Wrapping it up

My first class teaching while using my new Seminary degree is nearly in the books.  REL 120 - World Religions officially ends on May 2 (at least class does... there will still be grading to do of essays and presentations).  As you might expect, dear reader, the teacher learned right along with the students.  And fortunately, of the trial and error part of a new class, the error part was really the smaller of the two by a stretch.  Most of the things I tried came off well, and the students reacted quite positively for the most part.  A real hit were the outside speakers, who came in two at a time, 6 out of the 8 weeks, and talked about their religious affiliation, and the personal impact it has on how they live out their lives here in the metro (I use that last term loosely).   They represented these religions:

     Hindu
     Sikh
     Jainist
     Buddhist
     Jewish
     Catholic
     Protestant
     Islam
     Baha'i
     Universalist/Unitarian
     Native American

It helped a lot, I think, to lift this course out of the dryness of an academic text and put a human face and voice on it.  At least that's the students tell me.

So, the last test is administered this week (thank God for scannable forms and a grading machine!), then the essays and presentations are due on the last night.

Maybe I'll get retained as an adjunct instructor and get to teach PHIL 120 - Intro to Philosophy next year!  Except where am I going to find current devotees of Aristotle and Nietzsche and Kierkegaard to come in and speak?