So, I admit I’ve been terrible at posting on this. I mean, look at the date on this. I’m a horrible student.
…But this class has helped me think about my teaching a lot.
Going in, I was really more focused on what was being said in the readings. I got hyped for Richard Restak! I was going to…
…okay, I couldn’t get hyped for Richard Restak, I hate the guy with a passion after this.
But I was deterermined to teach people about these IMPORTANT IDEAS, and WRITING, at the SAME TIME.
And I do realize that I have an ethical duty to share those ideas, but I also know now that my job isn’t so much to be some sort of defmented social studies teacher, but a rhetoric teacher. That’s what these essays are for.
Hell, that’s why Richard Restak’s essay is full of more logical fallacies than a dinner conversation with my dad after a few drinks.
No one gives a DAMN about what any of these people actually have to say; it’s all about how it’s being said. And in the future, I want to make sure my syllabus reflects that.
I want to restructure my sequences so that they start with rhetoric, and move on to more engaging topics over time. I might even spend more time allowing my students to do their own research. Though… I’m a little afraid as to what will happen.
…In any case, I want to thank you all for putting up with me during this semester. It’s been great.