A “Revisited” blog post indicates that I reread the original and used AI-assisted tools (e.g., Grammarly) to improve grammar and word choice.
Up at 5:30 a.m. I admire a beautiful moonrise with Freud, my first-morning canine companion. Then, I glance at my iGoogle web page to monitor my RSS feeds and Google mail. IDEA: I think I’ll start aggregating all emails from alumni here. IDEA: Maybe I should create a course teaching Google apps. IDEA: Maybe I should apply for a Google grant. IDEA: Maybe I should make time to consummate some of these IDEAS.
I read a Profhacker post that I like. I make the time to commend the author and contribute my thoughts. I quickly looked at Makeuseof and learned a little about site-specific browsers (particularly Fluid for the Mac) to satisfy my geek needs. I wish the authors of this specific blog knew some other adjectives than COOL and AWESOME—but the stuff they play with is cool and awesome!!!!!!! I added another resource gem (though in need of polishing) to my teaching toolbox.
My classes are going reasonably well, though I still need better to master students’ names and faces. I invited each to email me a brief autobiography, and I’ve linked these very interesting self-descriptions to digital photos of them. IDEA: It might be interesting next year to have each student make a brief video screencast in which they introduce themselves and thereby help me improve my pronunciation of names.
Some of my Introductory Psychology students already demonstrated excellent thinking in our Friday discussions of Psychological Misunderstandings. Students in Statistics are already demonstrating increased confidence and competence in using SPSS. Students in Psychological Testing (all of whom I know already) realize that I am not kidding in my insistence that they USE things I taught them in a prior course. I’ll take my first exam in these three classes in another week.
I had an interesting conversation with two fellow Carroll community members from our Advancement/ Alumni Office this week who came to my office interested in sharing, comparing, and soliciting ideas about alum engagement. I genuinely enjoy interactions with alumni (some of whom I have never even had as students). Within the past ten days, I’ve been in contact with 15 different alumni via Facebook, Linked-in, Skype, this blog, email, telephone, and letters. I’m looking for additional ways to constructively connect, communicate, teach, and learn together with them. Please send me your ideas.
Many students have come to my office to see me this semester. The concept of office hours has undoubtedly changed since I first began teaching. In 1977, “office hours” were the primary time expected that a professor would be present and available for visitation, assistance, and advice. Today, in 2010, though I am present and available at my appointed times (and enjoy and prefer meeting with students in person), there now is more of an expectation of my 24/7 availability. I’m unconvinced that virtual office hours are a good thing, though I spend an increasing amount of my work time online.
Here’s an example of how teaching and learning are never done: I experiment with screencasting software as I continue to try and leapfrog.
