On sabbatical for the 2011-2012 year.
I’ll be on sabbatical for the year, but feel free to poke around and look at my old syllabi and writing prompts and so forth.
Spring 2012 Deadlines: Writing
Deadlines
Friday, January 20 9pm Mss due
Monday, January 23 9pm Feedback due
___________
Friday, February 17 9pm Mss due
Monday, February 20 9pm Feedback due
Friday, February 24 Conference (email, phone, or in person)
___________
Friday, March 16 9pm Mss due
Monday, March 19 9pm Feedback due
Friday, March 23 Conference (email, phone, or in person)
___________
Friday, April 6 9pm (for Thesis students) Full Rough Draft of Thesis
Monday, April 9 9pm Feedback due
___________
Friday, April 20 9pm Mss due/(for Thesis students) Final Revisions as necessary
Monday, April 23 9pm Feedback due
Friday, April 27 Conference (email, phone, or in person)/(for Thesis students) Draft of complete thesis to instructor
Monday, April 30 9pm (for Thesis students) feedback due
___________
Friday, May 4 9pm Final Portfolio: All writing in one document
Handing in Assignments: Writing and File Format
We use MLA format.
That means 8.5-by-11 documents, typed in 12-point Times New Roman typeface, double-spaced with 1-inch margins. Some prose and poetry can be single-spaced, provided that is your intention as an author. I will also require proper formatting insofar as the header at the top of your first page (i.e., a running header).
For critical papers, I require all writing adhere to MLA format. In our creative work, however, we will not use scholarly documentation to cite sources; rather, we will acknowledge and attribute sources in-text.
All work files you hand in must be Microsoft Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) files. If you use some other word processing program–WordStar or Open Office, for example–you should find out how to make or save your files as RTF before the first assignment is to be handed in.
Your name and description of your assignment–one we usually agree upon or one that is obvious or deadline- or assignment-specific–in the file name. For example, if a student named Jane Doe sends along her first draft of January essay, she might call the assignment “January Submission” to be helpful and name her file “JaneDoeJanSub.”
I will then send back my comments with a renamed document named
“JaneDoeJanSub withcomments.”
Please do adhere to this naming convention. It’s important to have all of our document ducks in a row for this kind of class. Failure to do so may result in my not findind your work in my email or on my hard drive, and in extreme cases I might not accept your work!
Punctuating Around Quotation Marks
The following post is adapted and quotes from this APA Style Blog post by Chelsea Lee. Her post begins by explaining the difference between American and British styles of puncutation. It’s helpful for student writers to notice this, especially when you are reading books written and/or published in the United Kingdom. Let’s take a look:
| Style issue | American Style | British Style |
| To enclose a quotation, use… | Double quotation marks | Single quotation marks |
| To enclose a quotation within a quotation, use… | Single quotation marks | Double quotation marks |
| Place periods and commas… | Inside quotation marks | Outside quotation marks |
| Place other punctuation (colons, semi-colons, question marks, etc.)… | Outside quotation marks* | Outside quotation marks* |
*Place other punctuation inside quotation marks when that punctuation is part of what is being quoted, such as a quoted question.
No matter which style guide you are working from–APA Style, Chicago, MLA–you’ll be using American-style punctuation. If someone gets this wrong in a draft, why I usually mark in my Word comments is the following:
Quotations, punctuation inside. Periods and commas go inside “quotation marks.” In England, it’s “outside”. But we live in the USA! “Hooray!”
(I try to keep it light, as you can see.) Lee’s blog post has another table, which I am quoting in full. I hope this explains many of the confusions regarding punctuation in- or outside punctuation marks.
| Punctuation mark | In relation to closing quotation mark, place it… | Example | Notes |
| Period | Inside | Participants who kept dream diaries described themselves as “introspective” and “thoughtful.” | |
| Comma | Inside | Many dream images were characterized as “raw,” “powerful,” and “evocative.” | |
| Parentheses | Outside | Barris argues that “dreams express and work with the logic of gaining a sense of and a relation to ourselves, our lives, or our sense of reality as a whole” (4). | Notice how the citation is outside the last quotation mark and inside the period. This is a common mistake. |
| Semi-colon | Outside | At the beginning of the study, participants described their dream recall rate as “low to moderate”; at the end, they described it as “moderate to high.” | This make sense if you think about it: the semi-colon is not part of the quotation. |
| Colon | Outside | Participants stated they were “excited to begin”: We controlled for participants’ expectations in our study. | This make sense if you think about it: the colon is not part of the quotation. |
| Question mark or exclamation point (part of quoted material) | Inside | The Dream Questionnaire items included “How often do you remember your dreams?” and “What do you most often dream about?” We found intriguing results. | When a quotation ending in a question mark or exclamation point ends a sentence, no extra period is needed. |
| Question mark or exclamation point (not part of quoted material) | Outside | How will this study impact participants who stated at the outset, “I never remember my dreams”? We hypothesized their dream recall would increase. | One way to explain this: this is your question being posed, not what you’re quoting. |
| Quotation within a quotation + period or comma | Inside | Some participants were skeptical about the process: “I don’t put any stock in these ‘dream diaries.’” | Ah, the quote-within-a-quote scenario. When multiple quotation marks are used for quotations within quotations, keep the quotation marks together (put periods and commas inside both; put semi-colons, colons, etc., outside both). |
If you have other questions or scenarios, please ask, and I will add to this post accordingly.
Final Portfolio: English 105
Final Portfolios due Wednesday, May 11, at 4pm.
Your Final Portfolio should include the following, all in a single Word document named FirstnameLastnameFinalPortfolioEng105:
1. A Final Note (1000 words) that sums up your experience in this class. Some ideas: Assess your performance as an active learner in this class. Talk about your writing process, research, and your presentations. How has changed or stayed the same? Talk about the process of writing and your Substantial Revisions. Finally: What grade you think you should receive for this class, and why.
2. Two Substantial Revisions. The degree to which you revised and definition of “substantial” is a relative one. You may want to address this in your Final Note.
3. The Rest of Your Written Work from This Semester, from most recent to the very first pieces, cleaned up and professionally proofread and edited.
Final Portfolio: English 311
Final Portfolios due Wednesday, May 11, at 4pm.
Your Final Portfolio should include the following, all in a single Word document named FirstnameLastnameFinalPortfolioEng311:
1. A Final Note (1000 words) that sums up your experience in this workshop. Some ideas: Assess your performance as an active learner in this class. Talk about your writing process, how it has changed or stayed the same, what you have learned this semester. Talk about the process of writing and your Substantial Revisions.
2. Two Substantial Revisions. The degree to which you revised and definition of “substantial” is a relative one. You may want to address this in your Final Note.
3. The Rest of Your Work from This Semester, from most recent to the very first pieces, cleaned up and professionally proofread and edited.
Final Conferences for Spring 2011
This is for my English 105 and English 311 classes only. We will be discussing our Final Portfolios (105, 311), among other things.
We will meet in my office in Dolan Hall, 442 Western Avenue, 1st Floor. Room #2. A missed conference counts as a missed class (i.e., one absence), and cannot be made up.
Tuesday, May 3
10am Kathleen G [311]
10:30am Juliet B [311]
11am Tracie F [105]
11:30am Sarah W [311]
12pm Yelfri D [105]
12:30pm Kelsie S [311]
1pm Anna Maria R [105]
1:30pm Cameron S [105]
2:00pm
2:30pm Dranee J [311]
3pm Gina F [105]
3:30pm
Thursday, May 5
10am Ryan H [105]
10:30am Kevin G [105
11am Amelia J [105]
11:30am Amanda A [105]
12pm Kimberly D [311]
12:30pm Michelle S [311]
1pm Stacey S [105]
1:30pm Kristin M [311]
2:00pm Jillian S [105]
2:30pm Jessica R [105]
3pm Brittany O [105]
3:30pm Nicole H [311]
Friday, May 6
10am
10:30am Meaghan B [105]
11am Amanda K [311]
11:30am
12pm Chelsea S [218]
12:30pm Debbie o [105]
1pm Alison B [311]
1:30pm Lindsay B [105]
2:00pm
2:30pm
3pm Arleny P [311]
3:30pm
Tuesday, May 10
11am
11:30am
12pm
12:30pm Michelle S [311]
1pm LUNCH
1:30pm STILL AT LUNCH
2:00pm Deborah O [105]
2:30pm Deborah O [105]
3pm
3:30pm
Notes for Lopate’s “What Happened to the Personal Essay?”
First, let’s talk about Michel de Montaigne, who is very hot right now, had a confidence that “all subjects are linked to one another” is from “Upon Some Verse of Virgil.” From the Project Gutenberg version (italics mine at the end):
Now I have an apish, imitative quality: when I used to write verses (and I never made any but Latin), they evidently discovered the poet I had last read, and some of my first essays have a little exotic taste: I speak something another kind of language at Paris than I do at Montaigne. Whoever I steadfastly look upon easily leaves some impression of his upon me; whatever I consider I usurp, whether a foolish countenance, a disagreeable look, or a ridiculous way of speaking; and vices most of all, because they seize and stick to me, and will not leave hold without shaking. I swear more by imitation than by complexion: a murderous imitation, like that of the apes so terrible both in stature and strength, that Alexander met with in a certain country of the Indies, and which he would have had much ado any other way to have subdued; but they afforded him the means by that inclination of theirs to imitate whatever they saw done; for by that the hunters were taught to put on shoes in their sight, and to tie them fast with many knots, and to muffle up their heads in caps all composed of running nooses, and to seem to anoint their eyes with glue; so did those poor beasts employ their imitation to their own ruin they glued up their own eyes, haltered and bound themselves. The other faculty of playing the mimic, and ingeniously acting the words and gestures of another, purposely to make people merry and to raise their admiration, is no more in me than in a stock. When I swear my own oath, ’tis only, by God! of all oaths the most direct. They say that Socrates swore by the dog; Zeno had for his oath the same interjection at this time in use amongst the Italians, Cappari! Pythagoras swore By water and air. I am so apt, without thinking of it, to receive these superficial impressions, that if I have Majesty or Highness in my mouth three days together, they come out instead of Excellency and Lordship eight days after; and what I say to-day in sport and fooling I shall say the same to-morrow seriously. Wherefore, in writing, I more unwillingly undertake beaten arguments, lest I should handle them at another’s expense. Every subject is equally fertile to me: a fly will serve the purpose, and ’tis well if this I have in hand has not been undertaken at the recommendation of as flighty a will. I may begin, with that which pleases me best, for the subjects are all linked to one another.
After Montaigne comes the split or “inevitable specialization.” I call it the essay paradox, because I am dramatic like that.
Commonplace books. Here, here, here, here, here.
<a href="E.M. Forster’s Commonplace Book.
Reference to <a href="Fran Lebowitz, who I love.
The Short Review Assignment
Due: Tuesday, April 26 by 11am. Name document FirstnameLastnameShortReview and place in 22 Monday April 25 Short Review
Description:
Write a review of no fewer than 275 words and no more than 300 words. Examples: episode of a television show, a new CD by a recording artist, a book, performance, or online video. These should be recent—released, performed, or aired in the past six months. The writing is informal and will not include academic citations.
That assignment description is deceptively simple and straightforward. If you just go by the word count of this assignment, you might think you can dash off this assignment in less than an hour. More than likely for you, this won’t be the case, or the result will be less than excellent.
In this review, for example, you should include all the relevant expository details you think your readers will need. You might need to describe a television show (type of show, history, current state of its ratings or quality), add context (is this the artist’s debut, comeback attempt, or a departure?), summarize (general plot of the book/TV show/movie), background information for the laymen (is this a ballet, jazz, modern dance performance), or generally describe its production or the producer (if it’s a Funny or Die video, for instance, that would bear mentioning).
Other things to keep in mind:
Cut out all unnecessary language. Do this to keep inside your word count, but it’s also about keeping your writing going at an economic pace. If you are going to write, “I think the latest Beastie Boys release is the best they have done since Check Your Head,” chop it down to its essential parts. Consider the kind of shorthand that review writers use. Examples:
“The latest Beastie Boys release is the best they have done since Check Your Head.” (Took out “I think,” which is understood.)
“The latest Beasties release is the best they’ve done since Check Your Head.” (Shortened to Beasties, made “they have” a contraction.)
“The latest Beasties is the best since Check Your Head.” (Took out “they’ve done,” since who would have “done” this besides the Beasties?)
Review something you know really well, but keep in mind your readers don’t know it as well as you. This might seem understood, but you need to keep in mind your audience won’t be as up-to-date on what you are writing about; this is the reason why people read reviews! See the part about expository details above.
Ideally, thread an idea throughout your review. This might mean doing some research. If you are writing about the new Beastie Boys, you might talk about how they haven’t released a CD in a while because one of their members, Adam Yauch, was diagnosed with cancer and was receiving treatment. You could also mention that, shortly after the diagnosis, Jay-Z paid tribute to them at the music festival “All Points West,” which might indicate that the Beasties are still relevant. This would give some context when you talk about their latest CD, Hot Sauce Committee Part Two.
You could use this idea-threading to introduce an idea you have had about your subject. Maybe you have always thought John Mayer was a better guitar player than people give him credit for, that publicity about his love life overshadows his musicianship. Use that as your connecting thoughts.
Have a lede or lead that interests your reader. So maybe you don’t want to go the thread-an-idea route. Fine. You can still write an able review without having an overall concept. But one thing you do want to include is an opening, or lead (called a lede in old school journalism, so as to not confuse with the real lead material used in typesetting). A lead opens your piece, grabs attention of your readers. Examples? Begin with a question: Have people forgotten about the Beastie Boys? Or begin with a bold statement: People have forgotten about the Beastie Boys. Or begin with a story: When Jay-Z subbed for the Beasties at the 2009 All Points West, it reminded us of how important they are to the history of hip-hop.
Examples/exemplars:
Time Out New York review of new CD by The Strokes
Time Out New York review of latest Kanye West
Time Out New York review of latest Katy Perry
It’s longer than your assignment, but The Onion AV Club’s review of 16 and Pregnant is a great example of TV reviewing with an idea threaded through.
At 317 words, this review of Scream 4, also from The Onion AV Club, presents an idea about sequels in general as well as the work of the screenplay of the movie in particular.
Recent Onion movie reviews.
Time Out New York book reviews.
| Author | Workshop Discussion Leader | Lead Critic | |||
| 1 | Draneé J | Sarah W | Kathleen G | ||
| 2 | Kathleen G | Alison B | Draneé J | ||
| 3 | Kelsie S | Amanda K | Kristin M | ||
| 4 | Kim D | Arleny P | Michelle S | ||
| 5 | Kristin M | Juliet B | Kim D | ||
| 6 | Michelle S | Draneé J | Kelsie S | ||
| 7 | Nicole H | Kathleen G | Sarah W | ||
| 8 | Alison B | Kelsie S | Nicole H | ||
| 9 | Sarah W | Kim D | Alison B | ||
| 10 | Amanda K | Kristin M | Juliet B | ||
| 11 | Arleny P | Michelle S | Amanda K | ||
| 12 | Juliet B | Nicole H | Arleny P |
Pecha Kucha Presentations
Narrative Essay: Workshop Questions
1. Expository Details: Who, What, When, Where, Why.
2. Theme/Lesson/Wisdom/Musing/Retrospective Voice.
3. Scene/Narration/Plotting.
4. Mechanics: Paragraphing/Sentence Structure/Punctuation.
Writing Prompt: Write a Sestina Version of your Writing.
1. Pick six words that are important to your story, piece, poem, essay.
2. Put them into a sestina generator, like this one.
3. Re-write your piece sestina-style.
What is a sestina?
Final Poem Presentations: Poetry Choices and Assignment
In the reserves:
Afaa Michael Weaver, “Inside the Blues Whale”
Cornelius Eady, “Victims of the Latest Dance Craze”
The Assignment:
1. Read the two poem choices you have been assigned, and choose one. If neither of these poems interest you, contact another student to “trade” a poem choice. Tell me which poem you want to choose by the beginning of class on Thursday, April 7.
2. Research this poem. Look up unfamiliar words and their pronunciations, of course, but also look up secondary and critical sources on the poet, the poem, and his or her career. Find our where in the timeline of this poet’s work this poem appears. Try to find recordings or video clips of this poet reading his or her work.
3. Map out a performance or reading of the poem. What all these poems have in common is that they are longer than the usual short, lyric poem. So planning out your reading strategy is key. Some students and poets notate pauses and accents when doing this task. The performance you map out for live, in front of the class may very well be different than the one you will do for your recording.
4. Come up with a short introduction for this poem. This should be short, informative, personal, and isn’t redundant with the poem, and certainly does not “give away” anything about the poem, be it its narrative or a key line.
Performances:
Thursday, April 28: In-class
Collaborative Writing: Some Exercises
Group sestina. Generator here.
Abecedarian, using alphabetical order as its design. (Psalms 31:10-31, the famous “virtuous woman” passage,” is actually an abecedarian acrostic using the Hebrew alphabet.)
One line at a time (without concealment, as in exquisite corpse). Called a “simple pass” here.
One word at a time–out loud, with a note-taker, or with one person typing, or both writing/typing.
“All Together Now: Collaborations in Poetry Writing.” EdSITEment. National Endowment for the Humanities. Contains lesson plans for grades K-2.
Bouts-rimés, or rhyme challenge. James Addison, as he is quoted this entry in The Wikipedia, describes this as a “[list] of words that rhyme to one another, drawn up by another hand, and given to a poet, who was to make a poem to the rhymes in the same order that they were placed upon the list.” Here is an encyclopedia entry.
Some peer-reviewed research on collaborative poetry in the classroom.
Gillespie, Charles. “The use of collaborative poetry as a method of deepening interpersonal communication among adolescent girls.” Journal of Poetry Therapy. 18:4 (December 2005), 221-231. <http://www.cottonwooddetucson.com/pdf/Staff_Arti>.
Gillespie, Charles. “Recovery Poetry 101: The use of collaborative poetry in a dual-diagnosis drug and alcohol treatment program.” Journal of Poetry Therapy. 15:2 (Winter 2001), 83-92.
Persuasive Essay Rubric
Click on image for larger version. PDF version (opens in new window).
Here is the order of the authors whose work we will be workshopping, as well the assignments for Discussion Leader and Lead Critic. These are two distinct jobs; to complete this assignment successfully, please read this post, which describes the role of Leader and Critic.
|
Author |
Workshop Discussion Leader |
Lead Critic |
|||
|
1 |
Sarah W |
Michelle S |
Arleny P |
||
|
2 |
Amanda K |
Nicole H |
Juliet B |
||
|
3 |
Arleny P |
Sarah W |
Draneé J |
||
|
4 |
Juliet B |
Amanda K |
Kathleen G/Michelle S |
||
|
5 |
Draneé J |
Arleny P |
Kelsie S |
||
|
6 |
Kathleen G |
Juliet B |
Kim D |
||
|
7 |
Kelsie S |
Draneé J |
Kristin M |
||
|
8 |
Kim D |
Kathleen G |
Nicole H |
||
|
9 |
Kristin M |
Kelsie S |
Sarah W |
||
|
10 |
Nicole H |
Kim D |
Alison B/Michelle S |
||
|
11 |
Alison B |
Kristin M |
Amanda K |
||
|
12 |
Michelle S |
Sarah W |
Draneé J |
||
Examples of Group Slam Pieces
Fall 2011 Advisement Information and Time Slots
Hello Daniel Nester Advisee!
As you probably know, Advisement Day will be Tuesday, March 22.
This will explain what you need to do before your advising appointment, as well as outline how to set up an appointment with me. If you are a continuing advisee, you probably know the drill; if you are a new advisee, I urge you read all of these directions, and email me with any questions before we meet.
The goal of this 15- to 20-minute meeting is for me to advise you on which classes you should take, to approve your tentative schedule, and give you a PIN number so you can register for classes.
We have a short time to accomplish this.
This means Student Advisees need to do some work before we meet.
Advisement meetings will take place in my office: Dolan Hall, 442 Western Avenue, 1st floor, Room #2 on the right. My office phone number is 518-454-2812; my email is nesterd at strose dot edu.
How to Prepare for Your Advising Appointment
1. Email me to sign up for a meeting as soon as possible. The Sign-Up Sheet with appointment times is posted at the end of this post. Check this page and refresh it often. Advisement times are on a first-email, first-served basis. There are more than as many appointment times as there are advisees.
2. Login to Banner (bannerweb.strose.edu) and review your Academic Progress report. Print the report out. Look at it and see if all of your classes are falling into the right places. Identify which areas in your English major requirements as well as your Liberal Education requirements you still need to fulfill.
Note: If you are a transfer student, looking at your Academic Progress Report is doubly important. Make sure that your transfer classes are there, that nothing looks strange or out of place, that your transferred classes are also “counting” for requirements you think they should be. For example, that a class you thought fulfilled a requirement is not languishing in your General Electives on the bottom-right-hand corner of your report. You should also have a copy of your Statement of Transfer Credit report, which tallies up which classes you took at your previous institution, and tells you where it will apply in the College of Saint Rose degree requirement. If there are any questions or problems, please come with these questions at our meeting, and we can figure out the next step.
3. Find out what classes you need to and are able to take, read the schedule and course descriptions. A schedule is available online; English class schedule with course descriptions are available here as a pdf. This is your major; read the courses descriptions and come with questions about particular courses. Figure out your schedule as far as days of the week are concerned. And finally: Have an idea of which English course(s) you would like to take next semester (as well as Summer, if applicable).
4. Obtain and fill out a Course Registration Form. This is important. Copies of this document are available in English Department buildings, the Registrar’s, as well online as a pdf. Show up to your appointment with this form filled-out–both the top matter with your address and information as well the courses you have decided to take and even might take. We can always cross classes out and add others.
Please do not come to our advisement appointment without filling out the form beforehand. If you do not, I will have to reschedule your appointment, since there’s no point in meeting, since a large part of our meeting will consist of me looking at you writing out your address.
Those of you who have already met me for an advising appointment know that I take ample notes in your student folder regarding what administrative tasks need to be done to make sure classes are falling in the right places in the Academic Progress Report, there are no clerical errors, etc. I also scan copies of your Course Registration Forms for my files. Advising is a serious business and I want to make sure we both do our jobs correctly.
Advisement Times for March 22, 2011
10:00
10:30
11:00 Asia E
11:30 Kristen O
12:00 Kara S
12:30 Lunch!
1:00 Juliet B
1:30 Ian B.
2:30
3:00 Amanda P
3:30 Katelyn L
4:00 Jonathan D
4:30
5:00 Molly T
New or Alternative White Album Orders
The Kelsie/John Cage Order: 3,4,9,6,5,1,7,10,2,8
The Juliet I Know What I Want Oder: 10,2,3,5,8,6,9,7,4,1
The Alison Lets Go of Her Draft Order: 1,6,4,5,7,9,10,8,2,3; wait, no, that’s it
Dranee I Moved Mine Order: 5,3,4,10,2,7,6,9,8,1
Joan Didion’s
There will be no no class on March 14. Instead, we will have individual Mid-Term Conferences that week (schedule of meeting times here).
It seems to be a good time to talk; now is the time to look back at what we’ve done, and to give you an idea of what your grade is as we hit the midpoint of the semester.
Here is what you we will do in our conference.
1. You will present your persuasive essay’s argument–narrative or emblematic example, thesis and supporting points–to me in my office.This should take no more than 3-4 minutes, and I will then provide feedback.
2. I’ll then ask you to assess your performance as an active learner in this class. Here are some questions I might ask:
How do I go about writing the prompts and exercises in class?
How can I improve as a writer? How do I go about revising my work?
What have I learned from the readings and lessons on my own?
What exercises have worked in class, and what has not? What would like to focus on moving forward in the semester?
3. I’ll then give you your midterm grade, what your strengths are as well areas for improvement.
We will meet in my office in Dolan Hall, 442 Western Avenue, 1st Floor. Room #2. If you’re late, I will mark you late. A missed conference counts as a missed class (i.e., one absence), and cannot be made up.
Assignment for ENG 311: Preparing for Your Mid-Term Conference
There will be no ‘Friday homework assignment’ and no class on March 14. Instead, we will have individual Mid-Term Conferences that week and the next (schedule of meeting times here).
It seems to be a good time to meet. We have each written the first drafts of a couple of assignments (Worst Songs, One-Hour Sit Down Field Trip, Immersion, Memoir, the beginnings of our White Albums), and will soon begin working and assembling work for our White Albums over Mid-Winter Break. It seems to be a good time to talk; now is the time to look back at what we’ve done, and to give you an idea of what your grade is as we hit the midpoint of the semester.
Moving forward, I would like to talk specifically about the White Album.
Before your conference, compile all of the latest edited versions of all of your writing, informal and formal, exercises and those brought to workshop, typed up and placed into a single Word or RTF document. You will need to combine your writing into one document for your Final Portfolio anyway, so consider this practice! Name the document FirstnameLastnameMidtermConferenceEnglish311.doc/rtf and place it in our Dropbox folder called “09 Midterm Conference.”
Send this to me at least two hours before your conference meeting; otherwise, it will be marked as late.
1. The first document in this document will be an essay on your practice of writing nonfiction (short: minimum 500 words, no more than 700 words). Let the form of your essay be an extension of its content. Make it as a letter to me, if you like. Assess your performance as an active learner in this class: how do I go about writing the prompts and exercises in class? How can I improve? What have I learned from the readings? (That last question will be asked in conference.)
1a. Next will be the state of your White Album–any research, thoughts, first drafts of exercises. You can include this in your first essay above; that’s fine. It can also be on a separate page. What I am looking for here is your thoughts on putting together a collage-driven memoir piece likes this, how comfortable you are with doing research and interviews when writing about your life, and connections you might be making with the Didion and Root readings.
2. After than, place all your work from the class, in reverse chronological order, from the most recent to your very first assignments.
We will meet in my office in Dolan Hall, 442 Western Avenue, 1st Floor. Room #2. A missed conference counts as a missed class (i.e., one absence), and cannot be made up.
Assignment for English 218: Preparing for your Midterm Conference
We will not have a class meeting on Thursday, March 17. Instead, we will have individual Midterm Conferences that week. The schedule is here.
It is a good time to have a conference. You have each have built up a body of work of performances, both live and audioblogged. You have witnessed how published, professional writers perform and present their work. As we work through the to the end of our semester, it’s the time to look back and assess what we’ve done, find out what’s working for you, and identify areas where we each can improve as we work toward our final performance.
These are the items you will need to be prepared for your conference. A schedule of meeting times are at the end of this post.
1. A copy of each poem you have performed or written, either in-class or online. We will be discussing your readings and performances, and so will need copies of on hand.
2. Be prepared to discuss how you assess your performance as and active learner in this class thus far. Think of this is a short presentation. If you want, print out your remarks and have them on hand. The presentation is informal; however, this does not mean that the self-assessment doesn’t need to be rigorous.
Try to answer some or all of these questions:
- What have I learned about the issues and craft of performing or reading a poem?
- What issues do I face in my own public performances?
- What routines or warm-ups, if any, have I been working on in my practice of performing?
- How do I assess my own strengths and weaknesses? Others?
- How does my public performance persona(e) differ or are the same compared with how I am in real life?
- What kind of assignments have worked for me in this class?
- What have not?
- Where would like I like to see this class go in the rest of the semester?
3. Use specific examples from this class. Your own performances or audioblogs, group work, or any of the readings from our class, and readings and presentations in our class are appropriate to use. Feel free to use examples outside of class, but remember to use specifics!
This conference is a chance for us to discuss your progress in the class, your grade thus far, as well as your work. It’s an important meeting because I’m expecting you to come prepared to articulate your thoughts on the performance of poetry, how your ideas of poetry may or may not have changed, and your thoughts on developing skills of becoming a public performer.
We will meet in my office in Dolan Hall, 442 Western Avenue, 1st Floor. Room #2. A missed conference counts as a missed class (i.e., one absence), and cannot be made up.
English 218: Midterm Performance Week
Here is what you need to do to be prepared for next class on Thursday, March 3, which will include our Midterm Performances.
Bring to class all of our books and packets. Our performance will be in the second half of class, and will either be in our classroom or another space off-campus to be determined. I’ll give you another email to confirm if that’s the case. Either way, your friends are invited to our 8pm performance.
1. If you haven’t done so already, sign up for a Midterm Conference. You can do this by emailing me a time you can meet from the available slots on the schedule. The directions regarding what you will need to do for your conference are online here.
2. Audioblog another poem from our “Love Poems” packet this Monday by 11pm.
3. Bring in three of your own poems, two of which you will read in class, typed up, single-spaced (unless otherwise formatted) two copies, one for you and another for me.
One will the revised draft of your Praise Poem.
The other two must be new poems must be written from the following prompts:
– A poem that uses the noun you wrote down from Melissa Broder’s list we handed out in class, write a poem that repeats this word at least 10 times in the poem. It’s fine to use different forms of the word (plural, puns, homonyms, nicknames, different languages). If you want a much more elaborate prompt or design, see this post and adapt it to a poem.
Reason why this is a writing prompt: The repetition of this word in a poem like rewards the ear in a live setting.
– A poem that describes, in fine detail, an embarrassing moment. Alternate version: a list of at least 10 embarrassing moments from your life.
Reason why this is a writing prompt: Self-revelation, self-deprecation and candor are all essential strategies for bringing the audience together with a performer; it encourages empathy; often breaks fourth wall.
– A poem that uses anaphora for 10 or more lines. The lines of your poem do not need to be exclusively anaphora, but 10 of the lines must be anaphora-driven. We made up some of our own in class, but here is a whole post with suggested anaphora-friendly words and phrases.
Reason why this is a writing prompt: That’s easy. Repetition at the beginning of a line or phrase rewards the ear of the audience, allows for wild jumps from line to line. Alternate version: use epistrophe or epiphora instead. (Thanks to whoever in class mentioned this alternative!) Still another alternative is cataphora.
– Bonus, not mentioned in class: Poem that uses Skeltonic verse.
Related Articles
- Syllabus for English 218: Oral Interpretation of Literature: Poetry in Performance (nestersteachingblog.wordpress.com)
Writing Prompt: Skeltonic Verse
Here’s how poet and editor Robert Lee Brewer defines Skeltonic Verse, sometimes Tumbling Verse:
Skeltonic verse is named after the poet John Skelton (1460-1529), who wrote short rhyming lines that just sort of go on from one rhyme to the next for however long you wish to take it. Most skeltonic poems average less than six words a line, but keeping the short rhymes moving down the page is the real key to this form.
Here is an example of Skeltonic verse from the man himself:
The Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng by John Skelton (L1-L11)
Tell you I chyll,
If that ye wyll
A whyle be styll,
of a comely gyll
That dwelt on a hyll:
But she is not gryll,
For she is somewhat sage
And well worne in age;
for her visage
It would aswage
A mannes courage.
Examples of Skeltonic Verse in Rap
Five hundred years on, Skeltonic verse is alive and well in performance poetry and hip-hop. Here are some examples from the period of hip-hop when I was growing up.
You’re a back-seat queen, a elevator pro
A high-powered body makes your Levis grow
See the stories I’ve heard, they could amaze
I heard she did it on a motorcycle back in the days
So calm down freak, get a G.E.D.
That’s a General Education on Decency
One day you’ll see, and agree with me
unless you’re gonna be a freak until you’re 93
For you there’s no fee, everything is free
This is from me to you, not you to me
Every night is your night, your leather pants are tight
You try to shake your butt with all your might
I don’t really wanna dis nobody
You might think I had a little too much Bacardi
But that’s not the problem, the problem’s Yvette
How bad can a girl’s reputation get?
See she’s the kinda girl all the homeboys met
If you’re desparate ask Yvette, cuz she’ll say “Bet.”
—from “Dear Yvette” by LL Cool J [1:30-2:38]
Yo Kangol, I don’t think that you’re dense
Buy you went about the matter with no experience
You should know, she doesn’t need a guy like you
She needs a guy like me, with a high IQ
And she’ll take to my rap, cause my rap’s the best
The educated rapper MD will never fess
So when I met her, I wasted no time
But stuck-up Roxanne paid me no mind
She thought my name was Barry, I told her it was Gary
She said she didn’t like it so she chose to call me Barry
She said she’d love to marry, my baby she would carry
And if she had a baby, she’d name the baby Harry
Her mother’s name is Baby, which is really quite contrary
Her face is very hairy, and you can say it’s scary
So isn’t not every, her father’s a fairy
His job is secretary, in some military
He throws them to an electric camp that wasn’t voluntary
His daughter’s name is Sherry, his sons are Tom and Jerry
Jerry had the flu but it was only temporary
Back in January, or was it February?
But everytime I say this rhyme it makes me kinda weary
It’s only customary to give this commentary
Some say it’s bad, some say it’s legendary
You searchin’ all you want, try your local library
You’ll never find a rhyme like this in any dictionary
But do you know, after all that
All I received was a pat on the back
That’s what you get, it happened to me
Ain’t that right Mixmaster I-C-E
—from “Roxanne Roxanne” by UTFO [1:17-2:35]
Yes the rhythm, the rebel
Without a pause—I’m lowerin’ my level
The hard rhymer where you never been I’m in me
You want stylin’ you know it’s time again
D the enemy tellin you to hear it
They praised the music this time they play the lyrics
Some say no to the album, the show
Bum rush the sound I made a year ago
I guess you know you guess I’m just a radical
Not a sabbatical—yes, to make it critical
The only part of your body should be parting to
Panther power on the hour from the rebel to you
—from “Rebel Without a Pause” by Public Enemy [0:00-0:43]
English 311: Workshop Leaders and Lead Critics
Here is the order of the authors whose work we will be workshopping this week, as well the assignments for Discussion Leader and Lead Critic. These are now two distinct jobs; to complete this assignment successfully, please read this post, which describes the role of Leader and Critic. We will cover the first 5 pieces on Monday, the next 6 on Wednesday.
| Author | Workshop Discussion Leader | Lead Critic | |
| 1 | Alison B | Nicole H | Dranée J |
| 2 | Amanda K | Sarah W | Nicole H |
| 3 | Arleny P | Alison B | Sarah W |
| 4 | Juliet B | Amanda K | Alison B |
| 5 | Kathleen G | Arleny P | Amanda K |
| 6 | Kelsie S | Juliet B | Arleny P |
| 7 | Kim D | Kathleen G | Juliet B |
| 8 | Kristin M | Kelsie S | Kathleen G |
| 9 | Michelle S | Kim D | Kelsie S |
| 10 | Nicole H | Kristin M | Kim D |
| 11 | Sarah W | Michelle S | Kristin M |
| Michelle S* | |||
| Will assign topic |
Midterm Conferences Spring 2011
Note: These time slots are for all three of my classes that I am teaching this semester. Refresh this page to see updates as these slots are taken up. The slots are offered on a first-come, first-serve basis, by email or sign-ups in class. For directions on what you need to do to be prepared for your conference, follow links for your specific class this link for English 105, this link for English 218, and this link for English 311.
Monday, March 14
10am Liz C [218]
10:30am Sunshine O [218]
11:00 Brittany O [105]
11:30 Ryan H [105]
12noon Yelfri D [105]
12:30 Stacy S [105]
1pm Tracy F [105]
1:30 Kristin M [311]
4pm Jillian S [105] NS
4:30pm Nicole M [218]
5pm
Tuesday, March 15
11am Taylor B [218]
11:30 Amanda A [105]
12pm Amelia J [105]
12:30pm Brittany B [218]
1:30pm Alison B [311]
2pm Cameron S [105]
2:30pm Carissa C [218]
3pm Anna Marie R [105]
3:30pm Gina F [105]
4pm Jessica R [105]
4:30pm Paige N [218]
5pm Kathleen G [311]
Wednesday, March 16
10:30am Lauren R [218]
4pm Sarah W [311]
4:30pm Katelyn B [218]
5pm Amanda M [218]
Thursday, March 17
12pm Samantha S [218]
12:30pm Kelsie S [311]
1pm Monica K [218]
1:30pm Amanda K [311]
2pm Kimberly D [311]
2:30pm Arleny P [311]
3pm Michelle S [311]
3:30pm Dranee J [331]
4pm Nicole H [311]
4:30pm Tiffany B [218]
5pm Nicole D [218]
6pm Taylor M [218]
6:30pm Lorin S [218]
7pm Deborah O [105]
Friday, March 18
10:30am Samantha M [218]
11am Meaghan B [105]
11:30am Jennifer A [Eng 592]
12:30pm Lindsey B [105]
1pm Juliet B [311/218]
2pm Kevin G [105]
2:30pm Paige N [218]
3pm Chelsea S [105]
3:30pm Lorin S [218]
4pm Juliet B
4:30pm Brenda P [Eng 592]
The Persuasive Essay Assignment
Write a 5-page persuasive essay—one that has a clearly stated thesis and presents an argument on a specific topic. This topic is your choice, and it will be that you develop and that I approve before you move forward.
Requirements. You must all of the following as part of the Final Draft of your essay.
Use three supporting points.
Use three outside sources that are cited in-text (i.e., by name in the body of the paper). You may use others, but three must be named at some point in the paper. One of these sources must be from a scholarly source obtained through one of the library’s academic databases.
You may use specific example(s) from your own experience and from others’.
Research must cited (and use) reliable statistics—a result from a study, a poll conducted by a news outlet, a government report—to support one of your supporting subtopics.
Have a section–at least a paragraph–in which you consider the opposite of your thesis, the opposing view, and explain why, in the end, this is not your opinion.
At one point in your paper, ask yourself a question. It can be any question, but preferably as part of one of the points in your paper. Then, attempt to answer it. One construction might be, “Why am I saying such-and-such? I think it is because of such-and-such” (fill in those “such-and-such” parts with your own thoughts and words.
Word Count: 750-900 words.
For Due Dates, see our Week-by-Week Class Plan.
Five Paragraph Essay Handout
PDF version here.
The Five-Paragraph Essay
I. Introductory Paragraph
General Topic Sentence
- Subtopic One
- Subtopic Two
- Subtopic Three
Transition
II. First Supporting Paragraph
Restate Subtopic One
- First Supporting Detail or Example
- Second Supporting Detail or Example
- Third Supporting Detail or Example
Transition
III. Second Supporting Paragraph
Restate Subtopic Two
- First Supporting Detail or Example
- Second Supporting Detail or Example
- Third Supporting Detail or Example
Transition
IV. Third Supporting Paragraph
Restate Subtopic Three
- First Supporting Detail or Example
- Second Supporting Detail or Example
- Third Supporting Detail or Example
Transition
V. Closing or Summary Paragraph
Synthesis of main topic
- Synthesis of Subtopic One
- Synthesis of Subtopic Two
- Synthesis of Subtopic Three
The Five-Paragraph Essay: Pimped Up
Intro: “Narrative lede”; emblematic scenario; personal narrative
I. Introductory Paragraph
General Topic Sentence
- Subtopic One
- Subtopic Two
- Subtopic Three
Transition
II. First Supporting Paragraph
Transition; Restate Subtopic One
- First Supporting Detail or Example
- Second Supporting Detail or Example
- Third Supporting Detail or Example
Transition
III. Second Supporting Paragraph
Transition; Restate Subtopic Two
- First Supporting Detail or Example
- Second Supporting Detail or Example
- Third Supporting Detail or Example
Transition
Opposing viewpoint; considering the opposition
IV. Third Supporting Paragraph
Restate Subtopic Three
- First Supporting Detail or Example
- Second Supporting Detail or Example
- Third Supporting Detail or Example
Transition
V. Closing or Summary Paragraph
Synthesis of main topic
- Synthesis of Subtopic One
- Synthesis of Subtopic Two
- Synthesis of Subtopic Three
Bracket of intro: “Narrative lede”; emblematic scenario; personal narrative
English 105 Rough Draft Workshop Assignments and Directions
Here are the group assignments. Read this post all the way through. Your directions appear at the bottom.
Group 1
Amanda A
Linday B
Yelfi D
Group 2
Tracie F
Gina F
Kevin G
Anna Marie R
Group 3
Ryan H
Amelia J
Brittany O
Group 4
Deborah O
Jessica R
Cameron S
Meaghan B
Group 5
Stacey S
Chelsea S
Jillian S
Ally B
Directions
Make a copy of your Group’s Rough Drafts and put them in your files. Then, print each of your group’s Rough Draft out (including your own!). Staple each Rough Draft on the upper-left-hand corner and write READ BY: [YourName] on the upper-right.
Read the draft with what we writing teachers call “an active pen.” For us, that means specifically:
- Circle or underline parts you like and write “good” or “effective” in the margins.
- Put boxes around parts that need more development or you don’t understand, and write “needs to be more clear” or specific questions about the passage.
- Keep an eye on how the writer cites sources in-text; that is, in the sentence. Is the writer using correct format? Have your Prentice Hall guide by your side. No need to correct all citations, just keep
- Most of all, read it with the idea to make connections for the writer, to help him or her with making a more effective Final Draft.
- We’ll talk about mechanics and punctuation in class, but if you see errors you would like to correct, go ahead and do that.
On a separate page (typed, with an MLA header, along with the writer’s name in the place for the title) briefly answer the following questions. You will be giving these to me first, then the writer.
1. What is the paper’s main idea? Paraphrase what the writer is saying; in other words, put it in your works, not the writer’s. If you can’t identify the main idea or thesis, begin your sentence with “I think he/she is writing about [blank]” or “I think the writer is really writing about [blank].”
2. What are the subtopics? Again, paraphrase in your own words, and if you can’t identify them in an obvious way in the paper, begin your sentence with “I think he/she is writing about [blank]” or “I think the writer is really writing about [blank].”
3. How well is the author integrating research on an expository level (the who, what, when, where, why of the paper’s topic) as well as on the ideas level (integrating people’s ideas and thoughts and words with his or her own). Write 2-3 sentences to the writer
4. Finally, what is the best part of the Rough Draft, the passage that most interests you? Circle it in the body of the paper with an asterisk (*), and write a sentence about it here. Begin, for example , with something like the following: “You are really clear about what you are saying on the bottom of page 2 about [blank].”
Grading Rubric: Rough Draft of Worst Song
| Area | Points |
| Format: Proper manuscript: margins, running header, font, spacing. | 30 |
| Main idea: Topic or thesis is clear, stated concisely on paper, and explored throughout paper. | 10 |
| Subtopics: Fully developed, stated, and related to the main idea. | 10 |
| Working with sources: There is work with summaries, paraphrases, and quotes from outside sources. Includes proper citing in-text. | 10 |
| Research and documentation: Evidence of research for both expository information as well as those related to suptopics. | 10 |
| Mechanics: Obvious and not-so-obvious punctuation, spelling. | 10 |
| Personal narrative: Told concisely and made relevant to audience and topic. | 10 |
| Works Cited: Proper format, includes at least three sources, including one from scholarly or peer-reviewed source | 10 |
| Total/Grade | 100 |
The Rough Draft Assembly: Some Options
So this is what we’ve done so far for our Worst Song assignment:
- selected a topic (song)
- gotten down your experience with the song, your own personal history and narrative.
- investigated facts, put together the expository details, surrounding the song itself: this includes the performer, the lyrics, the songwriters, and chart positions, as well as the associations with the song, its places in the culture then and now
- thought about some ways to look at the song or performer from perspectives other than your own, the way the song and performer interacts with culture, audience reception, and through that process
- put a name to your subtopics and ideas, including teen idols trying to grow up, song with lyrics and public images that can be understood on different levels, ideas of nostalgia both personal and for whole groups of people
- made several presentations that reported on your research and on what your working thesis is looking like
That’s a lot of good stuff, right? I think so.
The next step is to put together a rough draft, which we will call the assembly. In this, you’re to put together sentences and paragraphs from your research and your own narratives, and get them on the page. Then you’re going to write an essay.
Our goals for this essay include working with sources, doing research, putting together a works cited page, and working with in-text citations as you summarize, paraphrase and quote other people’s work.
We’ll work on essays and articles that work with presenting an argument with support and persuasion. This assignment, however, is different. If you’ve done the work so far, you know that, and perhaps you’re more than a little frustrated or even scared of what comes next, which you think is consolidating all of your research to make an essay that ties all your thoughts up in a bow.
It’s all over the place, and that’s fine. Why? Because there’s more than one way to write an essay that presents your thoughts and puts them together under one roof. Feel free to stick to a 4- to 6-page draft that has 4-8 paragraphs. Go ahead and do that. But essays come in many shapes and forms, and you are free to try something different.
Here are a couple examples.
The Numbered List Essay clusters the writing related to several topics and assign numbers to them. This has the effect for both reader and writer of having organized thoughts and topics when in reality there are often big jumps from section to section. For an example of this kind of essay, go to our Readings folder in our Dropbox and see Jonathan Lethem’s “13, 1977, 21.”
The Collage Essay works with slightly longer sections, often alternating autobiographical elements with research and other elements. For an example of this kind of essay, go to our Readings folder in our Dropbox and see Monica Hsiung Wojcik’s “The Woot Files” and Eula Biss’ “The Pain Scale.”
The Essay with Subheaders or Chapter Names are often useful when you want to give a name to your sections that help your readers, as well as to organize your thoughts. For an example of this kind of essay, go to our Readings folder in our Dropbox and see excerpts from Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s book An Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life, where she arranges her chapters alphabetically.
No matter how you put together your Rough Draft Assembly, you need to hand in a draft that is 4 to 6 pages in the body (preferably longer); uses references to your sources in-text; and has a Works Cited page.
Name document FirstnameLastnameAssembly.doc/rft and put in our class folder’s called “04 Rough Draft Assembley” by Friday, Feburary 4 at 11:59pm.
Writing Prompt: Anaphora-Friendly Prepositions and Other Phrases
| aboard about above absent according to across after against ahead of all over along alongside amid or amidst among around as as of as to aside astride at away from bar barring because of before behind below beneath beside |
besides between beyond but by by the time of circa close by close to concerning considering despite down due to during except except for excepting excluding failing for from in in between in front of in spite of in view of |
including inside instead of into less like minus near near to next to notwithstanding of off on on top of onto opposite out out of outside over past pending per plus regarding |
respecting round save saving similar to since than through throughout till to toward or towards under underneath unlike until unto up upon versus via wanting while with within without |
Correlative Conjunctions Pairings
both… and
either… or
neither… nor
not only… but also
whether… or
Research and Reading Critically: Using Online Citation Resources
Citations should be easy. My view is that you shouldn’t have to go over them in class, at least in an idea world. But it’s not an ideal world. When I was a college student, we didn’t have the internet. We also walked uphill, both ways, in bare feet to class. I am exaggerating, of course.
We did not, however, a lot of things you have. Many if not all academic databases offer to create and save a citation of your source, for example. So take advantage of that, copying and pasting the citation along with your notes into your document. There are also online resources that help create citations for your works cited and bibliography pages. Enter in the relevant information, and there you go!
Here are a few. You can search for “online citation creator” and you may find ones that work better for you.
WARNING: Just because you may use these online citation-makers does not mean they will be correct format- or fact-wise. Some of these sites have bugs, as convenient as they may seem. Double-check the citations before handing in. Check for absent punctuation and other elements of your citation, and make sure the typeface is the same as your original document; I suggest copying and pasting in as unformatted text (in Word from the Home tab, it’s Paste>Paste Special>Unformatted Text) to make sure there are no bugs from your generated citation.
Research and Reading Critically: Finding Good Sources
What is a good source for a paper? A bad one?
Generally speaking, there are no bad sources for papers. Sources may be used badly, but everything can be cited in a college-level paper. It’s the way it’s used in the paper.
College papers these days cite TV commercials, billboards, Justin Bieber songs, personal interviews, speakers on campus, and YouTube videos of a Dora the Explorer episodes. That’s fine. We write about the world around us. To bring our writing up to that of a scholar, of college-level writers who have consulted what others think and have learned themsevles, we also have to find out what others are saying about our world. To do that, we need to move on from surface information and find sources with deeper levels of information and intepretation.
Evaluating sources and sites online
I love the internet. I love how we have much of the world at our fingertips. (Much of the world, but hardly all of it. We’ll get to that later.) The majority of websites are not exactly meant for scholarly sources, but some might be. How do we know?
You need to be able to “read” a website and evaluate it. Some tips:
- Look at the bottom line of the page. Is there a copyright notice? Does it indicate it’s a blog?
- Does the site’s author work for someone writing this blog, or is an authority on a subject?
- Is the design of the site professional? Does the address line indicate it’s from a large organization?
Online scholarly databases
When it comes to research, there’s the internet, and then there’s online sources. The internet would be going to an address directly and finding a page. All online sources are not on the internet–not directly, at least. A good amount of valuable information and content are behind password-protected pages, sometimes they’re called “paywalls,” and you will need to get access to them to read.
Fortunately for us, the Saint Rose Library has a wealth of information–scholarly publications, books, reference works–inside its password-protected access. Some definitions are in order. To access this information, you have to use what are called an academic databases, which are services that collect and archive past issues. There a lot of them at our fingertips, and many overlap in their offerings. These databases have their own search engine functions, which are powerful and require attention when using them.
Most of the databases center around a subject or discipline and, depending on your major, you will become accustomed to the foibles and advantages and disadvantages of a core group of ones you will use for your major. All of the databases are similar to a certain extent.
A good starting point
The library’s website has a very user-friendly design for writing a paper. The Research by Subject page is my favorite, go-to starting point for finding good sources. There, you will see a breakdown of subjects and majors and disciplines; click on any of them, and you will see a small, manageable list of databases that center around that subject. On the top right of that page, you will see the 360 Search Quick Link, which is really powerful and accesses all of the databases at the same time. I’ve had mixed results, often there are so many extraneous links to articles I would never use, but sometimes I will come up with a real gem.
Further Reading:
The Saint Rose Academic Support Center has a useful handout on research and other subjects.
“Conducting Research.” Purdue Online Writing Lab. 26 January 2011 <http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/8/>.
Research and Reading Critically: Using Wikipedia
Image via CrunchBase
After you start your paper, even with the most general of topics (often by a hunch), after you cluster your potential topics together on a piece of paper, you research. There are lots of different kinds of research.
Initial Research
Direct, fact-based research that provide expository information on your topic, the ones that answer the journalist-type questions of who, what, when, where, and why. This is often where web research helps. And yes, Wikipedia.
A word to the wise about using Wikipedia in academic settings: go ahead and use it, but it’s not exactly worth of a works cited page, not for college-level writing. Let me explain. It’s fine to look up your topic in Wikipedia, just the same as you might look up a word related to your topic in a dictionary; however, you’re looking to these sources for general knowledge, often to confirm or clarify facts you already know.
Direct Quotes? Really?
I don’t know how many times I’ve seen in a paper a student citing Wikipedia for something factual, often using direct quotes for the language. Example:
Justin Bieber’s song “One Time” was “released worldwide in 2009″ and “charted in the top 30 in over ten countries” (Wikipedia).
Using “direct quotes” for the most “indistinct language” in a “college paper” not only tends to “distract.” It also isn’t an “efficient” use of “quotes.” When you look up something in the “Wikipedia,” you’re not getting “quotable language” as much as you are “getting facts.” To “quote” the phrase “released worldwide in 2009″ looks strange. It’s also kind of annoying, right? Why? Because to use quotes when giving “background information,” information anyone has access to in any number of “reference books,” isn’t really an effective use of quoting. In the context of the example, you’re providing expository information–who, what, when, where, and why
To be blunt, the citing of Wikipedia isn’t so wrong as regarded as lazy among professors and other professionals. Wikipedia, at least in college-level writing, is a starting-off point, and to cite Wikipedia indicates that the student writer began to research, then stopped. Look at it as a page full of entry-level facts and links to other, hopefully more reputable, primary sources. Even pre-Wikipedia, it was regarded as somewhat lazy or amateurish to cite an Encyclopedia, so don’t take it personally.
Let’s try it again.
Justin Bieber’s song “One Time” was released worldwide in 2009 and hit the top 30 in more than ten countries (Wikipedia).
That’s better. Is “worldwide” that distinctive of a word? No. About about the number “30″?
Acuracy Accuracy and Stuff
I am not the kind of professor who talks about how Wikipedia is riddled with errors and is an inaccurate source, and represents the End of Western Civilization as We Know It. Most of the writing in all reference books, Wikipedia included, is not meant to be Shakespeare and is not meant to be quoted. Use it when you start out, use it in your notes. But as a general rule, don’t put it on your Bibliography or Works Cited page. And don’t ever directly quote it.
Where Do We Go From Here?
In high school, you might have heard the terms primary and secondary sources. Wikipedia is a source that comes from many other sources, called References. Many of those references are reputable primary sources. Some entries have a Further Reading section, which points readers to related, often book-length sources that will add to your information gathering.
Further reading:
“Online References.” Purdue Online Writing Lab. 26 January 2011 <http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/738/03/>.
“Paraphrasing and Summarizing Exercise.” Purdue Online Writing Lab. 23 January 2011. <http://owl.english.purdue.edu/engagement/index.php?category_id=3&sub_category_id=8&article_id=102>
Clustering and Idea Mapping Assignment
It’s helpful to use clustering, sometimes called idea mapping or mind mapping, when you start out writing an essay or another piece of writing. It means what it sounds: you draw a map of possible subtopics or issues that have to do with your general starting topic on paper.
This method of outlining aspects of your idea in a visual helps writer look at what shapes your paper might take.
Your assignment is to make a cluster map for your “Worst Song” essay.
Put the song title in the middle and surround it with at least 15 cluster ideas. Break them down this way, roughly using the rhetorical triangle of writer->topic->audience.
Writer: Five clusters from your personal/autobiographical/first-person point of view.
Topic: Five from your initial web research (describe the song, summarize/important quotes from lyric, name of artist, songwriter, year, album, chart position).
Audience: Five views, reviews, interpretations or connections you can make with the song to explain this song to your readers.
What appears above is a very rough clustering map I dug up from when I was writing about the song “Your Love” by The Outfield. It did help me figure out where to start and which topics I could talk about. The finished essay appears online here.
Besides the good old freehand method, there are actually several clustering/idea mapping sites where you can create this kind of drawing online. Here are a couple. If you can print them out for class, you can certainly use one of these. You can also use a word processing software.
List at Open Directory
Other Related Articles
- XMind: Free User-friendly MindMapping Software (shoutmeloud.com)
- Using Mind Mapping for your RPG Planning from RPG Circus – RPGBlog (rpgcircus.com)
- Brilliant mind mapping tips (mindmappingsoftwareblog.com)
- It’s an Analog World: Mind Mapping Old-Style (markevanstech.com)
- Get Started with Mind Mapping in Project Management (brighthub.com)
- Getting The Most Out Of Mind Mapping (slideshare.net)
- Using Mind Maps (usingmindmaps.com)
- How to Cluster a Generic Search Term Using Google’s Wonder Wheel and Image Swirl (searchenginejournal.com)
- Mapping Your Projects (chrisbrogan.com)
First Assignment: A Writer’s Portrait
Due on our English 105 Blog: Friday, January 21, by 5pm
Assignment:
Interview your fellow student about their experience in writing.
Is he or she a confident writer? Not so confident?
What does he or she need to work on? Grammar? Spelling? Reading? Level of interest?
How about research or presenting in front of class?
Can you tell me one story from a previous class or assignment, or writing in general (status updates on Facebook/Twitter, etc.) that he or she remembers?
One thing you must include: Include one direct quotation from your interview subject.
Include your impressions, descriptions, context of your talk, as well as what you know about your partner from the ice-breaker-type answers.
Word Count: 300-400 words
Title Your Post: First Name (of your person): A Writer’s Portrait
Online Component: About Hybrid Courses
As the College’s schedule indicates, 1 credit of this 4-credit course will be taught online. This means that roughly one-quarter of the teaching, learning, and student coursework will take place online. Our face-to-face class time is shorter, which allows for more flexibility to accomplish our class goals.
Our online component will take the form of an online journal, better known as a blog. Each student will be assigned to conceive, set up, and maintain a blog, with posts that centers on aspects of each assignment. Details will vary from class to class.
The Narration Essay Assignment
In its simplest terms: Tell us a story. Tell us a good story. Tell us a story that has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Hold our attention. Surprise us. Entertain us. Teach us a lesson. (No fewer than five pages.)
Potential Topics For Narrative Essays (From The Sundance Reader)
* A childhood event that shaped your attitudes about a person, school, a sport.
* An incident that exposed you to danger.
* A work situation where your role as employee clashed with your personal values.
* Your first day at a job.
* The key play of an important game.
* A story repeatedly told by a friend or family member.
* The incident that caused you to quit a job, end a relationship, or make a decision.
* A band’s breakthough performance.
* The turning point in a person’s career or organization’s history.
* Your first experience in cyberspace.
Quotations, paraphrases, and summaries: A presentation to help student writers work with other peoples’ words and ideas
Video version of this presentation with my lectures after the jump.
Handout: Analyzing a Performance (PowerPoint file)
Setting Up a Teaching Blog
Prepared for President’s Day, January 13, 2011.
What is a Teaching Blog?
My personal definition of a Teaching Blog is an online place where I, as the instructor of a class, post class syllabi and the weekly class plan for any semester’s classes, along with assignments, handouts, readings, conference schedules, links to readings, and other resources.
This is not what has been called class blog, where students as well as instructor post writing and other students respond to that reading, although I know other teachers do that. Nor is it a stand-alone place to teach a class, as through distance learning. Rather, my practice of using a Teaching Blog allows for greater accessibility for students, so they can be up-to-date and clear about class goals, the schedule, and my policies. My Teaching Blog reflects the flexibility of my teaching—since I can update or correct assignments and due dates as the semester goes along. I think the more proper term for what I am doing with my Teaching Blog is called in our field “Open Courseware.” But I am getting ahead of myself.
Why Do I Use a Teaching Blog?
Efficiency: If something needs to be updated or clarified, I can do it quickly, often right in the classroom on a projector.
A stable web address that students can bookmark, subscribe to via RSS, and access from anywhere. Students can subscribe to posts that are tagged/assigned the category of their class.
Tagging of my posts with categories allows for grouping of materials online. Example: writing prompts, revision techniques.
Seamless integration of multimedia materials in a posts that complement lectures and discussions. Passages from books, presentations, YouTube clips, music, images, lecture notes. “Essayism Clips” post.
Links from multiple documents/posts to a single document means you only have to do things once. Let me explain that one, because this is especially efficient when there are documents I link to often. In my syllabi now, for example, I link to what I call Syllabus Statements. These are where I outline my own policies—attendance, conduct, paper format, late work, paper format—for every class I teach, along with the more College-wide policies, such as academic integrity and the statement for students with disabilities. Having a single post/document/link where these can be found means that these can be updated from semester to semester, and the links will remain the same. I can refer students to a link if there is something unclear, say, about my attendance policy (which happens), along with procedures for extra credit and assessment rubrics I have also posted to the site.
Being, or Going, “Open Source”
Here’s where I editorialize, I guess. I’m a big fan of the idea of the intellectual commons. Lewis Hyde has written about the intellectual commons recently in his book Common As Air. This goes far beyond ideas of fair use in education: people need free access to ideas to build on them to come up with their own. From public libraries to mix tapes to the internet, the idea that knowledge should be free, that one major way for educators and learners to advance their fields and to show the process by which education happens.
Open source first appeared as a term in the world of software, where programmers advocated the showing the code– source code, or source–openly, so that others with like skills could suggest improvements and changes, as well as hacks or radical changes, or remixes. Examples of software that has been open source include the Mozilla browser, PHP and MySQL, and OpenOffice.org.
In education, the term open source refers to professors sharing their research online, or stipulating when publishing a study in a scholarly journal that the authors can in turn share it online as well. It also refers to an approach, personal or institutional, where the means of learning are shared online, not behind a password-protected site, but for the world to see.
Ideally, I envision someday joining an open courseware-type community here at the College, although I am not sure how one would do that. One of the first institutions to adopt an open source practice or philosophy was MIT. Here is a link to a film course, where the syllabus, assignments, suggested paper topics, as well as student lecture notes all appear online.
The open source education/learning idea, to my mind, has many advantages. With my teaching blog, I get to share my lesson plans with the world, improve them in real time, and be part of a worldwide conversation regarding the teaching of my field. When I adapt an assignment from other teachers, or am inspired by a reading or essay or idea, I cite that in my posts, often link directly to the original, and so my students have added benefit of seeing where these assignments are from and that they are part of a larger conversation and exchange of ideas. This would be cumbersome or impossible in print if I were to, say, make a copy of the three articles I used to develop a single assignment. This also has the potential to deepen the learning process for my students, and has also made me more active in my field. When I was developing the an assignment related to Experimental Essay/Memoir Bibliography, for example, a professor from Iowa, who had noticed an assignment online, emailed a couple of suggestions.
I also get to develop skills—writing, content management, disseminating ideas—that students should learn as well. To me, it somehow feels more honest that I am showing my students the gears behind my operation. I’d like to think that this is one way I model my practices in teaching and writing. Since many of our students are future teachers, that has a nice side benefit.
I don’t think there’s a teacher out there who hasn’t Googled their course name or subject along with the words like “syllabus,” “assignments,” or even “rubric,” depending in which area or specialty one teaches. At first, I had just my Syllabi and Class Plans on my Teaching Blog, along with perhaps some pages with links to readings. But in the past two years, I have gone much more “open source”: I have posted assignments, handouts, lecture notes, all online. It’s been a long process, but what I have found is that it focuses my teaching in ways I hadn’t done before. I have also become much more efficient as the years go on.
Examples of Items I Have on My Teaching Blog
Syllabi>Syllabus Statements>Rubrics>Assignments>Conference Times>>Lecture Notes
How to Set Up a Teaching Blog/Courseware Online
Blogging platforms work well as what has been called Learning Management Systems (LMS), a spin-off term of the more common Content Management System (CMS). These days, I love WordPress, although I used Blogger for years and still use it for my English 218: Oral Interpretation of Literature Class. There are others, but I find these work best.
There are other platforms or websites an instructor can use. There’s Blackboard, of course, as well as plan on looking at Open Courseware Consortium and other open-source programs such as Moodle and others.
Other Teaching Blogs and Open Courseware Links
Built using tumblr, another blogging platform: Miguel Centellas’ Teaching (Comparative Politics); Latin American Politics
David Thorburn’s The Film Experience
Lisa Guerrero’s Intro to African American Literature
Langdon Hammer’s Modern Poetry
25 Colleges and Universities Ranked by Their Open CourseWare
The List of Ridiculous Paper Topics
Image via Wikipedia
How Wearing Scrunchies Helps The Environment
We Can Put A Man On The Moon, But Why Can’t We Make Killer Robot Police?
Alf and Saved By The Bell: Better Than The Plays of William Shakespeare
How a Single Paper Clip Can Bring Peace in the Middle East
Why Aerosol Cans and Packing Peanuts Should be Ranked as Our Society’s Greatest Achievements
Improving Curb Appeal: Why All Novels Should Be Written in Comic Sans
My Parents are Aliens But I Am Not: Some Theories Why This is So
How Casual Fridays Promote Adulterous Office Affairs
Global Warming: The Advantages of the Melting Ice Cap
How My Career in Little League Baseball or Softball Parallels Today’s Political Climate
Why Ben and Jerry’s Should Name An Ice Cream Treat After Me
Why Forwarded Junk Emails Can Solve Today’s Gender Pay Gap
High School Uniforms: Why Everyone Should Just Wear a Plain, Grey Jumpsuit
Why I Will Wear An Elegant, Black Tuxedo To My Wedding
Arranged Marriages: How It Can Work For American Kindergardeners
Evolution, Shmevolution: Why Humans Should Be Classified as Amphibians
How Backstreet Boys Surpass Beethoven in Musical Achievement
Why and How Heiress Paris Hilton Should Get a PhD in Elementary Education
I Am, In Point of Fact, a Fish; While Everyone Else is, In Point of Fact, a Four-Legged Mammal
Is Oprah Winfrey a Robot? Some Proof
Proof That TV’s Judge Judy is an Alcoholic
Wearing Baseball Caps: Do They Lower Your Intelligence?
Why Albany Should Secede from the Union and Become Its Own Sovereign Country
Everything I Know About Fashion I Learned from Kim Il Jong
How Fritos® brand Corn Chips Can Be Used To Build Environmentally Friendly Homes
My Plans for World Domination: Why It Should Be Supported by the U.S. Government
Deforestation: The Advantages of a Treeless World
How Actor Sean Penn Will Single-Handedly Save The Ozone Layer
Enemas: The Best Way To Release Emotional Pain
Post-It Notes Are Living Organisms, Too
The Little Man Inside Your Refrigerator Needs More Exercise
Why Dry Erase Boards Cause Vertigo
How We Can Better Communicate With Bacteria
Guns Kill Other Guns: Did You Know?
How Coolidge’s “Dogs Playing Cards” is Superior to Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper”
Health Care for Infants: The Overrated Phenomenon
The More You Drive, The Less Intelligent You Are (inspiration here)
The Researched Ridiculous Proposal Assignment
For this assignment, you will be assigned a topic from this List of Ridiculous Paper Topics. The topic will not make obvious sense. It will be, in fact, ridiculous. Your job will be to work as an advocate for this ridiculous proposal. Come up with an argument that not only makes sense, but one that is supported through research and supporting points. It may not still make linear sense, but this will be, hopefully, a fun way to stretch your research and writing muscles.
Stages of This Assignment
Research and Submit an Annotated Bibliography. This means web-based as well as scholarly research. Researching on search engines such as Google is a great way to start research, but the web, believe it or not, does not contain all known human knowledge.
- Find three (3) sources from your web-based research.
- Compile, narrow down, and print out five (5) reliable, scholarly sources. No less than two of these must appear in your Final Draft.
- You must also interview with one (1) person. This can be a friend, person on the street, relative or classmate, as long as it is on your subject, and use his or her words in quotations and paraphrase as part of your paper. Obtain enough information to be able to cite this in your Final Draft.
Have a Working Thesis. After you do your research, you should be able to build up to a working idea, know in which direction your argument will go.
Make a Presentation. This is a three- to five-minute presentation in which you present your working thesis as well as prospective supporting points.
Anticipate the opposition. This should be quite easy, since your paper’s topic will be ridiculous and/or make sense. Include a well-formed paragraph or paragraphs in which you consider the opposite of your thesis, the opposing view, and explain why, in the end, this is not your opinion.
At one point in your paper, ask yourself a question. It can be any question, but preferably as part of one of the points in your paper. Then, attempt to answer it. One construction might be, “Why am I saying such-and-such? I think it is because of such-and-such” (fill in those “such-and-such” parts with your own thoughts and words.
We will turn in Rough Drafts. We will work in small groups and mark up each other’s writing.
Oral Presentation Rubric
Click on image for larger version. PDF version (opens in new window).
Creative Writing Assignments Not for Workshop: An Evaluative Rubric
Click on image for larger version. PDF version (opens in new window).
Student Reading and Writing Rubric
Click on image for larger version. PDF version (opens in new window).
