What do I expect?

What do YOU expect? Assignment (Due Feb 18th)

Now that I've told you my expectations of a good student, what are your expectations of a good teacher?

A good teacher is someone who, hopefully, expects a lot from her students, but who is also aware of their limitations, is patient, but pushes. I like teachers who challenge me to get beyond where I am. Another thing I hope for is one who will be available for help, will listen, and help keep me on the right path.

Tell me about the best teacher you've ever had. What made that person such a good teacher?

I've never had a teacher in SL before, but if I could pick one in RL it would be my high school AP English Literature teacher. She always expected us to put out our best efforts, was quick with a joke, never belittled anyone and took every question seriously. She was one of the few teachers in my high school who actually respected her students.

Now that I've told you some of my ideas about how we will go about learning this year's material, tell me about how you learn best. Give me an example of a project or unit where you learned a lot. Describe the project in detail.

I learn best by total immersion in the subject matter. I'm not the quickest at picking up new things, i have to find a quiet place and forget everything except for the task at hand. I can't think of a specific project, but when I took Linear Algebra in University I was able exceed even my expectations, but it took a lot of time. I made it to every class, took lots of notes and read the book the way a math book should be read. That means reading every section 2-3 times, working through all of the examples given, reading and copying out whatever proofs there were and doing lots of problems, beyond what was assigned. The class only met for 2-1/2 hours once a week, but I must have spent at least 20 hours per week preparing. That's the only way that seems to work for me.

I do not work well under pressure, Example: the last class of the previous term we had a substitute teacher. We had to do 4 very intensive in-class assignments that included research and answering questions, with very little time to get them done. I was not able to do my best under those circumstances and don't think I did very well. I'm something of a perfectionist and need sufficient time to get an assignment done right.

I hope this is acceptable, and look forward to a wonderful term with you.

Scotty (Tremont) Stormcrow