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Assignment calendar Spring 2011
Cañada College English 100 Clay Spring 2011 ENGL 100 - WAD CRN: 34790 MW
9:45-11:00
Required Texts:
Atwan. Convergences. 2nd ed. Bedford/St. Martins, 2004.
Gore, Al. An Inconvenient Truth. NY: Rodale, 2006.
Hacker, Diana. Rules for Writers 6th edition. Barnes and Noble, 2007.
Any college dictionary
Syllabus: This is a rough schedule of reading assignments and due dates
for papers. These dates may change.
Week 1: 1/18-1/21 Class Introduction.
Week 2: Jan. 24-28 "The Wire" Season 4, episode 1
Week 3: Jan. 31- Feb.4 "The Wire, episode 2 Paragraphs -
Week 4: Feb. 7- 11 Thesis statements, Introductions, Conclusions -
Finding and supporting your main idea.
Week 5: Feb. 14-17 (Holiday 2/18 - Lincoln's Birthday) Essay #1: on “The
Wire” - Paper revisions, editing
Week 6: Feb. 22-25 (Holiday 2/21 President's Day)
Week 7: Feb. 28- March 4 Essay #2: "Ashes," by David Sedaris -
Paper revisions, editing
Week 8: March 7 - 10 (School Holiday 3/11) TBA reports due (the first
half)
Week 9: March 14-18 Introduction to documentation and MLA style (Rules
for Writers) midterm examination
Week 10: March 21-25 Essay #3: Compare and Contrast - the Vietnam
Veterans’ Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial
Week 11: March 28-31 Climate Change: causes and effects Your Ecological
Footprint Read: An Inconvenient Truth, chapters 1-5. In class viewing of An
Inconvenient Truth, the film Spring Break April 4-8
Week 12: April 11-15 Read: An Inconvenient Truth, chapters 6-12.
Documentary Film: Extreme Ice Now. Paper # 4 TBA Begin research project
Paper revisions, editing
Week 13: April 18-22 Frontline’s “Heat”
Week 14: April 25-29 Research and Discussion NASA Web Page
Week 15: May 2-6 Paper #5: Research project and paper TBA reports due
Week 16: May 9-13 Sherman Alexie: “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” Week 17:
May 16-20 Semester review
Week 18: May 23-27 Final Examination Week
Student Learning Outcomes for English 100: Students will write a
compelling thesis statement that controls the argument of the essay.
Students will draft a well-supported, argumentative, text-based essay
adhering to MLA format. Students will distinguish between fact and opinion
in evaluating source materials.
Cañada
College Clay, Spring
2011
English
100 WAD, English 110 WAF
AssignAssignments
for “The Wire:” brainstorming, paragraphs, & essay #1
ments
for “The Wire:” brainstorming, paragraphs, & essay #1
Resources:
We
will watch the first two episodes of season four, “Boys of Summer” and
“Soft Eyes” in class. These are episodes #38 and #39 out of the whole 60
episodes. If you miss
part of the class viewing, or if you want to see the episodes a second
time, they can be downloaded from iTunes ($1.99 each) or Amazon and several
other online sources. They
also can be ordered from Netflix.
The series DVD’s will be in the Cañada library for in-library use.
The
Wire, Truth Be Told, by Rafael
Alvarez, (581 pages) is a wonderful book about the series. It contains interviews, reviews,
episode summaries, lots of stills -- it is a major resources
for students of the series.
HBO’s
web page for the show is <http://www.hbo.com/#/the-wire>. Here you will find very complete synopses
of all of the episodes, a complete list of characters (with pictures), a
blog, interviews with the show’s creators and
others, and behind the scenes commentaries which are really interesting.
In
Class:
You will meet
with your work group for brainstorming, editing and proofreading, and for sharing resources and
ideas. We also will have class
time for individual writing.
The
Writing:
Paragraph
#1: Your first reactions to
“The Wire.” Explain your early
ideas and responses
to the show - include the positive and the negative.
Paragraph
#2: What do you think the
producers and writers wanted to achieve with the “The Wire?” Illustrate your ideas with
examples.
Paragraph
#3: Discuss a character that
impresses you in some way. Is
the character
funny? unusual? like
someone you know? Does the
character illustrate
something about American society that we need to know about?...
The
Essay: (Due February 1We will discuss specific paper topics in class. Your paper should be 750-1,000 words. Be sure that you have a strong introduction
and thesis idea, and that
you argue strongly for what you believe
Cañada College English 100 Spring 2011 Clay Your research paper is due May 16
For this paper use sources from the data bases on the Cañada Library web pages. You should develop a strong topic question for your paper, and use at least 4 or 5 sources to gather ideas for your topic. Your paper most be more than a ‘report’ paper. Don’t just scoop up information and put it into your paper. You must create a strong thesis, and everything in your paper must relate to that thesis. Suggested length for this paper is 1000-1500 words. You must follow the MLA guidelines for format and documentation.
The Union of Concerned Scientists has a strong web page with links to articles on many subjects: Scientific Integrity, Global Warming, Clean Vehicles, Clean Energy, Nuclear Power, Nuclear Weapons and & Global Security, Food and Agriculture, Invasive Species. Their web page has links to their publications. Among the books published by UCS is
Thoreau's Legacy: American Stories About Global Warming. Their blurb for the book: This new anthology from the Union of Concerned Scientists and Penguin Classics brings together established writers and fresh voices to inspire us with personal stories and reflections on global warming… The 67 pieces of writing and art included within are drawn from nearly a thousand submissions about beloved places, animals, plants, people, and activities at risk from a changing climate, and the personal efforts people are making to save what they love. A foreword on global warming from author Barbara Kingsolver helps to set the context. Read several of these short essays, choose one, and do research on the topic discussed in that essay. These are very readable short essays by talented writers.
Some Sample Assignments:
Interview/Essay: "Are Your Feet Too Big?"
For this project interview two or three classmates or friends about the use
of energy in their lives and describe the
ecological footprint concept to them. If they are willing, take them
through the ecological footprint quiz and give them the results. Hopefully,
this will enable a discussion about our energy use, our individual
responsilbility for energy consumption, and the ongoing problem of climate
change.
After you do the interviews, briefly describe the inverview process, and summarize
your discussions. Then write a well organized
essay about what you learned. For example, is the ecological footprint a
good device for increasing awareness of environmental issues? Do you think
that people are open to changing their living patterns? Are they resistant?
Are people's atitudes changing?
So you will need to prepare two documents for this assignment:
1. A memo-like description of your interviews, &
2. A finished essay.
We will discuss this project in class, and please share your ideas about
interview questions...
dc
For both English 100 sections, May, Spring 07
for Jimmy Santiago Baca's, A Place to Stand:
Make a journal of your reading of A
Place to Stand: For each section of each chapter (separated by
the diamond symbols), choose a short passage that you think summarizes the
emotion or realization that the narrator feels at that time.
For MWF Spring 07 Engl 100AE
Two Conflicts/ Two Monuments
(750-1000 words)
Topic: the design, styles, intentions, and messages, of the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial.
Texts: Maya Lin's essay, "Between Art and Architecture;" Lin's
descriptive essay for her proposal; your research about the Lincoln
Memorial; Lincoln's "Gettysburg Address" ....
Think about the purposes and styles of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
and the Lincoln Memorial. How are these monuments different? What details
of the design and construction of these monuments are important to their
messages? How do they reflect the times when they were built? Present your
thoughts about these questions in a well planned
essay with a clear thesis and logical support.
Please include your prewriting assignments - your summary of Lin's essay
and your paraphrase of the Gettysburg Address - with your paper. Stay with
MLA style, and don't forget to consult with me during office hours. dc 11/3/04
Essay assignment: 3 Strikes and Proposition 66
Due Tuesday, October 12 - annotated bibliography and topic proposal
Paper due October 19
The November ballot contains a multitutde of propositions and initiatives.
Among the more important of these is Proposition 66 which
would change California’s existing 3 Strikes law. There are many
issues and concerns about the 3 strikes law, and your assignment is to
define a topic about it, do some serious research on the law and the
proposition, and write a well organized research / argumentative paper on
the subject.
Your paper should be as precise as possible. Don’t try to discuss
everything about the question - narrow the topic enough so that you can do
a thorough job of researching and discussing one issue. We will discuss
some of these issues in class, and write some sample topic proposals.
Your paper should be about 1,000 words.
Fall 2004:
Essay assignment #1: “The Lone Ranger and Tonto” due September 9, 2004
The Text
One of Sherman Alexie’s short stories in The Lone Ranger and Tonto
Fistfight in Heaven.
The Topic
The themes of Alexie’s story.
The Assignment:
Describe the most important themes of the story.
In order to do this assignment well, you will need a clear idea of what
“theme” means. You may want to look at a glossary of literary terms for
some definitions and ideas about themes of literary works. Also, you must
base your paper on a very close reading of the story. The more detail you
bring to your paper, the better. Be careful not to make generalizations
about Alexie or his work -- stay focused on the one story. We will discuss
some of the stories in class, and we will do some exercises
which should help you gather ideas and opinions about these
marvelous texts.
You will be evaluated on how well you do the assignment, your clarity and
style, and your careful proofreading.
750-1,000 words
MLA form
I hope that you enjoy Alexie’s stories as much as I do.
dc 8/31/04
Spring 2004 assignments:
Essay assignment #3: “Dividing Lines” Due April 8
Your textbook argues that many of the dividing lines that we take for
granted - i.e. those of gender, and race - are, in fact, not hard and fast
divisions, but that these categories are cultural constructs. Other
divisions, such as those of politics, social affiliation, and religion, are
obviously constructs,but also have huge importance
in our lives. Thinking about the lines which divide us (or which seem to
divide us) can be a useful tool for investigating questions of ethics, law,
cultural conflicts, personal issues, and much more. Write about one of the
sections of the “Dividing Lines” chapter in your Convergences text. Your
selection may not be an essay. Use the concept of dividing lines to examine
your selection.
Your essay should be an argument, not a personal statement or a narrative.
You may want to answer questions such as, “what is the origin of this
dividing line?” “What human need does it serve?” “Who gains from
maintaining this division?” Do some creative thinking about the material
you choose.
Pre-writing assignment: due April 6
What dividing lines are present in your selection? (What are “dividing
lines”, anyway?)
Prepare a short, informal, expanded list of these dividing lines. Your
paper should be no more than two pages, and not in standard essay form. Be
creative with the shape of your paper! Please share this list with me, and
hand it in with with your essay.
You will be evaluated on your organization, clarity, originality, and proofreading.
Please see me during office hours for help with your rough drafts and your
pre-writing assignment.
(750-1000 words)
Cañada College
English 836 & English 100
Instructor: Clay
March 2004Research and Discussion topics for Bowling For Columbine group
presentations.
Choose one of these topics for your group presentation. Do some research
and prepare a ten to fifteen minute presentation on your topic. Each member
of your group should do some research and participate in the presentation.
Bring in visual aids if you wish. Be sure to fill out your Group
Presentation Worksheet and hand it in at the time of your class
presentation. List your research sources in a bibliography and hand that in
also (one bibliography for your whole group.) Your goal is to present new
information to the class, and to stimulate thinking and discussion. You
will be evaluated on your research and how well you frame questions for us
to think about. (You may count your meeting time toward the hours by
arrangement requirement for the class.)
1. Moore uses various editing styles throughout the film (dramatic,
humorous, shocking, satirical, etc.) to convey his messages. Describe and
explain as many of them as you can. What point is the filmmaker trying to
make? How/why are these effective or not in your view?
2. What about the National Rifle Association? What does it advocate? How
powerful is it? Has it changed during its history?
3. What is the Ku Klux Klan? Why was it created? How many deaths was the
klan responsible for? Is it still active?
4. Was Marilyn Manson responsible for Columbine? What is his music like?
Does he advocate or glorify violence in his music?
5. What is the Brady Bill? Why and when was it made into law?
6. What is the militia movement? Do the militia members in the film present
an accurate picture of themselves?
7. What kind of gun control exists in other countries? How is gun control
different in different states and cities of the United States?
8. Bowling For Columbine makes a connection between the United States’
international support of violence and violence within our country. The
following topics are from the film. You can find more details about some of
them in the “library” section of the Bowling For Columbine web page.
Discuss 3 or 4 of these pieces of United States history and think about
what this history says about how the United States uses violence in
international relations. Do you think that our behavior in other countries
has an effect on violence in the United States?
1. 1953: U.S. overthrows Prime Minister Mossadegh of Iran. U.S. installs
the Shah as dictator.
2. 1954: U.S. overthrows democratically elected President Arbenez of
Guatemala. 20,000 civilians are killed.
3. 1963: U.S. backs assassination of South Vietnamese President Diem.
4. 1963-1975: U.S. military kills 4 million people in Southeast Asia.
5. September 11, 1973: U.S. stages a military coup in Chile. Democratically
elected president Salvador Allende is assassinated. Dictator Gen. Augusto
Pinochet is installed. 5,000 Chileans are murdered.
6. 1977: U.S. backs military rulers of El Salvador. 7,000 Salvadorans and
four American nuns are killed.
7. 1980s: U.S. trains Osama bin Laden and fellow Muslim terrorists to kill
Soviets. CIA gives them $3 billion.
8. 1981: Reagan administration trains and funds "Contras" to
fight government. 30,000 Nicaraguans die.
9.1982: U.S. provides billions in aid to Saddam Hussein for weapons to kill
Iranians.
10. 1983: The White House secretly gives Iran weapons to kill Iraqis.
11. 1989: CIA agent Manuel Noriega (also serving as president of Panama)
disobeys orders from Washington. U.S. invades Panama and removes Noriega.
12. 1990: Iraq invades Kuwait with weapons from U.S.
13. 1991: U.S. enters Iraq. Bush reinstates dictator of Kuwait.
14. 1998: U.S. bombs "weapons factory" in Sudan. The factory
turns out to be making aspirin.
15. 1991-making of the film: U.S. planes bomb Iraq on a weekly basis. The
United Nations estimates that 500,000 Iraqi children die from bombing and
sanctions.
16. 2000-2001: U.S. gives Taliban-ruled Afghanistan $245 million in
"aid."
Cañada College
English 100 Clay
Essay #2: The News: Is it Good For You?
Due March 9, 2004
Discuss the content of one local TV news broadcast. Watch a local news
program - not a network show - and make a list of all the items that the
program covers. (It will help if you can record the program.) How many of
the news items are about accidents or violence? Do you think that the
program attempts to get attention by sensationalizing bloody or scary
situations? How many of the news items deal seriously with political or
social issues? What are your conclusions about this one program? Put your
ideas together in a well organized essay, and
distill your conclusions into a persuasive thesis.
Introduce your essay carefully. Be sure to say exactly which broadcast you
watched - or recorded - what time it was on, what channel, and the name of
the program. Be as specific as possible about what you saw. Present your
conclusion in a thesis sentence in your first paragraph.500-750 words
proofread!
show your rough draft to your tutor
consult with me during office hours
Cañada College
English 100 (Clay,Spring 2004)
Essay #1: Monuments and Memorials (750-1000 words)
Essay due February 12
Topic: the styles, intentions, messages, and materials of the Lincoln
Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Materials: Maya Lin's essay in Convergences, the photographs of the Vietnam
Memorial, your research about the Lincoln Memorial ....
Think about the purposes and styles of the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial. How are these monuments different? How do they reflect
the times when they were built? What details of the design and construction
of these monuments are important to their messages? Your well
planned essay should present your thoughts about these questions
with a clear thesis and logical support.
We will be doing some preliminary assignments before the 12th. Please hand
these in with your finished essay. Also, be sure that your list of works
cited is complete and accurate.
dc 1/29
Always Under
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