English 1A, Fall 2008
College of Alameda
Professor Wanda Sabir
Course code 42712; Class Meetings: August 20-Dec. 11, MTWTh, 11-11:50 a.m., B-203
No classes: 9/1; 10/22; 11/11; 11/27-28; Final Exam: 10-12 Wed., Dec. 17
Drop dates: Sept. 4 (w/refund), Sept. 13 (w/out a W), Nov. 18 (w/W).
Each One, Pull One (Thinking of Lorraine Hansberry)
…We must say it all, as clearly
as we can. For, even before we are dead,
they are busy
trying to bury us.—Alice Walker
Syllabus for English 1A: College Composition and Reading
English 1A is the first transferable college writing course. Don’t get nervous, hopefully you took English 201 and passed with a B or better. Perhaps you’re fresh out of high school, did okay on the placement exam and voila wound up here. Maybe you’re returning to college after a significant hiatus and aren’t confident in your writing, yet once again passed that placement exam, which, if you recall, tested grammar not writing. Keep your receipt and notice the dates, so you can get a full refund if you cut your losses and drop by Sept. 4 (w/refund), Sept. 13 (w/out a W), Nov. 18 (w/W). So my joke wasn’t funny? Hang in there and you’ll do fine in the class if you:
1. Know what an essay is
2. Have written one before
3. Are ready to commit yourself to the task of writing
Plan to have a challenging, yet intellectually stimulating 18 weeks, which I hope you begin by setting goals for yourself. Make a schedule and join or create a study group. Writing is a social activity, especially the type of writing you’ll be doing here. We always consider our audience, have purpose or reason to write, and use research to substantiate our claims, even those we are considered experts in.
I believe we’re supposed to write about 8000 words or so at this level course. This includes drafts. What this amounts to is time at home writing, time in the library researching, reading documents to increase your facility with the ideas or themes your are contemplating, before you once again sit at your desk writing, revising, and writing some more.
Writing is a lonely process. No one can write for you. The social aspect comes into play once you are finished and you have an opportunity to share.
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:50 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon after 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. by appointment in L-236 (inside the Writing Center Lab L-235). Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
We will write an essay based on the themes from each book. You will also write a research essay. You will need a grammar and style book. I recommend Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers, (St. Martin’s Press) and a notebook for in-class writing with a folder for handouts. You also need a couple of ink pens, a pencil with an eraser, a hole puncher, and a stapler.
I like to read and can’t resist a great story. All of these authors know how to spin a tale. We will be looking at the various characters, their journeys and their choices. Why do they do what they do? Do they need to make better choices, divorce their families, get new friends, think for themselves?
We will keep a reading log. Discussion groups will meet each week. Students will also keep a reading log/journal/notes with key ideas outlined for each discussion section, along with themes which arise, vocabulary and key arguments, along with primary writing strategies employed: description, process analysis, narration, argument, cause and effect, compare and contrast, definition, problem solving.
At the completion of each text as I said, we will write a short essay about the work. We will begin with Michael Eric Dyson’s Know What I Mean, along with The Message:100 Life Lessons from Hip Hop’s Greatest Songs by Felicia Pride, followed by Jeff Change’s Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop, followed by the novel, The Coldest Winter Ever, and perhaps a hip hop genre play or a classical one that works thematically. If you are a slow reader start Can’t Stop early. It’s an easy read, but Chang covers a lot of territory.
Research Project
Your research project will entail finding a social entrepreneur who is an artist, who has been active in his or her community for at least 20 years and have documented resources you can draw from: books, essays, articles, films, music, and performances. The paper will be about 10 pages. This will include a works cited page and bibliography. Students will make 5-10 minute presentations of these papers the day of the final. The paper will be due about two-three weeks prior to the presentation. I thought students could look for women in hip hop here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I’m just not certain if there are enough to go around (smile). We’ll discuss this task further later on.
The paper will be between 5-7 pages. This will include a works cited page and bibliography. Students will make 5-10 minute presentations of these papers in May during final’s week. The paper will be due about two-three weeks prior to the presentation. We’ll discuss this task further later on. Start thinking of whom you might want to profile now.
New Heroes
Visit PBS.org The New Heroes, to read about social entrepreneurs. (I’ll show you a few episodes from the series.) Too often people feel helpless or hopeless when there is a lot you can do as an individual as soon as you realize the answer lies inside of you. If possible chose an entrepreneur who lives in Northern California, someone you’d like to interview and perhaps meet. There is also a series on PBS called Frontline World with many SE profiled.
We will visit the library for 1-3 special sessions to help you better prepare for this project. Students can work on the project together and share resources. Each person has to write his or her own paper, but you can make a group presentation if you like.
Library Sessions: TBA. One session will be with the librarian and the other two will be with me.
Reading great authors and writers helps you develop your style. It’s similar to eating a balanced meal for optimum health. A writer is only as intellectually healthy as the material he or she reads. Models are often a great way to practice a style of writing. I will occasionally make copies of articles from magazines and textbooks I think illustrate a particular style of writing I’d like you to practice, or perhaps an argument which has peaked my interest. If you find an argument, either a visual one or a written one you’d like to share please do so.
Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in order of importance.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Please put your name, mailing address, phone number and e-mail address on the card you’ve been given, then answer the following questions on a separate sheet of paper or index card (handed out):
What strengths do you bring to the class? What skills or knowledge would you like to leave with once the class ends? What can I do to help you achieve this? Is there anything I need to know, such as a hidden disability, childcare issues, etc., which might jeopardize this goal?
Presentation 1: Due Tuesday, Sept. 2
Bring in an object that represents hip hop culture. Be prepared to share. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). You will post the written response on the blog. I’ll take photos. (If you were in my class Fall 2007, choose another object.)
Presentation 2: Due Tuesday, Sept. 9
Bring in an object that reflects America, American values, its people, landscape, or history. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). Same as above. It is also a cyber-assignment.
Grading
Course texts: 35 percent
Midterm: 10 percent
Final: 15 percent
Research Essay/Presentation: 15 percent
Portfolio: 15 percent
Peer Reviews from Lab teachers: 5 percent
Participation: 5 percent
The essays from the textbooks are practice essays; the essays on the literature are analysis. Together they are about a fourth of your grade. The midterm and final are another fourth and your portfolio and the tutoring Writing Lab component is the final fourth. Plan to visit the Writing Center (L-234-231, 748-2132) weekly. Have a teacher evaluate your essays for form and content; the aim is lucid, precise, and clear prose.
This is a portfolio course, so save all of your work. You can average the grades to see how to weigh the various components. Participation is included in the daily exercises and homework portion of the grade, so if your attendance is exemplary, yet you say nothing the entire 18 weeks, you lose percentage points.
The Writing Center
The Writing Lab is a great place to get one-on-on assistance on your essays, from brainstorming and planning the essays, to critique on the essay for clarity, organization, clearly stated thesis, evidence of support, logical conclusions, and grammatical problems for referrals to other ancillary materials to build strong writing muscles such as SkillsBank, the Bedford Handbook on-line, Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers on-line, Townsend Press, and other such computer and cyber-based resources. The Lab is open M-Th 8-7, Fridays, 8-2. It is also open on Saturday. There is an Open Lab for checking e-mail, and a Math Lab. All academic labs are located in the Learning Resource Center (LRC) second floor.
Students need a student ID to use the labs and to check out books. The IDs are free and you can take the photo in the F-Building, Student Services. There is also a Cyber Café in the F-Building on the second floor in the cafeteria area.
Have a tutor or teacher sign off on your essays before you turn them in; if you have a “R,” which means revision necessary for a grade or “NC” which means “no credit,” you have to go to the lab and revise the essay with a tutor or teacher before you return both the graded original and the revision (with signature) to me. Revise does not mean “rewrite,” it means to “see again.”
When getting assistance on an essay, the teacher or tutor is not an editor, so have questions prepared for them to make best use of the 15 minute session in the Lab. I have given you a handout designating five (5) areas you might want to have the tutor or teacher look at. For more specific assistance sign up for one-on-one tutoring, another free service. For those of you on other campuses, you can get assistance at the Merritt Colleges’ Writing Center, as well as Laney’s. You can also come see me during my office hours. I am here everyday except Friday.
All essay assignments you receive comments on have to be revised prior to resubmission; included with the revision is a student narrative to me regarding your understanding of what needed to be done; a student can prepare this as a part of the Lab visit, especially if said student is unclear over what steps to take.
Students can also visit me in office hours for assistance. Again, prepare your questions in advance to best make use of the time. Do not leave class without understanding the comments on a paper. I don’t mind reading them to you.
English language fluency in writing and reading, a certain comfort and ease with the language, confidence and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing, familiarity if not mastery of the rhetorical styles used in argumentation, exposition and narration will be addressed in this class and is a key student learning outcome (SLO).
We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.
This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process - critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with bigotry; it’s easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more just, alternative protocol.
Grades, Portfolio
We will be honest with one another. Grades are not necessarily the best response to work; grades do not take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not a student can demonstrate mastery of a skill - in this case: essay writing. Grades are an approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or failure this summer session in meeting your goals. I like to post essays on the academic blog as examples for other students. I will be asking students from time to time to submit copies for posting. The blog is cumulative, so you can read essays from Spring 2006, Fall 2007, up to now. I have posted a welcome and the syllabus. The address is http://professorwandasposse.blogspot.com/
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:30 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. by appointment in A-200. Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. All the office hours take place in my office, L-236, except where noted. (I’m inside the Writing Center Lab L-235). I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
I don’t check my e-mail on weekends so I’d advise you to exchange phone numbers with classmates (2), so if you have a concern, it can be addressed more expediently. Again study groups are recommended, especially for those students finding the readings difficult; don’t forget, you can also discuss the readings as a group in the Lab with a teacher or tutor acting as facilitator. Keep a vocabulary log for the semester and an error chart (taken from comments on essay assignments). List the words you need to look up in the dictionary, also list where you first encountered them: page, book and definition, also use the word in a sentence. You will turn this in with your portfolio.
Students are expected to complete their work on time. If you need more time on an assignment, discuss this with me in advance, if possible, to keep full credit. You loose credit each day an assignment is late and certain assignments, such as in-class essays cannot be made up. All assignments prepared outside of class are to be typed, 12-pt. font, double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the written work (see Hacker: The Writing Process; Document Design.)
Cheating
Plagiarism is ethically abhorrent, and if any student tries to take credit for work authored by another person the result will be a failed grade on the assignment and possibly a failed grade in the course if this is attempted again. This is a graded course.
Homework
If you do not identify the assignment, I cannot grade it. If you do not return the original assignment you revised, I cannot compare what changed. If you accidentally toss out or loose the original assignment, you get a zero on the assignment to be revised. I will not look at revisions without the original attached - no exceptions.
All assignments completed away from class should be typed. Use blue or black ink when writing responses in class. You can annotate your books in pencil.
Textbooks Recap:
The Coldest Winter Ever. Sister Souljah. Simon & Schuster. 2006.
http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?tab=1&pid=514298&er=9781416521693
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Jeff Chang. Picador. 2005. ISBN: 0-312-42579-1
Know What I Mean? Reflections on Hip Hop. Michael Eric Dyson. Basic Civitias Books. 2007. ISBN: 0-465-017716-9 (I am making copiesof certain chapters, but I recommend purchasing it.)
The Elements of Style. Any edition. Williams Strunk Jr., E.B. White. Longman Publishers.
Recommended:
The American Heritage Dictionary. Fourth Edition.
The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop’s Greatest Songs. Felicia Pride. Thunder’s Mouth Press. 2007. ISBN-13: 978-1-56858-335-8
The Prepared Student also needs pens with blue or black ink, along with a pencil for annotating texts, paper, a stapler or paper clips, a jump drive, a notebook, three hole punch, a folder for work-in-progress, and a divided binder to keep materials together.
Also stay abreast of the news. Buy a daily paper. Listen to alternative radio: KPFA 94.1 FM, KQED 88.5, KALW 91.7. Visit news websites: AllAfrica.com, Al Jazeera, CNN.com, AlterNet.org, DemocracyNow.org, FlashPoint.org, CBS 60Minutes on-line.
College of Alameda
Professor Wanda Sabir
Course code 42712; Class Meetings: August 20-Dec. 11, MTWTh, 11-11:50 a.m., B-203
No classes: 9/1; 10/22; 11/11; 11/27-28; Final Exam: 10-12 Wed., Dec. 17
Drop dates: Sept. 4 (w/refund), Sept. 13 (w/out a W), Nov. 18 (w/W).
Each One, Pull One (Thinking of Lorraine Hansberry)
…We must say it all, as clearly
as we can. For, even before we are dead,
they are busy
trying to bury us.—Alice Walker
Syllabus for English 1A: College Composition and Reading
English 1A is the first transferable college writing course. Don’t get nervous, hopefully you took English 201 and passed with a B or better. Perhaps you’re fresh out of high school, did okay on the placement exam and voila wound up here. Maybe you’re returning to college after a significant hiatus and aren’t confident in your writing, yet once again passed that placement exam, which, if you recall, tested grammar not writing. Keep your receipt and notice the dates, so you can get a full refund if you cut your losses and drop by Sept. 4 (w/refund), Sept. 13 (w/out a W), Nov. 18 (w/W). So my joke wasn’t funny? Hang in there and you’ll do fine in the class if you:
1. Know what an essay is
2. Have written one before
3. Are ready to commit yourself to the task of writing
Plan to have a challenging, yet intellectually stimulating 18 weeks, which I hope you begin by setting goals for yourself. Make a schedule and join or create a study group. Writing is a social activity, especially the type of writing you’ll be doing here. We always consider our audience, have purpose or reason to write, and use research to substantiate our claims, even those we are considered experts in.
I believe we’re supposed to write about 8000 words or so at this level course. This includes drafts. What this amounts to is time at home writing, time in the library researching, reading documents to increase your facility with the ideas or themes your are contemplating, before you once again sit at your desk writing, revising, and writing some more.
Writing is a lonely process. No one can write for you. The social aspect comes into play once you are finished and you have an opportunity to share.
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:50 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon after 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. by appointment in L-236 (inside the Writing Center Lab L-235). Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
We will write an essay based on the themes from each book. You will also write a research essay. You will need a grammar and style book. I recommend Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers, (St. Martin’s Press) and a notebook for in-class writing with a folder for handouts. You also need a couple of ink pens, a pencil with an eraser, a hole puncher, and a stapler.
I like to read and can’t resist a great story. All of these authors know how to spin a tale. We will be looking at the various characters, their journeys and their choices. Why do they do what they do? Do they need to make better choices, divorce their families, get new friends, think for themselves?
We will keep a reading log. Discussion groups will meet each week. Students will also keep a reading log/journal/notes with key ideas outlined for each discussion section, along with themes which arise, vocabulary and key arguments, along with primary writing strategies employed: description, process analysis, narration, argument, cause and effect, compare and contrast, definition, problem solving.
At the completion of each text as I said, we will write a short essay about the work. We will begin with Michael Eric Dyson’s Know What I Mean, along with The Message:100 Life Lessons from Hip Hop’s Greatest Songs by Felicia Pride, followed by Jeff Change’s Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop, followed by the novel, The Coldest Winter Ever, and perhaps a hip hop genre play or a classical one that works thematically. If you are a slow reader start Can’t Stop early. It’s an easy read, but Chang covers a lot of territory.
Research Project
Your research project will entail finding a social entrepreneur who is an artist, who has been active in his or her community for at least 20 years and have documented resources you can draw from: books, essays, articles, films, music, and performances. The paper will be about 10 pages. This will include a works cited page and bibliography. Students will make 5-10 minute presentations of these papers the day of the final. The paper will be due about two-three weeks prior to the presentation. I thought students could look for women in hip hop here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I’m just not certain if there are enough to go around (smile). We’ll discuss this task further later on.
The paper will be between 5-7 pages. This will include a works cited page and bibliography. Students will make 5-10 minute presentations of these papers in May during final’s week. The paper will be due about two-three weeks prior to the presentation. We’ll discuss this task further later on. Start thinking of whom you might want to profile now.
New Heroes
Visit PBS.org The New Heroes, to read about social entrepreneurs. (I’ll show you a few episodes from the series.) Too often people feel helpless or hopeless when there is a lot you can do as an individual as soon as you realize the answer lies inside of you. If possible chose an entrepreneur who lives in Northern California, someone you’d like to interview and perhaps meet. There is also a series on PBS called Frontline World with many SE profiled.
We will visit the library for 1-3 special sessions to help you better prepare for this project. Students can work on the project together and share resources. Each person has to write his or her own paper, but you can make a group presentation if you like.
Library Sessions: TBA. One session will be with the librarian and the other two will be with me.
Reading great authors and writers helps you develop your style. It’s similar to eating a balanced meal for optimum health. A writer is only as intellectually healthy as the material he or she reads. Models are often a great way to practice a style of writing. I will occasionally make copies of articles from magazines and textbooks I think illustrate a particular style of writing I’d like you to practice, or perhaps an argument which has peaked my interest. If you find an argument, either a visual one or a written one you’d like to share please do so.
Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in order of importance.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Please put your name, mailing address, phone number and e-mail address on the card you’ve been given, then answer the following questions on a separate sheet of paper or index card (handed out):
What strengths do you bring to the class? What skills or knowledge would you like to leave with once the class ends? What can I do to help you achieve this? Is there anything I need to know, such as a hidden disability, childcare issues, etc., which might jeopardize this goal?
Presentation 1: Due Tuesday, Sept. 2
Bring in an object that represents hip hop culture. Be prepared to share. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). You will post the written response on the blog. I’ll take photos. (If you were in my class Fall 2007, choose another object.)
Presentation 2: Due Tuesday, Sept. 9
Bring in an object that reflects America, American values, its people, landscape, or history. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). Same as above. It is also a cyber-assignment.
Grading
Course texts: 35 percent
Midterm: 10 percent
Final: 15 percent
Research Essay/Presentation: 15 percent
Portfolio: 15 percent
Peer Reviews from Lab teachers: 5 percent
Participation: 5 percent
The essays from the textbooks are practice essays; the essays on the literature are analysis. Together they are about a fourth of your grade. The midterm and final are another fourth and your portfolio and the tutoring Writing Lab component is the final fourth. Plan to visit the Writing Center (L-234-231, 748-2132) weekly. Have a teacher evaluate your essays for form and content; the aim is lucid, precise, and clear prose.
This is a portfolio course, so save all of your work. You can average the grades to see how to weigh the various components. Participation is included in the daily exercises and homework portion of the grade, so if your attendance is exemplary, yet you say nothing the entire 18 weeks, you lose percentage points.
The Writing Center
The Writing Lab is a great place to get one-on-on assistance on your essays, from brainstorming and planning the essays, to critique on the essay for clarity, organization, clearly stated thesis, evidence of support, logical conclusions, and grammatical problems for referrals to other ancillary materials to build strong writing muscles such as SkillsBank, the Bedford Handbook on-line, Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers on-line, Townsend Press, and other such computer and cyber-based resources. The Lab is open M-Th 8-7, Fridays, 8-2. It is also open on Saturday. There is an Open Lab for checking e-mail, and a Math Lab. All academic labs are located in the Learning Resource Center (LRC) second floor.
Students need a student ID to use the labs and to check out books. The IDs are free and you can take the photo in the F-Building, Student Services. There is also a Cyber Café in the F-Building on the second floor in the cafeteria area.
Have a tutor or teacher sign off on your essays before you turn them in; if you have a “R,” which means revision necessary for a grade or “NC” which means “no credit,” you have to go to the lab and revise the essay with a tutor or teacher before you return both the graded original and the revision (with signature) to me. Revise does not mean “rewrite,” it means to “see again.”
When getting assistance on an essay, the teacher or tutor is not an editor, so have questions prepared for them to make best use of the 15 minute session in the Lab. I have given you a handout designating five (5) areas you might want to have the tutor or teacher look at. For more specific assistance sign up for one-on-one tutoring, another free service. For those of you on other campuses, you can get assistance at the Merritt Colleges’ Writing Center, as well as Laney’s. You can also come see me during my office hours. I am here everyday except Friday.
All essay assignments you receive comments on have to be revised prior to resubmission; included with the revision is a student narrative to me regarding your understanding of what needed to be done; a student can prepare this as a part of the Lab visit, especially if said student is unclear over what steps to take.
Students can also visit me in office hours for assistance. Again, prepare your questions in advance to best make use of the time. Do not leave class without understanding the comments on a paper. I don’t mind reading them to you.
English language fluency in writing and reading, a certain comfort and ease with the language, confidence and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing, familiarity if not mastery of the rhetorical styles used in argumentation, exposition and narration will be addressed in this class and is a key student learning outcome (SLO).
We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.
This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process - critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with bigotry; it’s easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more just, alternative protocol.
Grades, Portfolio
We will be honest with one another. Grades are not necessarily the best response to work; grades do not take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not a student can demonstrate mastery of a skill - in this case: essay writing. Grades are an approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or failure this summer session in meeting your goals. I like to post essays on the academic blog as examples for other students. I will be asking students from time to time to submit copies for posting. The blog is cumulative, so you can read essays from Spring 2006, Fall 2007, up to now. I have posted a welcome and the syllabus. The address is http://professorwandasposse.blogspot.com/
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:30 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. by appointment in A-200. Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. All the office hours take place in my office, L-236, except where noted. (I’m inside the Writing Center Lab L-235). I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
I don’t check my e-mail on weekends so I’d advise you to exchange phone numbers with classmates (2), so if you have a concern, it can be addressed more expediently. Again study groups are recommended, especially for those students finding the readings difficult; don’t forget, you can also discuss the readings as a group in the Lab with a teacher or tutor acting as facilitator. Keep a vocabulary log for the semester and an error chart (taken from comments on essay assignments). List the words you need to look up in the dictionary, also list where you first encountered them: page, book and definition, also use the word in a sentence. You will turn this in with your portfolio.
Students are expected to complete their work on time. If you need more time on an assignment, discuss this with me in advance, if possible, to keep full credit. You loose credit each day an assignment is late and certain assignments, such as in-class essays cannot be made up. All assignments prepared outside of class are to be typed, 12-pt. font, double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the written work (see Hacker: The Writing Process; Document Design.)
Cheating
Plagiarism is ethically abhorrent, and if any student tries to take credit for work authored by another person the result will be a failed grade on the assignment and possibly a failed grade in the course if this is attempted again. This is a graded course.
Homework
If you do not identify the assignment, I cannot grade it. If you do not return the original assignment you revised, I cannot compare what changed. If you accidentally toss out or loose the original assignment, you get a zero on the assignment to be revised. I will not look at revisions without the original attached - no exceptions.
All assignments completed away from class should be typed. Use blue or black ink when writing responses in class. You can annotate your books in pencil.
Textbooks Recap:
The Coldest Winter Ever. Sister Souljah. Simon & Schuster. 2006.
http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?tab=1&pid=514298&er=9781416521693
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Jeff Chang. Picador. 2005. ISBN: 0-312-42579-1
Know What I Mean? Reflections on Hip Hop. Michael Eric Dyson. Basic Civitias Books. 2007. ISBN: 0-465-017716-9 (I am making copiesof certain chapters, but I recommend purchasing it.)
The Elements of Style. Any edition. Williams Strunk Jr., E.B. White. Longman Publishers.
Recommended:
The American Heritage Dictionary. Fourth Edition.
The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop’s Greatest Songs. Felicia Pride. Thunder’s Mouth Press. 2007. ISBN-13: 978-1-56858-335-8
The Prepared Student also needs pens with blue or black ink, along with a pencil for annotating texts, paper, a stapler or paper clips, a jump drive, a notebook, three hole punch, a folder for work-in-progress, and a divided binder to keep materials together.
Also stay abreast of the news. Buy a daily paper. Listen to alternative radio: KPFA 94.1 FM, KQED 88.5, KALW 91.7. Visit news websites: AllAfrica.com, Al Jazeera, CNN.com, AlterNet.org, DemocracyNow.org, FlashPoint.org, CBS 60Minutes on-line.
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