After Class Eleven - March 18

The semester is rapidly coming to a close. The final assignment, the Portfolio, is due next week, March 25. Please include three narratives and a one page introduction to the Portfolio, where you discuss your reasons for including each narrative, what you learned from writing each one, and how your ideas may have changed over the semester.

Thanks again to our narrative readers this week. We heard about a terrible accident and how it is hard to let go of the traumatic feelings of that experience; how students are often our best teachers by reminding us to keep an open mind; and about a first job, complicated by a co-worker who holds a parent in high esteem.

The image is from an interesting "Prison Art" website, http://www.cellblockvisions.com/about.html and you can read about a teacher's experience of teaching art in jails.

Have a great weekend - Happy Spring!

After Class Ten - March 11

We enjoyed a feast of narratives in this class -- many thanks to the authors. We heard about deciding to live in residence and learning to juggle school, work and daily living chores; the heartbreak of false friendship and being grateful for true friends; the shock of a good high school student receiving poor grades in university and deciding to meet the challenge; a summer trip to Quebec and the benefits of travel for young people; developing a fear of public speaking from experiences in a hostile classroom and the contrast of learning how to be more confident in a nurturing classroom; work experiences in a friend's business and a man's unique way of teaching through salty stories; the impact on children in a family breakdown and learning why forgiveness is important; and, lastly, through early marriage and more worldly experiences, being able to stand up for yourself and finding the courage to change your life.

Our story this week, "Man and Wife" by Katie Chase, created a lot of good discussion. Thanks for all the good comments on the blog as well.

Please note: the blogs/reading logs are due next Wed., March 18. You can e-mail them in one document or bring a paper copy to class. After the introduction, there should be nine entries in total. Your response to this class, Mar. 10, will be the final entry. I will continue to post information on the blog and you are welcome to post your ideas, but it is optional from now on.

Just a heads up: in less than two weeks (Mar. 25) the three narratives for the Portfolio will be due. Please bring one narrative to class next week on which you have not yet received feedback and we will give each other peer comments. See you then.

No class on Wed., March 4

Due to illness, there will be NO class this Wed.

Please use this time to work on your papers - they are due next class, March 11.

Also, for this week's blog/log posting, please discuss your impressions of the story, "Man and Wife" by Katie Chase. How does this story compare with more extreme events in the news, such as in Bountiful, B.C.? How do society and even family pressure young people to marry? In North America, with a 50% divorce rate, would you say parental involvement in a choice of partner might be a good thing? In some cultures, arranged marriage is the norm -- do you think this might lead to a higher rate of success, or does it change the whole idea of marriage for you? We will discuss this more in class next week.

Please continue to post on last week's class in the blog (below). See you next week. Sorry for any inconvenience.