Fall 2023 @ Lehman College: August
Two lessons down, many more forward. Fashion Media Literacy is going pretty well in my humble opinion. As this is my first attempt teaching as an adjunct lecturer at one of the CUNY campuses, I still feel like a novice in this whole new dimension of my career.
I’m trying to level up with the students as much as I can, without letting them disrespect me. I was surprised by the level of authority that I could assume and perform in multiple sessions. As some of you already know, my teaching experience was only limited to several workshops and mentorship programs I got the chance to craft and host, but I never had a class throughout an entire semester actually. It is pretty outstanding to think that a few months ago I was the only one sitting behind those desks in front of the instructor’s podium.
Even though I wished I had a bit more of educational background and targeted mentorship in becoming a successful media educator, I trust in the inevitable process of just showing up and deal with the tasks day by day. My fear at the moment is to make Blackboard work out on my end, when it comes to a few functions that keep track the students’ work. I’m sure someone will help me in the next few weeks, but I do feel a bit unsupervised in all of this. I guess this is the reality of many public institutions, like Lehman College.
The students are great, I can see their intelligence and determination through their eyes. Some of them look a bit challenging to communicate with. I have to be more mindful of their peculiar high school experience, as all of them attended classes during COVID-19. This pandemic definetely created a series of unhealthy environments for these students, not allowing them to engage with each other and experience life like I did in high school. I’m confident they’ll warm up and I’ll get more accustomed to their weekly presence.
They have plans and dreams that are rooted in excellence, aiming to become successful and responsible citizens of the world. I think they like, but they’re trying to figure me out, as much as I am to understand them. They’re very shy, that is for sure. I have to set up a great example for them not only through what I teach, but also by the way I speak, walk, and move around the classroom. I’m looking forward to September!
