Stephanie Curry’s diary on teaching, scepticism, and the satisfaction of a converted classroom
I could tell within the first two minutes this was going to be a difficult room, arms crossed, phones half-hidden but clearly active, the specific posture of a class that’s been assigned a guest lecturer they have zero investment in and every intention of quietly ignoring for the full hour.
How I Adjusted My Opening on the Spot
I abandoned my carefully prepared introduction almost entirely and opened instead with the single most dramatic, human detail from my current research, a specific letter revealing genuine fear and defiance from an ordinary eighteenth-century family facing a crisis considerably more immediate than anything in my original slides.
The Moment I Felt the Room Shift
About four minutes in, one student, previously fully absorbed in her phone, looked up and asked a genuinely engaged follow-up question, and I could feel the rest of the room’s attention shift with hers, the specific, gratifying sensation of a lecture actually landing rather than simply being tolerated.
What the Rest of the Hour Actually Looked Like
Considerably more genuine engagement than I’d expected walking in, real questions, real pushback on a couple of my interpretive claims that I genuinely enjoyed defending, students clearly thinking rather than simply waiting for the hour to end.
The Student Who Stayed Late
One stayed nearly fifteen minutes after the official end time, wanting to know more about accessing primary sources herself, a genuinely rewarding outcome that made the initial two minutes of crossed arms and half-hidden phones feel entirely worth pushing through.
What I’ve Learned About Teaching This Material Well
Lead with the human story, always, regardless of how carefully constructed your academic framing might be. Sceptical rooms convert through genuine curiosity sparked early, not through patient argument alone, and today’s class reminded me, usefully, exactly how much that opening choice actually matters. Further diary entries continue at bohiney.com, with the original piece live at prat.uk.
SOURCE: https://prat.UK/