“I think it's so foolish for people to want to be happy. Happy is so momentary--you're happy for an instant and then you start thinking again. Interest is the most important thing in life; happiness is temporary, but interest is continuous.” ― Georgia O'Keeffe
The truth about American optimism
Today when I navigated to the library homepage at my institution, a stranger appeared. The handy quick links I'd come to know and rely on to help students get the materials they need--gone. The research guides, essential for accessing resources such as subject librarians--buried in a peripheral page somewhere in the footer. The Web of... Continue Reading →
The language carrot …
“I don’t speak,” Bijaz said. “I operate a machine called language. It creaks and groans, but is mine own.”"Dune Messiah" (1969) by Frank Herbert Today, the BBC published an article on what it means to be fluent in a language. Fluency might be the unicorn sighting of the second language universe--that thing everyone carries on... Continue Reading →
Sun shower in Madrid’s Plaza Mayor
Monday culminated in some shopping in Madrid's Plaza Mayor, where I got locked down by a torrential downpour. The intensity of the sunlight doesn't show up so well in this video, but the green dot moving around the screen is where the sun was hitting the lens of my phone's camara. https://youtu.be/fTEmuMDwEvE
Hace mucho tiempo no nos escribimos
Blog updates succumbed to summer ennui this year, but there's nothing like refreshing time away from the U.S. to get the words flowing again. It's remarkable what a reliable metro system with occupants who know how to act in public will do for my overall humor. I'm writing this from the patio of my hotel... Continue Reading →
The trouble with books …
The next time your students ask if they can rely on books for their research, you can tell them this: Book publishers don’t normally fact-check books. They’ll run sensitive material by lawyers, but otherwise it’s on authors to make sure their work is accurate. Generally, this works out fine. Sometimes, it does not. When books... Continue Reading →
Duolingo Announces its French Podcast
I love the Spanish language podcast, so this should be a welcome addition for French students. https://instagram.com/p/By2wsb7Bc9l/
Looks like I'll be adding some additions to my Mexican handicraft collection after all this year.
Shift the onus to them
This is a great article on classroom management: Why shouldn’t students feel entitled? You’ve relieved them of responsibility. Think about it. You assess by legislative fiat, document attendance, lord over technology, interact with students 24-7 via email or text, keep students on track via Blackboard or Canvas, treat students as customers, are blamed for grade... Continue Reading →
Some people have bad hair days; I have bad technology days. This morning, the OneNote app on my phone stopped syncing with my work account (most likely due to the hyper-vigilant Internet security protocols at my workplace--a problem our IT department perennialy insists on deflecting to faculty). Otherwise, I'm still recuperating from TESOL proposals, which... Continue Reading →
