Professor Grin and Barrett

Something I've always wanted to do is be a professor. I enjoy teaching and even applied for and turned down a position at the University of Phoenix once. Before that I gave somewhat serious thought (for about a week and a half) to going back and getting a PhD in something so I could teach. But, other things took priority in life and I elected to stay on my career path for the time being. Well this week the dream was brought back to life as I was asked to teach a class at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. Granted it's only freshman seminar, but I get a TA to grade my papers and the whole deal, so I'm happy.

The title of the section I will be teaching is titled BYOB. An appropriate college title I think. By the way it stands for Be Your Own Boss, not Bring Your Own Beer. We'll be discussing what it takes to run your own business along with helping the students acclimate to college life.

Now I just need to find my cardigan sweater, grow a beard and buy a pipe to smoke.

Several things I found fascinating as I went through the faculty retreat today was how much technology has changed the classroom. Professors are now recording their lectures and posting them as pod casts. Professors have online threaded discussions about class topics with students. Some even do screen capture with voice over and post the whole thing on the web so you can sit at home, never having gone to class and not miss a thing. According to faculty on the cutting edge, PowerPoint is out of style now. Sites like WebCT and Blink List are becoming the new tools of the trade.

Perhaps to stay technologically relevant to my incoming students, I'll hold Halo tournaments in my office as part of mid terms... Just a thought.