tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post656718192623483714..comments2024-03-29T00:56:07.277-07:00Comments on The Adventures of Notorious Ph.D., Girl Scholar: Overcoming Post-Traumatic Semester SyndromeNotorious Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/08700875559325201086noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-51172140217545231412011-01-23T13:08:01.433-08:002011-01-23T13:08:01.433-08:00I find it hard to believe that in one semester wor...I find it hard to believe that in one semester word on the street about you went from "awesome!" to "totallysuxxdon'ttakethatclass." I'm not saying there's absolutely no connection between your teaching innovations and your low enrollment numbers. Was it just that class, or did all of your classes fail to fill? <br /><br />I'm glad you got some perspective from colleagues and that you're going to stick with your new style of teaching. Internallydisplaced is right in that in my experience anyway, students are extremely conservative and fearful of the unknown or unexpected. In some ways, it sounds like they're reacting to you as though you're new to the institution rather than a seasoned vet. Because in some ways, perhaps, you ARE a very different teacher. So give yourself a break, and give it at least two or three semesters to declare defeat, if you must.Historiannhttp://historiann.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-32520173214639008702011-01-22T09:26:23.455-08:002011-01-22T09:26:23.455-08:00good luck! And as a current student, I agree with...good luck! And as a current student, I agree with Belle - it takes a long time for students to pick up on new teaching styles, and students follow strong trends in papers: the papers I love taking are entirely unfashionable at the moment, but it means that I get almost one-on-one teaching sometimes!<br /><br />I hope it all goes on okay this term (I'm English, so I'm not a "semester" person).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-5789047933453521452011-01-21T18:47:32.939-08:002011-01-21T18:47:32.939-08:00Ooops...'take', 'read', don't ...Ooops...'take', 'read', don't know what's up with the missing verbs today!WorstProfEverhttp://www.worstprofessorever.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-48129920434261865052011-01-20T17:03:06.203-08:002011-01-20T17:03:06.203-08:00Sometimes you gotta go backwards to some extent as...Sometimes you gotta go backwards to some extent as a prerequisite for moving forward. You had mastered your old style of teaching, and now you've changed and you need practice with the new style. It's just like when a baseball player alters the mechanics of his swing. He hits worse for a while until he masters the new mechanics, but can ultimately hit better than would have ever been possible with the old swing.<br /><br />Capisce?Comrade PhysioProfhttp://physioprof.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-38289009573598791762011-01-20T15:01:26.577-08:002011-01-20T15:01:26.577-08:00Changing things freaks students out. All kinds of ...Changing things freaks students out. All kinds of things can be done to mitigate their freak-outs, but the fact remains that some still don't listen. They are used to X, Y and Z. And even when you explain <i>why</i> you're doing 8, 9 and 10 vs x, y, z... they don't get it. <br /><br />It takes time to percolate through the student body. I changed things three years ago, and am just now getting students who know that things are different in my classes. Thankfully, I have the support of my dept and college. I think.Bellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10849272391043604637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-50130823585602420152011-01-20T14:41:13.579-08:002011-01-20T14:41:13.579-08:00The worst semester of teaching that I ever had was...The worst semester of teaching that I ever had was the spring of 2002. Horrible. Tons of plagiarism and had to fail eight out of 25 comp students. Ugh. The school asked me to teach a junior-level five-week summer course, starting in June. It ended up being one of the best classes I ever taught. It's a good thing, too, because after that grueling spring, I was ready to quit teaching forever. Sometimes one bad semester can really get you down. Hope that this spring will be restorative to you!Fie upon this quiet life!https://www.blogger.com/profile/12047096700049201873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-1207103565315083182011-01-20T14:26:24.351-08:002011-01-20T14:26:24.351-08:00Good luck! A few years ago, I was assigned to teac...Good luck! A few years ago, I was assigned to teach a Business Spanish course, a class I have a particular moral problem with (considering the long and complicated history of the US in Latin America). As a result, I prepared a course that tried to be a mix of language, history and politics. It was neither, everybody was frustrated, and half the class dropped out. I learned my lesson (refuse to accept that class if you can), and so did the Chair of my department (I never taught the class again). The next semester, I had one of my best semesters ever<br /><br />This semester, I started my upper level course with a particular tough reading (in Spanish). As a result, three students drop out and one showed up in my office panicking. On the other hand, the day they had it assigned, I probably gave my best lecture in years (and I hate to lecture for 75 minutes in a row), and the next class, students seemed more relax. I think it will go well.Spanish profhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248530328973177920noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-69206986075728113212011-01-20T13:52:44.326-08:002011-01-20T13:52:44.326-08:00Thanks, n & m! That's inspiring. I'm...Thanks, n & m! That's inspiring. I'm going to hope for a phoenix-like semester myself.Notorious Ph.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/08700875559325201086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6648409483330236099.post-65842986315025297232011-01-20T13:47:04.617-08:002011-01-20T13:47:04.617-08:00Good luck! I recovered from my unaccountably bad ...Good luck! I recovered from my unaccountably bad semester from hell with flying colors.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com