I have not written very much related to the 2012 summer classes (709 in particular) until now. I was excited about the topics for the summer. As an administrator, I am always concerned about ethical issues as well as advocacy for under-represented groups. Although I would not choose to repeat the pace and structure of the summer classes, I did learn a great deal.
To begin, the online format was a new experience. As a result of working remotely with cohort members for class, I now find myself using google documents or other online options much more often. It has even become more of a first choice. That is not to say that I have given up my paper and notebooks, but my perspective has changed.
The sheer volume of work that was produced for 709 forced our cohort to work together closely. We met often in our own group independent of our official group for assignments. By meeting to discuss ideas, assignments became better defined (at least in my mind) and the plan for attack was mapped out. This experience was good preparation for the fall classes where we worked with others on the evaluation project.
