College level reading is sometimes challenging and some of the material we will read is particularly so; you may not understand all the ideas on the first reading, or if you are not actively working at understanding. If you have trouble with the readings there are things you can do to improve your comprehension. For example, you can allow enough time to read carefully and make sure you find a setting (time and place) where you can concentrate. One important technique is to take notes or test yourself frequently as you read. (Highlighting is not the same as taking notes!) Talk to me about other things you can do to improve your reading skills. Also, some week’s readings are heavier than others so plan accordingly.
Similarly, writing at the college level demands that you communicate clearly and appropriately. You have to be able to tell the difference between different styles of writing that are appropriate for your purpose, whether it’s taking notes, taking a quiz or writing a paper. I expect you to give me your best and to continue to improve your writing skills in this class. Writing skills include spelling and punctuation, writing in complete sentences, constructing paragraphs that are logical, and having a beginning, middle, and end in longer pieces, such as papers. You may use the first person pronoun, and you may use informal or ordinary language, including slang, so long as your use of language is appropriate and effective for saying what you have to say clearly and accurately. Exercise 4 must be typed/word processed and double-spaced with a reasonable size font.
Last but not least, the Writing Lab (CLS-2046A) will be happy to help
you with any papers.
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Participation Responses Three due on or before
Dec. 2, each worth 20 points
The goal of the participation responses is to increase your understanding
of women's studies and women's events by asking you to attend and respond
to three of these events over the course of the semester. (All three response
papers due on or before April 9, each worth 20 points. Each must
be submitted via the Digital Drop Box in BlackBoard.)
You can attend any women's studies focused events and then write a response
paper as described below. (If you have a question about whether an
event is related to women's studies please ask me or Ellen.) So step
one, attend an event. Step two write a one page response paper on
the event. Writing a one page (typed, double-space) response paper
is unlike almost any other writing assignment you may have done in the
past. It may seem easy to write something so short, but it's actually
more difficult than writing something longer. You have to distill
your response to an often lengthy event (an talk, a performance, a play)
into about 250 words, which isn't very much at all. To help you with
this task, here are some guidelines to consider: (Response
paper grading criteria is also online.)
1. Since you have absolutely no space to waste, DO NOT use even one precious word summarizing the event you're reacting to. I want to know what YOU think about it. There's no need to restate the major points. You can mention briefly items from the event if there's something specific you want to react to, but avoid lengthy quotations or summaries. There's no room for them.
2. Don't try to cram all your thoughts about the event into that one page. Pick one (or at most two) idea / question / concern that the event raised for you, and develop it as fully as you can. Explain your reaction, justifying what in the event brought it up for you (without summarizing--see #1) and how you have processed it. You needn't have reached a conclusion or found the absolute "truth" about the issue you raise; it's OK to be tentative and searching in this sort of informal paper. It's also more than OK to disagree with what you witnessed--so long as you can articulate your objection with some clarity.
3. As you write these one page-papers, temporarily put aside what your high school English teacher told you about having an introduction, body and conclusion--the proverbial 5 paragraph theme. Though this form is usually sound, you'll only be writing 1-2 paragraphs here and don't need to start with generalizations (as in a typical intro) or end with summary (as in a typical conclusion). In fact, this form will only get you in trouble. Instead, launch right into your main point without any fanfare. This is not to say you shouldn't have some loose sense of structure, only that you don't need a formal thesis or outline. A good topic sentence near the beginning, defining the issue or question or objection will do just fine.
4. Don't worry too much about writing style. Although you want to write clear and grammatically correct sentences, a response paper should sound like just that--your response. You don't need to waste time finding just the right polysyllabic word. Put that thesaurus away and spend the time thinking through your ideas instead.
Exercise 1 Due Thursday September 25 BY MIDNIGHT
on
BlackBoard
The goal of this assignment is to consider some of the topics
raised so far in the course. You will go to the disscussion forum
for BlackBoard and choose an area of interest to you. There you will
post a paragraph in response to the question and then reply to other students'
posts. It will hopefully become a place to consider ideas from the course
and how to articulate them in written form. When you respond to the
others in the forum please respond to them in a way that will encourage
them to continue their thinking and their writing. It is a chance
for you to consider what someone else thinks and respond to it (hopefully
in ways you would want people to respond to your writing and ideas).
You are not the teacher so it is not your job to correct grammar or spelling.
You are the on-line (and in class) writing and idea assistant to your conference
mates. Please understand this as a chance to really engage with some
of your classmates. Why do they think what they do? How did
they get to those positions of thought? What experiences motivate
different ideas? How can you relate or not? Why do you agree
or disagree? Take the time to consider your conference mates' ideas
and know that they will take the same time with yours. If you have
questions or feedback, email me, Laurie
Fuller.
In addition to you posting your paragraph(s) to the discussion group
you will need to respond to the other paragraphs that are posted.
This is worth 20 points, 10 for
your post and 10 for your replies (you must complete at least 3 thoughtful
replies for these points).
Exercise 2 Post Due October 14 and Replies
due October 16 BY MIDNIGHT on
BlackBoard
The goal of this assignment is to consider some of the topics
raised so far in the course. You will go to the disscussion forum
for BlackBoard and choose an area of interest to you. There you will
post a paragraph in response to the question and then reply to other students'
posts. It will hopefully become a place to consider ideas from the course
and how to articulate them in written form. When you respond to the
others in the forum please respond to them in a way that will encourage
them to continue their thinking and their writing. It is a chance
for you to consider what someone else thinks and respond to it (hopefully
in ways you would want people to respond to your writing and ideas).
You are not the teacher so it is not your job to correct grammar or spelling.
You are the on-line (and in class) writing and idea assistant to your conference
mates. Please understand this as a chance to really engage with some
of your classmates. Why do they think what they do? How did
they get to those positions of thought? What experiences motivate
different ideas? How can you relate or not? Why do you agree
or disagree? Take the time to consider your conference mates' ideas
and know that they will take the same time with yours. If you have
questions or feedback, email me, Laurie
Fuller.
In addition to you posting your paragraph(s) to the discussion group
you will need to respond to the other paragraphs that are posted.
This is worth 20 points, 10 for
your post and 10 for your replies (you must complete at least 3 thoughtful
replies for these points).
Exercise 3 PostDue Nov. 4 by Midnight and
Replies due Nov. 6 BY MIDNIGHT on
BlackBoard
The goal of this assignment is to consider some of the topics
raised so far in the course. You will go to the disscussion forum
for BlackBoard and choose an area of interest to you. There you will
post a paragraph in response to the question and then reply to other students'
posts. It will hopefully become a place to consider ideas from the course
and how to articulate them in written form. When you respond to the
others in the forum please respond to them in a way that will encourage
them to continue their thinking and their writing. It is a chance
for you to consider what someone else thinks and respond to it (hopefully
in ways you would want people to respond to your writing and ideas).
You are not the teacher so it is not your job to correct grammar or spelling.
You are the on-line (and in class) writing and idea assistant to your conference
mates. Please understand this as a chance to really engage with some
of your classmates. Why do they think what they do? How did
they get to those positions of thought? What experiences motivate
different ideas? How can you relate or not? Why do you agree
or disagree? Take the time to consider your conference mates' ideas
and know that they will take the same time with yours. If you have
questions or feedback, email me, Laurie
Fuller.
In addition to you posting your paragraph(s) to the discussion group
you will need to respond to the other paragraphs that are posted.
This is worth 20 points, 10 for
your post and 10 for your replies (you must complete at least 3 thoughtful
replies for these points).
Exercise 4 Due Monday November 25.
The goal of this assignment is to clearly and convincingly describe
a topic of your choice related to the course. Write a 4-5 page paper
on some topic or opinion related to the course. You must use at least
one of the readings assigned this semester, (or if you are interested in
a topic not covered this semester, please discuss with me). Given
the nature of this course it is important to consider how issues of gender,
race, class, sexuality, and other identity markers impact or are aspects
of your ideas/topics/argument. Please do not write as if these ideas
we have discussed this semester do not exist. It is important to
have a thesis,
even something as simple as "My topic is important to women because..."
A thesis
holds the paper together so that your points are clearly expressed. If
you have questions please ask me, having a good thesis is a vital part
of writing your paper successfully. This paper will be graded on whether
you have clearly explained your topic. Do you have a clear thesis
and an introduction and conclusion? Have you discussed all aspects
of the topic that relate? Have you proofread? Do you have some
sort of evidence about your topic, such as personal experience, quotes
from the articles we read, or other ideas which support your argument?
Does the paper explain how the evidence supports the thesis you are writing
about? Does your paper attempt to go beyond a re-hash of the readings
and discussions? Is the paper organized in a logical manner with
transitional sentences between the paragraphs? Is your paper easy
to follow and reads well? This is your chance to express your opinions
in a clear well-written essay. Your papers will be graded on your
clear writing, your logical progression of ideas, and your ability to convincingly
describe a topic. Exercise 4 is worth 40 points.
Additional Guidelines for Exercise 4:
Due Nov. 25, but there is a no-penalty grace
period until 5 pm Nov. 26 as long as you attended class on Nov. 25.
(In other words, don't skip class to
finish the paper.)
Late papers received after Nov. 26 are penalized
as follows: Nov. 27 "A" reduced to B+; After Nov.
27, A reduced to B, etc.
Grading considerations: (Grading Criteria
also online)
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