What a "Charming" First Day

Reality-based television represents a genre that is responsible for presenting multiple diverse presentations of African Americans. There is the underlying assertion that as a text, television has been at the center of understanding the African American culture. The previous statement was the driving force behind my decision to create this class at The University of Alabama. Even though this course is offered during Interim, and not a traditional fall or spring semester, I believe that the dialogued shared and the global implications made will provide a foundation for continued study and future exploration of the topics.It is my personal goal to serve as a facilitator of knowledge inside and outside of the classroom. Through my teaching, I will work as an advocate for personal growth and strive to always challenge my students through their pursuit of knowledge, while serving as a role model for change in our academic community. With that being said, I feel that this class will allow for personal growth for myself as the instructor as well as the students. One of my personal educational ideas is you never stop learning. I will not pretend that I know everything about the topics that we will discuss but it is my goal to shed as much light on information that I do know.The first day was extremely interesting and fun. There was the traditional instructor/pupil meet and greet as well as the normal administrative duties. Everyone was quickly immersed into some of the materials that we will cover over the next three weeks. I anticipate the course to be extremely fun and exciting as well as mentally stimulating and intriguing. The topics that I have selected to cover are all very serious but they also allow for individuals to take a close look at the world around them. It is my goal that this blog will also be a place where people can share their thoughts freely about the class as well as what they are learning about the "Real" TV. The first assignment was to watch Episode 1 of the third season of Charm School. There were a few students that were not familiar with the women that would be premiering on the show so we watched the first episode of "Real Chance of Love" as well as the reunion episode. There were numerous "Ohhss and Ahhs" to the demeanor of the women and men on the show which I am sure will allow for a lively conversation on Tuesday. As I prepare this post I have already watched the show and made numerous jots on my opinions of Charm School. Tuesday should definitely be interesting and enlightening.