I can't decide if it is a good thing that break is almost over or not.
I didn't finish half of what I wanted to. This either means I am going to be on a procrastination-induced work binge this weekend, or I am going to start the semester much less prepared than I had hoped.
Either way, I'm a little annoyed with myself, but am starting to accept the fact that I put too much on my to do list and I need to chill once in a while.
Break has been rough--between the evil uvula virus and my post-graduation funk (not to mention the migrating sticky keys on my laptop--today it's "r" yesterday it was "j"), I have been rather unpleasant to be around, even for myself. That's bad, isn't it, when you get sick of yourself?
You may have noticed that I'm already slipping up on my resolution. but I haven't done much poetic this week, and I don't think anyone wants to read text-book reviews here. That's what I've been doing: reading text books. I'm on a mission to make my classes more structured. This is admittedly for my benefit more than my students', since I've been somewhat disorganized in my teaching methods this past year and disorganization stresses me out.
So I'll be heading to the office shortly to turn in my syllabi for copies, even though the syllabi are not as in-depth as I had imagined. They're just the usual: requirements and due dates.
I'm a little anxious about the transition from TA to part-timer. I have no idea what it's going to be like to teach 3 classes--how much time I'm going to spend prepping and grading, how often I'm going to tell one class the same thing and forget to tell the other class completely, if I'm going to learn 60 students' names as quickly as I learned 20... And most importantly, am I still going to like teaching when I do it all day, every day?
Maybe it's the weather. The whole world is gray.
the anxieties of blue skies
1 week ago
4 comments:
Breaks are for breaks. I also put far too much on my plate for winter break and I feel not at all guilty for doing none of it. Guilt starts back up on Thursday, when I go back to class.
So are you shifting to part timer this semester then? Or are you just looking forward? Good luck this semester either way.
I'm teaching part time while I wait to hear about my PhD apps. Wish I could feel not guilty, but my working-class mentality won't let me take a month off without doing something productive.
I agree, breaks are for breaks but I used to teach (IT - adults) and breaks, weekends and evenings were all for assessing and development. It was the most exhausting time of my life. And yet during it I actually wrote quite a lot. Guilt, which I am also guilty of, is not helpful. You have limited time so decide how much time to have, set it aside, use it (or at least try to use it) and then get on with the next thing on the list. Tomorrow is another day.
Dude, eat some ice cream, and you'll feel better!
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