Hi, everyone!
To wrap up the class for our final blog, I'd like to ask you about the class as a whole. What did you learn/gain from this course? What text did you like best? What did you like best overall? Least? Would you change anything about this class?
Have at it! :)
This blog is for the “Legacy of the Family Story" course taught by Kathryn Collison in the University Honors Program at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, NM, USA. It provides an easily accessible, electronic space for 100-level Honors students to discuss texts and ideas, develop critical thinking skills, and practice college level writing. While anyone may read our work, only class members may post.
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15 comments:
I enjoyed this class so much! It's actually my favorite class I'm taking this semester. Some of the books we read, like Frankenstein, had never struck me before as relating to family, but looking at it from a different standpoint made it more interesting to me. I like that in class we don't just discuss the facts of the books, but delve deeper into how it relates to our own lives and of course to family. The two books I enjoyed the most were The Pact and The Glass Castle. I had always wanted to read The Pact, but never had time. I had never even heard of The Glass Castle before and I'm so glad it was on the list. I've been telling everyone they need to read it now! I also liked how the class was set up. For instance, beginning each meeting with background information, followed by the activity, and then wrapping it up with discussion. Honestly, I can't really think of anything I would change about the class. However, a lot of the time some students were unable to get their comments in during discussion, but usually it was just because we ran out of time. Other than that, the class was great! :)
This class was a bit of a struggle for me, because I'm so shy. I'm not shy anywhere but in class, and I was hoping to get out of that habit. I was probably more open in my blog posts than I was when I attempted to talk in class.
It was always so intriguing to hear everyone else's stories too, though. It's just so fascinating that the person sitting next to you is completely different from you and yet somehow they ended up at the same school, in the same class. And yet their backstory, the path that got them to that seat, is unique and has given them a completely different perspective from which to view the world. It's a wonderful reminder that there is so much more out there to experience and grow from.
My favorite books were definitely The Pact, The Glass Castle, and, surprisingly, The Metamorphosis. I enjoyed that even the unlikely books were still interesting, because while I was reading I was trying to figure out why exactly I was reading this particular book for a class about family. That way I was reading not only to get the story, but also, I was on another mission as well.
All in all, the class was a learning experience, not only on the subject of the family, but on a different type of class structure. I have to say I'm glad I took the opportunity to take the class.
I extremely enjoyed this class! The books we read were fantastic, the activities and discussions we had in class were interesting, and the class in general was just so fun! I am really happy that I was able to be a part of such a wonderful class.
I think the thing I'm going to take away from this class the most is all the things that were said during discussions. I feel that the discussions really made me understand the books we read so much more, and I have to repeat myself and say that the books we read were absolutely awesome! I've definitely learned to read books more in depth.
My favorite books were Frankenstein, The Glass Castle, and To Kill a Mockingbird. I think the best part about the class was the easy-going, welcoming atmosphere. It was so comfortable to just discuss with everyone the books we had read, and I just think this class had such a great learning environment. I also really like the activities we do. They make class go by a lot faster and are quite fun.
This class was truly fantastic. I can't think of anything negative to say.
I really enjoyed this class. I liked the way the class was run, it was very relaxed that way everyone got a chance to participate. I definitely learned how to write papers better and i think that will benefit me a lot in other classes in the future. I also never had a discussion class before so I learned how to speak up in class and participate more. The interesting thing is that I liked the books that the kids in class picked the most. The Pact and The Kite Runner were my two favorites. The things I liked best about the class are the things I already mentioned above and the activities that were used for each book. I think the blog was what I liked least because I had trouble remembering it sometimes.
First and foremost, I really liked this class! I would recommend it to everyone.
I definitely gained a much deeper understanding of my family and my role within it. I think that to a certain extent I was harboring this idea that every family besides mine was perfect. Now that we have read about tragedy in the books and people have opened up about their own families I feel a deeper sense of appreciation for my family. I realize now that no family is perfect and that it's the flaws that make people beautiful.
I liked the class structure and discussion the best. The book list was also very good and I enjoyed every single one of them. My favorite, however, would have to be The Kite Runner. To Kill a Mockingbird and the Glass Castle are close seconds. I felt like all of the books were important for different reasons and that they all provided a new and interesting perspective on family. So basically I liked them all, like I said.
I can't think of any way to improve this class. The teachers were great and so were the students. The learning environment was fun and educational, and I looked forward to this class every day.
I loved this class overall. We covered great material, facilitated great discussions, had an open environment and the material required deeper thinking. I learned the joy of actually reading the assigned books and probing deeper into their meanings and relation to everyday life. In high school, I never fully read many of the assigned books. This whole book list was amazing and each book seemed to add some deeper meaning to our discussions. My favorite texts were without a doubt The Kite Runner and The Glass Castle. I really enjoyed their story lines as well as the fashion in which they were written. I have been continually recommending them to people since I read them!
The aspect of class that I liked the best was the group project actually. I have never been so willingly involved in an assignment. I loved getting to think of the important aspects of the novel The Pact and creating a presentation, creative activity and discussion from it. I would not change anything about the class; it was organized, but allowed for complete freedom at the same time. It was my favorite class this semester! :)
I really enjoyed this class. I liked the structure of the class, which, though organized, was not rigid and had a more relaxed feel. I loved the different activities that we did, but I have to say that my favorite part of this class was the discussion. It was interesting to hear other people's views on something so central to most of us as family.
For the most part, I really liked the booklist for this class. It's really hard for me to choose a favorite book, even out of a short list, but I would have to say that my favorite books from this class were The Kite Runner, The Poisonwood Bible, and The Glass Castle. Since I had read The Kite Runner and The Glass Castle before taking this class, my favorite new-to-me book is The Poisonwood Bible.
Overall the class was a great learning experience, and I can't think of anything to change. I do, however, agree with Bridget, that some students didn't have time to say what they wanted in discussion, but I think its a good thing that the discussions were that interesting.
I would like to add that I really enjoyed all the tid bits of information about each book we read. The historical background and author's background really helped my understanding of the book. None of my other classes have ever had that, and I found it extremely interesting and helpful. Some of the authors had really interesting and sometimes weird lives, and the historical and cultural background sometimes really cleared up why certain things happened in the books.
That was just another plus to an already excellent class :).
I absolutely loved this class!! It was fun, everyone was encouraged to have their own opinion, and the books that we read were spectacular. What I struggled with the most was reading a novel practically every week, because my other classes are also challenging. Because the books were so well-written and most were classics however, it was not as hard to read them as other books required for other classes.
I learned quite a bit that I will take away this semester. Family will always be one of the most important parts of my life. The different aspects to a variety of families was a great thing to learn about such as the effects of absent family members, dysfunctional families, neglected children, and other circumstances. My favorite part of the semester was our final project. It was my favorite activity because it applied the most to us as individuals concerning our own families. As I shared with you last Tuesday, I got so much out of my interview with my brother.
If I were to change any one thing about this class, it would solely be the reading load. Having two weeks to read the Odyssey was helpful, and perhaps I would do that with one or two other books(specifically the Poisonwood Bible).
I am so glad that I took this class this semester, and will recommend it to anyone who asks about it. Thank you for a wonderful semester.
Looking back on this class I can't believe how fast it went by. I remember starting out and thinking it was going to be so hard to get through all the reading, papers and projects. I really enjoyed this class very much. I loved that the class was small and that we all got to know each other. I liked the fact that we had activities each class plus discussions. I appreciated how student focused this class was. Instead of just listening to a teacher lecture all the time we were allowed to voice our own opinions and even teach the class through our projects etc.
I feel like I gained a greater, broader perspective on family through this class. It really opened my eyes to the reality that no family is perfect. It also helped me learn and start thinking about what I want for my family in the future.
The structure of the class was great and provided a relaxed fun atmosphere. The fact that we had to read a book almost once a week was pretty hard for me but I really feel like I gained a lot through reading all our books. I know if it hadn't been for this class, I never would have read as much as I did this semester. As for my favorite book, I'd have to say I enjoyed the Metamorphosis and The Glass Castle the most. Both of those were books that I had never heard of before and really provoked some deep thought as I was reading them. All the books were great though!
Overall, I'm so glad I took this class. Thanks for a great semester!!
I along with everyone else, really liked this class a lot. My favorite books ended up being To Kill A Mockingbird, The Kite Runner, and The Glass Castle. I definitely think what I got most out of this class was rekindling my love of reading. Since starting college I've been under the belief that I don't have time to read or that when I do have free time, it's better spent watching tv or doing other things. I had honestly forgotten how much I love reading and this class in a sense forced me to read again.
The discussions were awesome as well, I really liked getting other people's opinions. The only thing I didn't like has nothing to do with the class, but with honors itself. I don't like having to go to three lectures and writing about them. That's the only thing I dislike and of course the honors program requires it.
The most important thing that I am going to take away from this course is that there really is no such thing as the "perfect" family. Each family has their own set of issues that they have to handle and work through. It is how people work through these issues that makes them into the person that they are and will become. Jeanette Walls is a great example of this.
Speaking of Jeanette, The Glass Castle is my favorite book that we read this semester. This is in addition to To Kill a Mockingbird, but I had read that book before. I did not enjoy The Metamorphosis, but I think that is because the existentialist aspect of it was a little too hard for me to grasp.
The activity for that book though was one of my favorites (yay for Play-Doh!). The fact that we had activities at all really helped to make the class more interesting. Two hours of discussion could get pretty boring.
Finally, I liked the two projects that we had to do. So that I don't rewrite my reflection papers, I'll limit myself to my favorite thing about each project. The thing I enjoyed best about the group project was getting to know my group-mates so much better (shout out to Group 3!!). Then for the interview project, my favorite thing was creating the initiative for myself to find out more about my dad.
Here's to what was a great semester filled with cool teachers, fun classmates, and lots of family!
Thank you all so much for your kind words. I am SO happy that you enjoyed the class as much as you did. I know that both Holly and I had a blast. This has been an excellent bunch of really engaged, enthusiastic students and I couldn't be happier.
Thank you!!!
I had a great time participating in this class. I really enjoyed the readings and the way that they were related to the class was great. The observation that kept reappearing in class was the idea that perspective is everything. I realize that I personally still have a lot to learn in terms of perspective, but I can accept that perspective is way more important than the way I viewed it in the beginning. My favorite text from this semester would have to be either the Kite Runner or The Pact. I loved the way they dealt directly with controversial and powerful issues, but still were easily related to family nonetheless. The greatest problems I had with the course were the rubrics for the assignments. I felt like I did not understand the requirements for both presentations well enough from simply reading the syllabus, and would have liked to see a more detailed rubric beforehand.
I really enjoyed this class, because I really enjoy reading books and then discussing them. I enjoyed the sense of community that we developed, too. I feel like I got to know most of you guys at least a little, and I like that.
While I'd read nearly everything on the reading list before, I was glad that I got to read The Glass Castle and The Poisonwood Bible. The latter was, by the way, my favorite.
I feel like I learned a lot from this course, but now that I'm being called on to talk about what I've learned, I can't remember anything specific :( If nothing else, I now understand why authors so often choose to write about family. It makes good stories.
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