(no subject)

[icepixie]

I got told last night at class that I was "a legend among the first-year MAs." Apparently they think I have a complete draft of my thesis done already. I...am not sure where they heard this, because I definitely only have sixteen pages now. Which, yes, is further along than pretty much everyone else in my year, but it's not that remarkable. Nevertheless, I was rather pleased to hear that. :D

Teaching is less pleasing. It is getting easier, thankfully, but today I think I just confused my students while getting them to perform a mini rhetorical analysis in groups. I think they got by the end that they had to make a claim about the work rather than just restating MLK's argument in "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," but it was hard going. I'm glad I had them do it in groups, and didn't try to do it as a class, or have them work on it individually. Friday we're doing specifics of how to write a good intro, thesis, body paragraph, and conclusion, so I'll take one of their claims that they came up with and use it as a sort of running example--how to write a good statement of this claim, how to back it up, etc. Maybe that will make more sense. I guess this might be something where I just need to talk at them for a while, rather than trying to facilitate discussion of the topic that eventually arrives at answers. I try to stay away from lecturing, because if I do that, then why did I make them read the chapter in the book, you know? But this seems to be something that needs it.

Anyway, we're doing the body paragraph as a hamburger thing, which should be good for some laughs, especially since I can't draw on chalkboards at all.

And at least most of the kids are trying and willing to struggle with the material. I do have a few who are obviously completely uninvested and will undoubtedly fail out by November (the one who's missed three days of class already comes to mind), but on the whole, I have a good group of students.

And now I have to go read, because ILL finally got a book I need to me, but I only get it for FOUR DAYS. Grrr.

Comments

[nickless.livejournal.com]

I guess this might be something where I just need to talk at them for a while, rather than trying to facilitate discussion of the topic that eventually arrives at answers.

Y'know, as much as you hear that "facilitate/lead/groups/cooperative learning" is Good and lecturing is Bad, the key is really to have a balance and figure out what works best for which points (and be willing to bail and switch when you were wrong or a group doesn't fit what you expected). Sometimes lecturing is just the easiest, fastest way to get the information into their heads. You can spend forever trying to get them to the point where they kinda get it (maybe), or spend 10 minutes "telling" and have them all go "oh, okay, gotcha. Next?" Like with my kids - sometimes simply bailing and saying "dude, look up a translation" is just the best way to do it.

I try to stay away from lecturing, because if I do that, then why did I make them read the chapter in the book, you know? But this seems to be something that needs it.

If you're just repeating what they read, it's worthless. If you're adding to it, or going deeper, or using it in a different way - or if it's absolutely essential that they understand this part/can't risk them having blown off the reading - then lecturing's okay. It's all about doing it at the *right* time, not ALL the time. So it's good that you're avoiding it, but don't be so determined to never use it that you make something way harder than it needs to be (for both you and them). It's really good that you're recognizing when they're not getting it and trying to find alternate ways to pick it up later.

body paragraph as a hamburger thing

Ooooh, like. I like that I can also adapt stuff like that to use for paper formatting for my kids (intro/body/conclusion) since "paragraph" in college writing is more like the size of our "paper" writing. But not being a "regular" English teacher, I haven't seen a lot of resources like that. Thanks!

[icepixie]

Y'know, as much as you hear that "facilitate/lead/groups/cooperative learning" is Good and lecturing is Bad, the key is really to have a balance and figure out what works best for which points

Yeah, I'm learning that. I've already done the, "Okay, this discussion is going nowhere. Time to work on usage and word choice!" routine once. (Which is a little different than lecture vs. discussion of the same material, but they'd gotten the most relevant bits about the rhetorical device I was trying to teach, and I didn't have anything else to say about that day's reading that wouldn't have been blatantly politically biased, so I figured I should cut my losses at that point.)

If you're just repeating what they read, it's worthless. If you're adding to it, or going deeper, or using it in a different way - or if it's absolutely essential that they understand this part/can't risk them having blown off the reading - then lecturing's okay.

The thing is, their rhetoric textbook is actually really, really good, with one glaring exception. (They have a good chapter on how to do a rhetorical analysis, and then include as their example something none of my kids could write in a million years, because their example is by someone who's all, "Lalala, I'm analyzing this document through my experience growing up in Communist Bulgaria!" And I just want to beat my head against a wall, because that's not what they have to do for my class at all.) So I would feel ridiculous lecturing on most of the stuff their textbook covers, but I do want to check that they know it and get them to apply the concepts to the other texts we read. But it's like pulling teeth to get them to do any of that.

However, their textbook doesn't do much with how to create a good thesis, etc., so I'm a lot more comfortable lecturing on that (especially because it is in that "so important they can't blow it off" category).

It's really good that you're recognizing when they're not getting it and trying to find alternate ways to pick it up later.

Thanks. At least there's room in the schedule to go back over this stuff later; that's about the only upside to teaching a course that's not in any way content-based. If we don't get to the readings on education or environments or media or whatever it is for that day, it doesn't matter too much.

I like that I can also adapt stuff like that to use for paper formatting for my kids (intro/body/conclusion) since "paragraph" in college writing is more like the size of our "paper" writing. But not being a "regular" English teacher, I haven't seen a lot of resources like that. Thanks!

You're welcome! I'm glad it's useful to you. This week was actually the first time I'd heard of that analogy--from another grad student instructor--and I immediately went online to find out more. I've been trying to find a similarly good analogy for a thesis, but I think that's probably less suited to something formulaic--especially since I don't want them to be doing the "three-prong" thing unless it actually fits their needs. (Which it almost certainly won't. The five-paragraph essay is BANNED in my class.) If I come across anything similarly "regular English classy," do you want me to forward it to you?