A sad day elsewhere, a good day around home..

Sad...
Today was the day of the Virginia Tech shootings. When things like this happen, I think about how connected to colleges I've been over the last 20 years. For 17 if tge 20, my daily or weekly routine involves at least one campus. Hubby and I both teach on college campuses and the thought of someone shooting one up hits way too close to home. My heart and prayers go out to the Virginia Tech community.

Good....

I came up with a new solution for a nagging problem in my logic class. Every semester, the first really hard quiz is either super easy for them, or they get a D or F. My problem then becomes how to get the 35% of the class that fails the first quiz caught up without holding back the other 65% that has the idea down. In the past, I would strongly urge the students who didn't do well to come to me or to go to the peer tutor. This year I gave them the opportunity to do some make-up work on the quiz, if they make appointments with the logic tutor and get the quiz signed by him. I did this because I have seen that students who work with tutors do better in class, even when they start out behind. Of course, there is some corellation/causality effect going on, but -- if going to the tutor just makes them do their homework, it works to increase their ability to do proofs, and that is all I really want...

I'm caught up on grading!!! YEA! About 35 logic quizzes, 40ish Intro to Philosophy essays, 40ish Intro to Philosophy blue-books. DONE!!

I had a nice chat with Wise Woman and Family Friend -- both are the sorts of people I'd like to do more with.

I came home and walked in to New Kitty looking down from the top of a 6 ft. tall bookcase. I haven't had an adventure kitty before... this could be very interesting, as it seems like there is no place for us to stash stuff that is outside of her reach /ambition.

I also had quite a few people congratulate me on being department chair, which was nice.

Tomorrow, it is all about me and my own brain... not their's. I'm going to the library to work on my own papers -- and I'm looking forward to it!