Welcome to The Spaces in Between, a weekly newsletter on culture, language, and technology written by Stephan Caspar. If you’re new here, then welcome, feel free to subscribe.
We got through a storm last night and the garden is strewn with twigs and snapped branches. I usually pick them, breaking up the longer sticks, and put them in a small wicker basket by the door, they’ll make good kindling for the fire pit. Today the air feels fresh and although the boys weren’t that keen on going to school, the sun is out and we’re promised a nice weekend ahead.
We need some time to pause. It has been another horrific week in America where a white supremacist with a gun has carried out racist murder. This is anti-Asian racism, which some might say reached a crescendo but it is, unfortunately, more of the same attacks perpetrated by white supremacism.
Since the start of the pandemic, the right has used the phrase “China Virus”, not only to draw attention away from their own callousness, incompetence, and fear but to incite violence and preserve the racism that maintains the power they hold. You might think each moment that comes illuminates the notion that this past they cling to, this fractured memory, that it is so stridently at odds with reality, so far from any type of truth that isn’t self-serving, might with the tide, wash away. But no, the lies, the racism just keeps coming as we listen to cheap rationalization as events are re-framed and reported in such crude distortions that you would think it farcical, were it not for the fact that we are talking about murders, sanctioned and supported by gun companies, GOP politicians, state governors, white supremacist groups and far-right supporters; and preserved through the silence of others who see no need for change or action that might save lives or recognize the humanity of those who do not look like, pray or believe the same as they do.
It is such a sad time, it is hard to be hopeful, especially when the victims have their humanity stripped from them with misogynist labels, thoughtless comments, and racist judgments. I hope that you’ll take a moment to check in on your friends and colleagues who are hurting at this time. Here are some resources and links that you might share or visit.
Stop the Hate provides a site for reporting hate incidents.
NextShark covers Asian American News
The Wuhan I know - covering misinformation in the time of Covid
Such weeks aren’t easy to get through, but you keep working somehow and thankful for these conversations, and for sharing and listening.
Stephan
Teaching & Learning
I want to welcome new subscribers who clicked a link in Ida Yalzadeh’s Tiny Driver Newsletter to my semester plan which I mentioned last week.
It was fascinating to get a few emails, especially from those of you who have created similar open plans or task lists. I’m not sure what drove me to publish it this way, it is handy to have somewhere I can refer to it occasionally, and the interest has got me thinking that I will review it at the end of the semester and tick off what I managed to get through.
Part of writing this newsletter is to have open practice and I’m inspired by others who share the dirt on their own process, like Dr. Doug Belshaw, one-time co-host of the excellent TIDE podcast and publishes a weekly newsletter and regularly reflects on his work, whether as an individual or as part of the cooperative that he runs with other similar educators, technologists, and makers.
Talking about the work is something that we’re trying to encourage our students to do, but it can be super scary to share work in progress or output that is partial or incomplete. I suspect in some cases it is the fear of being given feedback that might not align with the perception of our work. Otherwise, I think it is because we might not yet carry confidence in the process. I still see the answers in design-thinking and have always found myself not knowing, or feeling uncertain, but being able to trust the steps that will ultimately guide me to the end of the project.
The week was heavy in Design Thinking, as it happens, CMU is the home of Herb Simon who wrote heavily about this theory and its place within learning. Over the next few weeks of our LangTech course, we will be designing learning objects using H5P. Unfortunately, I can’t embed H5P into substack (hey that would be a fun feature), but it works perfectly in WordPress, Moodle, and Canvas. If you want to take a look at a really excellent use, then I would recommend the Essay content type developed by the brilliant Oliver Tacke.
Instructional design is needed more than ever and it was fascinating to read Emily Beugelmans Cook’s article (via TinyDriver) - An Introduction to Instructional Design - as a reminder of some of the skills and attributes required for the role.
One of the most unfortunate aspects for teachers developing learning materials during the pandemic is how little time that they have had to create learning objects. I really haven’t heard about a huge increase in video, interactive objects. Quizzes perhaps more so, but not much else. There have been huge efforts on behalf of institutions to meet the demand, but from my few friends in digital learning teams, they say the workload for instructional design has only increased slightly. This article by my ALT colleague Amy Sampson for the Time Higher Education Supplement shows just how essential this support has been and how much it will continue to be needed as we head towards a post-pandemic future in HE.
Life Lessons
I get a lot of emails that start with “I know that you don’t have much capacity at the moment, but…” and then tell me about a really great project that I might like to get involved with…and I usually say yes and worry later about where I’m going to find the time.
I have gone back to basics, using Pomodoro timers and scheduling tasks into my calendar, but feel as if I’m losing the battle at the moment, with a few things still lingering at the end of the week.
The boys are now back four and five days a week respectively, so I do have some more time during the week, but to be honest I’m feeling exhausted. Added to this, my partner has also felt very tired following her vaccination at the weekend under the Tier 1 educators group. I’m waiting for news, I do hope that I can get sorted soon. Otherwise, she reported no other side-effects, just fatigue, and a sore arm.
The drive is now on to get the whole country eligible for vaccination by May 1st (by then we should be able to stand in line), and Biden has promised a fourth of July with family or small group gatherings. This does seem to be a low bar to set, especially as the number of vaccinations is hitting upwards of 2 million per day, but it is part of a pattern of underpromising and overdelivering, in contrast with his predecessor, who to be frank lied, then underdelivered.
Lost and Found
I had a short article published in the Languages at work, competent multilinguals and the pedagogical challenges of COVID-19 edited by Alessia Plutino and Elena Polisca which you can download here.
On reflection, it is a more personal piece than I would usually write in a journal. It even feels slightly from another time, writing as I did through in the summer, between teaching and working from home.
Thank you
My colleague Adam who always adds the best pics to our text thread, and whose humor keeps me going, or slapping my forehead, or muttering WTAF under my breath as he links a news story or post he’s come across; has asked for a playlist of songs from Francophone spaces. I have to admit there is a huge gap here in my knowledge and I’m hoping my other colleagues will hit “reply all” and let me in on some musical gems.
I offered a few things, including this from Gorillaz, featuring the beautiful, powerful voice of Maliwain actor and songwriter Fatoumata Diawara. I notice on her website she’s holding a Gibson SG in Heritage Cherry - that’s my dream guitar. Great video too, with animations from Jamie Hewlett.
I’m sorry if this week feels a bit disjointed. I feel very anxious for my students, my friends, and my colleagues who have had to get through the week somehow.
This weekend…
Do something nice, cook some food, go for a walk (the benefits are misunderstood, even if you’re not British) and enjoy some time alone, either with a book or a sketching pad, or something in between.
Take care and let’s look after each other.
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You might notice a few typos occasionally, and although I can’t do much about them once the email is sent, I do try to mop them up and update the web version with corrections.