COURSE :Introduction To Literature

DEPARTMENT : ENGLISH

PROFESSOR : OLMSTED

Lecture3 : Introduction

View the Power Point Presentation of the Lecture

Hi I’d like to welcome you to English 200. As you know, this course is special in a couple of ways. First we’re going to compress a full semester’s work into three weeks. Second we’re going to accomplish all this online entirely. This may be your first time with one or both of these factors. I’ve been teaching online for about four years and have taught English 200 as an online three week course once. So I know it can be done and if you’re willing to focus your energies and set aside the time needed to do the reading and writing I promise that you can be successful. Although there are many advantages to online courses one disadvantage is that we don’t get to see each other face-to-face. Nothing can replace that kind of exchange especially when you’re trying to understand something difficult or you’re having problems with material and that’s why I decided to record this introduction. I just wish I had one for each of you as well. Instead I hope you’ll introduce yourselves by setting up your personal webpage. Just go to tools in the menu and click on homepage. Anyone who sets up their own homepage by Wednesday, May 17 gets 10 bonus points right off the bat but you need to include a picture as well to get those 10 points. You can click on faculty in the menu to find out more about me but for now I’ll just say this I’ve been at Western since 1996 which is the year I finished my PhD at the University of Minnesota. I’m an associate professor of English and director of the Women’s Studies program. If you’re on campus, my office is located in Women’s Studies center which is at 1532 State St. right between EST and the International Center so come on by anytime. In English my area of specialty is the 20th century literature, multi-cultural literature, and autobiography. I’m married to a philosophy professor at Hopkinsville Community College and we have three sons. One of them is a junior here at Western and another is a junior at Warren Central and my granddaughter and her mother are also living us and her mom is a student at Western. I guess the last thing I want to say is that I think literature is a wonderful field to teach in. When I was an undergrad like you it took me a while to figure out what it was I wanted to do. I tried psychology, I tried education, but in the end my literature classes were like a magnet pulling me back. I also love teaching though I didn’t always know that. It no longer surprises me that what I enjoy about teaching face-to-face can also happen online. Watching students grow, enjoying discussions about literature, continuing to learn myself these are almost everyday occurrences that I look forward to with you as well. We’re going to read some wonderful stories, poems, and plays. Many of them will challenge you, they challenge me every time I read them but it’s a good kind of challenge and there are many rewards. Now that I’ve introduced myself why don’t you introduce yourselves? Feel free to call me or email me or drop by anytime. I look forward to this semester.