Because this is a graduate course, we are doing a substantial amount of writing and researching, too. And the kinds of writing we are doing are varied, some prescribed by me, but most are choices you have to make. We spent time in each of our first three classes discussing these various challenges, at length, and I've met with most of you in conferences to further discuss any difficulties you may be experiencing. Every semester I encounter similar responses to my courses. And every semester I have made adjustments to account for student discomfort, anxiety, and confusion.
Some adjustments help.
But just as often, the only adjustment that would help would be if I abandoned my approach to teaching and adopted an approach that was more familiar and more comfortable for most students. I've considered that some semesters, really. So we will continue to pursue the goals of this course, with you all taking more and more of the responsibility for leading us toward those goals. I want to use this for Week 5 reading response prompts, too. This will be brief.