Introduction, purpose, etcetera

So.

(It's the first line of Beowulf -- it's a good enough start to my blog, right?)

My name is Alex Langshall. I'm entering my third year of teaching film as an adjunct at Salt Lake Community College. I hold a Master of Arts in Teaching degree and a B.A. in English, both from Westminster College.

I am feeling a definite lack of teaching community right now. I'm hoping that by posting some of what I'm doing in the classroom, and some thinking about what I'm teaching and how I'm teaching, I can start to generate the kind of community I'm looking for. I'm also hoping that by posting about my experiences that I can help generate some ideas about how to teach the subjects I'm teaching, and also maybe get some insights from others about things that are working.

I'm starting this during spring break, so you'll be getting an insight during the middle of the semester. This semester I'm teaching three courses: one section of Introduction to Film, one of Film and Culture, and a section of Elements of Effective Communication. The two film classes I've taught numerous times, the communication course is new to me, and by far the largest struggle.

I'm hoping to include this blog as part of my prep, fleshing out my teaching ideas in a narrative format. I hope that's something that works well for me, and we'll see how it goes.

Syllabi for my film classes are available at http://slcc.academia.edu/AlexanderLangshall

Thanks for stopping by!

Alex