I think Professor Kurpis did some of the most unique things for us during the semester. One being the requirement to write in a blog. The blog was definitely a very interesting component of the class and our grade. Though I did not mind writing my own entries at all, having to respond to other people's blogs was a bit annoying for me. It wasn't because I didn't care about what others wrote, it was just hectic to find the one's I had a good opinion on. Then, I had to print them all out and if I didn't I was in trouble because I had no idea who I wrote to lol. On the other hand, some of the stuff I read about others what very interesting I must say. I did get to know some things about other classmates which was the professors intent. However, it didn't make me socialize with any of those people in class. Who I socialized with was those who sat near me, and those with whom I did group activities with.
The blogging assignments were very useful for making me think about the activities long after we were done with them. By writing the entries, I realized that they were not just for fun, but they were assigned to give us new insight or knowledge of a particular topic. That, the blogs helped me break down and understand. In regards to the reading amount outside of the class, with all other's entries as well as the professors, I definitely thought that there was enough reading.
What I really loved was the fact that if done timely and properly, this was an easy way to get 20% of your grade to be an A. It does take up a lot more time for 20% then an hour test that would probably be worth even more does, but it can be a guaranteed high score. Unlike an exam for which you need to study for and face the chance of scoring low, the blogs didn't require too much difficulty and outside research. To me, this was a great opportunity to get a higher overall class grade.
In all honesty, I enjoyed writing for the blogs but knowing myself I highly doubt that I will come back and write after the class is over. I am so overwhelmed with everything I am going through now with summer classes, LSAT's and applying to law schools that I barely have time for myself. So unfortunately, I do not believe i will keep posting.
Lastly, though this whole blog thing was very time consuming, I really don't believe the professor should change much. It's a good learning experiment, helps people's writing, and although it didn't work for me, it might be a good tool for others to make friends with their classmates. Overall, I am very glad I experienced this type of learning style and thought it was very interesting!!
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I would have to agree with the commenting on other people's blogs part. It was kind of tedious to have to keep track every single time you commented to someone because you can only comment on them as people post their entries so you're not making all your comments at once. I've had a couple in the beginning when I forgot who's post I commented to since I usually read a lot of them but don't necessarily comment to all the ones I have read. Some of the blogs were really interesting to read. However, sometimes I feel like people mention certain things I had mentioned already and I didn't want to just comment with something like "I agree with your post" or something to that effect. I have a few people writing virtually the same thing on every blog they left a comment on which makes it seem like they a) didn't read the entries or b) couldn't find anything else to elaborate on the subject. I think if one really puts the time and effort into it, commenting on other's blogs, in itself, can be like writing two or three mini blog entries.
ReplyDeleteI wish you the best of luck with law school!
I didn't really socialize with the people I commented on either. I guess the point is that we can socialize with other people in class not just through face-to-face interaction but via web. So therefore, we not only socialize with the people seating near us but kind of socialize (via commenting) with others who we don't talk to in class.
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