Archive for April, 2008
Grading and Sidearms
Posted by Michael Livingston in Teaching on April 29th, 2008
I’ve previously posted on why my uniform does not include a sidearm, but it’s good to have reminders now and then of why this is so.
It’s final grading time hereabouts right now, and I’m getting close to the end. All that remains is for me to grade the essay component of an in-class final for my “knobs” (i.e., freshmen). The subject was meant to be reflective; I asked them to look back on their first year at The Citadel, to argue about the advantages and disadvantages of the “knob experience.”
Settling into my office this morning, I prepped the stack of essays, clicking and reclicking my red pen in anxious anticipation of bloodletting — er, grading. I eyed my nearby warhammer with a sort of longing. Then I pulled the first paper off the stack, cricked my neck, and read the following (here typed up verbatim — I’m a trained paleographer, you know!):
The knob experience, ment to seperate “the men from the boys,” but is it adventagious to go through, I say yes they do.
I stared at this for a solid minute before deciding not to grade that one just yet. Best to wait. For the sake of the carpets.
So I set it aside and pulled the next one off the stack. The first sentence:
No one said life was easy.
This, too, I stared at for a bit. Then, sighing, I returned this second paper to the stack and retrieved the first.
Yeah, I know, smartypants. No one said it was easy, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t mind if it was.
NFL Draft
Posted by Michael Livingston in Homelife on April 27th, 2008
A bit tough to concentrate on all this grading with the draft results trickling in, but I must post a quick response to the Broncos’ work this time around, especially in light of my previous post advising Mr. Shanahan.
I have here at my desk a draft chart, with a number of names and positions scribbled upon it. They represent my hopes going into our draft this year. (Yes, I am aware of my collapsing myself into the third person plural here despite the fact I am not on the payroll of the Broncos. No, I don’t care.) Comparing these scribbles with what happened over the past two days (positions in my order of need):
OFFENSIVE LINE. Denver’s number one need. I figured we didn’t have a shot at Ryan Clady of Boise State, but I’m glad to be wrong. In addition to taking a tackle with the first pick, I wanted Denver to grab a Guard or Center with a late pick. I had tabbed Drew Radovich of USC, thinking he could be had in the 7th round. Turns out the Broncos jumped this need in the 4th with Kory Lichtensteiger of Bowling Green. Radovich, by the way, didn’t get drafted, so he still could be a Bronco.
Grading Graduates
Posted by Michael Livingston in Teaching on April 26th, 2008
I’m grading graduate student research papers this weekend, from my course “Medieval War and Peace.” It’s a nice change from marking up freshman composition papers. There are fewer egregious grammar issues and more attempts to say something of solid merit.
Sadly, though, not everything is different.
For example, these graduate papers were supposed to be 20-25 pages in length. It turns out that about 25% of them do not meet this most basic requirement (that’s actually quite a bit higher than the percentage among my freshman papers). And two of them are not only short, but short even after font-padding (wherein the student oh-so-cleverly uses a wide-set font to stretch the length).
I take the last point somewhat personal, as it supposes (to my mind) that I’m an idiot who doesn’t notice such things. Alas, it seems I do.
Our Students
Posted by Michael Livingston in Academics on April 24th, 2008
I’ve previously posted about the Shift Happens 2.0 video, which ought to be mandatory watching for all teachers and learners in this new world in which we find ourselves. This morning, I came across this, which makes some interesting cross-references for teachers especially:
Finals Week
Posted by Michael Livingston in Teaching on April 24th, 2008
After a brief chance to catch my breath earlier this week — a couple days to bang out two more chapters of Four Shards — I’ve now entered the homestretch of the semester. Finals.
For students, finals week means studying. For teachers, it means grading. For all of us, it means late nights and lots of stress.
On the plus side, it’ll be over in a week. Then I’m jumping in the Jeep and driving out West to hunt Anasazi ruins.
Seriously.
Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 20
Posted by Michael Livingston in Fiction on April 23rd, 2008
Article Series - Four Shards of Heaven
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Preliminaries
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Prologue
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 1
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 2
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 3
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 4
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 5
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 6
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 7
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 8
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 9
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 10
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 11
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 12
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 13
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 14
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 15
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 16
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 17
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 18
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 19
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 20
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 21
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 22
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 23
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 24
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 25
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 26
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 27
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 28
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 29
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 30
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Epilogue
- Revising and Revising
- 512 Pages
- Four Shards of Heaven: Synopsis
Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 19
Posted by Michael Livingston in Fiction on April 23rd, 2008
Article Series - Four Shards of Heaven
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Preliminaries
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Prologue
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 1
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 2
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 3
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 4
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 5
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 6
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 7
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 8
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 9
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 10
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 11
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 12
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 13
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 14
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 15
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 16
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 17
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 18
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 19
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 20
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 21
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 22
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 23
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 24
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 25
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 26
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 27
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 28
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 29
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 30
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Epilogue
- Revising and Revising
- 512 Pages
- Four Shards of Heaven: Synopsis
Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 18
Posted by Michael Livingston in Fiction on April 21st, 2008
Article Series - Four Shards of Heaven
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Preliminaries
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Prologue
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 1
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 2
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 3
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 4
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 5
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 6
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 7
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 8
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 9
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 10
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 11
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 12
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 13
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 14
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 15
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 16
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 17
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 18
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 19
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 20
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 21
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 22
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 23
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 24
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 25
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 26
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 27
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 28
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 29
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Chapter 30
- Protected: Four Shards of Heaven: Epilogue
- Revising and Revising
- 512 Pages
- Four Shards of Heaven: Synopsis

