Ack!  Agreed!  I got something in the mail suggesting I buy 
their "workbook" with crosswords and such.  It was shocking!  I almost 
took it in to class so students to suggest that student should be 
*happy* about reading, thinking, writing, etc.  We have *got* to keep 
standards high...aim for sophisticated analysis and higher order 
thinking.  In the end, most students are happy and proud doing good, 
hard work. 

As for wanting to grab their attention, that's personal.  The more we 
show that we care, get them excited, and teach them well, the better 
chance we have of turning this crazy world around.  Plus, if we can get 
them excited then they don't sit like lumps in class.  ;-)  Too painful 
for me!


Andi
--------------
Every object, every being,
Is a jar of delight.
Be a connoisseur.
     ~Rumi~

Life is raw material. We are artisans. We can sculpt our existence into 
something beautiful, or debase it into ugliness. It's in our hands.
     ~Cathy Better~

Things which matter most should never be at the mercy of things which 
matter least.
      ~Johann von Goethe~


 Dr. Andi Stepnick
 Associate Professor and Chair of Sociology
 300-C Wheeler Humanities Building
 Belmont University
 Nashville TN 37212-3757
 
 Direct Line: (615) 460-6249 
 Office Manager: (615) 460-5505
 Sociology Fax: (615) 460-6997
 

 




----- Original Message -----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Wednesday, August 17, 2005 1:45 pm
Subject: TEACHSOC: Re: Many Going to College Are Not Ready

> 
> I had students suggest to me that I make up cross-word puzzles or 
> other games
> like that to help memorize terms from class.  Seeing as the last 
> time I was in
> a class that did that was about 2nd grade, I couldn't bring myself 
> to do it. 
> And I too find myself continually frustrated by the things I feel 
> compelled to
> entice students to do the work.
> 
> Adair
> 
> Quoting Sarah Murray <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>:
> 
> >
> > I'm so relieved to hear I'm not going crazy!  I'm new to 
> adjuncting, and
> > when I told my husband some of the activities I had planned for 
> an upper
> > level elective he asked "Isn't that a little babyish?"  We 
> graduated college
> > in '79, and things were definitely different then -- I don't 
> think any profs
> > were too worried about "grabbing our attention" the first day, 
> so we
> > wouldn't be upset about the impending workload!
> > Sarah
> > William Paterson U of NJ
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "GIMENEZ MARTHA E" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> > To: "Teach Soc Listserv (E-mail)" <[email protected]>
> > Sent: Wednesday, August 17, 2005 1:20 PM
> > Subject: TEACHSOC: Many Going to College Are Not Ready
> >
> >
> > >
> > > From the NYTimes:
> > >
> > >
> >
> http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/17/education/17scores.html?
hp&ex=1124337600&en=858619efb7b39590&ei=5094&partner=homepage
> > >
> > > Many Going to College Are Not Ready, Report Says
> > >
> > > By TAMAR LEWIN
> > > Published: August 17, 2005
> > >
> > > Only about half of this year's high school graduates have the 
> reading> > skills they need to succeed in college, and even fewer 
> are prepared for
> > > college-level science and math courses, according to a yearly 
> report from
> > > ACT, which produces one of the nation's leading college 
> admissions tests.
> > >
> > > The report, based on scores of the 2005 high school graduates 
> who took the
> > > he report, based on scores of the 2005 high school graduates 
> who took the
> > > exam, some 1.2 million students in all, also found that fewer 
> than one in
> > > four met the college-readiness benchmarks in all four subjects 
> tested:> > reading comprehension, English, math and science.
> > > ....................
> > >
> > > This is nothing new for us, right?  This is why, especially in 
> lower> > division but, at all levels, teachers must use techniques 
> more appropriate
> > > in elementary school to entice students to learn.  Sigh.....
> > >
> > > I argued in a paper published in Teaching Sociology in 1989 
> that in this
> > > country, real university education starts at the graduate 
> level and since
> > > then I haven't had reasons to change my view.
> > >
> > >
> > > Martha
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> 
> 
> 

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