The "Education" Thread

[Baroque]

Back to school time. What are you taking? What are you teaching? I'm teaching five classes this semester instead of the madness that was 6 last semester. I'm also using a new textbook in 3 of the classes, so I had to re-write my syllabus. We'll see how it goes. If it falls flat, I'll just go back to the textbook I used last semester

Yeah 6 is nuts. I did that one semester and never again. It also puts me in a higher tax bracket which almost makes it not worth it financially. 4-5 seems best for me. This semester I'm teaching 3 Statistics courses, 1 Int. Algebra and tutoring on the side for extra income.

 

[Baroque]

Interesting. When I'm in the classroom, I act as a facilitator. I don't give a shit if students agree or disagree with me on certain points of view or interpretation when discussing an article or reading. I'm more interested in getting them to articulate the reasons and motivations behind their own opinions and feelings. The class will also tend to devolve into group think, so I'll frequently play devil's advocate and speak for the minority. A lot of these students, mostly the fresh out of high school ones, have little understanding behind why they think about things the way they do, and they don't question their beliefs or look objectively at alternatives.

Teaching classes other than math would be strange/difficult to me. There are no opinions or feelings in math. There's right and wrong.

I do understand playing devil's advocate though. Often I'll make mistakes on purpose and see if my students can find them/point out why they're mistakes.

 

[Dak]

I can see how that's present in what he's saying; but ultimately any argument can be co-opted for less-than-reputable purposes. The question of censorship rises up yet again: should we censor ourselves to prevent what some people might use our arguments for?

In other news, I fucking hate formatting papers for journal submission. Every journal has different requirements, and they all suck.

I hear that. Same thing for abstract submissions. Got one submitted that has a small stipend option tacked on. Crossing fingers. It's for research I'm participating in purely for extra experience (no course credit tied to it), but it'd be nice to have some monetary compensation.

Yeah 6 is nuts. I did that one semester and never again. It also puts me in a higher tax bracket which almost makes it not worth it financially. 4-5 seems best for me. This semester I'm teaching 3 Statistics courses, 1 Int. Algebra and tutoring on the side for extra income.

Are they different types of stats or the same stats course for multiple students?

 

[Baroque]

Are they different types of stats or the same stats course for multiple students?

2 are the same class, 1 is different. Honestly it would make more sense for the 2 that are the same to be combined into 1 big class. But I'm not arguing with double pay for saying the same thing twice.

 

[Dak]

Well it looks like I probably wont be starting grad school this year, as I didn't make the initial interview group. Slim possibility there are enough poor interviewees/people who go elsewhere so as to get a later interview but can't count on that. My faculty advisor thinks it might be because her lab lacks research grant funding currently. Anyway, I still have a year of benefits left so we are supposed to have some planning meetings aside from the research we are doing so I can have a plan to maximally strengthen my application in the interim.

 

[Einherjar86]

Sorry man, that sucks.

At least you have the continuing support of that advisor. Having someone on the faculty helping out with the application process is extremely beneficial, and they can also offer substantive feedback on application materials.

Do you think you'd widen your net next time around, perhaps considering applying to more programs other than just that one?

 

[Dak]

I'm probably going to have to, because I only have an extra year of GI Bill to fall back on. After that i would have to go find work and that makes it even less likely of getting in later, as psych work with only a BA is pretty sparse. The problem is even if I get into another place, it's not like I just have to pack up some personal belongings in a dorm room. I have a whole household to relocate, my wife would have to transfer to finish up her BA, etc.

 

[Zephyrus]

My condolences, but bear in mind that next year you'll have a transcript that reflects the full extent of your undergrad career, as well as a meatier resume covering whatever you accomplished in the interim year. That's what helped me the second time around.

 

[Dak]

My condolences, but bear in mind that next year you'll have a transcript that reflects the full extent of your undergrad career, as well as a meatier resume covering whatever you accomplished in the interim year. That's what helped me the second time around.

Yeah, I'll have a 2nd presentation to add, additional research experience, potentially an additional grant award, and potentially a publication, just from this spring. I'm now looking at what possible certifications I might be able to achieve in the interim year as well as potential internships or volunteer opportunities. Unfortunately most of the internships I come across are all at big city institutions .

I knew getting in was a long shot, there's generally a sub 5% acceptance rate (5-6 students accepted, usually over 100 applicants) to this program, and a lot of those applicants have Masters degrees already. I did everything in my power as an undergrad. I don't want to go in debt and spend an additional couple of years on a Masters though because it doesn't really save me any time on this type of PhD. At least certifications will stay relevant to some degree.

 

[Zephyrus]

Yeah, go TA/RA-ship or go home.

 

[Master_Yoda77]

I heard back from my first Ph.D Program today and it was a success! If no other programs accept me, I'll be attending Southern Illinois University - Carbondale for their Ph.D program. Oh, they also offered me a Graduate Assistantship up to 14K a year with a tuition waiver.

Not my top school or anything, but it was a nice ego boost. I guess I did something right to get accepted there. Now, to just pass my MA Comprehensive Exams in two weeks.

 

[Einherjar86]

Damn, comps for an MA? That's rough. I know that Boston College also requires comps for their MA program; thankfully BU doesn't. My comps come up next semester, as required before I can begin work on my dissertation prospectus.

But anyway, and more importantly, congrats and good luck!

 

[Dak]

COngrats Yoda!

 

[Einherjar86]

I apologize for the gloating to follow, but I'm excited!

I received word back from Science Fiction Studies, the premier journal for literary studies in science fiction, on my recent submission: revise and resubmit!

This is good news, since it means the journal is interested in the content; and I'm extremely excited by the feedback I received in the two reports. Both of them said that they love the argument and that the writing is clear, but that the essay needs some streamlining/shortening - a criticism that I predicted, considering I tend to go crazy with endnotes.

At any rate, the first report began:

This is a very well written and, I think, brilliant reading of Watts’s two novels in the context of narrative theory and systems theory. Very little has been published on Watts’s science fiction and this is a detailed examination of the ways in which these two novels challenge assumptions about meaning, intentionality, and reading that we tend to take for granted in studies of narrative (which is why the author’s attention to studies such as Ian Watt’s The Rise of the Novel is spot on).

I'm definitely going to be resubmitting this, since the co-editor wrote in her email that they would very much like to see a revised version.

 

[Zephyrus]

Congrats, Pat!

Hopefully in a couple years I'll have a publication under my belt. Going to see how well some ideas fly at the next couple conferences I present at, and take it from there.

 

[Einherjar86]

Thanks!

Yeah, I'm hoping to have a publication set in stone within the next 6-12 months. Immediate acceptances are rare in literary journals; revise and resubmit is more common, so I'm hoping that means this essay has a good shot at publication. Most essays that get accepted begin as "revise and resubmits."

I also have an essay out to Modernism/Modernity, but they've been silent for over six months. They're a major literary journal, so I assume they get flooded with essays around the clock. My submission status recently changed from "awaiting referee selection" to "awaiting referee assignment," which I assume means they've selected outside readers and now are waiting for either the selectee's agreement, or their formal response. Either way, one of my advisors suggested I wait another three months before attempting to contact anyone.

 

[Master_Yoda77]

Pat, I guess I shouldn't say "Comprehensive" like what Doctoral Candidates go through. It's really just a 4 hour 3 essay writing session over 6 different texts spanning all of the English cannon (or close to it). Shakespeare, Donne, Sheridan, Woolf, Whitman, and some Vietnamese mojambo are what I had to read.

 

[Einherjar86]

Sounds pretty comprehensive to me! I've heard of exams for MA programs before; I have a friend who has to take his at BC this semester. I was just expressing my sympathies, haha.

In fact, exams for the PhD qualification are less rigorous (in terms of scope) than the MA exam. You actually get to pick your reading list for the orals exam.

 

[Master_Yoda77]

Everyone in the department is telling me not to really freak out about it. So long as I know the texts and have some opinions on them, I should do fine.

 

[Einherjar86]

Everyone in the department is telling me not to really freak out about it. So long as I know the texts and have some opinions on them, I should do fine.

Oh I'm sure you'll do fine. Those kinds of exams aren't designed to weed people out, they're designed so you can demonstrate your knowledge of the field, and especially your chosen area - which is what you've been working toward during your MA program!