June 5, 2026
Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post.
I remember being a graduate student and receiving grades with little written feedback. I often wondered if a good grade meant that the writing was good, or the ideas were good, or perhaps both. Professors do their best to balance what usually amounts to too much work, but I always wanted more advice or critiques. While the actual grade is some indication, it doesn’t offer much personal or specific feedback on the actual ideas or writing. (I have to admit that this problem might have been alleviated had I been brave enough to attend office hours … which I wasn’t.)
For this reason, feedback is one of the things I like best at Harrison Middleton University. Students receive personalized feedback on each assignment. Our one-to-one discussion format ensures that students can pursue their own interests in each work. For example, when reading The Iliad, students choose their pace. Students craft their own syllabus to reflect the time they want to spend on each section. Students also select the ideas that they want to discuss in each class period. From The Iliad, they might focus on gods, or war, or fate, or myth, etc. The student’s questions drive the conversation.
By the time the conversation arrives, the student has done a lot of legwork. They have selected the reading, read through it a couple of times, highlighted key thoughts and ideas, and logged a lot of questions. The student’s own questions are the assignment. The tutor uses these to prepare for the conversation. In this way, the student gets an in-depth look at ideas that motivate their own work.
HMU students do so much work prior to the conversation, that sometimes they arrive with essay-length explanations for each question. Their preparation is noteworthy, but hopefully leaves room for the best part of the process: the conversation.
Many of our students have engaged in small group discussion, but the one-to-one format at HMU may place feelings of pressure on the student. Rather than feeling pressured, however, the conversations should be viewed as a fun way to explore ambiguities. It’s perfectly acceptable (and encouraged) for the student to write a question for which they don’t have a satisfactory answer. Both tutor and student explore these questions together. “I don’t know why….” functions as an excellent launching pad.
One-to-one discussions rarely land on one exact answer for any given question. Instead, they often inspire further questions. From my perspective, the most insightful questions may have wrong answers, but typically don’t have a single right answer. And this shared exploration through tough topics is what makes dialogue so rewarding. Additionally, four discussions with four different tutors guarantees a variety of feedback and perspectives.
Finally, when all the coursework is done and conversations complete, students write an end-of-course essay. While the essay does not have to focus on the student’s chosen great ideas, the student will reap the most rewards from their program if they can consistently focus on their chosen ideas. (Having said that, sometimes an idea will continually creep into conversation, which may mean the student needs to re-adjust their focus or add another topic to their program.) This essay is returned with comments, suggestions, questions, and recommended reading. Sometimes, the essay needs a revision, which is possible at HMU. This feedback loop enables the student to fully explore their ideas before turning to the next course.
Close reading followed by questions followed by conversation followed by writing is a fantastic path to deep, intellectual insight. The flexibility, variety, and student-focused work at HMU ensures that each student maximizes the benefits of their program. And this is exactly why our students are so engaged! They put in the work which leads to success and satisfaction. Engagement in rigorous discussion keeps all of us engaged. What could be better?
For more about the HMU curriculum, visit our website at https://hmu.edu/curriculum/
Photo credit: Shutterstock/ AmiEn23207
