What kinds of information about the students is it important for an Instructor to have before a new class begins?
Most instructors, I would think, do some kind or introduction activity (unless the class is too large) in the first class session. Most of these are kind of dull, normally the standard, 'Tell us your name, where you work, what are you hoping to get from the class' kind of stuff.
I have made Wordles from class introduction statements, which are pretty cool, but don't really tell me that much.
This class I am going to send out a pre-class survey to get a better feel for the students and whether some of my more unorthodox approaches are going to work.
Some questions I am considering:
What philosopher said - 'Wars not make one great'?
Hint:
Flickr - niallkennedy
Choose one - Death Cab for Cutie, Band of Horses, Jack's Mannequin or Who the heck are they?
If you could be a superhero, which one would you choose?
What is Twitter?
I know these kinds of questions have nothing to do with academics, or HR Technology, but I need to know how loose and fun and willing to explore new things the class will be.
What else should I ask the class before the first session?