Another favorite thread of mine was started by system_d back in 2009, and provides a place for us to talk about victories in the classroom- the little things that keep us going.
Quote from: systeme_d_ on November 19, 2009, 07:37:05 PM
I posted about a classroom victory of mine over on the Inhaling thread, but as I was doing so, it occurred to me that it might be cool to have a thread called "Classroom Victories."
I'd like to hear about the things forumites have done in the classroom that were planned well and worked well, or that accidentally worked well, or that were just plain fun.
Have at it!
Two music students, last week.
One, newish student to me, with a strong background, took something I said about the music in Debussy's 'Claire de Lune' actually being there to set off the silences, and completely revised his playing of those sections. I could hear it in his playing even before he told me that was what he'd done.
I'll have to pass him along in a year or so to someone who can challenge him further, but I'm so grateful to be working with him now.
Other example, my sweet, joyous, ADHD-and-neural-issues student works so hard to make things 'smooth'--our code for no stops, starts, or uncertain repetitions of correct notes. He nailed 'The Entertainer' last week, including his goofy insistance on transposing it up a key the second time through, then turned and said to me "That's the best I've ever played that" (for which it was OK'd with a "Good," because I agreed.)
He proceeded to do riffs on whole notes in the next song, and got some lovely ones going (he "gets" theory and loves improv, which requires major tooth-and hair-pulling for many students who fear not knowing what they're "supposed" to play next.) He then started playing very intently with the chords, following up or chasing something he heard inside. I didn't dare interrupt (didn't want to), it was awesome.
And then he took his review piece from a year ago, played it correctly, and transposed THAT up a whole step (unasked, or anticipated), too.
Thankfulness barely covers it.
M.
Class: "Are we not getting our exam hard copies back? You used to do that."
Me: "Yes. I stopped doing that last year when I started finding copies of my old exams online. So I made up new exams and nobody gets them back anymore."
Class: "Aw...."
I had a student pick one of the more obtuse topic options for their term project and then throw themselves with enthusiasm into the first wave of research and out of a rough semester so far, it was a shocking bright spot I needed.
Do you mean "abstruse"? I would hate to think that instructors set obtuse topics for discussion!
Quote from: sprezzatura on September 27, 2019, 05:10:07 AM
Do you mean "abstruse"? I would hate to think that instructors set obtuse topics for discussion!
Except in geometry.
Quote from: marshwiggle on September 27, 2019, 06:46:31 AM
Quote from: sprezzatura on September 27, 2019, 05:10:07 AM
Do you mean "abstruse"? I would hate to think that instructors set obtuse topics for discussion!
Except in geometry.
I probably meant "obscure" but last week was a heck of a week.
Have we seriously had no victories since September?? How sad if so!
I went hunting for this thread because my seminar students are just great this semester. They participate actively in discussions, and they get super into the new gamified activity I've added to each class. Class ends at 4:50, it has been dark and rainy, yet I nearly always have at least 2-3 students (and not always the same students) staying after class to ask questions about stuff that got them excited, just because they are curious.
The new activity does help spice things up, but I don't think I can really take that much credit-- this is my 4th time teaching this seminar and each year is a little different depending on the mix of students, and this bunch just seem particularly adorably nerdy.
QuoteHave we seriously had no victories since September?? How sad if so!
I've had a couple more like the ones listed above; I continue to be grateful for all my students this year.
M.
I have to revive this thread since I'm in a good mood...
I submitted grades for one of my classes. Final grades were consistent with previous times I taught this class. Students' grades were fairly consistent pre- and post-COVID. We all worked hard, they learned stuff, and I don't have any significant concerns about academic honesty. I'm calling that a major victory!
Quote from: Liquidambar on May 11, 2020, 08:54:30 PM
I have to revive this thread since I'm in a good mood...
I submitted grades for one of my classes. Final grades were consistent with previous times I taught this class. Students' grades were fairly consistent pre- and post-COVID. We all worked hard, they learned stuff, and I don't have any significant concerns about academic honesty. I'm calling that a major victory!
Congratulations! It's good to be reminded that even with all the pandemic disruption there can still be worthwhile teaching and learning.
Quote from: apl68 on May 12, 2020, 10:11:55 AM
Quote from: Liquidambar on May 11, 2020, 08:54:30 PM
I have to revive this thread since I'm in a good mood...
I submitted grades for one of my classes. Final grades were consistent with previous times I taught this class. Students' grades were fairly consistent pre- and post-COVID. We all worked hard, they learned stuff, and I don't have any significant concerns about academic honesty. I'm calling that a major victory!
Congratulations! It's good to be reminded that even with all the pandemic disruption there can still be worthwhile teaching and learning.
Indeed. I'd say Liquidambar should write an article about the pros and cons of the online instruction, since those results are consistent with f2f instruction which should allow for good balance in the analysis.
Thanks, apl68 and marshwiggle! I was fortunate to have only upper-level classes this semester, and to be at a school with fairly motivated, privileged students.
I think it helped that I kept the class very structured to keep everyone on track. We already had weekly graded assignments. When we switched to remote teaching, I had students continue turning those in by scanning with their phones. (The assignments involve equations and graphs so couldn't be typed.) I also added low stakes reading quizzes so students would keep up with the material and I could identify areas of confusion. Synchronous class sessions became optional.
The reading quizzes worked really well. I would do those again for in-person classes so I could have more interactive classes with more prepared students. Quizzes were: 1) Summarize the reading. 2) What questions (if any) do you have about the reading? 3) Easy auto-graded multiple choice question. They were pretty quick to grade. Students seemed to like that I answered some of their questions when grading.
Cons: Remote teaching was bloody time-consuming. After the first week, I surveyed the class and found they were struggling to learn from the book, so I started recording videos for each section. They could either read the section or watch the video. I think it was worthwhile, but it took yet more time. The other con was that most of the class skipped my ungraded interactive activities. Pre-COVID, I had relied on social pressure to get students to do those in class. Post-COVID, they weren't motivated to do them at all.
Quote from: Liquidambar on May 12, 2020, 11:28:18 AM
Cons: Remote teaching was bloody time-consuming. After the first week, I surveyed the class and found they were struggling to learn from the book, so I started recording videos for each section. They could either read the section or watch the video. I think it was worthwhile, but it took yet more time. The other con was that most of the class skipped my ungraded interactive activities. Pre-COVID, I had relied on social pressure to get students to do those in class. Post-COVID, they weren't motivated to do them at all.
This is what I've found from adapting one set of labs so far; everything is incredibly front-loaded. Of course, once auto-graded quizzes and so on are set up it should reduce some operational time. The rythm
is very different.
The pass rates (C and above) were higher for all of my classes this spring, including the F2F sections that got pushed online. Attrition was high, but the vast majority who withdrew after midterm were ones who needed to go anyway, i.e., students who were already failing miserably before everything else fell apart (in most cases because they'd submitted fewer than half of the assignments to that point).
My F2F students did just fine in the transition, but I use Bb heavily in those F2F classes, too, so there wasn't much of a learning curve for them. I'm proud of all my students who stuck with it and finished the semester with me, and I told them all so!
The victory for me this term is being alive, being safe, and having a job.
Quote from: AmLitHist on May 14, 2020, 08:09:06 AM
The pass rates (C and above) were higher for all of my classes this spring, including the F2F sections that got pushed online. Attrition was high, but the vast majority who withdrew after midterm were ones who needed to go anyway, i.e., students who were already failing miserably before everything else fell apart (in most cases because they'd submitted fewer than half of the assignments to that point).
My F2F students did just fine in the transition, but I use Bb heavily in those F2F classes, too, so there wasn't much of a learning curve for them. I'm proud of all my students who stuck with it and finished the semester with me, and I told them all so!
Just finished teaching a music lesson, read this and thought, "How's the key of Bb going to help them....???...Oohhh...she means BlackBoard!"
Duh......
M.
This week (1st week of summer term), I have survived teaching 14 hours of direct, synchronous instruction. My computer only froze 3 times, and students stayed on until I was able to get back into the LMS. Everyone enrolled submitted the small-stakes Week 1 assignments on time. Only one student had to withdraw due to internet access issues. I'm calling it a victory.
Yea!
M.
Just got an email from a student who took an incomplete from me last Spring, due to some seriously adverse circumstances. Her email contained her final paper for the class, which we agreed would substitute for the other coursework which was outstanding. It was excellent, clearly demonstrating her mastery over all of the course material, and it was a delight to finally be able to reward all of her very, very hard work to finish what must have been a truly awful semester for her.
I guess victories are far and few between around here.
One of my students sent me a video assignment that ended with a happy dance.
Cool!!
M.
A student wrote the best timed essay exam I've ever read. It was just lovely. She incorporated lectures and readings, but put it all together in a sophisticated original argument that directly addressed the question. On top of all that, it was beautifully written-assured, concise, clear. I can't really take any credit, but it was nice to see that I've at least organized the class in a way that a really bright student can pick up things like that and produce something so great.
Puget, do you feel comfortable sharing any information about the game-like activity you mentioned? I'm interested to see if I can adapt it for any of my classes, especially since it has seemed to go well for you.
My victory was one of the students from my seminar telling me that she's taking this class in part because someone told her two years ago to take a class with me. What a thing to remember for two years! Hearing this was super affirming, especially during a year that's been such a mess in so many ways.
Quote from: nonsensical on November 11, 2020, 10:09:04 AM
Puget, do you feel comfortable sharing any information about the game-like activity you mentioned? I'm interested to see if I can adapt it for any of my classes, especially since it has seemed to go well for you.
Wow, that's going back a ways, all the way to the Before Times-- had to look back at my earlier post to see what this was referring to.
Sure-- to teach them about how many different factors interact to influence development, each group had a "sim child" and every week they rolled to determine traits/experiences for their child relate to that week's topic, and then we discussed the effects of that roll and how how it would interact with all the previous ones. I came up with four of the options each week in advance, and let them come up with two more. Sometimes someone would raise an interesting question about one of the options and we would roll again to decide among sub-options. We spent the last class with each group making a cumulative map of all the factors and how they interacted, and coming up with a description of what they thought their sim child would be like as an adult.
They got very invested in their "children" and I think it definitely enhanced their understanding. It was a bright point once we had to move online mid-semester.
That sounds like a neat activity; thanks so much for sharing it. And, I guess I should pay better attention to the dates when things were posted!
Intriguing.
Almost like constructing a fictional character's biography in addition to the study values.
M.
Puget, that is very cool, and I'm glad nonsensical asked about it, even though it was from "Before Times." Is the child a virtual simulation or a written case? I'd love to do something like this the next time I teach development, but I'm teaching it as a compressed class (5 weeks--development across the lifespan), so I don't think I'd attempt. When you say "roll," are these virtual dice? Also, love the cumulative map idea. Must not spend time revamping class . . .
Quote from: OneMoreYear on November 12, 2020, 12:02:44 PM
Puget, that is very cool, and I'm glad nonsensical asked about it, even though it was from "Before Times." Is the child a virtual simulation or a written case? I'd love to do something like this the next time I teach development, but I'm teaching it as a compressed class (5 weeks--development across the lifespan), so I don't think I'd attempt. When you say "roll," are these virtual dice? Also, love the cumulative map idea. Must not spend time revamping class . . .
Why thank you.
No avatars -- I'm not that fancy. I simply wrote options down in a spreadsheet and then added theirs in class. These were not involved storylines (though the students came up with some during discussions), just things along the line of "dopamine system under-reactive to reward" or "participated in preschool enrichment program" that were directly tied to the topic for that week.
When we were together in the classroom I had big foam dice for them to roll, which made it fun and playful. Once we moved online I used a random number generator, which was not as much fun.
I wish you strength in resisting revamping your course.
Quote from: Puget on November 12, 2020, 02:38:05 PM
Quote from: OneMoreYear on November 12, 2020, 12:02:44 PM
Puget, that is very cool, and I'm glad nonsensical asked about it, even though it was from "Before Times." Is the child a virtual simulation or a written case? I'd love to do something like this the next time I teach development, but I'm teaching it as a compressed class (5 weeks--development across the lifespan), so I don't think I'd attempt. When you say "roll," are these virtual dice? Also, love the cumulative map idea. Must not spend time revamping class . . .
Why thank you.
No avatars -- I'm not that fancy. I simply wrote options down in a spreadsheet and then added theirs in class. These were not involved storylines (though the students came up with some during discussions), just things along the line of "dopamine system under-reactive to reward" or "participated in preschool enrichment program" that were directly tied to the topic for that week.
When we were together in the classroom I had big foam dice for them to roll, which made it fun and playful. Once we moved online I used a random number generator, which was not as much fun.
I wish you strength in resisting revamping your course.
Sounds like a potentially fun D&D campaign.
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on November 13, 2020, 09:57:12 AM
Quote from: Puget on November 12, 2020, 02:38:05 PM
Quote from: OneMoreYear on November 12, 2020, 12:02:44 PM
Puget, that is very cool, and I'm glad nonsensical asked about it, even though it was from "Before Times." Is the child a virtual simulation or a written case? I'd love to do something like this the next time I teach development, but I'm teaching it as a compressed class (5 weeks--development across the lifespan), so I don't think I'd attempt. When you say "roll," are these virtual dice? Also, love the cumulative map idea. Must not spend time revamping class . . .
Why thank you.
No avatars -- I'm not that fancy. I simply wrote options down in a spreadsheet and then added theirs in class. These were not involved storylines (though the students came up with some during discussions), just things along the line of "dopamine system under-reactive to reward" or "participated in preschool enrichment program" that were directly tied to the topic for that week.
When we were together in the classroom I had big foam dice for them to roll, which made it fun and playful. Once we moved online I used a random number generator, which was not as much fun.
I wish you strength in resisting revamping your course.
Sounds like a potentially fun D&D campaign.
I'm not totally sure if you are serious, but that sounds fun. I do have a grad student who might be interested in helping me make that happen. Demonstrating Development in D& D format? Wonder what my chair would think? How many complaints would I get? Crap, now I'm down a rabbit hole because there is a website about using D&D in teaching.
One of our best adjuncts finally (we've been nagging her for over two years now) applied to grad school (our dev. writing adjuncts don't need the MA), and I had the privilege of completing a recommendation form for her application. She's even headed in a direction where she should be able to find a job easily with the degree.
It's certainly rewarding to help new adjunct instructors learn the ropes (part of my job), but there's something special about helping an instructor work through the hard semesters to persevere and develop into a total teaching and personal badass--and then turning them loose. So excited for her.
I know some of you 4-year folks are probably yawning here; but at the CC level, this isn't something we get to do very often.
Quote from: fishbrains on November 15, 2020, 07:24:08 AM
but there's something special about helping an instructor work through the hard semesters to persevere and develop into a total teaching and personal badass--and then turning them loose. So excited for her.
This
is exciting fishbrains, no matter what kind of higher education setting one is working in. Congrats to your adjunct and best of luck to her! May she impart her badassness on students for years to come.
On a recent quiz, I had students formulate their own versions of a Gettier case. The vast majority of the answers were really good and imaginative, and indicated that they totally got that week's material.
Now, if only I could replicate whatever it was that I did, teaching-wise, for the other 12 weeks.
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on November 15, 2020, 08:12:26 AM
On a recent quiz, I had students formulate their own versions of a Gettier case. The vast majority of the answers were really good and imaginative, and indicated that they totally got that week's material.
Now, if only I could replicate whatever it was that I did, teaching-wise, for the other 12 weeks.
Suppose Para has 12 weeks of teaching. Jane doesn't know this, but says 'The prof with 12 weeks of teaching is my favorite.' . . . :D
In all seriousness, congrats! That's really rewarding when a key topic in the course is grasped well by the class.
Quote from: reverist on November 21, 2020, 11:12:43 AM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on November 15, 2020, 08:12:26 AM
On a recent quiz, I had students formulate their own versions of a Gettier case. The vast majority of the answers were really good and imaginative, and indicated that they totally got that week's material.
Now, if only I could replicate whatever it was that I did, teaching-wise, for the other 12 weeks.
Suppose Para has 12 weeks of teaching. Jane doesn't know this, but says 'The prof with 12 weeks of teaching is my favorite.' . . . :D
Bwahahaha, well done! Full marks!
This is the same class that pwned Gettier cases earlier in the semester:
Bizarrely, they really struggled with reading Linda Nochlin's Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists? several weeks ago. But I'm grading last week's quiz today, and they totally killed it with Simone de Beauvoir. And IMO that's a much harder reading. Well done!
In a class-meeting for a hybrid course:
Student: "I bet you're one of those professors who'd teach swimming by throwing all the little kids into the deep end of the pool."
Me: "No, that's how I'd teach CPR."
The joke killed! And the class needed the laugh. I usually don't come up with my witty comebacks until I'm driving home.
I spent longer than I should have writing a simulation for students to run. It illustrated some concepts we've been studying, and it even had nice color coding of results.
Me: After you finish playing with the simulation, you're free to leave. I didn't prepare anything else for you today.
Student (not at all sarcastically--he was having a great time): You've prepared plenty for us.
Quote from: Liquidambar on May 05, 2021, 08:38:53 PM
I spent longer than I should have writing a simulation for students to run. It illustrated some concepts we've been studying, and it even had nice color coding of results.
Me: After you finish playing with the simulation, you're free to leave. I didn't prepare anything else for you today.
Student (not at all sarcastically--he was having a great time): You've prepared plenty for us.
Congratulations on creating something that engaged students so well, and on having the appreciate it.
While my summer semester has generally been a train wreck, today's assignment grading has been fun. Because we're talking about stress responses in class, I changed the originally scheduled homework assignment to an assignment for them to submit a self-care activity that will then be shared with the class. Basically, they get full credit if they submit a self-care activity by the deadline and the activity is legal (so far, no submissions of illegal activity suggestions). Some have been really creative, and I've now got a list of fun, relaxing activities. I'm counting this as a victory as they have been far and few between this summer.
It seems I was nominated for a teaching award again (I didn't get it, however, and rightly so). But that's the not the victory; this excerpt from the nomination letter is:
QuoteGoing into a first year critical thinking class and learning it would be formal logic, I was terrified. I've struggled with math and that kind of logical thinking before so I was absolutely a nervous wreck. After starting this course Parasaurolophus has made me understand logic in a completely new way and has supported me throughout my learning journey.[...] I'm now excelling at logic and have a newfound confidence which has not only helped me in this course but in all of my other ones as well.
Yippee!
But I'm not actually surprised.
M
What a wonderful testimonial! Congratulations on an obviously well-deserved nomination, Parasaurolophus!
It's great to have a student who has become a real success like that.
This poor, neglected thread! I had a lovely victory today:
1. Really, really good discussion during seminar--over zoom, no less!
2. Students stuck around after to ask really, really good theoretical and methodological questions about the material.
3. One sticking-around student asked whether they could be involved in my research and learn to use my fancy equipment that I set up in the lab in autumn 2019 and have not used since. I'm actually planning to start that lab up, so I said sure. Then the other studenst who stuck around 'oh oh me too me too!' and 'Can I use the lab for my summer research project? I'll need to get started learning it now!'
I feel like, in the space of a ten minute after-seminar discusison, I've assembled a group of eager lab assistants who are hard-working and interested and might help reinvigorate my research in a way it hasn't been since the start of covid.
I mean, who knows whether they'll follow through or keep their interest up, but they've been diligent and dedicated all semester, and they do, after all, need to come up with a summer research project, so maybe this will stick!
Quote from: ergative on November 03, 2021, 04:20:30 AM
I mean, who knows whether they'll follow through or keep their interest up, but they've been diligent and dedicated all semester, and they do, after all, need to come up with a summer research project, so maybe this will stick!
That's great! If they've stayed this engaged all term even over Zoom, I'd guess the odds of them staying motivated in person are pretty high.
Congratulations, eragitive!
Two victories:
My Early American Lit class that I stressed about all summer--the one that's F2F, with only 3 students--is my favorite class in several years. Not only is the content my area and passion, but all three students are bright, engaged, and engaging young women who do all of the reading and really excel in the discussions. They refer to themselves as "The Girls"--and these Girls rock!
In my Comp classes, several ESL students whom I wouldn't have given half-a-prayer's chance of passing back in September, have been practically living in the Writing Center, asking me questions, and working their hearts out. One currently has the highest grade (97%) in her Comp II section, and the others all have solid Cs or Bs.
I had a student come out of "nowhere" (well, my class!) to tell me he wanted to minor in my subject area. I guess I'm doing something right?
CONGRATS TO BOTH OF YOU!
M.
I had a student who was struggling mightily in engineering. She tried hard, but as we all know, trying is not always equal to succeeding, and we had many chats about whether she was where she was supposed to be as far as her interests. When I came into my office this morning there was an envelope slipped under the door. It was a thank you card, and it said:
"Dear Dr. Mode,
Thank you for constantly answering my questions. I hope your holiday goes well. Keep on kicking engineering a**. I'm switching my major to chemistry.
Best regards,
Stu"
I do wish her all the best in chemistry, it does seem like, based on our conversations, it will be a better fit for her. I'm typically just as proud of the students I talk out of staying in engineering as I am those I manage to retain when they're going through a rough patch. It's all about what they need, as opposed to what we are told by our recruitment and retention folks who tell us we need to keep them all in engineering.
Quote from: EdnaMode on November 15, 2021, 08:18:44 AM
I had a student who was struggling mightily in engineering. She tried hard, but as we all know, trying is not always equal to succeeding, and we had many chats about whether she was where she was supposed to be as far as her interests. When I came into my office this morning there was an envelope slipped under the door. It was a thank you card, and it said:
"Dear Dr. Mode,
Thank you for constantly answering my questions. I hope your holiday goes well. Keep on kicking engineering a**. I'm switching my major to chemistry.
Best regards,
Stu"
I do wish her all the best in chemistry, it does seem like, based on our conversations, it will be a better fit for her. I'm typically just as proud of the students I talk out of staying in engineering as I am those I manage to retain when they're going through a rough patch. It's all about what they need, as opposed to what we are told by our recruitment and retention folks who tell us we need to keep them all in engineering.
Sometimes talking a student into changing into a major that might work better is the best thing an advisor can do. It's not a "failure." It's good to be able to have that perspective.
"Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."
Maybe a first step toward a victory?
I have an extremely needy student in my class this semester who takes up half an hour of my time every week, and would take up much more expect I've forbidden him from having more then two appointment slots during office hours. He has a few actual questions, but mostly he engages in a ton of excessive reassurance seeking. I mean, this is textbook maladaptive anxiety and perfectionism coping behavior in a student with immature social skills stuff. I've talked to him about it repeatedly before, but it didn't seem to be getting through. Today he really wanted me to return his graded exam early-- we'll hand them back in class after thanksgiving, but of course he NEEDED to see how he'd gotten the horrible, unbearable grade of 85%. I told him I would give it to him, but not discuss it with him until after break, and only on the condition that he would also take a handout on perfectionism and let me show him how to access the drop-in community therapists and consider talking with one of them. He agreed to that (anything to get his hands on that exam), and by the end was asking questions like "And what if I want individual therapy?" Yes, yes you should have that!
The bonus question on my final exam asks students what their favourite dinosaur is. Here's what I learned today:
QuoteAnkylosaurus, particuarly because when watching the closed captions on the youtube video links of the slides, sometimes reads "nother nicest dinosaur" and it makes me smile.
Email from a former student:
"This is stu from my fancy new graduate program email, just wanted to thank you for that class I took with you a year ago. Not only are the fundamental concepts still relevant (funny how that works) but now I'm taking a class in [more advanced version of what we did] and I feel well prepared because of your course."
These make it all worth it, don't they?
That is so cool.
I'm smiling.
Sort of like the one person who came back to give thanks for having been healed...
M.
This job isn't completely thankless! I do indeed appreciate those moments.
Somehow, I've never noticed this thread, and reading through it is heartwarming. I'll share the best comment I've gotten on student evals in a while " This course contextualized the different parts of this degree so well that my grades in other courses improved because of the skills and critical thought patterns Dr. Fringe reinforced in this class."
Quote from: onthefringe on January 22, 2022, 11:40:33 AM
Somehow, I've never noticed this thread, and reading through it is heartwarming. I'll share the best comment I've gotten on student evals in a while " This course contextualized the different parts of this degree so well that my grades in other courses improved because of the skills and critical thought patterns Dr. Fringe reinforced in this class."
Wow.
Someone 'got it.'
M.
As I've vented elsewhere, I have an Argumentative Student in an otherwise wonderful class. He's admitted to not doing any of the reading, but once a class he'll explain why the text is "bad" or "wrong" and how I'm a bad person for assigning it. I've noticed that the other students don't like him much either, and do the heavy lifting of defending the texts when he gets on his soapbox.
Today I learned that one student deactivated the class GroupMe, and started another just so she could exclude Argumentative Student. I was told that the class resents him getting the benefit of their hivemind when it comes to studying, especially since he's so belligerent. I'll take that as a victory.
Sort of an anti-victory, but it's turning out OK.
The dratted new LMS is horrible when it comes to calculating grades! I much as I hated blackboard, at least the grade book made sense.
All students who were excused from assignments have incorrect scores. Their scores are too low.
Every. Single. One.
Now, it's only ~2% of the class, but when you have 500+ students, that number gets really big really fast.
I manually calculated their scores, triple checked, wrote apology emails, and filed the paperwork for the grade changes.
Every single student has sent the nicest emails in reply! I mean, their scores all went up, but it was entirely my fault that their grades were reported incorrectly in the first place.
That's so cool.
Good to know they can be appreciative indeed.
Today's victory....another live wire has surfaced. The youngest of my three theory kids was all fired up to download the music-writing software, MuseScore, as soon as class was over so he could contribute his 4 measures to the chorale we're starting to write.
I had told them I'd work with them in their lessons on it; he came with a fully formed 4-measure phrase that's a bit wild/out-there in its tonalities, but they work and he's a true heir of Kabalevsky and Bartok in hearing truly odd intervals that fly to the sky, then bringing them back to earth in a reasonable final chord by the end.
He's also heard his older brother playing the chromatic scale straight through, with strengh, and now he's doing it--walking up and down along the keyboard because he's too short to sit on the bench and play it from there, but--no hits, no runs, no errors, he nailed it.
Little character.
M.
Quote from: the_geneticist on March 23, 2022, 04:08:12 PM
Sort of an anti-victory, but it's turning out OK.
The dratted new LMS is horrible when it comes to calculating grades! I much as I hated blackboard, at least the grade book made sense.
All students who were excused from assignments have incorrect scores. Their scores are too low.
Every. Single. One.
Now, it's only ~2% of the class, but when you have 500+ students, that number gets really big really fast.
I manually calculated their scores, triple checked, wrote apology emails, and filed the paperwork for the grade changes.
Every single student has sent the nicest emails in reply! I mean, their scores all went up, but it was entirely my fault that their grades were reported incorrectly in the first place.
I have gone through multiple LMSes* and have never trusted them to calculate grades. I just add a column with a weight of zero, call it something like "Overall Course Grade," and upload the real grades from my Excel spreadsheet there. Our system allows us to transfer grades from the LMS to the roster at the end of the term but I enter them manually instead.
(* ...or is the plural just "LMS" with an implied "...s" concealed in the "S"?)
Day 1 of our Comps process is complete. All eligible students showed up on time and submitted on time. Nobody accidentally deleted their work part-way through. Nobody submitted a corrupted file. Nobody had a complete meltdown. A look through before distribution to raters indicates most students may be headed for at least a bare pass. Calling it a victory at this point, as they have been few and far between this year.
Congratulations for all the recent good news!
Quote from: Biologist_ on March 23, 2022, 06:42:31 PM
(* ...or is the plural just "LMS" with an implied "...s" concealed in the "S"?)
LMSi.
AR.
By tomorrow, students have to upload their video presentations (slides with a voice-over narration) for class. I wasn't sure how they'd turn out since I didn't give them any class time to work on them. And, while I know how to narrate slides using one of the video platforms our campus uses - Panopto - and I can record slide presentations on Zoom, I could only point students to YouTube videos or other sites to explain how to narrate Google or PowerPoint slides if they didn't already know how to do it. (Or they could record it from their Zoom account.) But I've looked at a few and, at least technically, they're okay! I only encountered a problem with one presentation; the audio wouldn't play with the slides because the student hadn't made the audio file accessible, only the slide deck. (And the only reason I knew the solution was by looking it up.) I probably should have asked to see if students already knew how to do it or if the instructions I pointed them to actually helped; I should do that tomorrow. Anyway, the actual content might be a hot mess, but at least I know that students are capable of doing it!
Sounds like a definite win-in-the-making!
M.
I might have spoken too soon. Another student emailed me to say that the file was too big for the CMS and they couldn't get the link to post in the text box. Then the student emailed me to say that they could post the link but that there was no audio on their slides. Now I have to go back and look at the instructions I shared with the class to see if they mention that you need to set the audio file so that it's accessible to people. And I need to start making a list of issues so that I can include this info on the assignment for next time.
Quote from: Biologist_ on March 23, 2022, 06:42:31 PM
Quote from: the_geneticist on March 23, 2022, 04:08:12 PM
Sort of an anti-victory, but it's turning out OK.
The dratted new LMS is horrible when it comes to calculating grades! I much as I hated blackboard, at least the grade book made sense.
All students who were excused from assignments have incorrect scores. Their scores are too low.
Every. Single. One.
Now, it's only ~2% of the class, but when you have 500+ students, that number gets really big really fast.
I manually calculated their scores, triple checked, wrote apology emails, and filed the paperwork for the grade changes.
Every single student has sent the nicest emails in reply! I mean, their scores all went up, but it was entirely my fault that their grades were reported incorrectly in the first place.
I have gone through multiple LMSes* and have never trusted them to calculate grades. I just add a column with a weight of zero, call it something like "Overall Course Grade," and upload the real grades from my Excel spreadsheet there. Our system allows us to transfer grades from the LMS to the roster at the end of the term but I enter them manually instead.
(* ...or is the plural just "LMS" with an implied "...s" concealed in the "S"?)
Same here; do it in Excel, then move it in (the LMS I used at one place had "Import from Excel" as an option for the grading pages, as I recall; I could also just cut-and-paste the cells, I think, if I just wanted to show 2-3 things instead of all my interstitial calculations).
M.
@Paddington: Ach, nein!!!!
Hope it gets sorted without too much more pain...
M.
Somewhere between Jedi mind tricks and classroom victories...
A friend who taught American history had a standing assignment: each student had to get an NPS "Liberty Passport," visit some certain number of sites, (say, 4), attend an official, site-offered tour, and write a 2-page reflection paper about it for two of them, then turn in the papers and stamped passport a week before classes ended.
Because all the sites are online, the papers were easy to check, both for accuracy and plagiarism (which the students were warned of, in advance); the 2-3 best were asked to read their papers and discuss them during the last day's class review session.
This was obviously pre-Covid, might be possible to revive sometime.
M.
For the final two classes of my seminar, we do a couple activities that build on what they've learned through the semester and let them work in groups to apply it in fun ways.
This was the first time since the before-times when we've been able to do it as intended, in person with students physically grouping up so they can really engage with each other, and it was wonderful!
They get prep time at the start in their groups where I just sit back and stay out of their way, and it was such a joy to overhear them-- they were intensely engaged and taking it seriously, looking things up in their notes and online and discussing and debating, but also having a blast together-- lots of laughter and creativity. And they came up with great stuff that showed what they'd learned.
I need to recall all this when I slog through their term papers next week.
My students do a series of low stakes reflections on "science and society" where they connect the human element of science to our broader topics. One of the topics this week was how diversity of perspective strengthens science and they had a reflection question about finding role models.
One of the students responded: "I've never wanted to speak up in class before, but you have made me feel so comfortable and you make such a point of encouraging us to talk about our ideas that I think you are a role model. I am going to be a future teacher, and I'm learning a lot from you about how to make my students feel welcome and supported in class".
Of course they could just be blowing smoke, but this isn't a particularly grade grubbing student and even if they are blowing smoke, it was a much needed boost this week!
That's lovely!!
M.
A student--very late after the end of term!--somehow managed to suborn a janitor or something to drop off a gift in my office. Grocery store chocolates, fine--never going to complain about those--but also a lovely illustrated book about local mammals that she got because she wanted something to reflect the otter theme I use to decorate my slides. She's a student from our MASSIVE first-year intro course, so already I'm a bit surprised to get a gift from such a soulless class, but a genuinely thoughtful, playful present like this really tickles my heart.
Still not thrilled she got in my office, though.
Maybe she turned into an otter and sneaked a paw into the latch?
They're tricky that way...
Resonant joy.
M.
Yes, I think the sweet definitely outweighs the slightly creepy in this case.
It shows that people care, even in situations where they might not be expected to.
All in one day:
Email from an alum currently in a program at my alma mater - stu is LOVING grad school and is getting some amazing opportunities.
Email from a current student - had a computer failure but did not lose anything major due to the "save early, save often, save in more than one place" philosophy I drill into my classes.
Congratulations on the good word from a former student, statsgeek!
+1!
M.
A student in my Tragedy course excitedly told me that upon re-watching "Scream 2," she noticed the references and parallels to Agamemnon. She suggested I re-watch "Scream 2" as well--might just do that.
I'd like to share a letter a friend of mine just received from a student he taught at a deep-inner-city high school in the midwest over 10 years ago.
He taught world literature to students who regularly went to bed to the sound of gunfire, some of them sleeping in cars, many with at least one parent in prison.
Dr. MyFriend,
It's me [student name]. I was is in your World Literature class during my sophomore year of high school. It's been a while since we talked. I'm writing to you to tell you thank you.
Your class opened up a world of reading I never could have imagined; you introduced me to my favorite writer Chinua Achebe. Your class not only exposed me to cultural genres of literature but also helped me gain confidence in my writing. I remember writing a response to reading and you calling me brilliant and commenting on it as well written. Your praise and acknowledgment helped me gain some confidence in my writing skills. Dr. M, being a student that had been told that I had a learning disability in written expression, made my confidence plummet. As a student with an IEP and diagnosis of this learning disability, I felt like my teachers just expected subpar work that only met minimal standards and was unworthy of praise and affirming notes.
Dr. M, this email is to thank you for the experience you provided as a teacher. It was a short year but it's something that affects me daily. In my classroom, I teach primary school. I affirm my students with compliments that are rich and specific to the work they are doing. I make my classroom a safe space to explore and brainstorm and ask for help as well as feedback. I teach my students kindness; they're 2nd graders. They need to learn to support and learn from each other. They participate in Socratic seminars and group discussions where they learn public speaking and how to disagree respectfully. I adopted these practices because your class made me safe when I was in high school and I wanted to create a rich environment for learning like you.
I'm in tears. That's beautiful.
M.
From an email tonight:
Quote
P.S. I know you mentioned our last unit on Proofs would be one of the most difficult and I loved it so much that I am legitimately debating on taking another higher-level logic course in the future. It was SO good.
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on November 06, 2022, 09:05:19 PM
From an email tonight:
Quote
P.S. I know you mentioned our last unit on Proofs would be one of the most difficult and I loved it so much that I am legitimately debating on taking another higher-level logic course in the future. It was SO good.
Now THAT is geeking out. Kudos for getting someone excited about proofs.
They all turned in their final papers. The last one arrived at 11pm before the midnight late deadline, but I don't have to record any zeros. This semester, that feels like a victory.
Quote from: statsgeek on December 05, 2022, 05:16:50 AM
They all turned in their final papers. The last one arrived at 11pm before the midnight late deadline, but I don't have to record any zeros. This semester, that feels like a victory.
It IS great to have something so important turn out so well. Congratulations!
One of my students just won first place in a national photo competition, they are really stoked especially since they weren't accepted to the last couple of competitions they entered.
Another student just got word that they were accepted as an intern at a really nice arts residency for next summer.
Congrats to your student onehappyunicorn!
My victory for today is that the students mostly have very nice reflections in their final "what did you learn in this class and how did it change how you think about the topic" forum posts, including this student who concludes:
"It surprised me how much I enjoyed psychology, and now have some regrets that I hadn't taken more psychology courses throughout my college career, as a first-semester fourth-year student. I came in with a desire to explore an interest I had forgotten for years, and I came out with the realization that knowledge is still here for me whenever I'm ready, no matter how long it takes."
Last class of the semester. They all thanked me on their way out the door. If that's not a victory, I don't know what is.
This email was from a student who was taking a class meant for first-semester freshmen for a second time. He had admitted to me previously that the first time around he just couldn't make himself come to class and do the work, and was used to skating by and still passing by doing the minimum in high school, and learned that he couldn't do that in college.
Dr. Mode,
I deeply apologize for coming to class late this morning, I'm kicking myself for turning off my alarm and going back to sleep. Anyway, wanted to update you on my final project [omit project details]. I will be completing the final parts today and turning it in tomorrow.
Thank you for making this semester's learning meaningful. Your class was the only class I would get out of bed and not dread going to. I really appreciate the help you've given us this year.
Thank you, best wishes, see you at the final.
Stu
Congratulations on having at some level gotten through to a student learning some maturity, EdnaMode!
I'm not sure this is a victory, but:
After grading a Final Practical Exam in a Human Biology course, the range was 13-82%. The "low" high score is pretty typical in this type of exam. The average, however, was in the mid-40%, which is a bit low.
Cue the wailing and gnashing of teeth.
This class is team taught and I just updated the blackboard gradebook to reflect the new grades and to make the final grade calculation reflect both the lecture and lab components. Hmmm, the lecture and lab grades seem remarkably similar.
There is a weak positive correlation, and it is significant at p<0.05
Maybe the lab wasn't "SO MUCH HARDER" than the lecture half of the course.
Of course, they haven't taken the lecture final yet, so we shall see.
But, at present, I won't be losing sleep over being such a meanie.
I actually got a round of applause after the last class. I'm unsure if that was for my stellar performance or they were just that happy they didn't have to see me again.
Just had a struggling student achieve a near-perfect score on the final, and they aced the hardest question on the final. I knew this student was actually pretty smart, just struggling in terms of time management and study skills. I hope this shows them how well they can do if they do the work. (I know it probably won't change anything, but let me live in optimism for the moment).
Quote from: artalot on December 14, 2022, 11:20:53 AM
Just had a struggling student achieve a near-perfect score on the final, and they aced the hardest question on the final. I knew this student was actually pretty smart, just struggling in terms of time management and study skills. I hope this shows them how well they can do if they do the work. (I know it probably won't change anything, but let me live in optimism for the moment).
Well, presumably the student had to
learn something in order to do that well. Any time a student does that, it's a victory for the teacher, right? Congratulations!
Waterboy: It was probably good-natured applause. If they were happy about not seeing you again, they would have held the applause until you were gone.
In their final paper, one of my intro students constructed a Gettier case for Descartes's "I am, I exist, whenever I put this forward."
I'm not sure it quite works, but it's a much-needed teaching victory nonetheless.