The first day of school starts out the same. No matter which school I am attending. I am excited to go to school until the day before. I start to over think every tiny detail. Where are my classes? Am I going to like the teacher/subject? How much outside work will be required? Will I be able to get all my homework done? Will I make friends? Will I get to class on time? Am I going to miss the bus/train?
All I can say is the list goes on and on. I am a little worry wart when it comes to school. I am half way through my schedule and I have managed being on time to my classes but finding them was another issue. Over the summer UVU decided to renumber the classrooms in the Liberal Arts building. All the signs said different numbers for where the classrooms were located. Luckily my whole class had the same struggle I did (even though I still made it to my class with 2 minutes to spare).
I am excited for my Humanities class. I get the feeling that my teacher understands that there are other classes on our schedules and that Humanities is just a required credit, but she still wants to make it meaningful in our lives without overloading us with work. Also, with my 'art' background I already feel like I have an advantage over my classmates.
My Positive Psychology class is the exact opposite. My class is the guinea pigs because we are the first Positive Psychology class my teacher has had and to make things a little more interesting, this is his first year teaching. Here is the first rookie mistake: group projects. Not just one but three. Only new professors make this mistake. Then they realize that it isn't a good idea because although this is college, it is just like high school. People still don't do their part. The project will fall on one person's shoulders while the other just sit back and enjoy the grade. Next mistake: This teacher calls them "Learning Groups" but the idea is still the same. Every day when class begins we get into our groups and talk about the reading for 20 minutes and then the Professor will give a lecture on the difficult points. This once again leads to slackers who don't do the reading but gain the knowledge from their peers. Or my personal favorite is those who do the reading during those 20 minutes. My next favorite isn't a mistake but just a critique of his choice: 6 hours of outside learning. This is beside the homework, quizzes, reports, and presentations. We have to either read or watch 6 hours of Positive Psychology. For this class I am required to read two books and now lets add another? Seriously, do you think college students have that much free time? Here is my favorite student rookie mistake: Don't ever ask teachers why they give to much work and never tell them all the work from your other classes. They won't take pity. They will just tell you to learn time management. As if it was that easy.
Along with normal classes, the first day brings the biggest challenge. Choosing an institute class. There are so many options! Which is great but for us who are indecisive, it is the worst. I not only have to choose a topic but also pick a teacher. And with having a few hours open equal more options! To this moment I still have no idea which class to sign up for. I keep staring at the list hoping one of the classes will speak to me.
Wish me luck as I continue this first day adventure. Let's see if everything works out as I planned.
