Spielraum

All through the semester, for both instructors and students, classes come wave after wave, week by week, and the rush of urgent tasks doesn't seem to cease. But, the last class of the term for me ended a half hour ago. Therefore, the rush is finally wearing off.

The last class of the semester in my morning section; through the term, attendance was lower than in classes at other times of the day, and the level of energy and noise was less too. But, I found that the students who did come consistently were very committed and engaged. Therefore, I'll miss these early mornings.

The end of the semester is near, and the term-ly ritual of teaching evaluations is here, along with the recommendation to give students class-time to fill these in. But, it's slightly uncomfortable asking them to fill it out for you and then stepping out of the room for a few minutes. Therefore, I juggled in the demo room during this time, to keep steady.

We're building a model for the energy balance of the Earth, and calculating its average temperature. But, the discussion is abstract and calculated. Therefore, I shared photos of the Fort McMurray wildfire---a huge natural disaster in my home province---to personalize the implications of our model.

It's the final week of classes, and I've got the last bits of content for the course laid out and ready. But, I'm not exactly sure yet how to add some useful review pieces at the very end. Therefore, I've got a bit more work to do this week.

A clicker poll in class with a vote split 50/25/25 (with 50 on the correct response), and so I eliminated one of the 25s and asked them to discuss with their neighbour. But, the second poll came back 50/50. Therefore, I wonder if some correct people shifted over or if it was a straight lump together of the two 25s?

Sometimes, the problems that are used in physics courses seem artificial and abstract, and it's tough to generate---in the students or myself---enthusiasm for analyzing these esoteric situations. But, our capstone problem is to analyze the energy balance for the Earth and compute the average temperature of our planet. Therefore, this one feels much easier to get excited about.

While my computer was broken, I was using my old laptop, and it was able to do the things I needed it to do. But, this week I've finally got a (new) replacement for the old broken computer. Therefore, everything feels faster, more flexible, more colourful, and more usable.

Class today was split between lecture time and worksheet working, and so students got a chance to practice with the physics we're talking about. But, we didn't have any clicker questions that generated good interaction and discussion. Therefore, I might try to work a couple more in for the next session.

Went back to the start of electromagnetic radiation, and tried to better lay out what it is and place our specific focus of thermal radiation. But, this took a few slides of details and annotation. Therefore, I felt like I was talking a lot in this class.

Today we showed various objects under the infrared camera, and discussed how an object's emissivity impacts the absorption and emission of thermal radiation. But, an object which absorbs well in the visible spectrum---something that appears black---doesn't seem to emit well in the visible---after all, it appears black. Therefore, knowing which parts of our experience to use to decide on an object's emissivity is a bit subtle.

We began looking at thermal radiation during class today, and there are lots of great demonstrations and resources based around this topic. But, between the youtube video, the infrared camera, the kettle, the nail burning demo, the doc cam, my computer, two projectors, and the clicker, I had many balls to juggle during class today. Therefore, I wasn't so smooth in all the transitions.

Helping out a colleague in need, I subbed in a second class today, and so I spent 1.5 h interacting with 200 new faces. But, the students in that class also saw a new face (mine). Therefore, there was some respect and tentativeness on both sides.

The Fall semester is long, and there is no Fall reading break at our institution. But, there are long weekends, and we're currently on the verge of another one, to be used for some rest and recharging. Therefore, I'm feeling a bit tired but also unhurried.

When in class, I feel high energy, and as a result I do lots of moving around when speaking. But, pacing while talking can be perceived as nervousness. Therefore, I've been conscious about trying to plant myself in one spot when making important points.

I sat in on the class immediately before my own because it's interesting to watch others teach to observe their habits, and those of the students. But, the one thing that is most useful is the empathy I develop for the student perspective: The view from the back looking forward is much different than the view from the front looking out. Therefore, I made sure to touch base with some of those who sit at the back of my own class.

8am class sometimes feels early, and especially so as winter sets in and the mornings start being colder. But, on the weekend I saw a suggestion in a magazine from our own Prime Minister: If you take morning classes in university, then you'll be up early and have more afternoon time for studying, friends, and other activities. Therefore, I shared with my class that they made a JT-approved choice to be there in the morning.