My College Comp students are taking tests on their first novels. These really are just used to motivate them to get their first novel read before the end of the quarter. There are two parts for each novel test. The first is a short answer test focusing on ten characters or places from each novel. The second is an all essay section focusing on plot, character, setting, theme, symbol, and literary theory.
One of my students just asked me, “What do you mean by ‘symbol’”?
Not good.
If I have to explain symbolism yet again – eight weeks into the quarter – that’s not a good sign.
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I finished burning the imovies for my Lit and Language 11 class. Impressive. Of course, some really worked on it and made it worth their time. Several others pissed their time away. But the truth is they would have pissed their time away regardless of the assignment.
What is interesting about the imovie assignment is how students get to put their own unique takes on the stories. But that is only half the battle. The other – and more difficult aspect – is layering in all of the shots with the audio and effects. That is quite a bit more time consuming.
It’s a lot like writing really.
You come up with an idea and plow into it (unless you’re like Koontz and write 20 drafts of one page until it’s perfect and then move on). Then comes the real work: revision. Getting the timing down. Fleshing out ideas. Developing scenes and images. Chucking sections. Developing voice. All the good stuff.
Now if I could just get the two ideas to connect in students’ heads, I’d rally be on to something.
But the truth is that this class frustrates the shit out of me. First, I have too damn many kids. I don’t know what’s going on, but when a fellow teacher has the same class with maybe – and that’s a big maybe – half the number of kids that I have in here – I don’t get it.
The frustrating thing is if I could move just four kids out of here, the class would really start kicking ass. But instead I have to spend a lot of time catering to the meat heads who could care less about school and only work half ass.
But that’s part of the job, right? But it doesn’t make it any easier.
But I guess I can get paid rather handsomely to basically babysit some meat heads.
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I am really going to miss my Composition 9 class. They were hard workers and engaging learners. Their writing still has a long way to go, which is making me a bit worried because the test is looming.
I feel safe saying that a majority will pass. But I know of two or three who will most likely fail. It all depends on the topic. If it is one they can wrap themselves around, I think just about anyone could pass. However, I have one student who failed his previous Comp class and is in real jeopardy of failing my class this time around. I have another who is an ESL student who just doesn’t know enough of the language to pass. The other two I’m thinking of could well pass, but again it depends on the topic.
I also have half a dozen students who likely will do exceptionally well. They have strong voices and can write for any topic. They use dialogue, their thoughts, and structure their essays so that the reader is interested right away.
Then I have another half dozen or so who are in the middle of the road. If they don’t take a liking to the topic, they could well fail. Likewise, if they don’t feel like editing and rush through, they could well fail.
That makes me nervous. If we had merit pay, it might keep me up at night.
Would it make me a better teacher? I don’t think so. I’d just be more paranoid. I don’t think that’s a good thing.
I love my students’ writing and listening to their voices and styles develop. I’d do that stuff for free.
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The cell phone policy has come up quite a bit in discussions.
Mine is that I give a quiz every time I see one. But the kids have worked their way around that. They hide them well or use them out in the hallways when they go to the bathroom.
I’m not ready to throw my hands up in the air and proclaim “what can you do?” or cop out and say “It’s something society has to deal with.”
Maybe it’ll come to that, but I’m not ready to buy into that yet.
Sure, I’d to see one policy for all of us to follow. That’s because it would make life easier for me.
I know we have 643 (or close) students. That means we likely have 640 cell phones. Does that mean we can’t dictate when they’re used?
I don’t buy that.
I think we should do some research (maybe form a committee) to see how other schools handle this problem. I mean we do that for other things. Why not for this?
I’d rather have that than leave it up to individual teachers – and let’s face it, some don’t care about the phones, which makes it a pain in the ass for the rest of us – my policy works for me, but the fact that some teachers dance to the cell phones when they ring or that students can openly use them in the halls (I’m not saying banning them entirely is the issue) all make it difficult for me to enforce my policy. The fact is there isn’t always professionalism among the staff. Sad but true. Don’t leave it up to the teachers. In some cases, those are the LAST people you should leave devising policy to.
There’s no easy answer. But there could at least be an answer. But it would take some work.
Sign me up.
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