NUTSHELL NOTES

"Teaching tips in a nutshell" - The University of Colorado
at Denver's One-page Newsletter for Teaching Excellence

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Volume 2 Number 6

Salvaging Benefits from the DEADLIEST Time of the Year

The deadliest time of the year for a professor is usually the final two weeks of spring classes. Students who cut a third of their classes now seem to come begging teary-eyed for an "incomplete" or an "extra credit project," while those who couldn't find your office all year suddenly seem to be camping there, demanding help with the material you covered in February. This is the time of the year when everyone discovers that time just isn't available to meet deadlines gracefully. It is not just the trials on patience that come from dealing with students' procrastination (although these can be trials with a capital T!) Such stresses are augmented when you are now at something like chapter 8 and planned to test on chapter 12 for the final exam. Stress can also come from department chairs, committee chairs and administrators who now realize that they must hold "just one more meeting" before faculty scatter for the summer. At the root of the problem at this time of year is the flood of term papers, exams, lab manuals, and journals to be graded, more exams to prepare, perhaps laboratories to clean, and maybe even having to give a paper at a spring conference (I met one UCD prof today who has to give three papers in late April — pray for her!) All of this results in working through weekends and getting 5 hours or less of sleep each night, which tends to remove some of the glitter from the more charming parts of our personalities. If you do not find yourself in one or more of the above situations, consider yourself to be the lucky exception. You might even recall being in the same predicament this time last year, and helping yourself and others to avoid that situation next year is the issue of today's Nutshell Note.

At the end of the term, there is a real temptation to "just get through it alive" into summer. In summer, we forget the horror show we starred in, and by fall we again begin to set the pattern for the same events to occur. Your best way out of being condemned to repeat unpleasant history starts with a blank sheet of paper. Tape it to the back of your door now; don't allow this paper to get onto your desk or into a file, where it will likely be churned out of sight during the mayhem of the next few days. Keep it accessible. As crises and irritations occur, record them on that sheet, and try to add a brief note as to how to correct them. An example from my first list was "Being swamped with grading late student work—Change syllabus!" My next syllabus stated: "No late work is accepted unless the student makes prior arrangements to extend a deadline." Students then knew the rules on deadlines from day one. Those who are sick or have work emergencies know to call and notify me; they are taken care of. I might not have thought to revise that point into my syllabus had I not recorded the problem when it occurred. If there is any disparity between planned coverage of material and the hard facts of realistic pacing, it is most likely to show up as a crisis in the final weeks. A compilation of any disasters noted during the last two weeks of the term and during the grading of final exams is one of the best keys to prevent reliving the same events in subsequent semesters. Consult the list when you lay out your syllabus for next term.

For now, if you are tempted to "cover the material" in a flurry of heavy assignments at the last minute, resist this— it's an invitation to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Keep your class out of crisis mode by simply "teaching less better." Colleagues may also be tired and overly stressed, so now is a good time to treat one another especially well.

A "list-sharing" (of the lists compiled on those sheets on the backs of doors) at your next departmental meeting may reveal shared problems that you cannot correct on your own, such as overloaded classes or unrealistic demands. Written records that acknowledge problems can be the first critical steps toward actual solutions.

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