Looking back on UofT’s first summer intensive courses
The Cinema Studies Institute offered a Summer Intensive course on Science Fiction Film this year.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
By Jessica Lewis
Students got the chance to prove they are fast learners this summer with new intensive courses that cover the same material as a regular course in only three weeks rather than the usual 12.
The Faculty of Arts & Science initiated the summer intensive courses to provide an option for students who want to pick up an extra course in a short period of time. Now that the two sessions have come to a close – one ended June 4, the second June 24 – it’s time to look back and evaluate how they went.
Professor Adam Cohen, who taught Introduction to Early Medieval Art, says students can benefit from the compressed format. “You can say ‘wow in three weeks, I got this real chunk of knowledge’ and you feel like you’re getting bang for your buck. I think once you get used to the rhythm it can be very valuable.”
Cohen believes that his session was successful overall, especially if students are able to give it the commitment it requires. “There’s clearly a demand,” says Cohen.
Bart Testa, who taught Science Fiction Film, has a similar reaction. “We delivered the course that students would get if they took it under normal circumstances… I think the pedagogical experience has been successful for students who were ready to do it.”
Both professors say that they were keen to be a part of the experiment and have learned a lot to make it even more effective in future summers, whether they are involved or as tips for other professors.
Benjamin Crase, who’s going into his second year in history with Trinity College, took Cohen’s class. He says that the quick, demanding structure gives students a ‘we’re in this together’ mentality and forced him personally to work harder than he normally would over a longer period of time.
“I am happy I took two intensive courses,” he says. “I will return to my studies this fall with confidence knowing I can overcome difficult academic challenges. Moving forward, I hope to see the program grow and provide more opportunities for courses in other fields of academic study.”