Spring Break Forward

At the beginning of the semester, I counted the weeks to Spring Break. And now I’m here!

My first goal for Spring Break was to submit a manuscript on my latest completed research project. Research is never really complete, but the trick is to identify stopping points – milestones along the way. I’m pleased to say that I succeeded in my first goal this morning! Fingers crossed that the review process goes smoothly and that the paper is well-received.

My second goal for Spring Break is to get ahead in my classes. After finishing a sizable chunk on thermodynamics in my G-Chem 2 class, we’re just starting a smaller section on solution chemistry (Raoult’s law, colligative properties, etc). We switched to a new textbook which covers this chapter quite differently in terms of emphasis. So I’m substantially reworking the content and activities for class. I’ve also been revamping my P-Chem 2 class as I switched to annotated self-graded problem sets. Mainly I’ve been modifying the content in my worksheets and problem sets to facilitate this change in a way that I hope increases student learning. However, I don’t have a good plan of how to assess these changes and figure out if I'm making good progress.

My third goal is to write the draft of a proposal for an integrated one-semester long biology and chemistry double course. I have a colleague in the biology department who is enthusiastic about this idea. We will need some additional resources from the college, hence the proposal. I’ve been involved in integrated science curricula discussions in the month of February when our college hosted a visiting fellow who had experience in teaching and developing such courses. There are many advantages and positive outcomes for both students and faculty, but it will be more work for everyone involved. This is not a bad thing. I have an outline of my ideas but haven’t started the actual writing yet.

My fourth goal is to take a break. I’m not sure exactly where that’s going to happen yet since I’m still going to work at the regular early time in the morning even though parking is much easier during the break. Mainly it’s because I’m now on a better sleep schedule and going to sleep and waking up at the same time every day has helped significantly. It’s nice to get enough sleep and feel well rested in the morning. Unfortunately, the end of Spring Break corresponds to Spring Forward when we turn our clocks forward and ‘lose’ an hour of sleep. My G-Chem 2 class is MWF at 8am so the coming Monday morning is going to be a real drag, particularly for the students who have circadian clocks offset later than mine, at least on average. I’ve been reading the superb Why We Sleep, so I’ve been thinking about sleep issues a lot this past week.

I picked up a DVD set on a PBS documentary called Big Pacific from the local library. It’s about the mysteries and marvels of the Pacific Ocean and its denizens. We watched the first episode yesterday evening and I’m hoping to watch one per evening most of this week. It feels leisurely to watch a lot of underwater scenes, and the many blues and greens of nature. Maybe that’s part of my break. I’m at least leaving work earlier this week so I can get in some exercise and do dinner prep earlier and at a more leisurely pace.

I expect to meet my four goals (I’ve already met #1, the first priority) and I’m already making progress in #2. A nagging thought is that the ‘break’ should be a higher priority. Why is it that work often occupies the top goal slots? Perhaps they’re easier to quantify or assess in terms of accomplishment. Doing something rather than taking a break seems more productive, but both are equally important. Maybe I should make a quick visit to the Pacific Ocean this week!