School Log 2 of 5

[johnstonmr]

Class: English 110J: Traditional Grammar and Standard Usage.

Despite the class title, this looks to be a fun class. The teacher is a self-described "tech-nut" and "Mac guy" who also happens to be British and is possessed of a wickedly bad (in a good way) sense of humor.

He said one thing I liked so much I had to write it down:

Grammar is not as hard and fast a science as some grammarians would have you believe.

Reading my first homework assignment, which is about how English developed standard usage and the sometimes-flawed logic that lead to many of the rules of English, I begin to see his point.

This class will also have a lot of testing done on the WebCT system, which CSUS uses to automate a lot of test-taking and -grading. That's something new I'll have to get used to, I guess; I am willing to bet most of my classes will use it. On the plus side, I'll be able to see my test grades much sooner, and (at least for this teacher, who posts them 24 hours before class starts) download class notes before class and annotate them in class as I wish. I love that idea!

One of the guys I liked most from my Orientation group is also in the class; we renewed our acquaintance and have talked about working together on some of the homework/studying for this course, along with a couple of others we met in a group discussion period.

Tomorrow I have four classes throughout the day. I'll post similar updates on them, whether you people are interested or not. :)

Comments

[ipsafictura.livejournal.com]

Did he talk about the somewhat nonsensical split infinitive rule?

[johnstonmr]

No, but he did say it will be discussed in a future lecture.

[ipsafictura.livejournal.com]

I'm glad that more teachers are out there cursading against the idea that poor Kirk has to 'go where no man has gone before, boldly'.

Pretend this message is anonymous

[johnstonmr]

seriously as a smart person, please learn how to spell "crusading" correctly. I'd hate to think you're a smart person and consistently made mistakes like a normal human. Also please ignore that I started a sentence with a lower-case letter and forgot to put a comma after the word 'seriously', because I'm too busy being a dick to actually think about how *I* write.

(I'm referencing this post.

Re: Pretend this message is anonymous

[ipsafictura.livejournal.com]

Heh, having read this while still somewhat sleepy I had to contend with a momentary, 'Hey, why is Michael being all mean?'

Then of course I followed the link and figured things out, sorry about the jackass infestation in your livejournal, maybe there's some kind of spray.

[johnstonmr]

I know you didn't leave that post, BTW, I'm just being pissy in general because it both amused and annoyed me.

[ipsafictura.livejournal.com]

It'd be pretty funny if I left a post claiming to be an English teacher.

[elisandra.livejournal.com]

Do you think they mean they are an English teacher, or that he, as an English teacher himself, should learn to spell definite? If they mean they are an English teacher, then they shouldn't have let that be so unclear.

And if they do mean they are an English teacher, then I have a pretty good idea who it is. I only know one English teacher with a habit of making anonymous and rude posts.

[ipsafictura.livejournal.com]

Hmm, yeah, I guess it wasn't entirely clear, I assumed that the wording implied that the writer was an English teacher, but I could be wrong.

[elisandra.livejournal.com]

PS - it's a good thing I'm not an English teacher.

[elisandra.livejournal.com]

yay mac guy!

[johnstonmr]

Heh. My Japanese teacher is a Mac type, too. She brought in her G3 12" iBook today.