I'm grading finals for my Contemporary American Indian Law and Politics class. 2 essay questions, but we started with a short answer for 0 points. I asked them to list the people in the class who contributed in ways that facilitated their learning 1/
not the people who talked the most, necessarily, or were always 'right' - but the people who said things that made them think, or asked good questions, or always had page numbers ready. Reading these responses ALWAYS brings me joy. Students are so generous, and so accurate - 2/
in a class of 28 students, 20 were named or described - 20 discrete individuals who moved our conversation forward. 2 students simply wrote "everyone." The best parts where the sentences where students explained their list. They wrote gorgeous things, like 3/
"[1st yr student] has so much passion and drive - i hope they keep it" ... "i didn't always agree with [them] but i always appreciated hearing their perspective" ... "when [they] spoke, it made me realize i could, too" ... "[x] is so freaking smart and funny" ... 4/
"when [x] spoke up, i realized i could, too" ... "[x] always had page numbers!" ... "when we were talking about Deer , {x} had a great perspective" and "this class was the hardest, but best, that i've had in the major. thank you." No, seriously: THANK YOU. @DrakeUniversity #LPS
