Back to School (again!): September Reflections

September means back to school, but for Lori Goff, director of the MacPherson Institute, “back to school” this year has taken on a whole new significance. Not only did her son enter his first year of undergraduate studies at McMaster, but she decided to enrol in a first-year course as well.

Lifelong learning is a phrase that gets used a lot these days—but for Goff, it’s something that has been embedded in her DNA since she began her first undergraduate degree program back in the ’90s.

Over the coming months, we’ll follow her journey as she experiences undergrad from a whole new perspective and shares some of her reflections about what it’s like to experience learning in a first-year undergraduate course after almost 30 years.

Tell us a bit about yourself and what motivated you to enrol in a first-year course?

As the director of the Paul R. MacPherson Institute for Leadership, Innovation and Excellence in Teaching, I oversee a team of staff who are primarily focused on supporting instructors at McMaster to be the best teachers they can be. But back in the ’90s, I had no idea that’s where I would end up.

My lifelong learning journey began with the pursuit of my BSc in molecular biology and genetics at the University of Guelph. From there, I went on to do a MSc at Guelph, then landed a job a McMaster in the biology department as an instructional assistant supporting the large level I and II courses. I was tasked with designing aspects of the first-year biology curriculum, but I had very little understanding of best practices in teaching or curriculum design. So, I started taking education courses part-time and quickly began learning in ways that were applicable to my life and career—and my addiction to learning set in.

While working full-time, I went on to complete a Master’s in Education, and then a PhD in educational leadership and policy studies during the 2000s and 2010s. As I learned more in the field of education, I also found opportunities to grow my career into educational leadership and management roles at McMaster, which led me to seek out more part-time learning. I completed an executive education certificate in business, then a diploma in human resources management, and now I’m slowing working my way through a part-time online asynchronous MBA.

More recently, with the rise of GenAI, I’ve become deeply interested in understanding and exploring automation, coding and programming. In some ways, that’s what brought me to enrol in an introductory computer science course. As you can see, learning has always been a big part of my life.

But there’s another, more personal, reason I was interested. A decade ago, after successfully defending my doctoral dissertation, my then 8-year-old son asked me if this meant I was done taking university courses. When I explained that I would always find ways to keep learning, he was relieved. He told me that when he got to university, he wanted to take a course with me. I was both shocked and deeply touched. I promised him that if—and only if—he still wanted to take a course with his mother when he was 18, I would join him.

This summer, when he accepted his offer to computer science program at McMaster, he made sure to remind me of my promise!

So here I am, starting a first-year course with so many excited students joining McMaster from high school. For me, I’m not doing this course because it’s a required credit, nor am I doing it for the grades. I’m genuinely just eager to learn. To challenge myself and to get through the struggle of a steep learning curve. To gain some confidence in my own computing abilities. To experience what it’s like to be a first-year student in this post-COVID world. And maybe most importantly, to deliver on a promise I made to my son a decade ago.

How did the experience of your first day of classes go? How did it feel to be a first-year student again?

I was surprised at how nervous I was. I have started new academic programs and there has always been some anxiety mixed with excitement on the first day of any new program, but I’ve never been as nervous as I was for this first day of computer science.

I worried that my background knowledge in computing wouldn’t be sufficient and that I would struggle to keep up. I worried the professor might think I was there for some other reason than to learn. I worried about how my son, Trevor, might face judgment from his peers while taking a course with his mother. I worried whether I had what it takes to be a first-year student in today’s age, when I’m well into my 40s.

And yet, I was committed. This was something I wanted to do. I have so much admiration for people with computing skills that I don’t have. With technological changes accelerating and genAI challenging us to think about the very purpose and meaning of higher education, I am convinced this is an area I need to learn more about.

Like many of us at McMaster, I’m passionate about learning. But how many of us know what it’s like to be a first-year student today? This experience will not just be about computer science—it will also provide a glimpse into what the student learning experience is like today.

What was the most surprising or challenging part of your first day or week? (e.g., technology, coursework, schedules, etc.)

Trying to sort out my schedule to balance school, work and life. Between a full-time job, part-time studies in an MBA (online and asynchronous), this new course (scheduled five hours per week), and impending life changes—becoming an empty-nester and moving—it’s a lot to juggle.

Trying to keep up with deadlines and due dates so I don’t drop the ball in any of these areas of responsibility is a daunting task in terms of my organizational skills and juggling abilities. But it’s only the first few weeks and there’s a lot still to learn, so we’ll see how it goes!

Check back at the end of October for another reflection from Lori Goff, director of the Paul R. MacPherson Institute for Leadership, Innovation and Excellence in Teaching.