education
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How the Bible Reads You When You Read It
The Bible is intertextual. In literary theory, the term intertextuality refers to the interrelationship between texts, especially works of literature; the way that similar or related texts influence, reflect, or differ from each other. And just as many works of literature reference the Bible, whether knowingly or unknowingly, we, too, are texts that interact with every book that we read. Think of it this way. I am a collection of experiences, memories, and acquired knowledge. I have a library in my mind. As I read any work, I access this library of the mind and interact with whatever I am reading. In a sense, everything I read is now understood in a whole new way. I create a new book that no one has ever read before, at least not…
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What Professors Wish Parents Knew about College
I cannot speak for every college professor, but teaching in higher education for the last twenty-four years gives me some credibility on the topic. In my career, I taught upper and lower division English courses for large public universities, community colleges, and small private liberal arts universities. Every Fall ushers in a new class of freshmen and every winter ushers out 25-50% of those same kids. I estimate roughly 5000 students have crossed my path, probably a few more. I personally flunked about 10% of those, maybe more. It seems crazy in those terms. I flunked five hundred students. Most knew the end loomed because one cannot skip most classes…
