I'ts been one hell of a day. I'm running on little sleep as it is, then find my Shakespeare class conspicuously silent. Seems four, maybe five people had done the reading. This has happened a few times, and I think-- this is a 300 level course, to be taught at the junior/senior level, and these people don't think they have to read. What the... ? A few classes ago someone said she didn't bring her book to class because it was too heavy. I hate being the bad guy-- and we have had some good discussions-- but it's evident that not everyone is pulling their weight, and that needs to change, and soon. I'm discouraged. So much of how a class will go depends on how much effort the students put into the course. When they're not reading, I have a terrible time just doing my job.
I need to come up with something next time that will stick.... a way to encourage them to think about the class as a collaboration, in the same way that theater itself is. I'm half a mind to ask at the start of the next class who's done the reading and then to tell everyone else to leave. Can I do that?
Long, drawn out deparment meeting this afternoon--we went nearly two hours, and it seemed to take ages to get even the smallest things taken care of.
I just want to go home, but sinceI forgot to bring a house key today, I'm stuck at the office until P. arrives home, whenever that may be.
on a happier note, a student told me she liked my writing class today.
1 comment:
I think you can throw out the students who haven't done the reading. I know a number of colleagues who've done that before. I've never pulled it off myself - I wimp out and give them some kind of in-class exercise instead. Though once I did make a group sit in class and read the book since they hadn't read it and we really couldn't do anything without them having read it - and I didn't want to send them away because then they just got free time! So I said, fine, we'll sit here and read it like we're in grade school. Actually, I didn't say that last part, I just wish I did.
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