Last Year #14: Ready, set . . .

I'm feeling a bit ackish.  As in Bill the Cat:  "Aaaack pthththt!"

Three of my classrooms become visible on Blackboard at midnight, tonight.  I'm teaching three sections of interpersonal communication, using the textbook Looking Out, Looking In by Ron Adler and Russell Proctor.  (When I started teaching it the authors were Adler and Neil Towne) I'm letting my students use either the 13th or 14th edition and will need to rewrite my bi-weekly tests so that they can be answered with either edition.  I've tried less expensive textbooks over the years but have not been happy with any of them because they don't cover the appropriate material or they are written poorly.

A rundown of the various prices for the 14th Edition (all currency in $ not GBP or EU).

Amazon
Buy new hardcopy .....  113.56
Rent hardcopy .............. 71.25
Buy new for Kindle ....  138.49
Rent new for kindle ...  92.49

Used (other dealer) ...... 100.00

COCC bookstore
Buy new hardcopy ..... 184.75
Buy new ebook .......... 100.49
90 day rental ............... 59.41

Cheapest prices I found on 13th Edition: 
 At Bookbyte, 90 day rental was $20.
At ecampus.com a quarter rental was 9.57

Did there "need" to be a 14th edition?  It looks like there is a bit of new stuff about social media and mediated communication, but not that much added from the 13th addition.  I have concerns about the textbook racket.  But more on that anon.

I've spent much of today making last minute changes to the first week.  I'll be getting rid of all my written lectures this year, replacing them with short videos and prezis that will give students a brief overview of the specific parts of each chapter they should target for successful course completion.

Kake looking tough circa 1995

Sadly, the goofy "welcome" video I made this afternoon convinced me that I hate my current hair style and need to revisit my stylist.  I also saw every single year of my life in my face which is fine when my face is animated but not so good when it's at rest -- I look a bit scary then.  But as I recall, one of the first things I was told by a peer team member in 1989 was that I didn't smile enough and appeared too fierce when I was thinking.  So I guess that my intimidating gaze is not an aspect of age but of the instrument itself.

Which same instrument will be spending LOTS of time turned toward the screen this week.  Students need to introduce themselves by 5 pm Wednesday so that I can figure out who to let in from each of the 18 person wait lists.  I don't plan to let in more than two extra in each section.

On Thursday there will be wailing and moaning and gnashing of teeth.

Redmond at Night

I'm in a strangely shaped classroom in Redmond: thin and long from my left to right. There are only 30 seats so that will keep me from loading the class up. It's located in the building the college rents to the Oregon State workforce division. We have a little side door so they can lock up their lobby at night.

A few folks laughed. I worked the age thing better this time because I used a "nominal group technique" sorta structure rather than just having them meet and talk about the question.

Among the guesses at my age: 50, 47 ("we averaged them all out"), "don't look a day over 25," "none of our business," 55, "Older and wiser than us." One woman (who took the time to chat with me before class) said that it was a trick question.

"Why?" I asked.

"Well, because you're a woman. Because it's the first night. It's difficult to put into words."

"Let me see if I can put words in your mouth. 'you're a woman' ... In our culture woman are not supposed to tell their age because success is related to being young and pretty. So guessing age wrong could be insulting. And 'it's the first night' means that we don't know each other yet and you don't know how to respond, especially since I wield the economic power in the classroom. So, in that way, it's an unfair question."

She said that I'd done a good job of mind reading.