Hello, CHP 395!

"Welcome to CHP 395!" That's the first thing I expect to get out of this honors course.

In all seriousness, though, I expect to learn a lot during the way-too-quickly-approaching semester. One of the reasons I signed up for this course is because it sounds like it will have universal applicability in my life. "Effective change" can be implemented anywhere, right? But how is that done? About that, I am not so sure. I hope that discussion during the semestr will give me a much clearer idea of how to go about improving the organizations, institutions, and other -tions in which I involve myself. Specifically, I hope to discover ways to implement change at whatever high school I find a job.

Yes, that's right: I've chosen a lucrative career in teaching. (Just kidding about the lucrativeness, of course.) The secondary education program at UIUC has allowed me to pursue being a high school mathematics teacher. There's something about teaching others, whether it's math or baseball or anything in between, that excites me, and that's why I want to be a teacher. It pains me that so many statistics and research says that our school system is not doing a very good job at it. Teachers need to take the lead and strive to effectively change their classrooms and their school. Though I haven't read Bruner's The Process of Education yet, I look forward to what it has to say, if anything, on the topic. I have, however, read two of our course readings: Gladwell's The Tipping Point and Gawande's Better.

After having read those two books, I already have faith that my expectations will be reached. I've already learned a lot about how much the "little things" matter. If I decorate my classroom with bright posters and keep it organized, maybe the power of context will kick in, and maybe my students will be perkier and more organized themselves. Maybe if I find that one student in the class to whom the others look for direction and leadership and have him or her buy into my teaching, maybe the others will follow. Maybe I just need to find ways to make math "stickier." Though it seems like I just have a lot of "maybes," those are all places to begin. When I think about the next 16 weeks and Designing for Effective Change, I expect that I'll find more ways to start to make my teaching, school, church, etc., well... "Better."

I hope that having a small group will allow us to become a strong group. There are few opportunities to be in classes of such small size, and I really want to take advantage of being able to listen to each person in the class. During our time in and out of class together, I hope to get to know everyone and build some meaningful friendships. That's not so much an expectation as a wish, but I'll include it in this post anyway.

Overall, I expect that this class will be no different from any other CHP course in that it will be an enjoyable learning experience. A couple of my favorite classes at UIUC have been CHP courses. In particular, ANTH 180 (Archaeology of Death) provided me with a unique experience studying a subject that interested me with students who provided a wide range of viewpoints on the topics. This class, taught by Helaine Silverman, flew by each session. The discussions on funeral practices, cemeteries, and personal beliefs were well facilitated, and everyone seemed to be prepared to talk about the designated topic. Prof. Silverman established a comfortable learning environment right away and sat at eye level with us, and I think that made us more willing to talk about death and related material, all things that might make one uncomfortable at first. This CHP course was one of the two main motivations for me to pursue a minor in anthropology. (The other motivation was a small unit on anthropology in my high school’s theory of knowledge class.) This late in my college experience, I do not expect this class to make me suddenly decide to add a minor, but I hope it produces an "effective change" in myself.