Today I have learned that I will be the reader for Prof. Scott Bartchy’s course, “History of the Early Christians“. The reader at UCLA is basically a grader. I’ll be grading the mid-terms and finals. Actually, I’ll be both enrolled in the course and grading it. Obviously, I won’t be grading my own work!
I graded similar topics for a course called New Testament 2: Acts-Revelation at Fuller, though there were more assignments for that course. I look forward to getting more pedagogical training, even if the grading might not always be fun. Here’s a description of the course:
Christian movement from its origins to circa 160 C.E., stressing its continuity/discontinuity with Judaism, various responses to Jesus of Nazareth, writings produced during this period, movement’s encounters with its religious, social, and political world, and methods of research.
3 Comments
August 5, 2008 at 3:46 am
Pardon my puzzlement but how can you grade work in a course you’re enrolled in? I would normally assume that you enrol in a course because you haven’t yet covered/mastered the topic and you’re normally employed to grade because you are considered to have mastered the topic. ??
August 5, 2008 at 7:40 am
I was puzzled myself when I first heard about it. I think the question is less how I am qualified to grade for the course and more why I am enrolled in the course. I have graded coursework for a similar course at Fuller and feel comfortable with the material.
I am enrolled in the course basically to get Bartchy’s take on the material. And, of course, I’m never done learning. I’m sure some things will come up that I never read, hadn’t thought of, or just forgot. The program at UCLA is such that we supplement our graduate coursework with just a few upper division undergrad courses. This course is one of those few for me.
August 10, 2008 at 4:02 am
Ah. This makes sense.