Thread by @jcgreenfield, Reflections from teaching this week: students are *struggling.* And those who were [...]

Dr. Jen Greenfield 😷 (she/her)

jcgreenfield

Reflections from teaching this week: students are *struggling.* And those who were already exhausted from the chronic violence of white supremacy are especially struggling. For some (many) students, letting work “distract” from the news is not an option. 1/

Also, should that even be an aspiration? We — collectively, as a country — are writing history right now. That’s a heady responsibility. Shouldn’t we engage students in that work? Help them live in and understand this moment? 2/

My approach for the next couple(*duration unknown) weeks: scale back. Identify the essential learning objectives. Find ways to tie them to current events. When that isn’t possible, scale readings and assignments down to leave space for this moment. 3/

Know that some skills/ideas may not get taught, or may not sink in for students right now. That’s reality. So equip students with knowledge about where to get it later—a reading list, webinar series, or whatever is the right resource for whenever they get the bandwidth back. 4/

Then name what we’re living through as a teaching & learning moment. These days, weeks, & months ARE transforming us, whether we want them to or not. Every person living through the collective conversations about race, democracy, science, public goods, etc., SHOULD BE CHANGED. 5/

I’ve asked my doctoral students to think about how it is changing them. How might these conversations shape their scholarship? How will the knowledge of our collective trauma (& efforts to heal) inform their own teaching? What habits/skills/values will they carry forward? 6/

For me, the last few months have clarified that we in academia don’t leave much space for transformation. We assume it just happens. But what if we made it more explicit as part of the learning process, especially in these extraordinary times? 7/

Instead of asking students to compartmentalize & get through it, what if we asked them to live into this moment, learn about it, understand it, & decide how it should & will change them?

That’s my guiding idea for this winter. I hope it relieves some pressure for students. 8/8

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