Doubtless some ancient Greek has observed that behind the big mask and the speaking-trumpet, there must always be our poor little eyes peeping as usual and our timorous lips more or less under anxious control.How many years, exactly, do I have to do this before I no longer feel jittery on the first day?
January 4, 2010
First Day of Classes
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
At a professional development lecture, a speaker told the story about how as a young TA he was assigned to one of the most senior and distinguished members of his department, an excellent scholar and teacher. As they waited for the class to start, the TA noticed that the senior scholar's hands were shaking. His conclusion: it's OK to be nervous!
That's sweet. Just remember their just as scared of you as you are of them.
it's OK to be nervous
I guess that's right. After all, anxiety is a sign that you care how it goes, right? which in turn is an incentive to work hard for the occasion. I conclude that being nervous is actually a sign of skill and competence. :-)
AD101: Hmmm. Most of them certainly seem quite at their ease, but you're probably right, at least about the ones who actually care about the class.
Here is what I hate the most, Rohan. Say, for example, that I replace two of the six books on the half-course syllabus, and I put in a lot of effort writing new lectures for those new books and revising lectures for those about which I am not wholly confident. Perhaps I have a vague recollection that my intro lecture was fabulous. In the rush back, I put off thinking about the first day and grab my lecture notes just before class. Standing at the front of the class, I flip open the file folder and see, in pencil on the first page, "Too short! Revise fully for next time."
I will be envious when you're done weeks before I am later in the spring, but for right now I am so happy it's you who's gone back and not me...
Post a Comment