Category Archives: politics

There to Hear It

politics, teaching 2023.01.02 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

Strife in the Schools: Education Dept. Logs Record Number of Discrimination Complaints (New York Times via yahoo.com) 2023 marks one hundred years since Upton Sinclair published his exposé on American colleges and universities, The Goose-Step: A Study of American Education. It’s a book that I’ve been revisiting lately in my research, and while it may not be as well-known or as consequential as some of Sinclair’s other works, it’s still worth reading today. Although some parts of the book haven’t aged so well (such as…

Mask On

personal, politics 2022.12.26 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

It’s Time to Wear a Mask Again, Health Experts Say (New York Times via Yahoo! News) During my final years in Toledo, I would occasionally see people wearing face masks at stores like Meijer and Kroger, especially during the winter. I don’t recall ever seeing anyone wearing face masks outside of hospitals and doctors’ offices before then, but I was enough of a Japanophile to know that wearing a mask when one is worried about spreading illness is far more common in Eastern countries than…

Sighted

personal, politics, rhetoric, television, transgender 2022.11.21 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

I didn’t bother unpacking my television when I moved to Platteville at the start of September; on top of not really using it that much in recent months, I also wasn’t sure just how I wanted to position it in my new apartment. After the chaos of my first weeks here, and especially after getting so sick in the middle of the month, my television kind of stayed on the back burner for a long time, especially since I had my streaming television app on…

Other People’s Words

personal, politics, teaching 2022.07.11 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

One of the techniques I teach my students in nearly all of my classes is that when they take notes, whether in class or while doing work outside of class, they should try to put their notes in their own words as much as possible. The reason for this is simple: When you are able to paraphrase someone else’s ideas, that shows likely understanding of the ideas themselves. On the other hand, when your “understanding” is limited to repeating someone else’s phrasing (as best you…

The Weight of the World

personal, politics, teaching 2022.04.25 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

[The following blog contains discussion of suicide.] Only 29% of hospitalised COVID-19 patients fully well one year on: Study (channelnewsasia.com)It’s not over: COVID-19 cases are on the rise again in US (sfgate.com)Climate anxiety and high school: How young people are coping (ABC News on MSN) One of the things I’m testing out with my College Writing students this semester is a term-long exercise where students are expected to keep up semi-regular email correspondence with me. In addition to helping students learn the formal and social…