A few years ago, I was teaching a summer class when we did a lock down safety drill. I was forewarned that the lock down would occur and instructed to turn off lights, lock the door, pull down shades, and have students put away all electronics when the signal was given. Our compliance would be… Continue Reading I’ll be honest, I’m resentful: Drills, Trauma, and Learning
This past week has been been a challenging one. At times I didn’t know if I was up or down. These two words FLEXIBLE and ORGANIZED are ringing true for my work as an educator, and for my students in… Continue Reading 9x9x25 #5: Flexible and Organized
Last week my mythology class was reading about trickster figures. Tricksters are playful, amoral, charismatic, and, well, tricky. After reviewing typical actions and attitudes of trickster figures, I asked students to form groups, choose a contemporary character (not involved in politics!) whom they thought functioned as a trickster and then write up a brief overview… Continue Reading Trickster Teachers
We’re heading into the last leg of the semester, and many of us have students working on the most complex projects and concepts in our courses. If we were to walk in the students’ shoes a bit we would see that they are working on complicated culminating components in all of their courses right now.… Continue Reading Confusion and Learning
This week in my mythology class we discussed Oedipus the King, the famous ancient Greek tragedy about a man (a king) who discovers that he accidentally, unknowingly killed his father, slept with his mother, and had offspring who were also his siblings. The day of that discovery was a bad day for him. According to… Continue Reading Fatal Flaws, Errors, Mistakes
