Well, folks, here we are at the end. This is our last week of Student Success Seminar--we'll finish up your final reflection presentations, talk about class evaluations, and discuss anything else that seems to need discussing. Our time together isn'treally over of course--I'll still see you in Music History every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the rest of the semester, and Jason will still be in his Chaplain's office, ready to dispense counseling and thoughts and balm for the soul.
For your final blog (due by 11:00 pm this Friday, November 16), please type up thoughts about your final reflection presentations--the actual content of who you were, who you've become, and who you hope to be, as well as how you decided to impart that information to the rest of the class. If you can include pictures, videos, or transcriptions of your work, all the better. And finally, before you leave for Thanksgiving Break next Tuesday (and, please, do remember that the break doesn't begin on Tuesday until your final class/lesson/rehearsal is over) leave a last round of comments on your classmates' blogs (at least five comments, all on these last blog posts) and leave a comment on this blog post telling me whose blogs you commented on.
Finally, let me tell you that I've really enjoyed getting to know you all this semester. I know it sounds a bit mom-ish, but I'm really proud of all of you. Some of you have had to really examine your lifestyles, or your goals, or your commitments to yourselves. And yet you all keep on keeping on, becoming ever more yourselves.
So, as you might have noticed, it's 1889 week on campus--the time when all sorts of Converse traditions, big and little, come out to play. On top of that, it's also just a week away from Halloween, which has become much more rife with celebration than it was just a decade ago. Finally, we're getting a Converse history lesson from Dr. Jeff Willis tomorrow (remember: meet at 1:00 on the front porch of Wilson Hall). In other words, you folks are up to your eyeballs in tradition, history, celebration, and the like.
Now, all traditions have to start from somewhere. There was a time when there were no Converse Pink Panthers or Red Devils, no Powder Puff football, and (believe it or not) no Full Moon. So let's use this blog post to look forward to some future tradition that might get started. If you could start a new tradition at Converse, or significantly alter a current tradition in some way, what would you choose? Describe your "new" tradition and how it might work. Then, if you're so moved, go start it!
Since I'm later than usual with this blog post, let's have the blogs be due by Sunday, October 28, at 11:00 pm. Besides, that way you can have the full week-long 1889 week experience to draw from. But, so that you can get some conversations started, let's do another round of comments. Same rules as last time: leave comments on five different classmates' blogs, and leave your list of your chosen five in a comment at the end of this blog post. You can leave comments for either this blog topic ("New" Traditions?) or the previous blog (YOUR Rainbow Connection).
Also, remember that next Tuesday starts our Week of Presentations. If you have questions, please ask, and please get to work on those presentations if you haven't already started!
Finally, for your continued viewing pleasure, here are some of my favorite muppets updating the time-honored tradition of carving Jack-o-lanterns. :-)
So tomorrow’s class is about Advisement and Registration. We’ll talk about various degree plans in the Petrie School, what courses you should take to maintain options, and various other related things. It will seem like we’re talking about the very near future (advisement starts on October 18 and continues through November 2), but, in fact, we’ll be talking about your FUTURE. As in “What do you want to do with your life? And how will you get there?” Thus, your blog topic for the week. [This blog, incidentally, isn’t due until Sunday, October 14, at 11:00 pm. You are welcome]:
Describe your dream career. Where would you like to be—geographically, economically, socially, etc.? And what would you like to be doing there? And who would you like to be doing it with? And Why? Then talk about the advantages such a life might offer. And then talk about the problems you might encounter living such a life. Once you’ve described your dream future, tell us a little bit about what you’re doing right now to set you on that path, and then tell us some of the things that perhaps you should look to start doing in the near future.
In short, what is your Rainbow Connection? What future is so amazing that it keeps you star-gazing, and what do you think you might see? Because someday, I bet, you’ll find it…
I hope you all enjoyed our "Finding your Flock" session last Thursday. If Caitlin or Cierra said anything to you that you found particularly helpful or intriguing, please let them know. I'm so happy that they were willing to come share their stories with you.
Our Blog topic this week is going to use "Finding your Flock" as a springboard, and it's going to require some imagination on your part. Let's pretend that it's Fall of 2014 and we decide to ask YOU to come and speak with the class about your experiences during your first two years at Converse. We ask you to talk about some things that surprised you when you arrived, some challenges that you overcame, some things that you've learned (both in and out of the classroom), and some advice you'd like to give the first-year students. What do you imagine you might tell our Student Success Seminar in 2014? Imagine it all, and then post your "speech" to your future Little Sister class in your blog.
As an addendum to your blog posting this week, we're going to start having you comment on each other's blogs. You'll need to comment on at least five blogs by your classmates, and yes, you can pick any of the topics that we've covered on the blogs up to this point. Your comments need to be both helpful to and respectful of the bloggers in question. Once you're finished leaving your five comments (to five different people), leave a comment on THIS blog entry letting us know which five folks you left comments for.
Also, because it's obviously taking me longer to get things finished while we're in Germany, let's extend your due date. Have all of your work (both blog and comments) posted by Sunday evening at 11:59. And I'll tell you all about the trip when we return. It's been wonderful!
Time: it can be a problem. Whether you’re dealing with planning out your year or just keeping a steady beat, time can often be tricky to deal with. Because people have different personalities and come from different cultures, they may view time in different ways. Some of these differences may have to do with your preferred style of learning. For example, if you’re a natural organizer, you probably enter on your calendar all due dates for assignments, exams, and quizzes as soon as you receive each course syllabus, and you may be good at adhering to a strict schedule. On the other hand, if you take a more laid-back approach to life, you may prefer to be more flexible, able to “go with the flow,” rather than follow a daily or weekly schedule. You may be good at dealing with the unexpected, but you may also be a procrastinator.
One of our big topics over the next few weeks is “Time Management.” We’ll begin tomorrow by talking about setting priorities and figuring out weekly schedules, and then we’ll follow up with some more discussion next week. To get the ball rolling, here is your blog question for the week:
Blog about your biggest time management challenge—is it oversleeping, spending too much time on social media such as Facebook, juggling work and family responsibilities, or something else? Then, let us know about a time management tool that does work for you. What sort of advice might you give others?
Please remember that your Blog postings are due by this Friday, September 14 at 11:00 pm.
Oh, and I believe I had promised to post the two videos I’d hoped to show in our music history class but, alas, RAN OUT OF TIME. The videos tell you a bit more about string quartets, bassoons, and the good times one can have playing music with your friends. Enjoy!
Welcome to Converse College and our Student Success Seminar! Much like Kermit and Fozzie Bear, you are all on a journey to, well, somewhere. And while you may not know exactly where you're headed, you're in for a fascinating journey (though, hopefully, you won't have to spend large amounts of time in your uncle's Studebaker). You'll hopefully see some snow and see the sun rise (though not in the West), and you'll surely come upon many forks in your road. But, with a little planning and some good luck, you'll have friends to share your journey with and a map to get you to your destination. And that's where we come in.
We, your SSS professors, will be spending this semester helping you start your journey with the right supplies (which may or may not include a banjo). We'll talk about how to manage your time, finances, communication, and stress level so that you can concentrate on the most important aspects of your college journey--learning more about yourself and the stuff that's not yourself so that you can get your exterior and interior lives working together a bit better. This is a "class" where all questions are permitted and where openness and acceptance are valued.
As a part of one of the main focuses of this class--the art of communication--we'll all be keeping blogs throughout the semester. We'll post topics on this blog as the semester progresses--every two weeks or so--and you'll respond to the topics on your own blog. Your posts are due by Friday nights at 11:00 pm (pre-weekend zaniness/forgetfulness). Each entry should be at least 300 words long and must be in grammatically correct Standard English. Do remember that blogs, like everything else on the internet, are accessible by anyone, and that it's entirely possible that future employers, dates, and realtors will Google your name at some point. Also remember that blogs, like any other writing venue, are first a foremost a form of communication: as you set up your blog, take into account how it communicates who you are. Once you've set up your blog, please leave a comment at the end of this blog entry so that I can add you to the list that will live on our blog. You need to set up your blog by our next classmeeting (Thursday, August 30) so that we can help you if you run into technical difficulties.
And so, friends, here is our first Blog topic, due this Friday, August 31, by 11:00 pm.
Please expound on these four questions:
1. Why did you decide to come to college? (After all, it's not exactly free.)
2. Why did you decide specifically to come to Converse? (Again with the "not free"...)
3. Why did you decide to study music in college at Converse (I'm sensing a theme here...)
4. If you were a muppet, what sort of muppet would you be? And would you play the banjo?
Enjoy your blogging, and we'll see you in Rhode Island class on Thursday!
