My Favorites

The G word (Graduation) comes in a few weeks for my fellow 06's and me, so the time has come to start looking back at the highlights from these four years of high points in my life. After pondering the name of this entry for hours, I finally stumbled upon the clever title: "My Favorites," so that's what we'll call it. And after blog upon blog about the important stuff (you know: jumping off rooftops and eating contests), I'll switch gears and talk about the "other" part of college: classes.

The list of nominees for the coveted "My Favorite Class" award is as long and prestigious as the typical red carpet guest list. (And by the way, if it was up to me, the trophy would be identical to an Oscar, except that Oscar would be reading a book and wearing a monocle.)

Let's meet our contestants and their Oscar-equivalent nicknames:

The "George Clooney" class for its campus-wide popularity: Psychology 23: Social Psychology. Just like Mr. Hollywood himself, this class has quite the buzz on campus. I signed up for it because of these rave reviews and because I knew that the professor showed Seinfeld clips during his lectures. For that alone it would make the list, but it was thoroughly interesting as well.

The "Ocean's Eleven" class due to its incredible cast of students: Freshman Seminar: Is That Right? The 12 other kids in this discussion-based class made this an incredible learning experience. We examined ethics by studying genocide and with 7 of the kids being international students; the discussions were dynamic and full of disagreements. It was so great to have people with strong and differing opinions, and my classmates absolutely made this class a tremendous success.

The "Waterworld" class for the class that I really liked, but you might not: Engineering 27: Discrete and Probabilistic Systems. I am an Engineering major and I love probability, just like I love a Kevin Costner character with gills. But I have no idea if you would share this sentiment.

But, finally, one rose above the rest:

The “Crash” class for the one that snuck in at the last minute and stole the show: Education 45: Principles of Teaching and Learning in the Secondary School. I am taking this class this term and as a huge component of the class, I have been student teaching for 8-10 hours a week at a local middle school. I’ve been paired with an amazing seventh grade math teacher and I’ve easily learned as much from watching him teach as I have from the class itself. I’ve also stepped up and preached from the blackboard in recent weeks and it has been exciting, demanding, stressful, and inspiring all at once. (I’ve also rediscovered that middle school students find my last name hilarious.) And maybe above all, I’ve gained such an appreciation for the job my teachers did when I was growing up.

So thanks again to the Academy and all the classes that made my academic time here an intellectual success. Drive safely.