This thread feels familiar, like there was one just like it a few years ago. Or maybe I dreamt it.
Anyway....
A college professor friend told me his recurring dream many years ago- He shows up to teach a class that was "like" his field, but wasn't exactly in his field. Like a botanist teaching anatomy- both biology but different. He tries to fake it but the class knows he's lost. He said the worst part was him realizing that the class is "on to him" and their reaction- not calling him out or laughing but pity. Like, "You poor sap. You really don't know what you're doing, do you? That's just sad."
I thought that was pretty funny. Until I started adjunct teaching and having the same dream.
I show up for a class in the right room in the right building at the right time but the "wrong" course is listed on the door with my name assigned to it. It's a course I had as an undergrad but haven't thought about since then and isn't even close to my teaching field. I go in, find the textbook on a desk, and open it up to chapter one and start furiously outlining an overview lecture. The previous class in the room had moved the desks around like it was a discussion class, so as students start showing up I tell them to get everything straightened out and in order as a way to stall for additional prep-time. Then I wake up.
Imposter syndrome is real.
