Back To School

Today at the college there was a long norming session where we read and discussed student essays about the prompt we will use again this semester on the first day of class (Monday and Tuesday of next week). I liked the honest and relaxed discussion of these papers. I have been part of many departments, and in most, these events are marked by much bravado and one upsmanship. Here, everyone was an equal, it seemed. There were honest disagreements about the papers and what score they deserved and, interestingly, for the first time, discussions about the implications of these scores, what they would mean for the student's ability to function in the class. Though it was a long day, I came away energized rather than fatigued. I enjoyed hearing from my colleagues and seeing everyone again after a long and difficult summer.