First Amendment Issues

Yesterday the NY Times reported that Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, scheduled to speak at a private high school in NY City, had insisted on approving any story written about his appearance by the school's newspaper.Quick, if you've taken PSC 2302 (or even if you haven't), what do you think about this? The Times put it on the front page. What do you think about that?

Are the Classics Relevant Today?

The NY Times reports today on a $3.7 million grant to establish an independent production company, Theater of War, to visit 50 military bases staging readings of Sophocles' Ajax and Philoctetes. It reminds me of Jean Anouilh's adaptation of Antigone as a part of the World War II French resistance effort. What do you think of the Pentagon spending money on theatrical performances of plays written by Sophocles a couple of thousand years ago? I did find out from this article that Sophocles had been a general - who knew?

Baylor's Expectations

The Provost released a report today giving an update on the assessment of Baylor's goals for students. They are that students be able to communicate in writing and orally in a manner appropriate to the subject, occasion, and audience, be proficient critical thinkers, demonstrate knowledge of the Christian scriptures and heritage, and demonstrate an understanding of the challenges of a global society. Do you think your Baylor courses have provided you the foundation for accomplishing these goals? Are these goals in line with your own?

Sunday Ritual

I have a new book: How to Win at College by Cal Newport - his is one of the blogs I follow on this website. He recommends a ritual for Sunday morning. OK - Sunday morning is church, so already I'm revising - my Sunday ritual is Sunday afternoon. After I have my worship and family activities taken care of, I settle down with the Sunday paper. As Newport suggests, this "piques my intellectual energy" so that I am in a creative frame of mind as I think about the coming week. He recommends taking this time to get ahead of your obligations for the week. As Cal puts it, "The satisfaction you'll get from starting the week in full command of your responsibilities will provide the good mood and momentum needed to get through the days that follow. If you take control of your Sunday, you take control of your week." Amen.

"Whether you think that you can or you can't, you're usually right."

Henry Ford is credited for this observation. I remember reading this article in the Wall Street Journal more than a year ago and was reminded of it when I ran a search for "self-efficacy." It seems most relevant at this time in the semester when obstacles seem to rise up and grow at tremendously rapid rates. Here's what the studies show. Students who believe they can achieve their goals are more likely to use the achievement strategies we have discussed all semester. That is, they recognize the link between good health and good grades and so they take better care of themselves. They recognize the importance of preparing for class and never missing a class. They worked in collaboration with others to complete homework assignments and projects and in preparing for exams. So, what was the cause of their success? Was it their belief in their own abilities or the study strategies they employed? You tell me.