Vampires, Zombies, Robots!

While I was at U Birmingham (UK) for induction a few weeks ago, the Distance Learning PhD cohort did an activity that was part speed dating, part apocalypse, part screen-writing, and part serious research.  The title was "Vampires Robot Apocalypse!" and its purpose was to strengthen our ability to give an "Elevator Speech" about our research.  (Either that or one of the folks on the induction week planning committee just had too much coffee--or wine--and thought it would be hilarious.  It was.)  Everyone met with three different partners and, under a time limit, explained what our research is and what led us to want to pursue that research.  After the first partner, we also had to choose which sci-fi/fantasy scenario best lent itself to our research: Vampires, Robots, or Apocalypse.  I went with Vamps.  With our final partner, we were asked to combine our research foci and our scenario of choice, add ourselves into the mix as protagonists, and write a book or movie preview.  The results were pretty hilarious.

I decided then and there that I was going to find a way to work the exercise into my Research & Writing course.  So I did.

I modified the title and added Zombies to the mix: "Vampires, Zombies, Robots!  (Oh my!)"

First, I told my students I wanted to give them "Context" on the class meeting's activity, so we watched the previews for I, Robot, Queen of the Damned, and Warm Bodies.  Without telling them why, I then instructed my students each to find a partner who is not in their Focus Group (small groups of students organized by theme and similarity in research topic).  I then gave the students three minutes each to explain their: 1. Research Project, 2. Purpose, and 3. Justification (why they chose the topic).  I then gave them the following descriptions and told them to choose one:

*Vampires: Vampires exist by sucking the life-blood out of humans, ruling over them with their superior life-span (forever) and strength.  Life is short if you’re a human.
*Robots: Science and technology have triumphed; creative thought, mistakes, and human emotion are no longer relevant.  Life is mechanical. 
*Zombies: People are mindless consuming bodies, decaying and falling to ruin.  Life just isn't life.

They had a shorter time to discuss their Topic, Purpose, and Justification with their second partners, then additional time to explain their choice of apocalypse.  In their third pairings, students had even less time to discuss their Topic, Purpose, and Justification, but additional time to discuss their apocalypse.  I then gave them about 15 minutes to write a movie preview combining their research topics, apocalypses, and themselves as protagonists.  I made sure to remind them to use their cheesiest "movie guy" voice as they wrote.  At the end of class, all of the pairs read their previews aloud as dramatically as they could (when they weren't collapsing into giggles!).  

Success!  It was an absolute riot and it was a useful exercise: Students had to work with partners they might not normally have chosen to work with.  Students also had to describe their research (8-10 pgs.) concisely to someone who wasn't familiar with their project.  Students had to think abstractly to connect topics like STDs prevention, the importance of architects, and GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms) to an appropriate apocalypse.  On top of all this, students had to synthesize their research, an abstract idea (apocalypse via Vampires, Robots, or Zombies), and create a viable end product: a film preview.  I will definitely do this again!

   Life just isn’t life.

Numbers vs. Action

I took the time to review most of my ENG 120 students' SAT scores in Writing and Reading this semester.  I was already aware that my university has remarkably low SAT score percentiles across the board, but I was curious about my specific students' scores.  With few exceptions, my students had the low Reading and Writing SAT scores I had expected, although many, surprisingly, had passed the University's in-coming Writing Placement exam (although many failed the Reading Placement exam).

What does this mean?  Well, when I couple it with one sections' responses to my question, "What was the last fiction book you read-for pleasure or school?" it means my students are writing and reading well below what is acceptable for college students.  Still not shocking.

At the beginning of the third week of the semester, however, with both sections roughly six weeks into their respective novels (Ender's Game and The Hunger Games), I can start to judge how many students are reading (and how well).  My students are, across the board, reading!  Yay!  Hoorah!  Fireworks and hooplah!  Not only are they reading, but they are also enjoying what they are reading!

I'm not just patting myself on the back here--I'm genuinely thrilled that my students are reading.  Both novels engender great discussion about social issues, ethics, and morals--and my students are largely driving the discussion.  They also keep a weekly blog about the novel (I post general topics/guidelines each week), which forces them to write about what they are reading, in addition to discussing it. 

Spring, Sprang, Sprung?

After an admittedly lazy holiday break (I read a dozen books--it was glorious!), I am back in the classroom.  I am teaching only four courses this semester.  Wait, go back and read that again.  Yes--that's right, only four courses!  It's just so exhilarating!  Before you start to wonder what I'll be doing with all my free time, I ought also to announce that I have been accepted to the University of Birmingham (UK)'s full-time, distance learning PhD program in English Literature and Creative Writing.  I begin my doctoral studies this week!

Now, back to the teaching side of my life.

This semester's courses include two sections of ENG 120: Composition, one section of ENG 201: Research & Applied Writing, and one section of ENG 262: World Lit. II (Poetry & Drama).  One of my ENG 120 sections will read The Hunger Games and the other will read Ender's Game (assuming the post office does not lose yet a second order of 25 copies of the novel!).  My one section of ENG 120 in the Fall absolutely loved reading The Hunger Games (and subsequently, watching Jennifer Lawrence rock the screen as Katniss) and pitched a fit when I wondered aloud if I should choose a different book for my Spring sections.  I listened.

Unfortunately, the silver screen debut of Ender's Game is not until November this year (whomp, whomp, whoooooomp...), so I'm not sure what I'll do during the week I will show the other class the film of The Hunger Games--I may just show the movie in both classes.  After all, the novels have similar themes: the use of children by adults, war, ethical and moral struggles, etc. 

I will do my best to post weekly updates...but if I don't, it's only because time will again have gotten away from me.

Week 1

Monday, January 9th: 85% of my registered students attended the first day of class. We went through the usual motions of going over the syllabus and I went through my usual speech about having ZERO tolerance for plagiarism and the necessity of attending class (and owning the textbooks).

Wednesday, January 11th: All ENG 120 students are writing their "Diagnostic Essay" in class today. Two sections of the course meet on MWF, so the classes only meet for 50 minute sessions. This means I will receive a batch of largely unfinished essays; I'm okay with this as I'll be grading them and handing them back for revision anyway.

Friday, January 13th: At the moment, the plan is to field any questions about our Blackboard page (I am piloting the new version of Blackboard Learn for all my classes this semester), their blogs (instead of handing in typed, printed journals each week, my students are keeping a blog this semester), or any other housekeeping issues. Once that is taken care of, I'm going to split the class into groups for a series of short "Getting to Know You" activities built around language and vocabulary. I have a few I'm considering right now, but I haven't decided yet which ones I'll really use (Stand by!).

On a slightly different note, I receive an email every day with a quote by an author from Goodreads.com. Today's quote:

After all, reading is arguably a far more creative and imaginative process than writing; when the reader creates emotion in their head, or the colors of the sky during the setting sun, or the smell of a warm summer's breeze on their face, they should reserve as much praise for themselves as they do for the writer - perhaps more.

- Jasper Fforde (author of The Eyre Affair)

I found this rankled me a bit--but only just a bit. I do believe that reading is a creative process, and as I read, I follow a sort of mental cinema, complete with color, voices, accents, fashion, etc. I truly feel sorry for those who do not experience this vivacity when reading. However, as an English Composition professor, I must insist that this same creative, sensory process is necessary for writing (I doubt anyone would debate that). The problem with many students (and adults) today, I would posit, is that they never learned how to read with this level of engagement and commitment, hence, they also cannot write in vivid, real language. This can't be allowed to continue!