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Well, this term I am taking Math for Teachers II, Biology, Biology Lab, Chemistry, Chemistry Lab, Intro to Physics, and Spanish I. I'm not a huge fan of math or science, and it's a bad idea to save them for last, so we figured I oughta intersperse them throughout my education so I don't burn out.
On that note, I'm actually pretty excited about Bio/ Lab, Physics and Spanish based on the first week of classes. Chemistry seems like it'll be manageable but the instructor seems pretty tight laced. Math for Teachers II shouldn't be too difficult, but I don't really know about the teacher for that one, and the class seems pretty rambunctious.
Math for Teachers II sounds like it'll be just a basic continuation of the first course, meaning the homework should be easy (is graded on doing it, rather than right answers) and the way to find answers will be pretty interesting. The teacher seems laid back, so I'm not too worried about him being a stickler, but I'm thinking he'll probably play favorites with some of the gals in the class (easily half of this class was in his Math for Teachers I course last term). By the way, I say "gals" because all but four of us are women in this class. Two of the students in there took Part I with me a couple of terms ago, otherwise they're all new faces. The teacher says that he'll be using the online CNM services quite a bit, so that'll be a change up, up until now, the other instructors I've had didn't really use it that much. He's already sent us all an e-mail.
I think Biology will be the most fun this term. The teacher really enjoys what she does and is a lot of fun and at the same time fair. She wants true research and from all angles, and is open to many subjects and topics of discussion as long as it is, of course, biology. I don't know very much about how the grading and such is going to work (no assignments yet and nothing to compare it to) but I'm cautiously optimistic. Even if I don't get an A, I'm sure I'll still enjoy this course quite a bit. The class is pretty packed for an early morning one (7:30A) but it'll probably thin out over the course of the term. The population in the room is my only complaint.
The corresponding lab should be interesting. The teacher here is a self-professed bio nerd and specialized in botany (and more specifically reproduction). We have two field trips planned if all goes well, one to the Rio Grande and the other to a destination of our choice. I'm hoping for the Water Waste Treatment plant, but I expect the Zoo will get more votes. It's very hands on and she had us do a couple of mini labs on the first day. It's a three hour once a week class. It'll be a class I look forward to, especially since she said that she won't be lecturing as much as we will be actually doing lab work, just enough lecture and quiz time to make sure we know what procedures to follow that day.
Intro to Physics seems like it'll be great. The teacher is really animated and another dedicated to her field. She fell into Physics when the Biology and Chemistry classes filled up while she was in college and ended up changing her major when she found she enjoyed Physics. She nearly took out a student on the second day with a cart while demonstrating Newton's First Law. I think it'll be an exciting class. The students are a healthy mix, from Machinists to Education majors, and most seem pretty genuinely interested.
Chemistry and it's lab are both taught by the same instructor (in my case). I'm not looking at those to be too much fun, but shouldn't be too hard. She is pretty thorough and straight-forward with her teaching. The lab will actually involve quite a bit of lecture, according to her. The first hour or so will be spent in a classroom and then we transfer to the lab for the last half of class. I just hope the lab lecture won't be a basic repeat of the main course lecture. She was pretty on top of the safety measures in the lab, which is good. We all had to go on a scavenger hunt of sorts to identify where all of the safety gear was. It should be an interesting experience, hopefully the teacher won't dull it down for us, too early to tell.
Spanish looks like it'll be pretty fast paced. We did some pretty interactive stuff on the first day, and it looks like a lot of our in class exercises will be partner and group based. We spent a good deal of the first day learning how to introduce ourselves and others to learn everyone's name. That was very difficult for me. The other half of the class seems like it'll be online. She strongly pushed the online half of the book we bought as far as assignments and practice go. I haven't had a class that was so split as far as work, so I'm curious to see where it goes.
So that's where I'm at this term. The classes are spread out nicely Monday through Friday so transferring classes should be a bit less stressful than last term. I'm looking forward to see what this semester brings, wish me luck folks.
On that note, I'm actually pretty excited about Bio/ Lab, Physics and Spanish based on the first week of classes. Chemistry seems like it'll be manageable but the instructor seems pretty tight laced. Math for Teachers II shouldn't be too difficult, but I don't really know about the teacher for that one, and the class seems pretty rambunctious.
Math for Teachers II sounds like it'll be just a basic continuation of the first course, meaning the homework should be easy (is graded on doing it, rather than right answers) and the way to find answers will be pretty interesting. The teacher seems laid back, so I'm not too worried about him being a stickler, but I'm thinking he'll probably play favorites with some of the gals in the class (easily half of this class was in his Math for Teachers I course last term). By the way, I say "gals" because all but four of us are women in this class. Two of the students in there took Part I with me a couple of terms ago, otherwise they're all new faces. The teacher says that he'll be using the online CNM services quite a bit, so that'll be a change up, up until now, the other instructors I've had didn't really use it that much. He's already sent us all an e-mail.
I think Biology will be the most fun this term. The teacher really enjoys what she does and is a lot of fun and at the same time fair. She wants true research and from all angles, and is open to many subjects and topics of discussion as long as it is, of course, biology. I don't know very much about how the grading and such is going to work (no assignments yet and nothing to compare it to) but I'm cautiously optimistic. Even if I don't get an A, I'm sure I'll still enjoy this course quite a bit. The class is pretty packed for an early morning one (7:30A) but it'll probably thin out over the course of the term. The population in the room is my only complaint.
The corresponding lab should be interesting. The teacher here is a self-professed bio nerd and specialized in botany (and more specifically reproduction). We have two field trips planned if all goes well, one to the Rio Grande and the other to a destination of our choice. I'm hoping for the Water Waste Treatment plant, but I expect the Zoo will get more votes. It's very hands on and she had us do a couple of mini labs on the first day. It's a three hour once a week class. It'll be a class I look forward to, especially since she said that she won't be lecturing as much as we will be actually doing lab work, just enough lecture and quiz time to make sure we know what procedures to follow that day.
Intro to Physics seems like it'll be great. The teacher is really animated and another dedicated to her field. She fell into Physics when the Biology and Chemistry classes filled up while she was in college and ended up changing her major when she found she enjoyed Physics. She nearly took out a student on the second day with a cart while demonstrating Newton's First Law. I think it'll be an exciting class. The students are a healthy mix, from Machinists to Education majors, and most seem pretty genuinely interested.
Chemistry and it's lab are both taught by the same instructor (in my case). I'm not looking at those to be too much fun, but shouldn't be too hard. She is pretty thorough and straight-forward with her teaching. The lab will actually involve quite a bit of lecture, according to her. The first hour or so will be spent in a classroom and then we transfer to the lab for the last half of class. I just hope the lab lecture won't be a basic repeat of the main course lecture. She was pretty on top of the safety measures in the lab, which is good. We all had to go on a scavenger hunt of sorts to identify where all of the safety gear was. It should be an interesting experience, hopefully the teacher won't dull it down for us, too early to tell.
Spanish looks like it'll be pretty fast paced. We did some pretty interactive stuff on the first day, and it looks like a lot of our in class exercises will be partner and group based. We spent a good deal of the first day learning how to introduce ourselves and others to learn everyone's name. That was very difficult for me. The other half of the class seems like it'll be online. She strongly pushed the online half of the book we bought as far as assignments and practice go. I haven't had a class that was so split as far as work, so I'm curious to see where it goes.
So that's where I'm at this term. The classes are spread out nicely Monday through Friday so transferring classes should be a bit less stressful than last term. I'm looking forward to see what this semester brings, wish me luck folks.
