Frustration

Today is September 20, 2007. I have spent the past month attempting to get my online classes going. However, due to the famous "technical difficulties" that television used to use to excuse the times when the picture/audio/feed went crazy, I have not been able to get the classes working successfully. Part of it is due to the school where I am now teaching. They are using a tool that is often used elsewhere, but due to their own variation of it, it's a total mess. So I've been emailing students (who email me back and ask to have their email addresses changed, so I've got to go into my Group Address to make the changes), and they've been sporadically emailing me with their work. Unfortunately, although I requested that they send their work to me via Word files, I've gotten pdf's and WordPerfect and other things. But most of those problems are being ironed out, bit by bit.

That doesn't stop me from getting work done, of course, but it does make it far less pleasant. I can tell that I'd really enjoy getting to know these students, but the online environment does prevent the intimacy that I've always enjoyed with my FTF students.

At any rate, I do hope that future posts will proclaim my happiness with online teaching. I love to teach, and I love to teach writing, and I don't want to face technological difficulties--ever.
Signing off,
Dr. Sharon Robideaux