OK, you know about me. What about you?
You and me
Getting to know students is the most fun part of my job. In face-to-face courses, I like hanging out in the lab, yucking it up, helping you do stuff. It's not the same online, but we can still hangout, to some extent.
I'd like you to tell me about yourself. You have an account on this site (if you're in one of my official classes), with an account page. Please tell me about yourself there. This is just between you and me.
About you
It helps me do my job better if I know a bit about you.
What you like to do, what pets you have, if there's something that people wouldn't guess about you. Like that you once saved a bee trapped in a coal mine.
Also, what do you want from this course?
That's what this exercise is about.
I'd like to know what you like to be called as well. If your name is Elizabeth, do you like to be called:
- Liza
- Liz
- Beth
- Lizzie
- Qeass - that's an acronym for Queen Elizabeth of All She Surveys
- . . .
So your exercise is to:
- Edit your account (log in, and then Your stuff | Account)
- Fill in the About field
- Add a photo, if you want
- Set the first name to whatever you want to be called
- Update your initials
In the exercise itself, copy-and-paste the About field from your account, into the exercise submission.
You and other students
Learning is more effective - and life more fun - if you get to know other people in the course.
This can be scary. It was for me, when I was younger, and it is for some people in my family. So, no pressure.
If you're comfortable sharing about yourself, go ahead! If you're not, we can work with that. There's a Moodle forum to introduce yourself.
There are projects in the course. You can do them alone, but life will be easier if you do them with someone else. To find someone compatible, you'll need to reveal at least that you exist, and some of the things you like to do. It's best to do a project about something you like.
One thing. All communication in this course should be respectful. No creepy, no gaslighting. There is zero tolerance here. If someone says they don't want to work with you, accept it, no matter what reason they give.
This is tricky. When I was young, I was asocial. I had a rough childhood, that left me socially stunted. I was reluctant to talk to anyone. Put me in a room with people, and tell me to "find someone to work with" - I wouldn't have known how.
When finding a project partner, it's safe to talk about two things:
- Interests
- When you can talk online about your project
If someone won't return your do-you-want-to-work-together messages, then let it go. One thing I've learned: don't read too much into what people do.
Up next
In the next lesson, we'll talk about the mechanics of communication in this class.