they aren't ready to speak up yet, 2) give them an easy cooperative project to encourage conversation--again that i'm outside of, b/c i'm stationed at the front or pacing around and they're sitting facing each other in small groups--something our classroom simply won't physically allow, 3) introduce them to some resources, to the building where the clusters live, & most importantly the building where my office lives (they'll need that)*, & 4) put off starting out in a groove of any kind.
what we did:
on day 1: "went over" the syllabus (i still need to get better at that, but it's so boring. and i feel like dwelling over-much is insulting, like it implies they can't read. it's much more my style to give them plenty of time to read & then take questions. except that then a) the room is silent, & b) they don't ask many questions. i wish there were talking instead of silence; i'm not naive enough about this, though, to think that me talking (especially when i'm just reading what's already in front of them at them with periodic embellishments) is actually an improvement over silence), introduced/talked about (got a few more questions here, which was good) their 1st writing assignment & the night's homework to get it rolling, played the name-game, & had everyone write names on the board for the visual learners. yes, there will be a quiz.
for HW they called someone who knew how they had been named to do some relatively informal interviewing & searched online for general information about 1) their own name(s) & 2) naming practices in general and/or for specific cultures.
on day 2: in groups they shared sites they had found, did more searching, & then collectively created & e-mailed to me a list of sites their tables had found helpful or informative either about just their own names or about naming more generally. we did a too-fast once-over of resources on the library's homepage (i promised to come back to it in more detail when their next projects call for more detailed research), & then pulled chairs to the center table to share anecdotes about interviewing, what people had found, & the stories of their own naming.
my HW was to compile their lists of suggested web resources & send it to the class (done); theirs is to physically go to the library & get their hands on some other types of sources for these papers.
reflective moment: they seemed busy, curious, a little unfocused but in an exploratory, not-bored way. a good beginning. i'm thinking this is working--starting with a really simple, very personal project to get them to play a little with research tools before we focus in on more ostensibly school-related topics. they all seemed to enjoy telling their own stories. i need to make time for more of that next week--we didn't hear from everyone, it'll help us get acquainted, & discussing research out loud is a habit i want us to get & stay into.
*i saw someone's class come trooping through the building on day 1 having an orientation "field trip." don't know if i think that's a good use of 1st-day time or not--i like & don't like the idea. hm.
Posted by ttobryan at January 21, 2005 01:23 PM