Thanks for your contributions in class today. As usual my time management was much better in the 10:30 session, but at least the 9:00 people get the better classroom space, so maybe it evens out.
Reminder: Post anonymous advice for your fellow students about how to do the Article Analysis or Scene Analysis essays directly to the main prompt document (currently titled Essay #1 Prompt & Lab Exercise though someone might take it upon themselves to change the title; just look for the "modified today" section of your Docs inbox). If you are having problems with Docs you can just email me. We will come back to this discussion before the next essay is due.
Reminder: Post the ideas you generated in the "rules or situations of writing that are peculiar to my discipline" exercise in the comments below. We will come back to this discussion next week.
Reminder: Watch 5.1-5.4. McNulty and Bubbles fans will rejoice, and you will also meet a new set of characters who work at the Baltimore Sun newspaper. Heads up to SAW 41-44.
Reminder: Read They Say I Say chapter 8 (about transitions) and chapter 9 (about voice).
Reminder: I had a couple of people come to parlay with me (as Prop Joe says) about their essay grades. I've never actually changed a grade (ever) but sometimes I do a bad job with the explaining comments and I can give you some further pointers that might be helpful if you come talk to me.
On Hold: We will discuss the Marshall article on Wednesday 3/30 because it pairs well with the Jones article.
Link: For those of you interested in the education subplot, this article advances some provocative ideas about race. Meanwhile, this article proposes a surprising explanation for one feature of African-American dialect.
Thoughts about this week's opinion poll:
-Again, thanks for your input. I love teaching you guys, and one of the reasons is because you speak your mind.
-One person mentioned persistent downloading problems, and maybe this represents others as well. This problem has an easy solution that I thought I made clear last month... you can take one of my backup hard drives home with you. Likewise someone asked whether there is some way you can get an email update for blog posts... I think this is a setting you guys can control on Blogger.
-More than half of you specifically indicated that you thought the general class discussion was going well. Some people questioned my time management of the discussions. All I'll say is it's way harder than it looks. A few others wanted me to stop butting in so much or pursuing pet themes... that is very fair, and oddly enough I think McNulty might be a good role model for me there, in light of some of the scenes discussed today.
-Other likes included the pace of the class, the blog, the electronic submission policy, the assigned articles, and the in-class workshops. Though as is often the case, those turned up as dislikes for others.
-About six or seven of you indicated that you were having trouble keeping up with the episodes, though several also commented that you still prefer this to the kind of extended reading assignments that other 302s are doing. I sympathize and have tried my best to lighten your other workload. This is always a problem for me in classes of this nature, because I don't want to overwhelm people but I also want to provide rewards for those who can take the time to watch/read more. Let's just say there's a reason that you're only assigned to one specific scene for the semester.
-Some indicated that they wanted the in-class exercises and perhaps attendance to be more specifically tabulated/commented/graded. This is an instance of me cutting corners I will admit, but I think of these as processes that fall mainly on your shoulders. On a more technical note, I will be issuing a status check soon on participation grades soon as well as worksheets grades and draft grades. And yes, I do wish I could give specific commentary on all worksheets... I feel like Carver with the Randy situation in that respect.
-Naturally many people wished they had more specific guidelines for the essays. I have explained that the reason for this is partly philosophical and by design, partly me being lazy and hypocritical, partly something that occurs because of the natural mismatch between grading and educating, and partly something we can fix by means of models and continued advice sharing for the next round.
-A surprising number of people asked for more "they say I say" workshops. Can do. Other popular workshops requested were thesis, outlines/organization, introductions, and conclusions. Hopefully we can do all of those. A few people asked for exercises specific to research and more use of the computer lab, which as you can see is part of the upcoming schedule. A few asked for something like a group or peer review exercise on the essays, which is definitely part of the plan. Some asked for another stage of draft and commentary before the final draft, which I would encourage you to do for yourself by relying on classmates/roommates or perhaps the Writing Center. But to be honest with you I feel like Landsman writing red names on the board with that... that's one of those "wouldn't it be nice?" things. In a perfect world there would be 11-15 students in your class instead of 22-23.
-A few people wanted more discussion of the assigned articles. A few people wanted less. Someone suggested that we should writing something every class, which is a great idea and one that I can now blame on you, so thanks.
-One person wanted more Honey Nut Cheerios. One listed HNC as a specific dislike, so go figure. Someone wanted sandwiches... is Wee Bey in the class? Someone is actually running a count of my use of various profanities, which is a first in 8 years of teaching, but certainly a good research project.
I am a French major. When I write French papers, I always have to write in English first and then translate it into French. Since English is my first language, I always think in English first. It can be difficult for me at times to translate my thoughts from English into French, but ultimately it works out in the end.
ReplyDeleteI am a hopeful Nursing major. Since I have not actually taken any specific Nursing courses, I can only speculate about how I will be writing. I believe that in my writing I will have to be specific and to the point, but also detailed. In my future career it will be necessary to be straightforward as someone's life could be on the line. Also, it will important to be detailed and observative in my writing because when dealing with patients, all of their symptoms and actions can be useful in diagnosis. I will also expect to use anatomical and scientific terms, but make sure to use them correctly because they will be universally used by those reading my reports or writing in the medical field.
ReplyDeleteMy declared major is also nursing, but I have yet to take the actual classes, seeing as we need to be admitted first. I imagine a particular dilemma arising should that door be opened for me, though: like any other field of study, the language used for the medical field needs to maintain a high level of professionalism and conciseness, relflective of high standards of etiquette and work ethic. Yet at the same time, when relating and associating with those who are outside of the profession, the language needs to be sympathic, easy to understand, and alluding to the virtues of care and moral responsibility. I imagine it will be somewhat difficult to write in a manner that balances both worlds, since I know my own flexibility for flipping between two different audiences is limited.
ReplyDeleteI'm an English Major, and while people expect writing to be all we do (which is true), it's not the same type of writing one would do for a research paper. Many papers are much more reader-response or close reading papers. It's hard to get into the mind set of a research paper for me because in my higher level classes (400ish classes), all we do is read books and evaluate them. But I'm really excited to do these new types of papers.
ReplyDeleteTyler and Hannah:
ReplyDeleteWe are English majors and we have found that in our non-fiction classes, the writing is focused more on getting every piece of information in that we can rather than working creative writing and figurative language in, like many of our high school English classes have us do.
I am a theater major, and have to write a fair amount of reviews of live theater productions. When writing a review of a live show, I tend to start by focusing on technical aspects and then moving onto the performance part. The technical parts include light and sound design, the set, costumes, and make up. What is good to keep in mind is what theater company you're seeing. If Im seeing a college production, i tend to have slightly lower standards then if im seeing a professional show. After touching on each topic, I talk about how they all worked together and either complemented or detracted from the overall show. Then I move on to my thoughts on the actual performance, and write about the actors and the director. Once again the most important thing to keep in mind is what type of theater you are in. If I'm in a community theater, or a college theater, I'm not going to tear apart the show. It's considered improper on the part of the reviewer to hold the same expectations for every type of theater company.
ReplyDeleteI'm a graphic design major and it occurred to me that as a designer I'm expected to use the "yes, but" form of argument when talking with other students and, in the future, clients. Graphic designers tend to have very strong opinions that I will not always agree with, but I still have to treat their ideas as valid. I often find myself saying "That might work, but maybe we should try this." When I go into the professional world and begin dealing with clients who probably don't know anything about graphic design, I'm going to be expected to respect their opinions while politely telling them they're wrong. "Yes, but" is my new best friend.
ReplyDeleteI am a communications major with a concentration in public relations. When writing for my major I think that it is important to make sure that you get your point across clearly. Also, it's important to tailor your message to the public you are targeting which might change all the time. A lot of the writing we do is persuasive as well so you need to learn good persuasive writing skills.
ReplyDeleteAiza and Kanokwan:
ReplyDeleteWe are both nursing majors, although we have yet to take any classes dealing directly with our major. However, in our nursing pre-requisites, we are learning to write essays that incorporate knowledge, science terminology, as well as scientific methods. Essay writing in nursing most probably will be very focused and precise, but still comprehensible because our primary audiences are those in the scientific community and the general public.
These are very helpful comments. Like I said we will come back to this discussion in class.
ReplyDeleteI am majoring in communication without a specific concentration. Generally, it's imperative that with a lot of my written assignments that I have a well-constructed argument and thesis, especially while persuading a specific audience. The points that I need to emphasize in an essay not only have to be concise and detailed but fully valid. It's also important to look at both sides of an argument in order to provide an immediate and effective response
ReplyDeleteI am majoring in communication. When writing for my communication classes, we usually form an argument and support it with specific examples. Often we present counterarguments, and then refute them by demonstrating how they are weak. The overarching goal of this is to persuade the audience into agreeing with your argument. A dilemma in writing for the field of communication are the many different types of audiences that you have to write for.
ReplyDeleteI'm a Graphic Design major. We definitely have specific writing rules (written and un-written). The most basic are:
ReplyDelete-Write as if the reader is your client and has very little knowledge about design and terms used in the trade.
-Describe EVERYTHING in excruciating detail.
-Explain terms of the trade thoroughly.
-Always have a logical reasoning for a 'gut feeling' or opinion.
-Know your history of the topic.
I am a Spanish major and writing in Spanish is similar to writing in English. There are several punctuation differences like the upside down comma and the use of the comma.
ReplyDelete-Amanda Annatone
I am an english major. I know that if i type like i txt then i will be shunned by the english community. Note the non capitalized "i", anyway, its not that i don't care its just that things get done quicker this way. That is why i am thankful to MS Word and auto-correct which make my life bearable.
ReplyDeleteI know that when you write things for an English assignment it has to follow basic english grammar rules and structure. The actual structure of the work can vary but it usually consists of a thesis sentence/ paragraph, a few body paragraphs, and a concluding or final word paragraph.
I just know that in english, you gotta get it right or suffer the consequences of your teacher's red pen.
When writing an article analysis in psychology you always have to read the study in the frame of mind of 'how would I have done this study differently'. You always have to analyze everything you read.
ReplyDeleteMarlo is ignoring the code of the streets but the reaction of the community is only resulting in "more bodies", a street term for murders.
ReplyDeleteRachel Klein
The Wire is realistic to a point, however, the situations that occasionally arise are over-exaggerated. This can make the show feel like a melodrama rather than a realistic TV show.
ReplyDelete-Olivia Stockmann
McNutly's character is falling back into his old, selfdestructive habits but it's not entirely surprising because of past episodes
ReplyDelete-Monica Garney