This quarter seems to be going so quickly! I gave my students their prompt today (which, I admit, I wrote on the fly this morning). I had planned on having them do a similar essay 1 to last quarter's, but the class dynamic isn't the same. These students are working a lot closer with the text in their journals (a lot sooner than last quarters' students were, anyways), and I wanted to give them an assignment that would encourage that. They've been discussing how to be both generous and assertive in class, and today, in preparation for their using quotes in their paper, we applied being generous and assertive to making "quote sandwiches" in student papers.
I'm excited for their papers to start. Rough drafts are due on Tuesday, we'll hold workshop, and then papers will be due the following Tuesday. Their assignment, then, is to work closely with a section of Schlosser that we haven't read in class, and examine what sort of sources he uses, and how he uses them. Is he both generous and assertive with the texts? What are the implications being made if he is? If he isn't?
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Day 3: week 2.
Today, we discussed "intertextuality" and how the word meaning differs depending on which discipline is using it, "Coming to Terms" with a text, why it's important to use language that is both "generous" and "assertive," using quotes to support or make a point, and MLA formatting (Harris 25). WHEW!
They don't care for the Harris text because they feel that it's like every other reader they've read in high school, but I told them that if they read it and can apply the strategies in it to create an argument against reading the book, I won't use the book again the next time that I choose a text.
When discussing "coming to terms," I asked them how important it might be to use terminology which best "creates" meaning for the intended audience (their answer: "very," "extremely," and "ummm... Soooo important?"). Why? We discussed how a person's past experiences and knowledge affect the way they perceive certain words/phrases. (for example, I asked them what the title "Mrs. Johnson" means, and explained why it doesn't apply to me - because, besides the fact that I'm not married, that woman's distinguished characteristics don't apply to me, and so the word holds no meaning in relation to me). After, I had them dissect a few other common words which are taken for granted, and they volunteered what was at stake when coming to terms with others' work: the risk of looking/sounding offensive/uneducated.
As far as quotes went, their discussion ranged from the author's credibility, to visual rhetoric (which, I just realized I forgot to name, but they gave all of the characteristics of it, and we'll go more into it on Thursday).
We covered the basics of MLA, went over the Purdue and Hacker websites so that they are aware of HOW to find proper formatting for their future works cited, and then I made them sing the MLA song... which most of them loved, while a few thought it was beneficial, but didn't quite appreciate being made to sing in English class; however, ALL of them sang the song as they worked when I made them create a citation for Harris' text...Booyah.
Overall, today was good; I let them out 5 minutes early (instead of the 10 everyone hopes for). I'm still getting used to the T/R schedule. I feel a bit rushed to get the information out because I want to be able to effectively discuss it all in the time that we have, but my goal this week is to find my balance.
They don't care for the Harris text because they feel that it's like every other reader they've read in high school, but I told them that if they read it and can apply the strategies in it to create an argument against reading the book, I won't use the book again the next time that I choose a text.
When discussing "coming to terms," I asked them how important it might be to use terminology which best "creates" meaning for the intended audience (their answer: "very," "extremely," and "ummm... Soooo important?"). Why? We discussed how a person's past experiences and knowledge affect the way they perceive certain words/phrases. (for example, I asked them what the title "Mrs. Johnson" means, and explained why it doesn't apply to me - because, besides the fact that I'm not married, that woman's distinguished characteristics don't apply to me, and so the word holds no meaning in relation to me). After, I had them dissect a few other common words which are taken for granted, and they volunteered what was at stake when coming to terms with others' work: the risk of looking/sounding offensive/uneducated.
As far as quotes went, their discussion ranged from the author's credibility, to visual rhetoric (which, I just realized I forgot to name, but they gave all of the characteristics of it, and we'll go more into it on Thursday).
We covered the basics of MLA, went over the Purdue and Hacker websites so that they are aware of HOW to find proper formatting for their future works cited, and then I made them sing the MLA song... which most of them loved, while a few thought it was beneficial, but didn't quite appreciate being made to sing in English class; however, ALL of them sang the song as they worked when I made them create a citation for Harris' text...Booyah.
Overall, today was good; I let them out 5 minutes early (instead of the 10 everyone hopes for). I'm still getting used to the T/R schedule. I feel a bit rushed to get the information out because I want to be able to effectively discuss it all in the time that we have, but my goal this week is to find my balance.
Make-up for Thursday, Jan 12.
The second class period, I read an article on voice that someone had sent to me years ago, "Who am I?: Finding Identity & Voice in Composition" by Beverly Faryna, in which students' voices range from the private (saying that their paper is "a bitch") to the more public voice (where the student takes on a more analytical role and uses a discourse which is somewhat more appropriate) (1). I read the paper aloud, and then expected to break into conversation about what they believed "voice" to be...
What happened was that after I asked them what they thought of the two paragraphs and if they noted any changes, they turned to their neighbors and asked "did she really just say 'bitch'?" ... I felt horrible, and thought that my cursing was done in vain; however, we continued. We discussed "old, dead, white guy" voices, the academics, public speeches, and private discourse. We talked about various dance genres and how certain "moves" are used to spice up a dance, and where they would expect to use moves (The class was decidedly against using krunk moves in a ball-room setting), and then we talked about how, in general, writers make certain moves depending on their setting as well. It's not to say that you can't make other moves, but that, in representing yourself, you don't want to make a fool out of yourself either. There are "expectations," but there are ways to push those. We didn't discuss it further because we'll talk more about it later on in the quarter, and I wanted to make sure that my students had time for their in-class essay.
Thirty minutes before the end of class, I had them write an essay on how they view their voices, themselves as authors, and their expectations of themselves. When they were finished, they could leave. Some took 15 minutes, others took more. While reading their papers, I was happy to see that they really took into consideration who they believe themselves to be, and who they want to portray themselves as in future papers.
What happened was that after I asked them what they thought of the two paragraphs and if they noted any changes, they turned to their neighbors and asked "did she really just say 'bitch'?" ... I felt horrible, and thought that my cursing was done in vain; however, we continued. We discussed "old, dead, white guy" voices, the academics, public speeches, and private discourse. We talked about various dance genres and how certain "moves" are used to spice up a dance, and where they would expect to use moves (The class was decidedly against using krunk moves in a ball-room setting), and then we talked about how, in general, writers make certain moves depending on their setting as well. It's not to say that you can't make other moves, but that, in representing yourself, you don't want to make a fool out of yourself either. There are "expectations," but there are ways to push those. We didn't discuss it further because we'll talk more about it later on in the quarter, and I wanted to make sure that my students had time for their in-class essay.
Thirty minutes before the end of class, I had them write an essay on how they view their voices, themselves as authors, and their expectations of themselves. When they were finished, they could leave. Some took 15 minutes, others took more. While reading their papers, I was happy to see that they really took into consideration who they believe themselves to be, and who they want to portray themselves as in future papers.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Day one...
This morning went well enough. Long story short: going into this quarter hasn't been a priority of mine these past few days, so I went into the day thinking I probably wouldn't keep them long. When I walked into the class, I wasn't nervous. I felt all of their eyes on me as I walked to the computer, and I felt slightly awkward because a couple students giggled, but nobody said a word. They just sat and stared at me as if I were crazy for turning on the computer and dropping my backpack on the professor's table. A few of them shuffled in their seats awkwardly for half a minute before they got up and walked across the room to whisper "Are you professor Johnson?" ... Yes, that's who I am. It's time to take on that role. I had 5 students ask if they could add, and I had them write down their names, SIDs, and e-mail addresses so that I could get a hold of them after I discuss the matter with supervisors.
My kids had fairly high energy. One of them was in my French class last quarter (odd). One of them shamelessly showered me with compliments (even more odd). One of them plays the banjo and knows how to pick locks (amusing)... We broke the ice, went over the syllabus, and I asked who had the books. Only 2 people raised their hands, so I asked if they'd like to stay for another hour and work, or if they'd ---- I didn't even get to finish giving them the alternative; it was a resounding "YES!". I gave them homework, and told them to be prepared to have discussion on Thursday.
First impression: it's going to be an interesting quarter.
My kids had fairly high energy. One of them was in my French class last quarter (odd). One of them shamelessly showered me with compliments (even more odd). One of them plays the banjo and knows how to pick locks (amusing)... We broke the ice, went over the syllabus, and I asked who had the books. Only 2 people raised their hands, so I asked if they'd like to stay for another hour and work, or if they'd ---- I didn't even get to finish giving them the alternative; it was a resounding "YES!". I gave them homework, and told them to be prepared to have discussion on Thursday.
First impression: it's going to be an interesting quarter.
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