Read on!

As I re-read my previous post, I realized it may have sounded negative, not quite like I wanted it to be.   When I wrote it, I was sitting in my office at the Logansport campus and had been grading all morning. I was becoming bleary-eyed.

This will be more positive!

When I first taught ENGL 222 and ENGL 223, there were three-way classes which meant I taught them from the old Logansport campus in the Early Childhood Education room with a tv and camera.  Part of my students were sitting there with me.  The others were in either Kokomo or Wabash, sitting in a classroom at that particular campus.  The classes lasted for 75 minutes, twice a week.  By the time we connected with everyone, we chit-chatted for a bit, it was time to end the session and no one talked except me and the students at Logansport.  Not a good situation. 

My very supportive program chair at the time, Tom Ghering, suggested that I create an online version of the two courses to reach more students and accomplish what I wanted in---and what you have experienced is the result.

With the exception of one fall semester when ENGL 222 didn't run, we have had full rosters of students each semester since the advent of the online versions of the courses and more students from all over the state have participated.

Pluses?

More students are reading. That is always a plus!  Reading is a valuable skill in the world of education, in career choices, and in life!  Create that habit to read, read a variety of genres, and read often.

History is re-visited. Reading the literature of a specific time period can add to one's knowledge about that time period.  Do you understand more about the Roaring 20s, bootlegging, social classes of that time period from reading The Great Gatsby?  Probably. 

"Life" is re-visited.  Domestic abuse?  Why was it accepted, or maybe ignored, during the times of Streetcar Named Desire?  Why did women 'take it' and not leave their husbands?  Food for thought?

Increased vocabulary and exposure to varied writing styles.  Learning new words.  Change in sentence structures.  What better models for writing than some of the best authors of the 19th and 20th Centuries?

Communication with others.  Blackboard IM sessions were so much fun!  I could sit in my recliner, type in a question, and just watch as the pencils on the screen started to move and the conversations explode.

New love of reading - usually students share their desire to read more, explore new authors, get a library card, buy a Nook or a Kindle, visit the bookstore and buy some books for the shelves at home.

I hope you have enjoyed the course.  If you have room in your schedule this fall, please consider taking ENGL 222, which is the first half of the series.  Same organization with Pods.  More BB IM sessions.

My plans this summer?  One class to teach, a trip to Disney World with my family (including four grandchildren), and reading time.  A stack of books await me!

Whatever your plans are for the summer, whether taking more classes, looking for a job, enjoying down time with friends and family, I hope put some free reading time on your Summer Bucket List.

Read on!