No more first days

I've officially completed all of my "first days" of the semester as of this afternoon. One can only take so many of those syllabus/calendar reviews after all. Grand total: 7.

I hate how I always get nervous the first few days of the semester, but especially on those first days. I think it's the fear of students finding out I don't know what I'm doing. Do I know what I'm doing? I don't know. You'd think after so many years of college and then so many years of teaching on top of that that I wouldn't get nervous anymore. But I do. I do admit though that I didn't have any of those really weird beginning-of-the-semester dreams this time though. Good sign? Bad sign?

So far, I don't think I really have any reason to be nervous. The class I went to this afternoon was the one I was getting the most nervous about. It's a Technical Editing class at UNI, and I have both undergraduate students and 1 graduate student. I must confess that I was tickled that the graduate student was the first one there and sat right next to me. Ha! A little "mini me" if there ever was one! (Gosh, was I ever that annoying? Just kidding. I know I was.) I think what made me nervous was the fact that I haven't taught this class before -- though I'd taken it at both UNI and ISU as a student -- so it's a new one for me. I have to figure out the best way to get through this material without making it seem too easy or too difficult. I think I'm more worried I'll make it too easy since most of my work is done with lower level students.

We seemed to have a decent conversation today though, or so I thought from my end. I reviewed the syllabus, went over our eLearning class site where most of the course materials are, and then we did some introductions. After that, they got into small groups and discussed 3 questions related to technical editing: 1) What is technical editing? 2) What preparation/education does a technical editor need? 3) What responsibilities do technical editors have? I tried to steer the conversation toward the idea that technical editing refers to a type of editing that is considered, well.. more technical (scientific, I mean). We also discussed how editing is a general term that encompasses a range of responsibilities and that is what we'll be focusing on in this class. I wanted them to know it would be a more skills-based class where we practice the work that real editors do. Now we just have to do it. Sigh. Pray for me. I just want to make it out of this semester alive -- sanity optional.

The good news? Tomorrow is Thursday, marking the official end of my teaching work week! (But not the actual work week.)