Want to get your students excited about the subject? Try an assignment that uses mediums that already excite them!
Dr. Kathryn Zawisza creates a course blog through Blackboard that allows the students to cite songs, art, a movie or tv show, and a work of literature that draw themes from her course. This allows students to make connections with reoccurring questions in the course to things that they are hearing and seeing in their every day life. This gets the students thinking in new ways about the subject.
Click here for instructions on how to create a blog.
Click here for instructions for Grading Blogs.
Sample Assignment Instructions
We use so many different mediums to convey our thoughts and ideas about human nature and the meaning of life.
For this assignment you will find a song, any song you like, related to the course, i.e. Human Nature and the Meaning of Life.
It can address any of the reoccurring questions that we will ask in this class such as: What is human nature: what is our purpose?, What should we do or be?, What does it mean to live a good human life?, What sorts of things are valuable? Good?, What motivates our behavior? (i.e. our nature), How do others factor into our lives?
This does not need to be a view that you endorse (i.e. it could be the opposite of the view you think is actually correct) or even a song you like (though I hope it is!).
This is posted as a blog so that you can see what other people post. NO DUPLICATES! So it does you good to do it earlier.For the assignment you will need to include:
- The Artist
- The name of the song
- The relevant lyrics
- A brief discussion of how and why you think it relates to the course
- A link to the song on YouTube if you can find it. (here are instructions on how to link it in BB)
Feel free to comment and read through people’s posts. You may get some interesting insight into human nature and your classmates!
Don’t know how to post to a blog? Here are some instructions on bbhelp.uark.eduI will include an example post.
Click on the picture above to view it full size.