Wow, it is hard to believe that it is almost November! With teaching this summer, it really felt like everything from July on was a big blur. I just received the student feedback reports from that summer semester, which I was very interested in seeing. I hadn't taught a summer class up to that point, and the pace and format were very different from a regular semester, so I was interested to see what the students thought of it, and if it would have any effect on their feedback for me. I was pleased to discover that they were overall very happy with the course, with several people commenting that they felt they learned a lot and understood things well, despite the shortened format. The biggest complaint, by far, is the textbook, which I also happen to loathe. Unfortunately, the class I teach is a two-part class, and I usually teach one part or the other, but not both simulataneously. We haven't gotten around to sitting down and agreeing on a new textbook, but it is on my list of things to do.
After the summer session, it was a bit of vacation, then a conference, and then right into the fall semester. The fall semester has been tough - I am teaching a junior-level course that really should be earlier in the curriculum, and I have the same set of students in a section of their engineering laboratory course. Each class and group of students have their own personality, and I am definitely struggling a lot for the first time with the undergrads. This particular group is small (18 students, compared to the 30+ I normally have), and their attitude and motivation level are very poor. They just had their first exam, and the average was the lowest it has ever been for one of my tests - squarely in the 'D' range. As a result, they are not a happy group of campers, but don't really seem to care (on the whole) about doing better...Frustrating to say the least.
Other than that, I have had my time eaten up by two new graduate students, both of whom are head and shoulders improvements over the two that they replaced. These two are engaged and eager to learn and work. We actually had a group meeting yesterday where we critically reviewed a paper from the literature - that was a first! I guess I am paying for this newfound promise with the grad students with a rough semester with the undergraduates. In addition, I somehow find myself advising three undergraduate extracurriculuars, one graduate extracurricular, and serving on a bunch of committees, including a new university senate committee on campus life. When did I get so involved? It's insidious.
What this means is that I really feel like I haven't seen anyone in months, and for that, I am truly sorry. Those that know me in the real world know that my personal life has undergone some major changes lately, so I think I have thrown myself more into the work. I am sorry if people out there feel like I dropped of the face of the earth. Everything will take some re-adjusting and re-getting-used-to, but I hope that we can all reconnect in the near future, and thanks for keeping in touch even when it feels like I haven't.
In other news, it looks like the Democrats may have an actual chance to take back the House, if not the Senate. I am not saying I am a huge fan of the Democrats, but as my grandfather used to say: "The Republicans will screw you blind, and so will the Democrats, but at least the Democrats will throw the little guy a bone once in a while." I have been following the races primarily at
electoral-vote.com, and am pleased as punch that Pennsylvania's junior senator, Rick Santorum, is about 10 points behind his challenger, Bob Casey. Rick Santorum is about as arrogant and bigoted a person as they come, and I was always thoroughly embarassed that he represented my home state. Good riddance.
Another interesting thing I read this week was an article on some of these online 'persistant world' type of games, like 'World of Warcraft', among others. This
blog talks about the life of an addicted gamer, and how he lost a lot of his life until he walked away from the game. He was spending almost 30-40 hours a week playing this game, and the subtext is that this has the potential to become an addiction like anything else done to excess.
Cover letters from Hell:
here and
here. How are these people ever employed
at all with these kind of letters?
Lastly, let's all prevent our children from ever experiencing anything at all: A Massachusetts school bans
tag. I'm glad I grew up when I did. We used to play a game on the playground called 'Suicide', where you would throw a tennis ball against the wall, and someone would have to catch the rebound. If that person bungled the catch, he had to run as fast as he could and tag the wall before someone else drilled him with the tennis ball. I'd love to see how this game would fair in today's climate.
Wow, that's the most I've written in a while. Enjoy your weekend everyone.
