One of the worst parts of my job as a professor is grading. Mind-numbing and neck-stiffening, grading takes huge amounts of time. Reading the same essay question responses or lab reports and papers for dozens of students is so unpleasant that we almost have to tie ourselves to our chairs to get us to do it! And, of course, with stressed-out students beginning and completing those assignments by pulling all-nighters, the quality of some of that work makes the task all that much more stultifying.
Author Archives: administrator
Getting a Jump Start
Teaching is like being in an endurance race. You’ve got to set a pace and stick with it. You’ve got to ration your energy so that you have some in reserve to make it to the end.
Does Spring Break Re-energize our Students?
What is the purpose of spring break?
I read in a few places that the purpose of a spring break, most common originally in cold-weather regions, is to allow for the make-up of days missed because of early and mid-winter snowstorms. What a concept! In some regions, particularly for K-12 schools, the break corresponds with the Easter Holidays. Some regions organize their academic year around the Easter Holidays and end one academic term in March and begin the next after a two-week or month-long recess around Easter.
Taking Stock at Mid-Semester
This post is a shameless repeat from last semester updated just a bit. In part, it’s because this is what I’m thinking about doing in class this week and in part because I am too overloaded to come up with a fresh idea! Look for a new post from me next week!
Most Colleges and Universities have their faculty members hand out some kind of course evaluation form at the end of the term in order to get student feedback about the class they just took and the professor’s teaching of that course. The feedback, often a combination of written comments and numerical scores, becomes part of the faculty member’s teaching record.
Letting Go is Hard to Do
How do you picture yourself when you are teaching?
I see myself talking, explaining, pointing, moving around the classroom.
I see myself standing at the front of the room, or standing by groups of students, or sitting amongst them, but talking, explaining, teaching.
image from: http://www.