Experimenting with Learning

This year might be harder than typical depending on what your experience has been learning during the pandemic and what new curveballs might be thrown this year. Pandemics tend to have waves and I have little control over how the university will react to new changes. So, please, if you need some help (in class, in life) please reach out to me so I can do whatever I can or put you in contact with people who can help.

Teaching and learning this year is an experiment. You will be learning in a medium and a format quite different from most other courses. You will be asked to do assignments which are totally unfamiliar to you. You might be using different software for each of your classes with professors demanding different rules and forms of etiquette in each. Thus we should all try to be extra patient and understanding when things don't go as smoothly as we'd like.

We don't know how things are going to look in October, let alone December, so please understand if schedules get derailed, our discussions get irescheduled and learning doesn't happen exactly as hoped for. Experiments in learning can pay off if we accept the risks.

Things to Keep in Mind

To succeed in this seminar, it may require more energy and discipline (or at least different kinds) from you than a traditional lecture course.

Willingness to experiment: Half of this course will be making and playing games. You need to be willing to try new things and not to worry too much about getting things exactly right. Trying and failing to do something can often teach more than getting it perfectly right the first time. Students need to embrace the idea that class is an experiment in learning.

Motivation: Motivation can always be challenging. I suspect that in our context (e.g. almost everyone has a lot of additional concerns/ issues/ considerations) finding the motivation to buckle down on our courses might be extra challenging. I hope the face-to-face time in the classroom (especially with your peers) can provide energy and motivation…

Difficulty of concentration: One of the reasons that I believe in-person classes remain so important, even in our digital age is because it gives us spaces in which we can switch off our devices and all of the distractions they offer, and hone the absolutely vital skill of concentration (a skill that is vital both for having a successful learning experience in this course, but also for life in general). Carving out spaces of intensive concentration (while in class, doing your readings, working on your syntheses and other written assignments) at home will no doubt be much more challenging, for a variety of reasons.

Tech problems: no doubt there will be both a significant learning curve for all of us in terms of how the various pieces of software work, as well as a variety of tech mishaps due to the demands of internet streaming, etc. We’ll have to become skilled at quickly problem solving these together. I am no tech genius but hopefully together we can sort out issues.