We’re almost near the end of the first term of my RPG classes and I’m already looking forward to the summative assessment. This is because the students at Ladies’ College of Suburban Tokyo are amazingly motivated for the most part and because the students at University of Outside Tokyo are repeaters who had to retake English Communication, and have shown a great deal of motivation, too, or at least the students who come regularly. My supervising professor at UOT has told me that if one third of the students pass, then that ought to be seen as a success. As it stands, we should be on for 4 definites, 5 probables and 3 unlikelies. At LCST, all the students should pass because everyone does the work, even if it is not always amazing it is always done.
I managed to ask some of the students at UOT the other day if they actually like the course as a game and they said yes. (Of course, they did. They won’t tell you it’s crap because you grade them, Marc.)
What negatives I did get were that one student said he didn’t like recording himself because it was a pain in the arse; however, this student also finds attendance a pain in the arse, too. My most regular attendee said recordings were difficult to manage. This is why I told him to make sure he kept a copy and also sent a copy to me.
Anyway, long story short: still loving it, waiting to see portfolios, deal with the recordings.
I am also giving a workshop on this at JALT Saitama’s Nakasendo conference on Sunday. I have presented before but never run a workshop for more than six teachers at once before. If you read this say hello!
Read Here be (Dungeons and) Dragons previous ‘chapters’: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Here be (Dungeons and) Dragons 8
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That’s great Marc. I hope the unlikelies surprise you and level up to probables 🙂
And best of luck with your workshop!
Cheers Christina! Some of the unlikelies don’t know how much I love teaching them when they come to class.
I had one 20 year old come late to class because it was his dad’s birthday and his dad was only in town to visit him for the weekend (though they keep an apartment in Tokyo for his dad’s frequent business trips and my student’s time at university). He’s often late but I couldn’t wag my finger. I just thought, “Well, that was a nice reason.”
I’ve often felt like that with some too – and they surprised me 🙂
Good job not wagging the finger, in my view. Understanding is so much more important than telling – within limits, of course 🙂