I had never made every single meeting of one of my classes one time in my four years of college and I did not know how I was going to be able to bring myself to go to class from 8-11 pm every Tuesday night. Then I got the syllabus for The Roots of Global Conflict, my Tuesday night class. We had to read 14 books this semester, write 2 essays, 4 responses, 1 reader’s guide (which meant reading the book a week early), take minutes for one class, and take a final. I thought that this was no way to spend your last semester as an undergrad. Professor Manson introduced himself as Michael and gave a speech about the necessity of this course, especially in the wake of 9/11, the war in Afghanistan and the War on Terrorism. He was very well spoken and I decided to give him one class to prove to me that it was worth staying in the class. And he really did prove it and I had one of the most rewarding class experiences I had ever had. Michael knew the work load was daunting and the time was not exactly conducive to an active class, but he coaxed everything he could out of us.
Every class would begin with the question "What did you think of this week's book?" From there the discussion would begin. Michael would let us make argument after argument and express our opinions. For me this is the best way to learn, because I often miss things when I read or I cannot form complete ideas about a work until I have heard some argument about it. Michael was happy to let us discuss and argue for a good hour, occasionally asking questions or quoting passages that would move our thinking a little further along and eventually lead to a better understanding of the material. Every class was so engaging that we would often stay an extra 15-20 minutes to hammer out a conclusion.
Michael also kept our energy going by making not so funny jokes or by having class at Chef Geoff's. He really understood how to manage a class. It is not easy to sit at that time of night, but the entire class was actively engaged. He made class participation very important and never overlooked anyone, even the girls and minorities. Several boys, myself included liked to take over class discussion and we often had good points, but Michael really made an effort to distribute speaking time evenly, cutting us off when we were rambling and calling on people who were too shy to interrupt or who had something to say, but were afraid to say it. I really learned a lot about how to manage a classroom just by being in his class. As much work as we had, everyone did it and worked really hard on it. Michael was not an easy grader, but he always gave good comments and the option of re-doing a paper was open.
I did not begin Michael's class knowing that I was going to pursue a career in teaching, but looking back on The Roots of Global Conflict I see what I want to be when I am a teacher. I want to be demanding, but fair, fun, a person my students will work for, insightful, a teacher who never overlooks a student, who keeps his class involved, who will not give an answer, but instead a way to find the answer, and someone who opens new doors for his or her students. Michel was not an education professor, but he was a good example of the what an education professor wants his or her students to be as teachers.
-- Andrew Lemerise, American University