Sometimes it happens

This semester I’m teaching 5 sections of the same course.  Sounds great, right?  One prep taught 5 different times.  Not really.  I mean, I’ve always taught 4 or 5 sections of pretty much the same class, but this time it’s different because the reality of these 5 sections is that I have a different schedule for each one.  One section is MWF, one is MW, one is TTh, one is completely online, and the last one is MWF at the high school.  There is some overlap, but it’s only week four and I find myself questioning myself every day.  I ask myself, “Did I say that already?  Did I assign that already?  Did we do that activity already?”  And every time so far, the answer has been no, so I’ve made sure that I’ve said and done everything I needed to do.  Until yesterday.

Yesterday I found myself standing in front of the classroom, writing on the white board, and asking, “What’s the formula we talked about last week for writing a thesis?”  And there was no response.  I looked someone in the front row — blank look.  Blank looks everywhere.  So I started the formula, and asked, “Did we not talk about this last week?”  They consulted their notes and the answer was no.  So we spent 15 minutes going over the information.  I’d much rather re-cover something to check understanding than forget to cover something extremely important.

And now I will finish grading the last 15 ad analysis worksheets before I go to bed tonight, so I am rested and ready to read  and comment on the first 100 rough drafts I’ll be collecting this week.

-C

August Already

I haven’t posted since May 4th.  I could say I was on vacation, I was busy, I was away from my computer, but the reality is that the majority of this summer has resulted in me rethinking autumn.  But before I delve into my frustration and disillusionment, I’ll share the best parts of my summer.

Addendum: I guess when I started this post I thought I could cover the highs all in one post, but as it turns out this trip meant more than I originally thought.  And I really should dwell on the positive.

The Highs – LA, Laguna, and Riverside

The absolute best part of my summer started right away in May.  As soon as my one remaining final exam was given and graded and final graded were submitted, I hopped in my car, drove to Minneapolis to hang out with a friend for the night, and then hopped on a plane the next day.  Destination: Los Angeles.

My friend Gina picked me up at the airport that evening, and with that I was officially on vacation.

 The true purpose of the trip for my friend Gina was to finish up some research, and I was there to help her with her research.  We spent a good chunk of Saturday and Sunday in the Japanese American National Museum looking at yearbooks from the internment camps and photographing pages in those books.  We stayed in Little Tokyo and had great food including mochi for dessert.  Aside from those hours researching in the museum, we also visited the MOCA and The Geffen and did some letterboxing.

On Sunday when we finished the research (and we did get through every yearbook from every camp that was available to us), we drove to Laguna to look at the ocean, wander beachfront shops, and have dinner.  I was most entertained by the wildlife: dolphins in the ocean and goats on the hillside.  Then it was on to Riverside to visit (and meet for the first time) my friend Elizabeth. What a treat and what wonderful hostess!  We stayed with Elizabeth and her husband Dave for two nights, and they were both so welcoming and so awesome.  I knew we were staying in the right spot with the right people when the first thing Elizabeth suggested we do in the morning was go to the salon and get pedicures.  Oh and she had a gorgeous cake already for us to eat the evening we arrived!  After a wonderful sleep and after our morning pedicures, we took in the sights of Riverside, CA, did some letterboxing, toured the historic Mission Inn (and made the tour guide quite annoyed, I’m afraid), had great food, and got to know Elizabeth.  She wrote about our visit here and here.

Visiting Elizabeth was the perfect start to my summer and perfect start to the next week and a half that Gina and I would spend driving up to Manzanar, driving through Death Valley, through Vegas, into Utah (hiking two very lovely national parks), and into Colorado to explore and meet more truly wonderful people.

If only my summer vacation could have lasted longer.

-Carrie

And just like that…

…the semester is over.  Well, almost.  I’ll give a final at 8 tomorrow morning, grade what’s left to be graded, submit grades, and run far far away.  Literally.  First stop Minneapolis, second stop California, third stop Colorado.  And I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy to be done.

This semester has been working its way to a close for a while.  I started the term with 4 sections (about 85 students).  One class was an 8 week class, so that one finished mercifully early.  Two other sections finished the week before Easter.  And what’s left is the one section that has been killing me slowly with its apathy.

I started this last section with 21 students, which means I gave one student permission to add the class.  It goes without saying that she attended a grand total of 7 class periods and turned in nothing.  She never dropped.  Other students stopped attending and either dropped the class or kept their sad little names on my roster.  I now have 15 students on the roster, which isn’t bad for a spring semester, but depending upon what happens tomorrow in the final and who submits (and doesn’t submit the final paper), I will most likely award 7 Fs.  Nearly 50% of my students will fail the class.  And the average attendance for those 7 Fs?

**hold on while I do some math**

36%.  Those students attended 1/3 of the class periods.  Out of 16 weeks of classes – 32 class periods – they attended, on average, 11 times.

What. The. Hell?

1.  This class is not difficult.  It’s Comp I.  It’s easy if you actually show up to class and do the work.  And, believe me, I had a couple students who loved showing up but didn’t do any of the work.

2.  This class isn’t at 8am.  It’s at 9:30am.  You should be able to drag yourself out of bed and come to class.

3.  I have received no communication from these students.  None.  No emails, no voicemails, no office hour drop-ins.  I have no idea where they have gone to or what their problems might be.  I just know that there is one student on my roster I would not recognize if I saw him in the hallway.  He attended 3 times.

The simple fact is that most of these students just don’t care.  They haven’t thought about what the F will mean or what paying back the money will look like.  The others have been consumed by life and the problems that fill it.  They chose to focus on their lives and forget about school, which was probably a smart choice, but…..they didn’t drop the class and will, therefore, earn an F.

It’s just plain depressing.

-C

SOLSC Day 31+1: Reflection

This marks the end of my third year participating in the Slice of Life Story Challenge.  And once again I must reflect.  In preparation for composing this post, I checked out my final posts from the previous two years.  And I must say, I feel the same way I felt at that time.  There were some days when it was hard to post, some days when I felt like all I had to say were negatives, but I do think I made an extra attempt this March to talk about teaching and to write longer, more detailed posts.  That makes me happy.

It also makes me happy to see one consistent type of comment on my posts from fellow slicers about voice.  If there’s one thing I strive to do in all my writing is create a clear voice that expresses my sarcasm or my amazement or my horror or my regret.  I’ve had to give a couple speeches this year at local elementary schools and middle schools and as I reread those speeches or anything else I’ve written, I hear that voice.  I realize that I write everything as if I were going to read it aloud.

And, as I reread my posts from this month, I think that’s one thing that I need to carry with me into the end of the semester and into the future: the importance of reading aloud.  I’ve been doing that more in my classroom this term (even though I tend to say, “Oh, I should really read aloud and have them read aloud more,” but then never do it as much as I should), and I like it.

I also appreciate each and every comment I received.  They were so insightful, kind, and friendly.  It’s so wonderful to hear from fellow slicers wherever they might me.  Those comments and reading the posts of others stay with me longer than anything I could ever hope to write.

Thank you. Thank you.  And thank you.

I have you all listed on my Google reader, and I plan to continue reading your writing whether you post regularly or irregularly (as I am sure to do).

-C

SOLSC Day 31: Case Studies and Plagiarism

Today the 7 students who showed up for class received nothing less than my best.  And aside from learning something (and doing the reading to prepare for class – gasp!) they enjoyed it.  Yes, they did.  Today we talked all things plagiarism.

I love this day of each term.  I use case studies to illustrate different forms of plagiarism, and all are examples of things that students have done in my classroom, which basically means that I get to blow their minds with stories of plagiarizing students, examples of their plagiarized work, and my methods for figuring out the plagiarism.  We begin with a brief survey.  I ask the students to answer the following questions to gauge their understanding of plagiarism.

1. How would you define plagiarism?
2. Why do students plagiarize?
3. What are the consequences of plagiarism in college and in the real world?
4. Are there any situations in which the consequences of plagiarism are too harsh or too severe?

After they complete the survey, I ask them to read a rough draft and a final draft of an essay from a student.  Then we discuss the differences between the two drafts.  

Today, one student joked, “I think it’s plagiarized.” 5 minutes later she asked, “What grade did he get on this paper?”  

“A zero,” I quickly replied.

All of the students in the room gasped, and the girl who had correctly identified it as plagiarism said, “But I was only joking around!”

Then we worked on finding his source for the paper, talked about how much work it was for him to plagiarize when he could have just turned in the really bad rough draft and still received some points, and figured out how they would recognize the plagiarism in the essay.  They couldn’t stop talking!  They felt like detectives searching to find the clues for a crime.

Then I opened up the case studies and read aloud each one to them.  They were asked to identify where on the scale of “Atrocious to Could Be Worse” they would put each type of plagiarism, and we talked about the different types of plagiarism – copy paste from a paper mill, copy paste from a source without citation, thesaurus paraphrasing, self-plagiarism.  We talked about the ethics of plagiarism – if you don’t get caught, is it still plagiarism and how does that affect the other students in the class or at the institution?

Our parting conversation had to do with their ideas for avoiding plagiarism.  I told them that we would be talking about ways to avoid plagiarism on Tuesday.  I successfully made them all super paranoid about what they are citing.  Felt like a perfect day to me!

-C

SOLSC Day 30: Book Club Confession

Today when I got home from school, I immediately went to the deck and sat in the warm afternoon sun reading my book club book.  I did not log on to my computer, did not open up my lesson plan book for tomorrow, did not make a single phone call, did not do laundry, did not do dishes, and did not turn on the television.  In other words, I did not do the things I would normally do on a Wednesday afternoon.  It was quite nice.

I needed to sit and read partly because book club meets on Friday and partly because I just didn’t want to deal with anything more than reading.  But I was not good.  When I picked up the book, I was probably only 50 pages into the 300 I would need to finish.  The book was fine, it had a plot, it had description, but….

After reading another 50 pages, I realized I just didn’t care about the development of that plot.  And knowing that I had read/listened to a book by the same author last month, I could see where this book was going to end up.  So I did something I don’t normally do – I skipped to the end and read the final 25 pages.  I found out who the murderer was, why the sister had moved to Denver, what happened to the brother, and who killed the murderer.  And then I still had the rest of the afternoon in the sun.  I am as bad as my students are.

Now I just have to decide if I will confess this indiscretion to my book club on Friday.  Tough call.

-C

SOLSC Day 29: Piles, Raisins, and Full Cups of Water

I’m usually the only one up in my house in the morning, and I actually prefer it that way.  I can go about my morning, take my time, and focus on doing the things that make me happy.  It helps that every night before I go to bed I pick out my clothes (thanks, mom!), hang them up to remove some wrinkles or iron if needed, set up my coffee pot to brew, put my bag of school stuff together (folders, papers, lesson plan book, office keys). Therefore, my mornings aren’t rushed.  I can take time to sit, drink coffee, and check my email if I want to.  I can stand in the kitchen and watch the cardinals eat out of my birdfeeder.  I really like the morning.

This morning, my husband for some insane reason decided he wasn’t tired anymore and got up.  If I was him, I would have stayed in bed for hours.  So while he was in the shower, I got ready. 

I love him..I really do….but…..

I had to navigate his pile of clothes just to get to the kitchen.  For some reason, he loves to pile his clothes up along side of the bed, at the foot of the bed, and in the hallway (which is what I encountered this morning). Yes, when he came to bed he simply dropped all of his clothes off in the hallway 15 feet from the bedroom.  Literally dropped them.  His belt was still on his pants and that belt was still tight.  It almost looks as if he simply disappeared and all that was left was a pile of clothes.  I’m convinced that if he could he would live in a home without closets – all the clothes would instead be kept on the floor.  And he, according to some divine wisdom only he has been given by the patron saint of all things clothing, would be the one who can determine whether that item in that pile in that area of the room is clean, too dirty, or wearable.

He also thinks that raisin bran or rather the Post company is conspiring against him to give him too much fiber in his diet.  Therefore, when he eats his Raisin Bran in the morning he plucks out the extra raisins – seriously, he thinks that “2 Scoops of raisins” is a horrible thing.  He would prefer 1 scoop or if he’s feeling particularly racy 1 1/2 scoops.  So he keeps those extra raisins in a tupperware on the counter for me.  And that’s why I was able to make raisin bread this weekend.

And the latest thing that makes me crazy are the full cups of water he leaves around the house.  Now I no longer just have to dodge piles of clothing on the floor, but I have to be careful where and how wide I swing my arms, legs, and bag because I just might hit a full glass of water and send it sloshing all over the carpet.  I’ve said it before, but sometimes I feel like we’re preparing for alien invasion.  If you haven’t seen the movie Signs, one of the characters leaves full cups of water all over the house because (spoiler alert) apparently the aliens are allergic to water.  While I am happy he gets so much water in his diet – he gave up alcohol for water – the full cups make me quite insane.

I suppose it’s a good thing he doesn’t blog – I would hate to see what he would say about me.

-C

SOLSC Day 28: Teeth

I’m kind of neurotic about my teeth.  While I prefer to think of it as perceptive or “in-touch with how my teeth are doing,” my husband thinks I’m just crazy.  I’m always worrying that I have cavities or that I need major work.  I don’t know why I think this, but I’ve learned that when I go to the dentist, if I think something is wrong with them, they’ll always be fine.

Last spring, I went to the dentist because my teeth hurt, well actually my jaw hurt.  The dentist x-rayed them and then tapped every tooth with some kind of sadistic metal tool.  Yes, then they hurt.  She then told me that there was nothing wrong with my teeth and that my allergies were affecting my sinuses which were, in turn, triggering a nerve that runs very close to my teeth. Yet another reason why I should always take my allergy pills.

So today when I had my 6 month cleaning, I thought, “Hey, my teeth feel fine!”  I should have known.

The hygienist, who after hours moonlights as a masochist complete with her own set of torture devises, cleaned my teeth and actually complimented me on how well I was taking care of my teeth.  “It’s because I just love my toothpaste,” I replied. “It’s just so minty!”  And I was being honest; I actually enjoy brushing my teeth with this stuff.  It is the best toothpaste on the planet. I’m sure of it.  I was prepared for the quick visit from my dentist for a once over and then I could put my coat back on and walk back up the hill home.

But when the dentist came in she said, “So…..do you have a toothache?”

“Uh, no. I mean, nothing out of the ordinary allergy ache. Why?  Should I have a toothache?” but as I asked the question I knew I should have a toothache if she, the expert who had already looked at my x-rays, was asking.

“Are you sure you don’t?  Upper right?” she asked.

“Oh crap,” I said. “What’s wrong?”

“Well, it looks like one of your fillings slipped which left a gap and stuff has worked its way up there and now you have a cavity there.  I think it’s on the root.  I’m sorry.”

Ugh.  So after some discussion, I now have another appointment scheduled for next week to take care of the cavity, which I am quite positive will entail a root canal.  Of course. 

I should know better than to assume that things are okay.  It works out better for me if I anticipate the worst.

-C

SOLSC Day 27: Night and Day

At least once a week, I remark to two of my classes that they are like night and day.  One class has great attendance, always does the work assigned to the best of their ability, participates, asks good questions, and writes with maturity.  The other class has spotty attendance, is oftentimes hard to rein in, doesn’t generally do the work assigned or stops after the introductory paragraph because (they claim) they weren’t sure how to proceed, and writes, well, like the remedial students they are.  While the course titles are the same and the content is the same and my expectations are the same, there is at least a 15% difference in the grades the students are receiving. 

I just finished reading rough drafts for class #1.  They were almost all complete drafts, and I had little to say regarding structure or content.  It’s obvious to me that these students spent the time they needed to spend while writing.  Class #2 is a completely different story.  Most wrote only the first page and then stopped.  And I can’t even bring myself to tackle the remaining drafts.  I’m tempted to put them off and read them tomorrow morning….never a good thing.

But instead I will spend the next 30 minutes writing my lesson plan for tomorrow and then go back to those stubborn “rough rough rough drafts.”  At least I can be excited about tomorrow’s lesson: the Re-Definition Essay.  I’m going to start with this video, this video, and this video, but I’m going to have to give them fair warning that the videos they will be watching are not suitable for all audiences.  Should prove to be very interesting.

-C

SOLSC Day 26: Things I’m doing instead of grading

Elizabeth just emailed me and told me she was practicing Grading Avoidance a bit today, and I realized that I was as well.  I’m really doing many things other than grading, but then again I don’t know a single teacher (except for this one sociology prof I work with who gets everything done right away – I think it’s because he used to work for the CIA in Morocco – true story) who is always on the ball and doesn’t procrastinate.  I can always seem to find a million other things to do instead of tackling that real or virtual stack of papers, journals, and participation assignments. 

Today, this is what my Grading Avoidance looks like:

• one load of whites (oh, crap, I’m out of bleach)
• dishes
• kitchen dancing to Bob Dylan, The Script, Linda Ronstadt, Mika, and All-American Rejects
• one load of darks
• futzing with the coffee pot
• email checking and responding
• Googled the PBS Ferret thing I watched last night to make sure I wasn’t dreaming – seriously, if it’s on your PBS station you must watch it
• more kitchen dancing to VHS or Beta, Dashboard Confessional, Alan Semerdijan (one of my fellow AP readers), Carbon Leaf, The Smiths, The Walkmen, Angels & Airwaves, and Caroline Smith and the Goodnight Sleeps
• wandering around in circles around the house
• making a loaf of raisin bread to use up all of the raisins my husband takes out of his raisin bran because “there are too many raisins in two-scoops of raisins”
• updating my computer software
• one more bit of kitchen dancing to U2, Joey Ryan, and The Decemberists
• staring at the wall, ceiling, counters, and out the window
• looking at pictures from my trips to Scotland, Israel, and Ukraine
• searching for plane tickets to CA in May
• checking the bread dough to see if it’s rising
• more email checking
• posting this
• thinking I just might open those essays now….

-C