This is a "meta post," and I'd appreciate your taking the time to read it. I'll be brief... for me.
I've pressured myself to have a complete, 14-week schedule laid out for the entire semester—with detail down to the day. At times this has made it difficult for me to work on the course schedule, because I constantly feel like I don't know where to start.
(Does this sound familiar? Perhaps like trying to start an assignment? The challenges of writing don't ever go away...)
I've spoken to several students from class, and they've said that as students at Allegheny they're comfortable:
- Knowing the overall direction of the course
- Knowing when major assignments are due
- Having a clear vision of the next 2-3 weeks
... and beyond that, they expect that things will adapt and change over the course of the semester. At some level, this feels like a more detailed version of the statement I made in class that the "schedule should never come as a surprise."
This is what I would like to do: I will make sure you have the dates for major writing assignments, so that you have a sense for when they will be hitting in the semester. I'll strive to fill in the details in-between in a timely manner, and make sure you have ample time to do any reading/prep for classes (i.e. the "no surprise" policy.) We'll typically have a clear (detailed) roadmap looking forward 2–3 weeks, but not necessarily more.
Is that fair? By all means, do let me know if you feel it isn't. It seems to make sense to me, and it seems more reasonable than the expectations I set for myself. Feel free to comment (anonymously, if you like) below with any feedback you might have.
RELATED: We will, weather permitting, go outside again on Friday.
