The New Deal

So, I've been doing a lot of thinking about our class today, and trying to figure out a way to make the distribution of information more streamlined outside of class, and a way to make our lectures run more smoothly and effectively as well. Due to falling behind schedule a few weeks ago, I've been trying to cram more than I wanted into lessons in order to catch up, which has led to lessons that I find unsatisfying, overall. In an attempt to make our time in the classroom more effective, I'm going to try to add more structure to our class time. To do this, I'm going to do the following things:

1) I will post outlines of lesson plans on this blog for you to reference, made available no later than the evening before class. This way, you will have a general idea of what we'll (hope to) accomplish in class. We may not always get to everything on the lesson plan, but at least you'll know in advance what to expect. Of course, everything will be discussed in greater detail in class, but hopefully, this outline will help you 1) prepare properly for class 2) bring the proper materials to class and 3) have questions ready in advance, should you need clarification on a concept from the reading, lecture, or planned activities.

2)Sometimes, in preparation for future class activities, or in lieu of an in-class activity we didn't get to, I'll assign homework assignments in class. I will write these assignments on the board in the last 3 minutes of scheduled class time. In order to both assure that you receive these assignments, and as a measure of respect towards me, no students may start packing up their belongings until I have either written the homework on the board, OR announced that there is no special homework assignment. And, additionally, as a way of respecting your needs and schedules, students are allowed to remind me when we have reached the final moments of class time, since I have a tendency to loose track of time.

3) As a way to ensure that we are all focused and on the same page at the end of class, in class activities and group work will be completed BEFORE the final 5 minutes of class. This is a modification on my current method of lecture-then-activity, which often ends with people finishing up at different times, and drifting out of the classroom without any formal conclusion of class. Sometimes we will sandwich activities between parts of a lecture, other times, we will start with an activity. Again, hopefully, through your access to the lesson plans, you'll know what to expect in advance, and be prepared to break into activities more quickly, and with a better understanding of the assigned tasks.

4) I will primarily use this blog to disseminate information to the class, rather than ELMS. Assignment sheets will be available through ELMS, and weblinks will be posted both on Elms and in this blog.



I appreciate any feedback or further suggestions from you all.