Two weeks
So I'm now two weeks into my job at Purdue, and thought it a good time to update everyone. In my first two weeks, I've taught 5 lectures. They started off rough, and have gotten progressively better (in my opinion). The good news is that students are still coming to class, so things can't be that bad.
However, lecture planning has taken a large portion of my time. For me to survive as a faculty member, I have to get to the point where lecture preparing leaves me enough time to advise students and do research, too. But it's getting easier, so I'm hopeful soon I'll find time for other activities as well.
We did go see Purdue's season opening game this afternoon against Northern Colorado (which Purdue won handily). It was impressive to see that many students at a game -- much more impressive than any ACC football turnout. I think there were 5 sections of the stadium as student sections, where the entire section was students (and each section had around 80 rows). And they were all in black -- they call that a "blackout". Another impressive thing was how the role of the band differed. At the ACC schools I've been to, the band did a pregame show and a halftime show, and some pep music, but mainly during the game seemed deferential to the other spirit leaders. At the Purdue game, the band stands were at the field level, so band members would regularly be dancing around on the grass (but out of the field of play). Also, it appeared the band led the cheers, not the cheerleaders (who followed with the stuff the band was playing). On the plus side, the band was able to synchronize the whole stadium at once, which was impressive. Two other things which were new to me were:
However, lecture planning has taken a large portion of my time. For me to survive as a faculty member, I have to get to the point where lecture preparing leaves me enough time to advise students and do research, too. But it's getting easier, so I'm hopeful soon I'll find time for other activities as well.
We did go see Purdue's season opening game this afternoon against Northern Colorado (which Purdue won handily). It was impressive to see that many students at a game -- much more impressive than any ACC football turnout. I think there were 5 sections of the stadium as student sections, where the entire section was students (and each section had around 80 rows). And they were all in black -- they call that a "blackout". Another impressive thing was how the role of the band differed. At the ACC schools I've been to, the band did a pregame show and a halftime show, and some pep music, but mainly during the game seemed deferential to the other spirit leaders. At the Purdue game, the band stands were at the field level, so band members would regularly be dancing around on the grass (but out of the field of play). Also, it appeared the band led the cheers, not the cheerleaders (who followed with the stuff the band was playing). On the plus side, the band was able to synchronize the whole stadium at once, which was impressive. Two other things which were new to me were:
- Variable speed wave: They started the wave off normally, but at some point converted to a slow-motion wave. Literally, looking at it, I initially though that I was seeing things in slow motion, before I realized that no, they were just doing the wave in slow motion. It was really cool. Then later they started a second, fast-motion wave, which overtook the slow-motion wave
- Lifting students up when touchdowns are scored. Both men and women, being lifted up by the people around them, and tossed in the air (some just lifted, others tossed), some number of times before being put back down. At the height of the game, there were at least 20 people being lifted in this fashion across the student section.