Reflections Tám – Undergrad Finale

Amalgam

Oddly enough, a word that I tend to use frequently when I’m participating in an intelligent discussion or writing a paper. Funny, I learned it from looking up the old DC-Marvel crossover line back in the height of the DC vs. Marvel days.

Anyway, it speaks to how I’m combining my last two semesters at NJIT/Rutgers-Newark into one epic endeavor, as if they were taken separately, they would make no sense whatsoever and separately, would have prevented me from ultimately succeeding to the point where I am at.

Women in Technology & Culture – A

One of my last upper level STS requirements of course needed for my STS minor. Essentially a weird amalgamation (there’s that word again) of a women’s study class and a diluted history of technology in a twentieth century context. Like many of my STS courses, it’s left me feeling like I haven’t really learned anything and still have absolutely no idea how to describe STS to any general passer by. Much of this was honestly an extension of some views and beliefs I hold coupled with new veins of history to flesh all of that information out. Crowning achievements of the class: Using Mr. Terrific to represent a technologically competent African-American in media today, using Barbara Gordon to represent a technologically competent woman in the media today, using that Cooking Mama VGCats (#248: Humble Suggestion) to demonstrate stereotypes of women in video games, and writing my final ten page paper an hour before it was due, not expecting much, and then subsequently getting an A for the course.

Science Fiction to Science Fact – A

All right, another semester with Dr. Lipuma. I had this guy for one of my courses that covered three requirements for graduation and for the urban education program so I knew exactly what to expect going in. Basically, as long as I came to class, participated in an intelligent fashion, and completed all of the course work, I’d be fine. But hold on, lets discuss why this course was awesome other than the fact that it was taught by Lipuma. This course was looking at any and all representations of science fiction, and subsequently determining the feasibilities of the technologies and innovations present. Is a technology actually possible, or just a jargon covered word used as a plot device to bypass actual science? Yeah, we tore everything apart that discussions allowed us to. I ended up doing a project on Bicentennial Man and learning a whole lot about Asimov in this course. Because of this course, I am really pissed at the droids in the most recent Clone Wars movie. Heh, another funny thing was that Lipuma created his own D&D world and game system which he wrote a story about. We had to read his story for class and then write fanfic in his fantasy world for our final (this was the easiest final choice so it was what I did). My final project ended up being a history of the origins of one of his world’s legacy weapons. What a course and what a professor. This course made me reconsider the possibilities of graduate school if I can some day teach a course as esoteric and awesome as this one was.

Senior Thesis: U.S. Muslim Relations – B+

Ahh yes, that senior thesis of mine. So my final thesis ended up being The First Barbary Conflict: How a Fledgling Nation Forged Its Identity. There’s not much I can say other than this. I really wished that we could have this as our only obligation so that we could write the greatest paper possible. What ended up happening was that I had haphazardly done my research and ended up emphasizing one author’s material while only slightly gracing the viewpoints and ideas of other authors. To be honest, I’m not satisfied with final product and also wish that I didn’t write the bulk of it at the very last minute. Had I had the time and ability to hone the paper a bit more, I probably would have gotten an A. Still, a B+ from a paper I didn’t like and wrote mostly at the last minute is still quite an accomplishment. Ugh, it would have been great to know that I could take my Senior Seminar my Junior year. Would have definitely shaved off the last semester as saved me some money. Live and learn.

People and Culture of Latin America – B+

This is an anthropology course. Somewhat odd for me to take, but it became a requirement because of the Urban Teacher Education Department. Apparently, to be properly prepared to become an Urban Teacher, it is necessary to take a literature course or culture course centered around one of the racial groups found in an urban environment. Apparently, Asians, Gays & Lesbians, and Colonial Latin Americans don’t fit the bill. So I had to look for a proper course and after looking up professor reviews on ratemyprofessor.com, I arrived at Professor Seibert and this course. Seibert was your atypical Camel Light smokin’ lefty that knows his pop culture cartoons. Made for a great class where I basically learned a bit more specific vein of history and of course anthropology. I can see why History and Anthropology fit together so well now.

So why the heck did I save this course, something of a throwaway course until now? Welp, there’s a great story of how I never took my final for it until the end of the next semester. So it was the last week of the semester. I’m tearing my hair out not writing my senior thesis because I didn’t do my final projects for my other courses. Finally, the day of my final for the course came and after a quick glance, I saw that the final was at 3 PM. Great, plenty of time to study says I. Of course, this was at 9 in the morning after yet another all-nighter. I study until about 2:30 and I leave figuring that I should get to the final early so I can keep grinding until the last minute. I get to the room where the final is being held to find it deserted. Weird. 3:00 comes and nobody shows up. Crap. I take a quick look at my notes and see that 3:00 was for a chance for people to take the final the previous day if they couldn’t make it for today’s final at 11. Crap, crap, crap. I email Seibert about it and don’t hear back until after I walked at graduation. We set up a time for me to take the final on one of the days he has his first summer class. Excellent, this’ll be taken care of before grades are due. I go in on the day we scheduled for our final only to find out that he didn’t come in because not enough people signed up for his course scheduled for that evening ergo he didn’t come in. Craaaaaaaaaap. I could barely get in contact with him or the anthropology department throughout the entire summer and finally, during the last week of classes this semester, I just for his last class of the day to finish before talking to him about it. He remembered me and we set up a time for me to finally do the make up. I barely scraped out what was left that I remembered for that class for that final and turned it in. Whaddyaknow, B+. I’ll take it.

Secondary Practicum/Student Teaching Seminar – A/?

So it all ends here. The final two courses necessary to complete the Rutgers-Newark Urban Teacher Education Program. First off, Secondary Practicum. Basically pre-student teaching. I was assigned to Ms. Williams at Malcolm X. Shabazz High School. Did some observations and taught like three class sessions. Not too bad, but not really enough to get a meaningful experience in my opinion. More hours of observation would have made the experience more useful than it was. I ended up only catching a glimpse of my CT’s style and classroom management techniques. It didn’t help that I didn’t have a car that semester and had to ride the bus every day making getting to the school an unnecessary chore. Especially when I could have easily been assigned to Central High, which was right on campus. Still, despite my lack of learning anything useful, I got an A anyway. I also decided that since Ms. Williams was a good CT, that it would be really helpful to continue my student teaching with her as well.

When it came time to register for Student Teaching, I ran into a major problem. I was graduating, therefore, I couldn’t register. One suggestion thrown at me was extending my matriculation. But of course, being the guy that likes to take a unique, ergo difficult approach to finishing anything, I decided to graduate, become a non-matriculated student, and then register for Student Teaching. Then I ran into a problem. The non-matric office couldn’t find Student Teaching under the course list so I couldn’t register for it. Eventually, after arguing with various departments, I managed to squeak past one portion of the bureaucracy by getting my holds taken off, allowing me to simply go into the registrar and filling out the forms needed to simply take a course at Rutgers-Newark. Then I find out that non-matrics can’t cross register. Great, I’m screwed.

Or am I?

Finals burnout worked in my favor. Since I had missed my last final, I never officially graduated, meaning that it would be very, very easy to extend my matriculation. After a little bit more bureaucratic nonsense, I finally registered for Student Teaching, you know, about three days before it started.

Student teaching proved to be an incredibly interesting experience. Once again, I found myself at Malcolm X. Shabazz with Ms. Williams. I was given complete control of her U.S. History I course. I taught sophomores. There’s a lot I can say about my final experience in the final leg of this program, but I really can’t do it any form of justice in this blag post. Interestingly, the Newark Public School District offered every student teacher from Rutgers-Newark and Montclair a position in the district immediately. Now, had it not been essentially a blind crap shoot, I probably would have taken the job. What they essentially expected of us was that we take the job, report to the district a little after New Years, then get assigned to essentially any of Newark’s schools. This didn’t exactly work for me because I had no idea where I would be placed, and would have to deal with a huge commute every day, unless I rented a place near by with the money I don’t have in my bank account because I didn’t work this semester. Oh to have to actually pay for your internship.

Because of unforeseen consequences with one of my peer evaluators coupled with my lack of a contingency plan, I may be in troubled waters with my certification. It is and isn’t my fault. Basically, what happened was, I had my one of my peer evaluations on a Friday. My peer told me that she would get me the finished evaluation by the time we meet for seminar the following Tuesday night. However she didn’t show up and one of her close friends in my class told me that she had to drop out of school because of family issues. Now, I didn’t panic or worry because her friend told me that she would meet with my peer evaluator and get the observation for me by the next week. The next week came and she didn’t have it. Great, especially since it was the end of the semester and everything was due. So I’ve called both of them and emailed them to no avail. My professor is seeming placing the bulk of the blame on me and I’m really at a loss of what to do because at this point, there really isn’t anything I can do. I guess this is what I get for placing faith in my peers. I’ll update this part once everything gets settled if it gets settled. I really wish people would respond to my attempts to contact them. People can’t be that selfish or thoughtless. I just hope that faith alone will get me through this. Fingers crossed.

Eight Something or Another

*sigh* My academic college experience has been quite silly and very much a mixed bag. But college isn’t all about academics.

I spent three of my four college years dorming in Cypress 813A. The suite style frosh dorms. Roomates included Jimmeh, this kid Anoop, and finally Gerg. Suitemates included these people I never met, Tim and Chris, and Sinan and Tin. Interestingly, I never spent a year of my college life without someone from HHS either as my roommate or suitemate.

I ended up doing a work study jerb for my school’s ResLife office. Being a good dedicated worker, I never realized that I had the ability to transcend some of the rules most students had to follow. As a result, I got into the grad student/23 and older floor of the apartment style dorms known as Oak. And that’s where I lived for the past semester, good old Oak 804. Suitemates this time were Dave and man with uber-sensitive ears (i.e. he always asked us to turn down whatever we had on) and some Indian kid whose name I never learned and couldn’t understand when we introduced ourselves to each other. Interesting times to say the least.

Now, I want to write more ‘cause this is quite incomplete and I’ve been hammering away at it since I’ve been home. But, a roadtrip beckons me. Heading through Jesus land to God’s waiting room to visit my family until a little after New Years. When I get back, I’ll still have the house to myself for a few days so I’m thinking before the ‘rents get back, I should do an awesome party. More on that as I update and complete this.

Until then,

ut for now,

-Alex