English 104 - College Composition
Fall 2008
Instructor: Kay Siebler, PhD
Office:
Cell Phone: (before 9 p.m. please): (712) 299-6884
Email: (I am not religious about checking email, so if you need to know before the next class, CALL me)
Office hours: Tues/Thurs 9:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. or by appointment
Required Texts Short stories from The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie
The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
The Kite Runner by Khaled Houssieni
SF Writer
Required Work
In-class writing
Engaging in peer
review/writing workshop
Three major projects
Revision work on projects
Weekly
Response journals of readings
Class participation/student
led class
Course
Policy
This
course is going to focus on the process of writing and attention to audience to
formulate an effective argument. The process of writing includes pre-writing,
brain storming, drafts, review/revisions of drafts, and a final product.
There
will be reading and writing involved
in this course. Through reading we will learn more about writing and critical
thinking; through writing we will become smarter in our approach to critical
thinking and argument. Class discussion is a way to hone all of these skills (reading,
writing, critical thinking). It is imperative that you come to class prepared
to discuss the texts/assignments in depth. I don’t buy the argument that “I
learn better by listening.” Certainly, “active listening” is valued and
valuable, buy ONLY when it is paired with critical thinking and verbally
articulating what you are thinking. In other words, you must not only engage in
active listening, carefully and closely hearing what others say, but you must
also verbally articulate your OWN ideas and engage in the intellectual
discussion that will make your brain bigger and stronger.
The
books we are reading will be supplemented by viewing the film version of the
books. When we read and view these texts we will be constantly doing so with an
eye to critical analysis, asking questions such as “Who is the intended
audience? What differences are there between the book and the film? Why do
these differences exist? How is colonialism or post-colonialism represented in
these texts?” When analyzing these different versions of the same texts (the
book and the film) we will constantly be turning our critiques towards audience
analysis and the revision process. The books we read are not to be seen as
“models” for good writing, but as tools for critical thinking and reflection.
The readings should be seen as one element of, one perspective of, a story or
argument that you will come to write about using critical thought and analysis.
This
course may challenge previous ideas you may have about writing and how to
write. This class will be a successful community of writers if we all make a
commitment to expand our writing and learning experiences. Growth requires
taking risks, taking responsibility, making informed choices through thoughtful
analysis and becoming involved. Also keep in mind that you are embarking on an
adventure in higher education. Part of that education includes learning to
think critically, understanding contexts and how they influence situations and
outcomes, engaging with other learners, reflecting and eventually acting upon
your ideas. I will expect this of you, not only in the microcosm that is our
writing community, but in the broader world of the university community,
Writing
is one of the foundations of the learning process. Engaging in the writing
process can allow us to examine our ideas, beliefs and values, and whether or
not we are making assumptions that need to be questioned; it also allows us to
communicate our ideas in meaningful ways to ourselves and others. Learning the
writing process will enhance your ability to communicate and your educational
experience.
We
will be reading and discussing issues such as race, class, gender, and
sexuality in this class. We will be doing this also in the context of
colonialism, imperialism, and post-colonial politics and theories. Part of the
reason for that is because these issues will help us develop critical thinking
skills. These issues – and our confronting our beliefs on these issues – also
directly relate to the focus on audience and revision. Critical thinking, close
reading, and good writing are inextricably intertwined, so we will be
practicing all three of these skills in this class.
The
goals and objectives of this course focus on writing and constructing a sound
argument, but also emphasize critical thinking. The goals of this course are:
u
practice writing for different audiences and purposes, including academic
situations, public audiences, and personal exploration
u
learn to read closely and think critically about what you read (scrutinizing
things such as style, argument, form, audience)
u
practice using evidence that is appropriate and effective for your audience to
support written arguments (textual evidence, historical/public documents,
personal experience)
u
use rhetorical analysis to design projects that appeal to specific audiences
u
practice the writing process (planning and drafting, organizing, editing,
revising)
u
practice writing for different audiences and in different genres, both
individually and in group projects
u
practice research skills
This
is an intensive writing course where you will do a lot of thinking, discussing,
philosophizing, writing, re-writing. It is only through a combination of all
these activities that we learn to write and write well. Feedback on your writing will be individual and specific. You are expected
to read carefully and fully the comments I make on your work. Only by doing so
will you truly learn to become a better writer.
Welcome
to this community of writers and scholars.
Disabilities: Please let me know during the
first week of class about any physical handicap or learning disability if you
need special help or accommodation in order to do your best work.
Attendance You must attend class.
Class is fun. Class is where all the action is. You are required to attend and
participate in class discussions and class writing. You will be allowed three absences
this semester. If you have a fourth absence, your course contract grade will be
dropped one full letter, i.e. if you have four absences the base grade for the
course contract is a D instead of a C. If you have more than four absences
during the semester, class, you will be dropped from the course.
Missed/Late
Assignments Absence does not excuse
you from turning in an assignment on
time. All projects/journals are due on the date outlined in the syllabus.
Late assignments (those turned in after the end of class that day) will not be
accepted. As a former journalist, I take deadlines very seriously. Everyone is
allowed one “oops, I forgot,” but you need to get me the assignment by 3 p.m.
of the due date. After your one “oops,” late assignments will NOT be accepted.
Plagiarism Plagiarism is using
someone else's work and claiming it as your own. Don't do this. If you are
using another person or author in your work, cite them (attribute the idea to
them). We will do a lot of “workshop” work in this class which requires you to
talk with other writers about their work and about your work. This is
acceptable. Using ideas that someone in the workshop has suggested to you is
acceptable. Having someone else write your project or handing in a project that
is entirely or in part taken from a library or internet source is not
acceptable. The penalty for academic dishonesty is an F in the course. All writing done for
this class must be original work performed to meet my assignments – a student
may not turn in a paper that he or she wrote for a different course, even if
you are revising part of the paper to meet an assignment criteria.
FYI: Wikipedia (or
any other dictionary or encyclopedia) is NOT a credible or scholarly source. Never, ever, EVER
(I’m very serious about this) use Wikipeida (or dictionary definitions) as a
source in any of your college papers. It has no credibility with any professor
and your credibility as a scholar and
learner will be put into question if you use it as a source.
Cell Phones/Laptops Closed, off and out of
sight. Taking notes the old-fashioned way is better for learning and for your
brain. You ain’t foolin’ no one if you think I can’t see you texting your
buddy. I don’t bring my cell phone to class and neither should you.
Peer Review One of the most
important roles you will play in the class is a writing peer for your fellow
writers. You will be reading and responding to other writers' work in class.
When you do this, you will type comments about their work in the form of a
short note/memo as well as marking minor comments on the project itself. You
are required to provide feedback to your peers regarding their writing.
Comments such as, “This is really good. I liked it a lot!” are neither
constructive nor helpful feedback.
Response
Journal Your Critical Response Journal
is writing that reflects your thoughts on the texts required for the course.
These are 2-3 page typewritten critical responses,
not summaries, of the texts we read and how that connects to the work we are
doing. You must focus your journal on the readings/films and
how they are constructed or revised. You can write about class discussion as
long as you connect it to the readings and move beyond what was said in class
to add your own analysis. A critical response is one that attempts to focus on
one idea or concept addressed by the text or examine how/why this one idea or
concept caught your attention. A critical response makes connections across
texts and with class discussions and political/cultural issues. This is to be informal writing, but I expect it to be
clean (proofread and spell check your work). Every week you will be required to
read and or view a film related to the reading. You will turn in journals that
relate to the texts you have read and critically analyze how the film version
differs and why. Although journal writing is very informal writing, it includes
critical reflection, thought, and analysis.
Your journal is due on
the Mondays outlined in the syllabus. You will bring TWO copies of your
journal: one for me and one for a peer. If you choose to, you can send the copy
to your peer electronically. Exchanging your journal with your peer allows you
to get feedback from someone other than me; it also helps you understand what
other people are seeing in the text/course. You should make brief comments on
your peer's journal and return it to him/her the following class.
Student
Led Discussion
Every Friday we will have
a student led class. You need to come prepared with focus questions for the
class as well as some sort of activity. The focus on the class is up to you.
YOU decide what you want to “teach” that day and how you want to teach it. It
should, in some way, relate to the texts we have talked about that week. Your
lesson should offer NEW information that inform either class discussion, the
author we are reading, or context for issues or characters or places we are
reading about. This is my way of turning the class over to you, giving you the
opportunity to take control of your education, and set the agenda for part of
the class. You should try to get as creative as possible with your lessons. My
experience has been that students, when given free reign and using their
creativity, conduct some of the most exciting, poignant, interesting lessons of
the course. Have fun, but make sure the students are engaged intellectually and
pushed to think critically. THERE WILL BE NO POWER POINT LECTURES. Get
creative! Get interactive!
What about
Grammar? We
may periodically go over some grammar issues in the course if I see there is a
reoccurring problem within the community. I will circle or remark upon Standard
English grammar and punctuation deviations when I see them in your writing.
Because this is a college writing course, I will operate under the assumption
that you understand the rules of Standard English. If I see a reoccurring
problem in your writing, I will work with you individually on that. Because I
am assuming you understand the rules of Standard English, I am more interested
in how you are creating a strong argument in your writing and whether you are
learning the writing process, critically thinking, creating viable work, and
improving the sophistication of your argumentsw. The SF Writer is an
excellent reference for grammar and formatting tips. It is expected that you come to class EVERYDAY with your SF Writer
tucked into your book bag. You can never be sure when I will ask you to use
them.
Portfolios A portfolio is simply a collection of your
work. At the end of the semester you will hand in your portfolio which will
include 10-12 pages of pristine, edited text in any combination (major
projects, journals). A revision can be a longer revision of one major project
or shorter revisions of two major projects. Your portfolio will also include
the first draft of the projects and your journals/outside activities (the ones
with Kay’s comments). The portfolio revisions need to represent your best work and needs to be pristine,
edited text. Your portfolio will also include a reflective letter on your work
in the course.
Writer's
Notes
Before you hand in a
draft of any major project (this doesn't include journals) you need to write a
paragraph or two (writer's notes) as a cover letter to the work. These writer's
notes should outline how you feel about the project, where the strong or
problem areas are, how you revised from your peer's feedback, and specific
parts you want the reader (me, the teacher!) to pay special attention to
(perhaps areas you know are weak and you want suggestions on). Writer's notes
must also include how you revised your paper as a result of your peer review.
Writer's notes are important because they help your reader understand what you
hope to accomplish with the writing, what problems you had, what areas you
would like specific suggestions on, what parts you think are well-written. The
Writer's Notes allow you - the author - to write down, in an informal way, what
you are intending and what concerns you have.
Mandatory
Conference
At mid-point in the
semester I will ask you to schedule a conference with me so we can review your
work thus far in the semester. At this time I will ask you how you believe you
are doing in regards to the course contract. The conference is also an
opportunity to tell me what you think/feel about the course, what you are
finding valuable, what you would like to change. These conferences will occur
at the middle part of October and I will schedule those with you when the date
is closer.
Semester
Grade
Your work in this class
will be evaluated on a contract basis. If you follow the terms of the contract,
you will receive a C in the course.
You can receive a grade lower than a C (by not complying with the terms and
conditions of the contract) or higher than a C (by performing excellent work
above and beyond the contract). I realize that this may seem vague and rather
subjective to some of you who are accustomed to more traditional
grading/evaluation methods. Most people find they like contract grading much
more than traditional grading methods because it puts more control over the
grade in your (the students') hands. Please feel free to talk to me about the
contract either as part of the forum of the class or privately. When you meet
with me for conferences at mid-term, you will be asked to evaluate yourself in
relation to the contract. I am more than happy (no, really, I'm thrilled) to
talk to any student about my perspective on their contract performance and how
that relates to their perspective of their contract performance at any point in
the semester.
1) do all of the
assigned work (journals, projects, revisions, outside activities)
2) turn in all the
assignments on time
3) contribute every day
in class discussion or small group work
4) participate in one
mandatory conference with the teacher
5) come to class on
time and come to class every class period
6) give constructive
feedback during peer review sessions and work effectively in the writing workshop
7) consider your peers'
feedback and incorporate some suggestions your peers have made into revised
drafts of major projects
8) use critical
thinking; challenge your ideas/beliefs and keep an open mind
9) perform meaningful revisions of your own work
10) respond meaningfully
and with critical thought to the readings in your journals
11) create and execute
a meaningful student-directed class discussion
12) create/write three
major projects that incorporate the goals of the course, filling the
requirements of each of the course units
13) demonstrate good,
close reading skills (reading quizzes)
To get a grade higher
than a C in the course, you need to revise, rethink, rework and rewrite. You
need to demonstrate that you are a good critical thinker and engaged in the
community, giving good feedback and receiving other's feedback with an open
mind. You will need to take risks (ask the question everyone else wants to ask,
try a new perspective, question our institution or your own belief system,
challenge authority in a constructive, meaningful way). Students engaging
intellectually and critically in ways that exceed the expectations of the
contract will be rewarded with a grade higher than the contract grade.
NOTE: If you are found guilty of academic dishonesty, e.g.
plagiarism, for any work you have done for this course, the contract as stated
above is null and void. Any student who is found guilty of academic dishonesty
will receive an F in the course. If you have four absences the contract base
grade is a D. If you are absent more than four times during the semester, the
contract is null and void and you will be dropped from the course. If you fail
to turn in any of the major writing projects or any number of journals or writing
assignments, or neglect to engage in group work or turn in a portfolio, your
contract will be in jeopardy.
Course
Schedule/Readings/Assignments
NOTE: You are expected to come to class each Monday having read the assigned reading for the week.
Week One:
Introductions
August 25: Introductions
and the reading of the syllabus.
Assignment: Read pages Begin Reading Lone Ranger and Tonto
Pages 1-36
and 59-92 (distributed by Kay)
Week Two: Reading
September 1: Reading
short stories from Lone Ranger and Tonto
Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie.
ALSO: do your own research on Sherman Alexie and the
contemporary struggles of Native Americans. What can you find out?
First CRJ Due
on Monday: After re-reading the stories with a pen in
your hand, choose one issue or thing you find interesting to write about. How
is Alexie addressing this issue? How do you find mention of it across short
stories? What is the argument he is putting forth – or why do you find these
things interesting? How do theories of colonialism intersect with these
stories? Support your argument with quotes from the text. Use MLA style.
Connect your main focus with the texts or other sources you can bring to this
topic.
Discussion
of readings
Week Three:
Thinking and Writing about PLACE/TIME
September 8:
Discussion of reading/film
Aristotle’s
Triangle
Supports
and Rebuttals
Beginning
viewing film Smoke Signals
Talking about
Major Project 1; project proposal due NEXT Monday
Assignment: Think of a Native American issue you are interested
in finding out more about. Write an argument (4-5) pages that puts forth a
specific perspective about the issue you have chosen. Make sure you have a specific audience for your essay
(examples: social workers, legislators who are working on legislation regarding
the issue you are interested in, teachers, political and social activists). If I ask you in class who your audience is
and you say, “Everybody, really” my head will explode and my brains will be
splattered all over the campus.
Parameters
of assignment:
1) You need to have at least three sources cited within
your argument in MLA style that support your argument. These sources need to be
scholarly. You need five sources total.
2) You must include a bibliography (MLA style)
3) Your audience needs to be narrow and specific (people
who can DO something about the issue)
4) Your claim/thesis should be clearly stated within the
first two paragraphs.
5) You should address the counter-arguments to your own
argument (what will skeptics or those who disagree with you say? How will you
rebut their statements?)
6) You should have at least THREE strong supports for
your own argument
7) Your conclusion cannot be a summary of your argument
(how else can you conclude??)
Timeline:
September
15: proposal due
September
22: Draft due to peers
September
29: Final due to Kay (Don’t forget your writer’s notes!)
You
must have at least five outside sources to inform your argument. You must cite
at least three of them in your essay. (MLA style, please). You need to print off a hard copy of each of these sources to include
with your draft. Credible sources are assumed (what is considered a credible source? Not credible? Why?)
Project Proposals. In your project
proposal, you should include the following information:
-
What your goal is
(what are you trying to persuade your audience of?)
-
Who your audience
is
-
What your
position is
-
How you will best
persuade this audience and what you want them to persuade them to do
-
What you know so
far
-
An annotated
bibliography (MLA style, please) of at least five sources that inform your
argument; THREE OF THESE SOURCES CANNOT BE INTERNET SOURCES, but need to be
SCHOLARY RESEARCH on the issue (books or journal articles) NOTE: newspaper and magazine articles do not
count as “scholarly sources”
Week Four:
Talking about Revision and Rewriting for different audiences/purposes
(RHETORIC!)
September 15: Analyzing
stories v. book with Smoke Signals
Talking about credibility of sources for your own
research
Introductions
and Conclusions
Focus
questions for film: What are the main
differences between the film and the stories? Who is the audience for the film?
How can you determine the audience of the film? What sorts of things do you
look for? In order to appeal to that audience, what changes have been made?
What are the central themes of the stories versus the central themes of the
film?
Due on Monday: Journal on Alexie film/stories
Week Five: The Politics of Choices
Focus questions for reading: How does
the use of dialect throw you off (or not!) in this text? What about the letter
format? Why did
September 22: Discuss
reading and what social issues or concerns are the focus of The Color Purple
Writing
Introductions and Conclusions
Due Monday: Full draft (4-5 pages) of
Major Project 1 due to peers (Bring TWO copies to class) Don’t forget your
writer’s notes (see page 5)!
Week Six: The
Intersections of Audience and Choice
Focus
questions for readings: Alice
Walker’s book won the Pulitzer Prize, was made into a film by Steven Speilberg,
and recently was a Broadway Musical. Why do you think this text is so popular?
What arguments are imbedded in the story that are universal or “classic”? What
arguments are new and fresh?
September 29: Discuss
readings; view The Color Purple
Monday: Final
(Revised Draft) Due of Major Project 1 (4-5 pages + bibliography)
Week Seven: Revision,
Perspective, Purpose
October 6:
Finish
viewing the film in class.
For
the Articles: Go to “Communication and Mass Media Complete” database. Use “The
Color Purple” as your search terms (keywords/subject words). Make sure you
select “peer reviewed” and “full text.” You should get nine journal articles.
Read number 7 and 8 (Dole, Carol M. “The
return of the father in Spielberg's The Color Purple.” Literature
Film Quarterly (1996)
24.1: 12-17. and Mcmullen, Wayne. “The
Politics of Adaptation: Steven Spielberg's Appropriation of The Color Purple.”Text &
Performance Quarterly. 14.2:
158-175.
Focus
questions for readings/film: What are
some of the issues that scholars and critiques have discussed regarding the
film and the book? Why are these issues important to think about? For whom? How
does Steven Speilberg choose to portray the characters in the film in a
different way from how
Talking about Major Project 2:
Your
second major project is to position yourself as a film/book critique and write
about a book or film you think would be interesting to a SCHOLARLY audience (an
audience of teachers or professors). You need to dig around and find at least
THREE SCHOLARLY articles that relate to your argument/review. Please print off
a copy of the articles to include with your draft. Assume your audience is
professors/scholars who read the publication The Chronicle of Education. Go to the Chronicle’s web site and try to figure out more about that
audience. What do you need to know about this audience to write to them
effectively. Make sure you have a specific claim before you start writing!
Project
2 Timeline:
October
13: Project proposal due (follow the same format as your previous proposal)
October
20: Draft due to peers
October
27: Final draft due to Kay
Week Eight :
Cultural issues (race, class, gender, ability, sexuality, et. al.) and writing
as a political act
Find out what
you can about this book/author and be prepared to share in class on Wednesday
Focus questions
for readings/film: What are some of
the issues that scholars and critiques have discussed regarding the film and
the book? Why are these issues important to think about? For whom? How does the
book reinforce the
Oct 13: Finish book. Discuss readings
Viewing/Reading
The Kite Runner
Due Monday: Project proposal
Week Nine: Scholarly
research and the format for a scholarly argument
Oct 20: Finish viewing the film/discuss
film and book
Due on Monday: draft of project 2
Week Ten:
Discussing Namesake and issues of colonialism/neo-colonialism/post-colonialism
How
are issues of post-colonialism and neo-colonialism complicated in this book?
What can you find out about the post-colonial world of
Also
talking about use of rebuttal and focusing on counter-arguments in our own work.