# Instructor Insights

Instructor Insights pages are part of the OCW Educator initiative, which seeks to enhance the value of OCW for educators.

## Course Overview

This page focuses on the course 21L.705 Major Authors: Old English and "Beowulf" as it was taught by Associate Professor Arthur Bahr in Spring 2014.

Traditionally, this is a two semester sequence with the first semester covering Old English and the second semester focusing on reading Beowulf. This course, however, compressed Old English vocabulary and grammar into the first six weeks, followed by reading and literary critical conversations of several passages in Old English, riddles and Beowulf.

## Course Outcomes

### Course Goals for Students

Students should be able to read Old English. When faced with a sentence in Old English, students should be able to navigate it - identifying the verb, subject and cases.

### Possibilities for Further Study/Careers

Because of interest from the students in this course, professor Bahr extended Old English and "Beowulf" into a more advanced course.

## Instructor Insights

My goal for the course was for students to read Old English. I wanted them, if they were faced with a sentence in Old English, to be able to confidently navigate it.

—Arthur Bahr

In the following pages, Professor Bahr describes various aspects of how he taught 21L.705 Major Authors: Old English and "Beowulf".

- Curricular scope and sequence
- Choice of textbook
- Assessment
- Developing rapport with students

## Curriculum Information

### Prerequisites

Completion of 2 previous literature courses.

### Requirements Satisfied

- CI-M
- HASS-H

### Offered

21L.705 is a seminar course taught in the spring and fall semesters, though the instructor and focal topics vary. This was the first iteration of 21L.705 Major Authors: Old English and "Beowulf".

## The Classroom

- ### Lecture

  This classroom had moveable chairs around a centrally located seminar table that accommodated 14 students.

## Assessment

The students' grades were based on the following activities:

15% Daily vocab quizzes
30% Exams 1 and 2 (15% each)
30% Final exam
25% Participation

## Student Information

### Breakdown by Year

Students were predominantly juniors or seniors, with a few sophomores and graduate students.

### Breakdown by Major

Students were mostly non-majors, with a small number of literature double majors.

### Enrollment Cap

12 students

### Ideal Class Size

10-12 students is the ideal size because each class session included translation activities completed by each student in succession.

## How Student Time Was Spent

During an average week, students were expected to spend 12 hours on the course, roughly divided as follows:

## In Class

3 hours per week

- Met 2 times per week for 1.5 hours per session; 25 sessions total; mandatory attendance
- Vocab quiz at the start of each class, followed by student questions
- Every session included translations by each student and class discussions
- Discussion of mock exams in 2 sessions
- 3 exams

## Out of Class

9 hours per week

- Completed readings
- Completed vocab and grammar activities from Baker
- Completed mock exams

## Semester Breakdown

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No classes throughout MIT
Class meeting
Quiz
Mock exam due
No class session scheduled
Mock exam discussion
Exam