Happy End of the Semester to you all! Good luck to all those still in the thick of grading. In my first column as President of the Geo 2YC Division, I wanted to take some time to reflect on a recent period of great change that I hope will be a lesson I can carry forward into the future. I have long said that as an instructor, I needed to constantly remind myself of what it’s like to be on the other side of the desk. But I was recently blessed with a great lesson and reminder about the people I would find there.
In the many years that I taught Historical Geology to my students at my 2YC, I always emphasized to my students that Geology was all about change. Sometimes, those changes were small and incremental but accumulated over a long period of time to change the face of what was there before. Such is the lesson of uniformitarianism. Other times, those changes were large and drastic, completely reshaping the landscape in the space of a few heartbeats to produce something new – not bad, just new. But both of them together help to shape the world we live in.
For me, the last year has been one of drastic changes, with the closure of my beloved 2YC and the transition to teaching at a 4YC again. The steady ground I’d had beneath my feet was gone and I had to go through a steep learning curve to adapt to my new reality. Small class sizes? Gone. The rock lab I had built? No more. The curriculum I had developed? Shelved. Even the fact that I was no longer a department of one was a huge change. And it was hard. A catastrophe had reshaped my landscape to produce one that was new.
But what stayed the same was the students. These new-to-me students were still doing things like flaking out about assignment deadlines, skipping labs, emailing to beg for extensions, and so on. Trust me, there is a certain amount of comfort in knowing that students are students no matter where you go! But these students were also showing extraordinary compassion and understanding, having been through their own recent life changes where they had left behind the schools they had known to start afresh in the more challenging world of higher ed. Knowing that I was new to the campus and the courses I was teaching, they were generous with their time and knowledge of the department, they helped me find tools I needed, they left messages of encouragement on my office door, and they gave me their patience and flexibility. We as instructors spend so much time discussing how we can help students in times of transition, but we spend significantly less time discussing how they have helped us.
So, thank you, students, for your patience when we get behind in our grading.
Thank you for laughing at our geology puns. That helps keep us grounded. 😉
Thank you, that one student who always nods along with what we are lecturing on in class. (Seriously, you have no idea how much that helps.)
Thank you for making sure that no one at your lab table works alone unless they want to.
Thank you for showing up for those 8 AM field trips on Saturdays AND for jumping in to complete the tasks we ask you to so the field trip is worth sacrificing time on the weekend.
Thank you for showing up to class even when you didn’t want to.
Thank you for helping your classmates understand the assignment.
Thank you for asking questions even when you thought others might think you were stupid for asking them.
And remember, no matter what happens – even if the school is closing down around you – we are still there for you and to give you the best possible education we can.
Our educational landscape is changing. But many things have changed on the Earth over the last 4.6 billion years. And yet, like our students, it is still there. So, on this note, I take my lesson from the Earth and say this: Bring it on. My students and I are resilient in the face of change.
Originally uploaded in NAGT:About NAGT:Divisions:Geo2YC Division:Geo2YC Newsletters.
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