Teaching: Semester Endings

A post about posts.

As a light rain passes over campus, followed by bursting evening sun, I slowly realize that the semester is ending. I haven’t reflected much on teaching this term… too busy. I didn’t much prepare this time around, foolishly, considering it was a completely new (to me) course. My plan, which more or less worked out, was to take a class when I should have been preparing and then to make it up creatively as I went because I would have one less class and more free time during the term…

Unfortunately the semester still hit me like a ton of bricks: nearly 40 students in a class designed for 20, zero to little preparation, very little pre-reading of texts on my part, total lack of an overall ‘vision’ for the course. Of course I’m my own hardest critic, or so I’m told, but this is at least how it felt to me (I’m sure I did have some prep/reading/vision). Despite all this I did manage to start the semester with some gusto, and apparently the free time to read and write about some Kant on the side. I also had a big happy ah ha! post regarding philosophy of religion, the book of Genesis, and the stories we tell ourselves.

But by mid-February I was blogging with topics like Life: life of a Buddhist madman (where there is a bit about teaching), and complaining that:

Our path is so destructive that our extermination is the natural, logical outcome…. It is only a matter of time.

The semester was beginning to get to me.

In March I found myself in the student newspaper, and repeatedly trying to blog myself into sanity (“Buddhism: slowing down, opening up“, “Life: going native“, & “Philosophy: Balance, Striving, and Virtue“). But, before any of that could take hold, I was off to England for a conference, to see friends (including my beloved Ana), and see about Ph.D. work in London. That was followed by my nearly quitting all blogging in the hope of finding peace.

That didn’t work. In fact I think I started blogging more after that. I tried to make some changes in life, none of which really stuck, hehe… I did seem to find some peace, however, in blogging on Tibetan Buddhist practices of Dzogchen and Mahamudra. I also got to work more on thoughts for my Ph.D. work on Buddhist Ethics, and Buddhist Environmentalism (and here).

Finally I had to decide about London – to go, or not – and finally fell on the ‘go’ side of the fence.

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So that was my semester. It’s been a trial, but in many ways super wonderful. The classes I took: Greening of Religion and Philosophy of Law were brilliantly taught and filled with wonderful material. And, all in all, I think the class I taught went well. The feedback from students has been mostly very good and reassuring. I still have the opportunity to write an article/essay on it, due the 15th (5 days!)… So… granted I get in my last one short essay due for a class here and get my grading done and keep my (mother’s day) travels to a minimum… I’ll be reflecting more and more on teaching very soon.