Tasha R. Howe wrote I'm teaching senior seminar for the first time this winter. I would REALLY appreciate all your ideas. What do you do in there? What topics do you cover? Specific readings you love? Fun/unique assignments/activities? It's supposed to be an "integrative" experience that ties all they've learned over the 4 years together. I'd love any and all ideas on or off the list. All too often, senior sem is "give a talk & write a paper"..... often on any topic the student wants. Of course, that means that most re-write papers for other classes. Giving them handouts/reprints to read for other student presentations rarely works. They don't come prepared. I found that the best thing to do is to assign a book and require presentations & papers relevant to the book. The last time I taught it (many years ago) I assigned Jaynes' "Origins of Consciousness and the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind." For the 1st 1/2 of the semester we discussed the book while the students were researching & writing their papers. The 2nd half they gave their talks. Topics had to be approved by me and included things like drugs & consciousness, hypnosis, dreaming, schizophrenia, animal consciousness, etc., etc. ..... all things discussed by Jaynes. Exams made certain that they were reading the material. Of course, they also received my "10 Commandments of Paper Writing" to head off plagiarism problems. For those of you who haven't seen it I'll send it in a separate post. Ed ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Edward I. Pollak, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, West Chester Univ. of PA, West Chester, PA 19383 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Office: 610-436-3151; Home: 610-363-1939; Fax: 610-436-2846; Office hours: Mondays 2-4; Tues. & Thursdays 10-noon. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Husband, father, grandfather, biopsychologist, herpetoculturist and bluegrass fiddler ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Shameless self promotion: The Mill Creek Bluegrass Band performs every Tuesday night at Dugal's Inn, Mortonville, PA. Call 610- 486-0953 for directions. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For recent pix of the world's most gorgeous grandson, Eli Lewis Levine, see http://webpages.charter.net/jeffnjanet/
