So, amid all this stuff (cutbacks and much, much worse), are you ready for another year?
I think I am, despite what I'm hearing and seeing.
1. The AI train has truly left the station. From what I see around the news and at r/professors, there's kind of an arms race going on with professors trying to prevent AI use (white text, anyone?) and students keeping one step ahead of them. If you have an in-person class, the blue book solution is staring you in the face, but aside from that, we just have to figure it out, I guess.
2. Speaking of an in-person class, I'm excited to teach a course in the literature of a previous century that I haven't taught for a while. In addition to having them write drafts and exams in class, I am devising hands-on activities so that they can really experience reading & writing back then. Think about these:
(1) library scavenger hunts in regular and closed stacks for copies of the magazines and books that they're reading;
(2) bringing in copies of the original manuscripts so that they can see and decipher what it looked like when it went to the printer;
(3) bringing in some stick (dip) pens, paper, and ink so that they can try their hand at writing sans electronic technology. Maybe they could try their hand at crossed writing? At writing in the style and with the method (pen & ink) of an author? We'll see how it goes.
3. Worried about whether the course will have enough students to run? I'm concerned about this, but admin doesn't seem to be, so as my mother used to say (she said it was from George Washington, though I doubt it): "Worry is the interest you get when you borrow trouble." If they give me a little notice, I'm game to teach (though with varying degrees of aptitude) anything except Chaucer or linguistics, so I won't worry about it.
4. What's concerning you this year besides the obvious?
Edited to add: Anne and Gwinne, your comments are there now; sorry for the delay!
