Class is now in session
Taught my first class this afternoon... and I survived! One of my fears was realized when I walked in and someone said "Oh, we thought you were a student!" Ugh. I knew it would happen. My friend and (now I can call her) colleague said that she was mistaken for a student until she was 35. Tehehe, I have friends who are professors! I am on a near-equal level with some of the coolest people who taught me; it's an entirely new level of fangirling. I should be an officer in tjwritter 's fan club.
I, of course, procrastinated and didn't print my syllabus, so this afternoon I was rushing to the Uni to print & staple 20 copies of it about 35 minutes before class started. I am an academic! In the adjunct faculty room I saw one of my favorite professors EVER and I was too nervous to say hi. Part of me felt silly going up to him and addressing him either by his first name or Professor and saying "OMG, I was in your class, like, a few years ago and, like, loved you!!" It doesn't help that he's totally the hot professor his students want to fuck. He's a cross between Michael Vartan and House. And, of course, friggin unbelievably smart. *shiver* I don't know if I can fangirl AND be professional. After I didn't say anything to him I talked to my other former profs/new colleagues, who gave me great encouragement.
So after the "you look like a student" thing I got my shit together, called roll, handed out the syllabus, etc. Thank god I started Daughter of Fortune when I did because it gave me a great quote to write on the board and start discussion: "But if we don't begin by imagining the perfect society, how shall we create one?" Actually, I first asked if anyone knew what utopia or dystopia meant, and thankfully a couple people answered. Then we got into the quote and I asked what they thought made a perfect society. I jotted down stuff on the board and just let them go back and forth between themselves. I prodded them with questions and got the topic around to dystopias and why ideal societies don't end up working. Some of them had GREAT ideas on the subject and I'm excited to get them reading Uglies and Pretties later on. No one's actually read the books, but one girl said "Isn't that a teen series?" Technically, YA. She didn't sound bitchy about it, so I refrained from reminding them that most of them are still teens.
I plan on giving them an excerpt from 1984, but now I may also do excerpts from Brave New World and even The Handmaid's Tale. So many options! So many places to go with this! Aww man. Next week is mainly a grammar/ how to write week. I kinda gave them a bunch of homework, but they have 5 days to do it. Writing is something you have to work at.
Speaking of, I had them hand in some in-class writing so I could get an idea of where their at right now. It's as to be expected I think. I have to look over them tomorrow again to really get an idea of what I'm dealing with. We shall see. I just hope no one drops this week. ha
I, of course, procrastinated and didn't print my syllabus, so this afternoon I was rushing to the Uni to print & staple 20 copies of it about 35 minutes before class started. I am an academic! In the adjunct faculty room I saw one of my favorite professors EVER and I was too nervous to say hi. Part of me felt silly going up to him and addressing him either by his first name or Professor and saying "OMG, I was in your class, like, a few years ago and, like, loved you!!" It doesn't help that he's totally the hot professor his students want to fuck. He's a cross between Michael Vartan and House. And, of course, friggin unbelievably smart. *shiver* I don't know if I can fangirl AND be professional. After I didn't say anything to him I talked to my other former profs/new colleagues, who gave me great encouragement.
So after the "you look like a student" thing I got my shit together, called roll, handed out the syllabus, etc. Thank god I started Daughter of Fortune when I did because it gave me a great quote to write on the board and start discussion: "But if we don't begin by imagining the perfect society, how shall we create one?" Actually, I first asked if anyone knew what utopia or dystopia meant, and thankfully a couple people answered. Then we got into the quote and I asked what they thought made a perfect society. I jotted down stuff on the board and just let them go back and forth between themselves. I prodded them with questions and got the topic around to dystopias and why ideal societies don't end up working. Some of them had GREAT ideas on the subject and I'm excited to get them reading Uglies and Pretties later on. No one's actually read the books, but one girl said "Isn't that a teen series?" Technically, YA. She didn't sound bitchy about it, so I refrained from reminding them that most of them are still teens.
I plan on giving them an excerpt from 1984, but now I may also do excerpts from Brave New World and even The Handmaid's Tale. So many options! So many places to go with this! Aww man. Next week is mainly a grammar/ how to write week. I kinda gave them a bunch of homework, but they have 5 days to do it. Writing is something you have to work at.
Speaking of, I had them hand in some in-class writing so I could get an idea of where their at right now. It's as to be expected I think. I have to look over them tomorrow again to really get an idea of what I'm dealing with. We shall see. I just hope no one drops this week. ha