TBLT Prep: Layers and Points

After a few days “off” getting up to speed on my new semester here, back to a serious third reading, adding ideas for leading the upcoming course. No more bedtime perusing, but morning attacks. Adding layers and points to the plan, allowing for accordion-like flexibility.

Let’s be honest, a lot of research is a little dry. A straightforward grad-school seminar class format is not what I am looking for. To knit the research together, we can look for layers, build in layers, and then add points.

This will change, but the layers I am considering right now include, but are not limited to:

1) Dimensions Matrix. See the previous post about ASQ: Agreed/Surprising/Questionable, in 3 levels, Task/Language/Science.

2) Connected to what? How does each chapter of TBLT connect with vocabulary acquisition, the Dogme approach, textbooks, teacher training?

3) Task of the Week (research): We pick out a representative task that we drill down on. Maybe even start a star-graph evaluation system.

4) Task of the Week (teaching): We pick out a task, probably from the Activities for TBLT by Anderson and McCutcheon. (Listen to Neil’s interview on oxfordlp.org) to take a close look at.

5) Developing experts: My high school lit teacher appointed me the Vonnegut expert. Another got to be the humor expert, and so on. Here, we cast about for expertise in experimental design, statistics, application, and teacher training.

6) If this study were a movie (or an animal): Taking a look at one particular study and trying to draw as many metaphors out from it.

7) Author of the week: See who shines in each chapter. Look at their other work, how they got there, and where have have gone since. (Scroll back to a previous post about The Rewatchables podcast, where they look a the star and see what part of their career they were in the movie: aka Apex Mountain).

8) I used to do that: Tales about encountering different forms of TBLT in our careers.

I am going to hold off with a few more until these settle down. See you soon.

Background: I’m preparing an 8-week course about TBLT for iTDi as part of their Great Minds series (not mine, the ones in the book). I am blogging about the process of preparation mostly for the fun of it. I was inspired by Cory Doctorow, an SF writer that does this with all his books. But it also helps me focus. This is even more exciting than teaching a grad school course. I’m looking forward to it and hope this might spark an interest.