That Work Thing

I had planned to go in to work nice and early today. Finish up my calculus syllabus. Hang the flyers advertising my meeting. Deal with all the crap that accumulated in my mailbox while I was gone. Try to get my electronic toys to play nicely with the various presentation hardware that has been installed and upgraded over the summer.

However, I ended up sleeping in and then getting stuck dealing with work over email. The gist of the problem is how to strive for consistent high standards in teaching while allowing the truly gifted to do their own thing. We hire a mix of novice and experienced instructors. Many of the newest instructors -- especially those who don't plan to make a career out of it -- will either cut corners or will not think through the consequences of their actions. We're trying to find a balance.

Looking at my calendar, it is filling up with meetings and appointments and now seems to be pretty full from now until mid-December. I think that when I reach my office that I will declare my semester officially started.