Last year I started to keep a journal as I began teaching a unique university course. For whatever reason, it never panned out. I was either too involved in the course, or too busy to make time for it. This year, for several reasons, I think it makes great content for the theme of this blog. There is so much I love about teaching this course.You can read the course catalogue description on the Florida Gulf Coast University website. But I assure you if you stick around, you'll learn quite a bit about it here. I'm now in week three of the course, and I have two reflections. I'll post the first here to catch up and then I'll post the next one separately.
Week #1- August 17th, 2016
August 17th was the first meeting of my fall Colloquium class. It's a very manageable class size for a college class. It is considered a writing intensive class, so to keep the workload manageable for the instructors, the classes max out at 24 students. It's a required course fall all undergraduate students, all sections are almost always full. Mine is this semester. In preparing for and going to class the first night, I realized it felt just like the first day of school in grade school. As a teacher, you ask yourself questions like Will they enjoy my class? Will they think I'm a good teacher? You wonder how long it will take to learn their names. These thoughts all went through my head, and I even nursed butterflies on my way to campus. I've been an adjunct instructor for almost five years now, and I still get nervous on the first night of class.
After we had a guest speaker to introduce the service learning component of the course, I started with a pretty typical first night of class. I told them a little about me, explained how i set up the course on our online platform, and gave them a little insight to my teaching style. I encouraged them to buy the books, insisting they need them to pass the class (which is the truth). I reviewed the syllabus and asked them a little about themselves. For me that first night is all about breaking the ice, setting expectations, and looking for notable characteristics I can connect with their names. I used to tell my elementary kids I'd know all their names by the time we got back from lunch the first day, and I never let them down. I promised my college class I would learn them all, but was careful not give them a deadline. After all, I only see them for an hour and fifteen minutes, once a week.
I always feel energized after the first night. My nerves calm a bit. I am introduced to my students, and they to me. I prepare to make this semester better than the last. I suppose that's a carry over from my classroom days. The best teachers, at least the best intentioned teachers always start out with the goal of getting better each year. For me, it's about the content. I want to be better versed and more confident in what I'm teaching. I know the how. I've been teaching for years. This semester I'm not just going to be a College of Ed. instructor teaching Colloquium. I'm going to be a Colloquium instructor. It's going to be a great semester!
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