17. Evaluation

I think this course is a great course to take while you are abroad. I like that it is online because, with all the other stuff we have going on all over the world, we can usually find an internet connection so it isn’t too hard to complete assignments while traveling. On the other hand, I wish we had received a syllabus at the beginning of the semester with every blog topic and due date so we could have time to plan out each post. I feel like a lot of times we didn’t get the assignment until Thursday or Friday for a post due on Monday, which made me feel very rushed in decided what to write about. So many of our assignments were based on observation and analysis, that I wish I could have had the time to write about something I really wanted to write about, instead of scrambling and writing about the first thing I saw. It was also difficult to get the assignments done on this short notice when there was a reading involved. For one I am a very slow reader and need more than a few days to read a novel, and for another, there were some instances where I received the assignment after I left the city at the end of the week and left the book in my apartment. Other than the syllabus issues however, I think this course was very valuable for my abroad experience. I think I learned a lot by examining certain aspects of Argentina that I would not have noticed without writing a post about them.

hmmm

Overall, I have confusing feeling about this course. It's been helpful in a lot of ways, but I guess it's also been very strange for me to do things online, without any face-to-face interactions. I mean, I don't even know what Steve Hutkins looks like. (I'm sure I will meet him/you soon:).My first feeling is disappointed in ME, for having turned all of my blogs in so late. This is especially frustrating, since procrastination is a big problem of mine, and a course like this makes it very easy to procrastinate, because deadlines in virtual reality just don't mean the same thing.In terms of what was helpful, I am really glad I have this bunch of writings to remember certain aspects of my time here by. I think it will be nice and sort of funny to look back on in the future, like any diary-type writing. I also have really enjoyed reading other peoples blogs, because I sort of feel like I know these people, but again, have never seen them before (save 3). Regardless of this, it has been refreshing and, I guess I want to say, "mind-opening" or something, to read about people's experiences in all the various different study abroad locations.

Though it hasn't always been easy for me to get my posts in on time this semester, I have thoroughly enjoyed participating in this class. Blogging about my travel experiences has helped me reflect on what has been significant about my four months here and what it means to be a traveler or an expatriate.
I truly wish that I had more time to read all of my peers posts and comment on all of them but I have faced typical Ghana restrictions (time, faulty internet, power outages etc.)
Most of all, this class has sparked my interest in the field of Place Studies, a discipline previously unknown to me. As someone who has traveled extensively and experienced many foreign cultures and had to adapt each time, studying and thinking about what it means to be a tourist, a traveler and an outsider. I've also discovered what it takes to make myself somewhat of an insider, especially here in Ghana. It has been difficult, needless to say. No matter how perfectly I speak Twi or know Accra, I am white and therefore will never blend in. That being said, in Accra there is a difference between an "obruni" who has just arrived and an "obruni" who has been living in Ghana for a while. I've come to feel like the latter.
I've also enjoyed being able to share my anecdotes and experiences with family and friends through my blog and not spending hours trying to verbalize in an expensive phone call. I am inspired to write a travel blog whenever I spend time traveling, for myself and for my loved ones.
De Botton was fabulous and I recommend the text be used for this class in the future. I'll miss feeling the pressure to find an internet connection and write my blog and pour out my frustrations and excitement.
Steve, you've been incredibly helpful and understanding when I have had issues with the website etc. I look forward to meeting you in New York next semester!

I really enjoyed taking this class (if take is the right word for an Internet course.) It gave me a motivation to record and reflect on my experiences in France, which I probably would not have done so much if I had to motivate myself. It was a lot of fun to read other people’s travel experiences as well, and useful—the fact that there were other people studying abroad in Paris at other programs gave me the chance to learn about the city I’m living in along with everybody else.
In other ways, the class was tough—it’s hard to remember to do work for your online class, when it’s just so easy not to do it. And the flickering quality of all French internet is always a challenge. But these were minor inconveniences.
And it’s always nice to read books, especially when they’re full of places you can actually go to. I was thrilled by the suggestion of Edmund White’s book. Nice choice, Steve. That was particularly astute. I learned probably more from that book than all the other ones I read before coming.
Sorry that this is brief. But I did like taking the class, and I always appreciate the blog format. It’s much more casual, and suited to the topic of the course. I wish that I could take this again next semester, since I’ll still be in Paris. You know what would be cool? If you offered this for people who were coming to NYU for their freshman year of college as international students. It would be interesting to see what insights they would offer us, jaded New Yorkers that we are.

I really appreciated this course because, although I have a neglected journal on my night table into which I scribble broken sentence fragments of thoughts and memories to which I hope to return and rewrite into developed entries one day, it’s good to have something that forces me to flesh out my ideas about being abroad and write things about my experiences that are composed and concrete.

I particularly enjoyed reading other people’s posts to see both the similarities and differences between all of our abroad experiences. It’s nice to know that the other Paris bloggers commiserate in my frustrations with French red tape or that someone in Buenos Aires dealt with the same kind of cultural gaffe as I did in Paris.

I don’t have much to say in terms of changes to make for next semester, I liked the way that the course was structured. I had some technical difficulties with the site that I’ve been in touch with you (Steve) about, but I’m clueless about that stuff, so I have no idea how to smooth out that kink.

I’m also glad that the course forced me to make time to read literature about Paris. My readings helped make me more aware of my surroundings and more receptive to French/Parisian culture. Readings about the general experience of travel were helpful as well, especially on my weekend trips around Europe.

This course has forced me to reflect on my travels, the courses I have taken, and the city of Florence this semester. I am very pleased with the layout, assignments, and overall outline of this course. In addition, I think that it is extremely helpful to read the novels or books that are accompanied in this course. They have provided various perspectives and cultural encounters that have both influence my experience here and my outlook on my temporary home. At times, uploading pictures and/or text have given me a problem, but overall, the website was structured effectively. The assignments as well as the overall course description were clear and interesting. One of my favorite things about this course, as I am sure others will agree, is the ability to read about other’s travels and lives in the various NYU study abroad sites.