The first test seem to take a number of people by surprise. They tended to undershoot the target in terms of preparation and seriousness of approach. There were a couple of problems with the test but it appeared that most of the setbacks were connect to individual responsibility. I am glad we got passed that but then today, while I had worked hard to prepare some stuff that I thought was particularly interesting, it didn't seem to go over, at least for many in the group. A few were engaged but most looked tired. Of course, my guess is that they were actually tired. We have been pushing for five weeks now and have a break coming up in another week. Probably they are dealing with a lot of due dates coming at them with this and are also feeling restless about getting away. Plus it was Friday today. Next week looks more low key and perhaps I will back off a little and see how the paper works out. I have had really good experiences this the CRIP paper in the past, and I hope it flies well for this group as well.

 
What I really like about this semester with this class is the pace. Last year the pace seemed a little off, sometimes rushed, sometimes dragging (although the students were lively with examples and debates). I guess it was me who was unsure of our direction at time; but now I don't feel that way and am very focused upon our pace and don't feel as if we are compromising any educational value at the pace we are going now. Plus, this pace seems right for the students - a healthy mix of those who seem on top of, or actually ahead of the class and some lagging behind. It's good to gear things more toward the middle than skewed too much to one side.