21L.325  Small Wonders: The Romantic Lyric

Participating in 21L.325 Small Wonders

Dear all,

Greetings! I am writing to you as students currently registered for 21L.325 Small Wonders [The Romantic Lyric], beginning March 30. I hope that you are keeping safe and well, wherever you are, and as happy as these anxious circumstances allow.

21L.325 is a 6-unit subject emphasizing student discussion and frequent presentations rather than submission of formal written work. There are no required essays for the class. My hope is that our main means of engaging together with the material, in free discussion and through assigned informal presentations, will be in synchronous class sessions on Zoom. I’ve scheduled online meetings at the originally scheduled time, MW 1-2:30 (or, following MIT practice, 1:05-2:25 p.m.). Here’s the Zoom invitation info:

21L.325 Small Wonders [The Romantic Lyric]
Monday, March 30⋅1:05 – 2:25pm
Weekly on Monday, Wednesday, until May 12, 2020

Join Zoom Meeting: 21L325 Small Wonders [The Romantic Lyric]
https://mit.zoom.us/j/4641750134

One tap mobile
+16465588656,,4641750134# US (New York)
+16699006833,,4641750134# US (San Jose)

Meeting ID: 464 175 0134

US : +1 646 558 8656 or +1 669 900 6833
International Numbers: https://mit.zoom.us/u/aizy4sfQw

At the same time that I hope many of us will be able to participate synchronously in reading aloud and discussing poems, I recognize that a perfect simulation of physical classroom teaching won’t be possible. And I want to be able to accommodate those who will find it difficult or impossible to attend classes on a regular basis. Please therefore let me know if 1) you lack consistent access to Zoom-capable equipment and/or a reliable internet connection; 2) you live in a time zone that will prevent you from easily attending and participating in regularly-scheduled discussion sections; or 3) you anticipate being prevented from attending some or all classes for any other reason.

I’d tentatively propose that students who can’t make it to class post a short reading response in a forum accessible to the rest of the class, where feedback might be taken up as part of the general pool of class discussion. Two good ways of contributing to class asynchronously would be to post to Stellar’s “Forum” with brief reflections on the week’s reading, or to annotate a poem using the web annotation tool Hypothes.is (more on that tool to follow).

I am sure to fumble a bit as we get started. I’ll therefore be grateful for your feedback and assistance, as well as for your patience and good humor.

Hope to see you on Monday! Have a good weekend in the meantime.

Best wishes,
Noel Jackson

Announced on 27 March 2020  7:09  p.m. by Noel B Jackson