Trying to do this daily hasn't been working out, but I will redouble my efforts to at least write twice a week!
I've been teaching for 12 years now, give or take, and the difference between week 1 and week 3 never fails to surprise me. Week 1 is full of boiling energy and frazzled expectations and new car smell, week 3 is when we start really getting to work.
Week 2, for all intents and purposes, does not exist.
But by the time we get to week 3, the shock of newness has faded. Some students have dropped, and some have already stopped attending, but those who remain are focused in a new way. They're more attentive, more willing to participate...okay, that "more attentive" needs a bit of unpacking. In week 1, students stare with rapt attention, listening to every utterance and scrambling to make sense of it all, but often not quite understanding much. By week 3, they might be a little more chatty with their neighbors,but that's because they've absorbed some of the rhythm of the semester and they're sharing their newfound wisdom with classmates. Also memes...but mostly newfound wisdom. They're proud that they can turn to a friend and explain what's going on, and it's delightful to watch that maturation at work (even if it can be a bit distracting).
Everyone is preparing for their first major projects. ENC 1101 will write rhetorical analysese, and they seem pretty stressed about it, but we've been going over examples and that's helping. I've received a few office visits and a lot of emails, so I think this is going to go relatively well.
ENC 3213 students are composing letters and memos. I've assigned an unusual volume of work for this project (unusual for me) by increasing the document output from 2 to 3, and requiring proof of peer review and a reflection write-up. I know the students can deliver, but occasionally low energy and participation leave me wishing they would ask more questions to clarify any confusion. I worry about the margins.
ENC 3416 students are working on using "old media" (NOTE: Define this a bit better in advance of the project...need to clarify if we're talking about pre-literate, pre-digital, pre-mechanical, etc...) to do "new media" work. It's a weird experiment, and yesterday (9-5-18) things seemed to really click into place. I'm excited to see the results! Assignment includes proof of peer review and a process analysis / literacy narrative.
