Deep Roots

Clearly I remember hearing the word "pedagogy" at least once during my final semesters as an undergraduate.

Never did I ever dream I'd be using it in every day conversation.

What does it mean?

Pedagogy is the study of being a teacher or the process of teaching.

The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction.

I am taking two classes that deal specifically with various theories and ways of teach (composition and creative writing). *Whew*

A lot of my day has been spent reading a book about Grading--the theory and practice of it. Thus far I've learned about the origins and evolution of grading student writing at the college level in America.

During colonial times, college students did not receive grades of any sort. They were evaluated at the end of their years of study with a oral examination that certified a level of intellectual and moral righteousness worthy of a college graduate.

I can't help but imagine that scene from Babe with "the boss" tells our hero, "That'll do pig, that'll do."

Then there came the written exam in the 1830s...Yale and Harvard had a ranking system by numbers and points (1-4) expanding to 20 points and 100 points (students like cars).

Fifty years later we had Freshman Composition classes as a fundamental part of the general education (at Harvard) and numerical ranking became based on five letter grades (A-E).

I will stop there.

So with a swim-my head, filled with all this information and ideas to consider...I will finish a syllabus for my creative writing class (I "made" a poetry writing class)...and instead of being rooted in academia tonight, I will be firmly planted in downtown Milledgeville.

Music stage...music stage...music STAGE!

~~J

EEEEEEK!

Should I be blogging? No. I have a paper gnashing its teeth at me something fierce.

So why am I blogging? Because.

The days are flying by and I am drowning in a great deal of sorrow. I know, I know. Super nerd should be happy to be “moving on” and all that jazz.

I’m such a sentimental student!

*I’d like to sit in the lobby of Patterson just a wee bit longer.
*I want to continue to wave and smile at (former/current) professors.
*There needs to be at least 25 more stops at Edgar Allen Joe’s for water.
*Running into former classmates and chatting should be a daily occurrence.

I know I might very well end up in the same building again come next August. There is always a possibility of that because I have applied to the MFA program at Memphis as well. Nevertheless, it will be different. It will be as a “lettered” woman.

Wowsa!

“Funny” story from last night (deserving of a photo):

I’m attempting to write understand my assignment when my cursor won’t move.

My mouse batteries have DIED!

Panic sets in.

What am I going to do about my Wordscraper games, paper I am writing?

But then I remember the batteries I purchased…BUT WHERE ARE THEY?

I find the batteries, but THEY ARE THE WRONG SIZE!

Then I remember the “extra” mouse has the “different” size batteries…but WHERE IS THE EXTRA MOUSE?

Then I find it.But what about the little USB connector?

WHERE IS IT? Then I find it. Finally we have CURSOR movement!

This was all right after my printer ran out of ink...yeah. Good times. Now back to writing I mean Wordscraper, yes WRITING.

~~J

If you need me--

I'll be here:

<---

<---

Surrounded by highliters & Sharpie pens, stacks of books & binders filled with information.

Vessels of coffee shall be consumed.
The Internet shall be surfed.

There will may be tears.
There will may be screaming.

Caution--this is a frequent four-letter word zone.

I am beginning my "busiest" undergraduate week--because so much is at stake. Construction and completion of two large-ish papers (upper division classes, NOT in my major field of study) is underway.

Get out the orange cones & hard hats.

One paper contains sections with THESE five subheadings:

Me and my daughter… / Where are you going? / Words like violence / It doesn’t mean that much to me / She’s not a girl who misses much

The other comes directly from the book Unbending Gender by Joan Williams (maybe I'll throw in some philosophers for good measure, too).

Light a candle. Whisper some words of encouragement. I need it.

~~J

Two Down:

Proposals.
(not of the marriage kind)

Paper proposals.

They seem "smarty" enough even.



of course, this means I have to write aforementioned "smarty" papers soon.

Oy vey!

I'm very proud and or confident about one of these final projects.

In that one I'm jumping back a few years (2001) and using an album by one of my favorite singer-songwriters to explore cross-gendered music. What happens when a song originally written and performed by one gender is covered by another.

Doesn't that seem brilliante'? I can't claim the idea as my own. It actually came from a lecture concerning the Liederkreis or song-cycle composed by Robert Schumann--a German romantic composer during the 19th century. His wife was actually the subject of our lecture though--Clara Schumann is amazing!

My "other" proposal was born out of the Shriver Report and I think I over-thought it. We'll see what the professor says--I am way out of my league on that one.

Full Frontal Feminism, deal with it!

So today's photo was taken from my BlackBerry. I wore my plaid Birkenstocks for the first time this semester. The weather was perfect. Swirling leaves and warm temperatures led to interesting sights on campus:

• Peter Pan & Tinkerbelle in full costume (fairy wings included)
• followed by two girls, arm-in-arm
• a crazed-squirrel trying to decide which tree to scale
• five or six tiny birds sharing a chocolate chip cookie

I survived. Now onto another day...(GRE countdown: SIX days)...

~~J

the Urge to Blog--

...becomes extremely strong when I have another assignment due (or I should be working on aforementioned assignment because it is due really soon instead of blogging)...

Lucky you (that one reader).

So begins the first week of November. So begins the rush to Graduation. Of course, one must pass her classes in order to graduate--so let's keep that in mind.

I have been a busy girl. I nearly have a personal statement ready to go (it's just like workshopping a fiction piece, although it's nonfiction & almost as important as the fiction pieces included in my portfolio).

Halloween 2009 aka Lenny Kravitz rocks my world!!!

it's blurry*
it's Lenny from the third row.

Give me a break--
He. Is. Scrumptious.

Great friends
+ HIM
= a night not soon forgotten.



Back from Lenny dreamland. *snap snap* FOCUS!

2nd philosophy paper about Men doing Feminism is due in 48hrs
I have two project proposals due in seven days
I have another abnormal psychology exam coming up
In less than TWO weeks I take the GRE...

Each of these is enough to make a lesser person hyperventilate. WHO AM I KIDDING? I need a brown paper bag, STAT!

Oh yeah! And this is my second day off "soda." NOT water (dressed in brown), just "pop."

~~J

*proof I need A with me at all times--at least to capture events on film.

Theory:

There is a moment before class begins.

A moment I can't really explain.




By chance I found myself sitting alone in the dark because my class before let out early... Random raindrops made me hurry across campus and then I was alone in the dark.

So I sit and prepare. I look over my reading assignment (Rousseau and Wollstonecraft).

My brain feels at ease, almost as if I am getting ready for some serious Yoga. And I am. Mental Yoga.

Classmates begin filtering in, but the room remains quiet. There is respect. We are ready to begin. Deep breaths. Minds open. Thoughts expand.

Words start appearing on the chalkboard, "state of nature," "social contract theory," "vir-virtue-virility"...my fingers are flying across the keyboard trying to capture every word of the lecture.

I am learning and I am happy.

~~J

First Week is...

(in the books, yuk yuk yuk, even though I am still lacking ONE!)

Women & (in) Music:

• Very light-hearted professor. She knows her stuff, cracks great jokes, and has the ability to break into song at the drop of a hat.
• There are more graduate students than undergrads...I didn't know this was a combo course.
• The work seems fair, we have "seminar" days in which we have to lead the class (should be interesting, I like the group).
• The final paper is fifteen pages long. 15. We get to chose the topic, BUT it has to be in Chicago style. She apologized to me (the English major) because it wasn't MLA.

Feminist Theory:

• On Day One, I sat there internally fretting away. What was I thinking--taking upper division Philosophy considering I dropped Logic after one class (circa 1998).
• The professor is beyond brilliant. She knows the topic, she has written articles and helped translate books and she is hosting the big Spindel Conference later this month.
• I printed out my first packet of material even though I was fearful and found myself completely enthralled.
• After our first lecture--I am confident. This will be a very challenging class, but I can handle it. Ask me about Aristotle and his "dualities"...I can halfway explain it!

Fiction Writing Workshop II

• I admit to being nervous about this one. A workshop being led by a successful writer? Someone who typically teaches graduate (MFA) students and I was going to be in his class?
• Then I got there. Then I saw familiar faces. Then he showed up. Then I was happy.
• I was so happy that I volunteered to have a story ready in two weeks. Clearly I am crazy. And this was before he quoted my absolute favorite lines by Whitman even!
• I have to harness this happiness (and respect) into one hell-of-a-story. Of course, like he said, they are just words on a page. (Sound familiar? Read the second paragraph.)

Abnormal Psychology:

• The scientific study of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders is known as psychopathology.
• Insanity is A LEGAL TERM and is not the same as abnormal behavior.
• Trephining was the process of making a hole is the skull to relieve pressure and release evil spirits during the Stone Age.
• And I have a "discussion" due in less than 24 hours. A discussion about THE BRAIN. Obviously I need to get to WORK!