Following your bliss

Because my educational theory essays are at home and I am at the campus currently, I cannot expand on what I have written so far on the cultural competency prompts. Therefore, I'll return to the question of the writer and the educator as well as the question of a possible undergraduate thesis in the coming future.

By far, my literary theory class has been my favorite class of the semester. I reserve that judgment for the end of the semester, based on a large set of criteria that I use to assess each of the classes I have taken. This semester I have four classes amounting to sixteen credit hours worth of work -- Schooling in a Democratic Society, Introduction to Literary Analysis II, Creative Writing, and Zen and the Literary Experience. Each of my classes have been good classes, thanks to some good luck on my part in choosing good professors.

I take nothing away from my education class. The professor is an excellent professor, shares the liberal view of teaching that I have and has presented me with fascinating material that has both challenged and inspired me. Nor do I take away from my Creative Writing or Zen class either, as both have also challenged and inspired me.

Let me diverge then, on to what makes my Literary Analysis II class slightly more enjoyable than the rest. Both professors of my education class and theory class present the material in a passionate manner. I enjoy theoretical essays and material, therefore, I enjoy the material equally in both classes. Both professors are excellent as well, and then I think the differences come down to the atmosphere of the class created by the students taking the class.

In my education class, I'm the black sheep of the room so to speak. Out of twenty-two students, I'm the only male in the class. In addition to this, I'm one of only three secondary education majors. Writing and Reading are my strong suits, and as I can tell, not everyone in the room shares that same passion. The enthusiasm is strong, yet not as strong as my theory class, where 100% of the students sitting in the room are English majors, a good portion of them are also Secondary Education majors, and many of them are intristically interested in the material being presented.

Difference is important in a classroom, but so are shared interests and passions. There isn't a focus on group work in my theory class and there doesn't need to be a focus on it, because during class discussions, everyone participates. My professor for that class often says that our discussions in class are like a collaborative classroom consciousness writing a paper.

I've learned much from all of my classes this semester. In fact, today I mentioned a connection in my theory class that I made between John Dewey and post-colonialism. Though my theory professor wasn't well read in John Dewey's work enough to validate the connection, I feel that my teachers and professors have groomed me to the point where I can validate that connection on my own two feet. Should I choose to work on an undergraduate thesis through the departmental honor's program here at the college, I'll have to make a tough choice on what to write it on and who to work under while I write it. Since my American Literature class for the Fall is already full, I'm also faced with the choice of either taking Shakespeare and the Tragedies, or burning my only elective to continue studying under my theory professor in his Film and Dystopian Literature theory class. After talking with him after class, his only advice was to search within myself, find my desire and pursue it. I think that is good advice, and drawing upon it further, I'd like to quote Joseph Campbell -- "Follow your bliss."