Last week I went to the DoOO showcase to (appropriately enough) show off my stuff. While I did that – showing my site, tumblr, and architectural image library – I got much more than just an ego boost out of the proceedings.
Others presented too. Stephen Farnsworth made a compelling case for “working more efficiently, not more”, though his self-deprecating statement that he was just being lazy and cautious was unconvincing. On the contrary, what impressed me with his work was the efficiency: taking his interviews with various news organizations and linking to his blog, he clearly controls his web identity while using existing work to its fullest.
Two new faculty also impressed me with their thoughtful work teaching students how to share and disseminate their classwork. They gave careful attention to community building but also privacy and authorship. Jon Pineda also discussed using various web media for storytelling. Just like with ds106, it made me want to maybe sit in on the class myself. (Seriously, any prof wanna take ds106 with me? It would feel too junior-high intimidating to do it on my own.)
Sue Fernsebner made me dream about her reach: her tumblr has an enormous audience. I don’t actually believe I could ever match her, but this gives me some idea that effort put into it isn’t just wasted. The website she developed with Ryan Brazell’s technical assistance is also something worth marveling at. More importantly, I plan to copy their approach in at least a dozen ways. Thanks in advance, Sue and Ryan!
Most of all, I was reminded at the event of how much I enjoyed DoOO. It was like getting to take the best kind of college class again: one where everyone comes in motivated and ready to discuss problems and solutions. Weekly meetings with my cohort were something I looked forward to and always left energized.
Anyway, I guess it’s appropriate for a post written this time of year to be about thanks. I’m so thankful I’m at an institution that allows the kind of work from faculty I saw last week. I’m thankful to have colleagues who are interested and motivated in making teaching more effective. And, needless to say, I’m thankful for the continued awesomeness of DTLT and CTE&I.
It’ll be resolution time soon enough, so in advance: I resolve to keep on writing this blog (even though I’m not sure who reads it) and keep on tumblng and tweeting and trying out new stuff with my sites. Honestly, this might be the easiest resolution I’ve ever made, since I *want* to do it anyway. For good measure, I resolve to eat chocolate a lot. By that I mean more than usual. Starting… Now.
PS: if you’re a UMW prof and just stumbled onto this blog post, consider this a golden invitation to participate in DoOO. You’re welcome.
Don’t sell yourself short, Andi. You give as good as you get! Keep up the good work.