chicago

Tuesday Teaching Question

Tuesday Teaching Question is a regular feature that attempts to get a conversation going about teaching.  Typically, the questions attempt to be very practical.  TTQ is brought to you by CAST.  If you have a question that you’re dying to have featured in an upcoming TTQ, e-mail me at hwc_cast@ccc.edu.

The mayoral race has been heating up and the primaries are a few weeks away (2 weeks from today to be exact).  I’m attempting to get the preservice teachers in my Math for Elementary teachers classes thinking about the impact that the new mayor would have on their future livelihood by asking them to read the candidates education platforms and discuss them.  (Phew, that was a long sentence!)  Anyway…

Are you incorporating the mayoral race into your classes?  If so, how?

‘Trying to Teach’ Tuesday

Last week, the majority of CPS students officially began their summer break.

CCC students are now in week 3 of their summer semester.

Is it just me, or does anyone else see a disconnect between these two public institutions when it comes to facilitating the transition for graduating high school seniors? Why can’t CPS and CCC coordinate academic calendars?

Administrators can argue that seniors represent a small portion of the student body so why bother doing anything. Well, here’s how I see it:

According to CPS stats and facts, for the 2009-2010 school year there were 115,770 students in grades 9-12. Divide that number by 4 and you have a possible 28942.5 graduating seniors. Take that number and divide it by our seven major city colleges and that averages to 4134.6 possible incoming freshmen. How many can consider starting in the summer? The number is ZERO.

Are we doing all we can to provide learning opportunities for our young citizens, or are the overlapping calendars interfering with our educational goals?

Chicago Studies related

For those of you interested in learning more about the history of Chicago architecture, I am posting this link for continuing education seminars provided to me by the Chicago Architectural Foundation. If you’ve got Thursday evenings free during the month of April, consider registering. Who knows, it may encourage you to adopt Chicago Studies emphasis in the near future.

By the way, one faculty member recommended we compile a list Chicago authors as a resource. Who do you believe should be on this list?

We would also like to compile a list of books related to Chicago, like this one:

The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America, by Erik Larson

Bring on the recommendation from your list of favorites.

Chicago Studies

Hi everyone!

As you may or may not know by now, there has been a grassroots faculty movement to offer courses with a Chicago Studies emphasis at Harold Washington College.

A few semesters ago faculty members met to discuss the idea, agreed on the terms by which a course could be considered to have Chicago Studies emphasis, and proceeded make the idea official.  This semester the following courses have a CS emphasis:

  • Architecture 202 (Chicago Building Code)
  • Art 200 (Public Art in Chicago)
  • Humanities 203 (Chicago Arts)
  • Combined sections of English 102/History 117

Would you like to offer a course with Chicago Studies emphasis? You can if it meets one or more of the following requirements:

  1. 50% or more of the curriculum will explore one or more topics related to the history of Chicago (political, social, architectural, etc.)
  2. 50% or more of the curriculum will focus on important people, events, or expereinces that have contributed to the growth of Chicago (from frontier outpost to metropolis).
  3. 50% or more of the curriculum uses the city as a resource to compliment your area of study (for example, going on educational field trips to museums and other institutions).

Basically, Chicago Studies builds on the benefits of teaching and learning in, and about, a great American city. It allows the students to learn more about the past and present of Chicago. It gives all participants an opportunity to contribute to the history of Chicago.

So, do you and your students want to study about the environment and use Chicago as your backyard resource? Do you want to read from authors that have called Chicago home? All you have to do is meet the above requirements and add the following statement to your course section:

This course will have a Chicago Studies emphasis

It’s that easy. No paperwork to fill out before or after the course. No fees. Membership is free. Big Brother will not police your classroom. In other words, you are encouraged to adopt Chicago Studies.

Do you have a creative idea but aren’t sure if it meets the requirements?

Feel free to send me an email and we can talk (itejeda@ccc.edu).

I apologize for not communicating this information sooner and I thank The Harold Lounge for allowing me to create this page. More information to follow once I settle into this format.

Ivanhoe Tejeda
Architecture Program Coordinator
Department of Art and Architecture