Over the past 18 months or so I’ve methodically worked up to my new LEGO FSEM. I started with just the idea and then went forward with everything I’ve mentioned in the “building a syllabus” series: figuring out topics, researching literature, developing assignments… The added wrinkle this time around was making sure I had the … Read moreAnd sometimes you have to be willing to Godzilla the city to the ground.
I haven’t really talked about readings yet in this series on syllabus development, and that is no accident. It’s too easy to overfill a course, or base a course around readings instead of the other way around. If you’re an English prof, it may make sense to have book(s) at the heart of what you … Read moreReadings that’ll get read
Snow day. Email server down. Flooding in the computer lab. Broken projector. Murphy’s Law is one of the realities of teaching. One time I completely lost my voice before an important class and had to lecture entirely without speaking. It took a custom-made presentation and lots of pantomime, but it worked. I can’t really teach … Read moreThe Importance of Padding
This post is the third in my “how to build a course” series. Today I’m going to discuss thematic concepts, and to do so I’m going to switch up my metaphor from the puzzle to tv shows. It’ll make sense, I promise. Some shows find incredible success with an episodic format. Others are all about … Read moreArc and Episode
This post is the second in my syllabus/course development series. The intro is here. Creating a course from scratch is paralyzing. There’s just so much to figure out: readings, assignments, format, and it all interconnects. A good course setup is a balancing act that takes years to really master. One mistake I think is widespread … Read moreThe cart before the horse