(no subject)
Writing my course syllabus makes me unrealistically optimistic. It’s like “ooh, my wording is so clear! Students will never have to ask me about tutoring opportunities or the grading scale; I’ve laid it out so beautifully!”
The truth? Students will be asking me about the homework late policy up until the final week of the school year, and they will never fail to be indignant when I write a referral for talking during a lecture because “I wasn’t doing anything wrong.”
EDIT: "Welcome to English IV! It’s your senior year, and while some of you are preparing for college and others of you are girding yourself against the transition into “adulthood,” there are still some academic challenges ahead. Remember: English is a requirement for graduation, so you need to be prepared to work hard and keep up with your assignments if you want to receive your diploma along with the rest of the class of 2015. That said, we should have a wonderful time together this year! We’ll be working through the history of English literature together while reading some amazing pieces of poetry and prose. You’ll learn to build your own treasure hoard, speak Middle English, analyze Shakespeare, and deduce secret feminist agendas in Victorian literature. Woohoo! So brace yourself: it’s going to be an adventure." <-- actual text from my syllabus