Quick Note 4/9/2015 |
Student Blogs |
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I don't know about you all, but I am learning a lot from these presentations. Every year I am impressed by the way you encourage yourselves and your peers to critically engage with these issues. Although many of you hold conflicting views, it seems like you're learning from each other and keeping your minds open; many of you are not afraid to voice an unpopular opinion and it is often those opinions that end up sparking the most interesting and productive conversations--thank you to everyone who is involving themselves in these discussions. I have a couple quick notes. One, every class will have a slightly different schedule from here on out, so be sure to check the calendar. Also, since I'm suddenly juggling three different calendars, please email me if i make a mistake or if the calendar is unclear and I'll fix it. You'll also notice a couple of new links under quick links to the right of this post. They'll be explained soon! Check out this survey from the Business Ethics group. They're dealing with some interesting subject matter and I'm excited to see what they present next week. They also have some interesting questions that might spark some good conversation here. The Drilling in Parks group posted the results to their survey here. I was surprised (maybe I shouldn't have been) that so many of those surveyed (although it was a small group) were willing to cut their own oil consumption. I'm curious if you do already? Go comment on their blog if you want! I want to direct you to the 50 Shades blog. Although I am enjoying and learning from all of your blogs, the folks behind the 50 Shades website are doing an outstanding job of engaging their audience with difficult and important ideas. I urge you to check it out if you haven't 0 Comments |
Gun Safety and Restrictions
Drilling in Parks Prison Systems Individualism v Collective Good in Business Do Prisons Work? Racial Discrimination in Health Care 50 Shades Blog Energy Security The Truth about the Prison System The Linguistics of Advertising and its Effects on Society Quick Links |
A Review of Forum Week One 3/27/2015
Big thanks to all of our week one presenters! I've been impressed with the level of respect you've had for each other and the topics at hand. I hope that everyone is leaving these conversations with a more complex knowledge of these issues. I encourage you to continue the conversation on their respective blogs.
One of the benefits of going first is that you're done! Another benefit is that you don't have the chance to learn from your peers' presentations before you stick your own neck out there. So, when you're reading through this, know that making these mistakes were not as egregious in week one as they will be in all other weeks. Which is to say, I expect the upcoming forum presenters to improve upon these issues. Week one forum groups, again, thanks for giving your peers the opportunity to learn from you--both from what you did well (of which there was plenty!) and what you needed to work on more.
Before I launch into the constructive criticism, a quick hashing out of some good stuff, which does not apply to every part of every group, but see what you think applies to your class: stellar research; a lot of good PowerPoint slides; funny presentation techniques; an understanding of what their peers thought about the issue before coming to class; relevant history; creative visuals; productive conversation; the sharing of engaging personal experience--the list goes on.
Keep all of that good stuff in mind as you read over these pieces of advice for future presenters based off my observations from the week:
One: Verbally cite your information! Some of you did this some of the time, some of you did this most of the time, a few of you did this all of the time, some of you made up, or misremembered, statistics on the spot (although I don't encourage this, of course, I'm sure I've been guilty of it, too!). Many of you cited your sources at the end of the presentation, but you need to consider the medium: since this is a presentation, how helpful will it be to your audience to see all the sources listed out of order at the end?
Not only does citing your sources verbally allow your reader to write down an interesting sources, it builds your credibility; for example, if you say that we have 20 years of oil left if we continue with our current rates of consumption, that's interesting but I'm not sure if I believe you. If you tell me that those figures are from environmentalist activists, then that makes sense, but I still don't know if I believe that's accurate. Similarly, if you tell me that OPEC says we have 200, I can also see why they'd say that and I don't think that's accurate either. So if you find the statistic that blank scientists and blank economists got together and agreed that we have 60-90 years left, then I know you did your homework and I can trust the information you're presenting is correct.
Two: Slow down. We all love TEDTalks, right? They encourage us to think about various topics from new perspectives. Some of these are more successful than others, but one thing you notice zero TED talkers do is throw statistic after statistic at you without a story or illustration in between. If they're getting their numbers on, they'll explain it and relate it back to their point.
This TED talk is a great example of a speaker who verbally cites her sources and uses various techniques to slow down her presentation and let her ideas sink in:
What techniques does she use to keep her presentation engaging? What can you learn use? How does she incorporate statistics? How does she use her PowerPoint?
I hope you all have happy weekends, and don't forget that your Forum Response Papers are due on Monday. Check out the prompt for more information.
One of the benefits of going first is that you're done! Another benefit is that you don't have the chance to learn from your peers' presentations before you stick your own neck out there. So, when you're reading through this, know that making these mistakes were not as egregious in week one as they will be in all other weeks. Which is to say, I expect the upcoming forum presenters to improve upon these issues. Week one forum groups, again, thanks for giving your peers the opportunity to learn from you--both from what you did well (of which there was plenty!) and what you needed to work on more.
Before I launch into the constructive criticism, a quick hashing out of some good stuff, which does not apply to every part of every group, but see what you think applies to your class: stellar research; a lot of good PowerPoint slides; funny presentation techniques; an understanding of what their peers thought about the issue before coming to class; relevant history; creative visuals; productive conversation; the sharing of engaging personal experience--the list goes on.
Keep all of that good stuff in mind as you read over these pieces of advice for future presenters based off my observations from the week:
One: Verbally cite your information! Some of you did this some of the time, some of you did this most of the time, a few of you did this all of the time, some of you made up, or misremembered, statistics on the spot (although I don't encourage this, of course, I'm sure I've been guilty of it, too!). Many of you cited your sources at the end of the presentation, but you need to consider the medium: since this is a presentation, how helpful will it be to your audience to see all the sources listed out of order at the end?
Not only does citing your sources verbally allow your reader to write down an interesting sources, it builds your credibility; for example, if you say that we have 20 years of oil left if we continue with our current rates of consumption, that's interesting but I'm not sure if I believe you. If you tell me that those figures are from environmentalist activists, then that makes sense, but I still don't know if I believe that's accurate. Similarly, if you tell me that OPEC says we have 200, I can also see why they'd say that and I don't think that's accurate either. So if you find the statistic that blank scientists and blank economists got together and agreed that we have 60-90 years left, then I know you did your homework and I can trust the information you're presenting is correct.
Two: Slow down. We all love TEDTalks, right? They encourage us to think about various topics from new perspectives. Some of these are more successful than others, but one thing you notice zero TED talkers do is throw statistic after statistic at you without a story or illustration in between. If they're getting their numbers on, they'll explain it and relate it back to their point.
This TED talk is a great example of a speaker who verbally cites her sources and uses various techniques to slow down her presentation and let her ideas sink in:
What techniques does she use to keep her presentation engaging? What can you learn use? How does she incorporate statistics? How does she use her PowerPoint?
I hope you all have happy weekends, and don't forget that your Forum Response Papers are due on Monday. Check out the prompt for more information.
See What your Peers are Doing 3/16/2015
1 Comment
So far I'm impressed with the blog content you are all generating! Later on in this blog I'm going to highlight two particularly impressive blogs, but first, a note on comments:
Some of you are a little discouraged by the amount or lack of comments you are eliciting. I don't blame you. You are putting a lot of work into writing you for your peers and you want to know how they're being received. Here are some ideas:
First is Truth About The Prison System. Although they have not received very many comments, they're presenting very interesting information in easily digestible and understandable posts. The problem of overpopulated prisons is an unruly, complex beast, but by reading each of their blog posts, I'm coming to understand the many different aspects of the issue. Content wise, they're killing it. Where they could use a little work is inviting us to comment and giving us some direction to do so. When you check out their blog, do you see any blog posts you might want to comment on?
The second blog focuses on The Linguistics of Advertising and Its Effects on Society First, what a title! The main thing that stands out to me about this blog is the voices the authors are developing. They are engaging, inquisitive and informed. Have you looked at their content?
One blog post that caught my attention can be found here over at the Business Ethics blog. I've never had anyone focus on this before and was very interested to see what they might focus on. This infographic helped set the stage for what I think will be a very interesting discussion. I'm excited to see what else they come up with!
What blog has grabbed your attention?
Some of you are a little discouraged by the amount or lack of comments you are eliciting. I don't blame you. You are putting a lot of work into writing you for your peers and you want to know how they're being received. Here are some ideas:
- When someone responds to a post, respond back! Be appreciative and keep them coming back for more conversation.
- Check out the blogs who are getting a lot of comments. What are they doing right? I know that some topics are inherently more eye catching (Gun Control, 50 Shades), but focus on the things that you can emulate.
- Go comment on your peers' blogs! You can link your website and hopefully they'll return the favor. I am hearing a lot of complaints from people that no one is commenting on their blog, but when I asked the classes today who was not doing a good job commenting, all but four people 'fessed up. You get what you give, and all that.
- Post your blogs on facebook/twitter. If you're embarrassed, why? You are writing to your peers. They are your audience. If you don't think they'd like to read what you're writing, then you probably aren't doing your best job of assessing your audience's needs.
- Any other ideas? Go ahead and leave them as a comment.
First is Truth About The Prison System. Although they have not received very many comments, they're presenting very interesting information in easily digestible and understandable posts. The problem of overpopulated prisons is an unruly, complex beast, but by reading each of their blog posts, I'm coming to understand the many different aspects of the issue. Content wise, they're killing it. Where they could use a little work is inviting us to comment and giving us some direction to do so. When you check out their blog, do you see any blog posts you might want to comment on?
The second blog focuses on The Linguistics of Advertising and Its Effects on Society First, what a title! The main thing that stands out to me about this blog is the voices the authors are developing. They are engaging, inquisitive and informed. Have you looked at their content?
One blog post that caught my attention can be found here over at the Business Ethics blog. I've never had anyone focus on this before and was very interested to see what they might focus on. This infographic helped set the stage for what I think will be a very interesting discussion. I'm excited to see what else they come up with!
What blog has grabbed your attention?
Surveys and Extra Credit 3/4/2015
3 Comments
Help out your classmates and take a survey or two. Racial Discrimination in Health Care has a couple of posts up, one of them being a survey. Here is another survey on prison systems. Spend a second to assess what about these surveys are working well and what you might do differently. Have a survey? Send it to me and I'll post it here.
Are you thinking about creating and administering a survey? Here is a great source to read before you create yours. I recommend having a friend take the survey and get some feedback before you send it out.
I'm excited to keep reading your blogs!
AND....do you have an tutorial that would be helpful for the rest of the class? An easy way to create a graph? An easy way to make a good survey? A helpful way to draw in blog traffic? If you want to run an idea by me, we can chat about possible extra credit opportunities.
3 Comments
Are you thinking about creating and administering a survey? Here is a great source to read before you create yours. I recommend having a friend take the survey and get some feedback before you send it out.
I'm excited to keep reading your blogs!
AND....do you have an tutorial that would be helpful for the rest of the class? An easy way to create a graph? An easy way to make a good survey? A helpful way to draw in blog traffic? If you want to run an idea by me, we can chat about possible extra credit opportunities.
3 Comments
Getting your blog started 2/25/2015
0 Comments
I want everyone to know how excited I am about everyone's topics. Remember, if you are overwhelmed and confounded about how to go about entering your respective conversation, you're in the right place. Just start somewhere and let the research lead you down whatever winding road it has in planned for you. If you feel like you have it all figured out, your topic might not be very interesting or you might be looking at it too simplistically.
The idea behind keeping track of all this on your blogs is that writing is invention. The act of writing is akin to digging to discover something you didn't know was there; that is why the 5 paragraph essay is so artificial and does not always lead to interesting writing or thinking. If it already makes sense in your head and is not challenging to write, it's probably not interesting enough for others to want to read. Like an exciting discussion, ideas pop up while reading and writing. You can write to work stuff out. So, if you're feeling like you're in deep water, keep wading out there. Enough with the metaphors--here is some practical stuff to help you start blogging.
Check out the Media Resources page to help build your blog/website. Email me if you have something good that isn't up there. And look at last semester's blogs. Two standouts are Zagnomics (they are engaging, funny, and informative) and Orange Shouldn't be the New Black (well-organized and provides a variety of types of research and rhetorical tools).
When you're blogging, remember that you need to create a voice. You will do this through your images, your words, your formatting. Some people make a statement with their lack images--the people who do this successfully are really adept, engaging writers. Some people use a lot of images. Those who do this well are often artistic and think critically about the way images affect the way we think. You will each have to think about your strengths and weaknesses, think of the purpose you hope to have on your audience. Whatever voice you develop, you should be trying to do something specific with your work. This little graphic is worth looking at for a minute and asking yourself how it might influence your blogging style.
Go forth and blog. These should be up and running by next Monday at the latest. The four weeks of blogging starts next week. If you have questions of helpful resources, post them to this blog so everyone can benefit.
photo one; photo two (notice these are both Creative Commons photos)
The idea behind keeping track of all this on your blogs is that writing is invention. The act of writing is akin to digging to discover something you didn't know was there; that is why the 5 paragraph essay is so artificial and does not always lead to interesting writing or thinking. If it already makes sense in your head and is not challenging to write, it's probably not interesting enough for others to want to read. Like an exciting discussion, ideas pop up while reading and writing. You can write to work stuff out. So, if you're feeling like you're in deep water, keep wading out there. Enough with the metaphors--here is some practical stuff to help you start blogging.
Check out the Media Resources page to help build your blog/website. Email me if you have something good that isn't up there. And look at last semester's blogs. Two standouts are Zagnomics (they are engaging, funny, and informative) and Orange Shouldn't be the New Black (well-organized and provides a variety of types of research and rhetorical tools).
When you're blogging, remember that you need to create a voice. You will do this through your images, your words, your formatting. Some people make a statement with their lack images--the people who do this successfully are really adept, engaging writers. Some people use a lot of images. Those who do this well are often artistic and think critically about the way images affect the way we think. You will each have to think about your strengths and weaknesses, think of the purpose you hope to have on your audience. Whatever voice you develop, you should be trying to do something specific with your work. This little graphic is worth looking at for a minute and asking yourself how it might influence your blogging style.
Go forth and blog. These should be up and running by next Monday at the latest. The four weeks of blogging starts next week. If you have questions of helpful resources, post them to this blog so everyone can benefit.
photo one; photo two (notice these are both Creative Commons photos)
Finding Artwork: Creative Commons 2/22/2015
40 Comments
Next week we're going to work on combining text and images to make arguments, a skill you might use in creating interesting blog posts and presentation. Before we do that, it's important to know what you can and can't use (I don't want anyone getting sued). So, take a moment to watch this video on Creative Commons. Then, follow the directions at the bottom of the blog post so you can get some practice.
Now that you understand some of the basics of copyright, I'm going to introduce you to a revolutionary new source that you have probably never heard of: Flickr. Many of you are able to figure out how to use creative commons flickr photos on your own, but if you need a short tutorial, I made one.
Pretty easy, huh? Take a moment to go on flickr and try it for yourself, then leave a comment with the photo you find. Try finding a picture that would be a nice addition to Project One and explain briefly why you choose it.
photo source
40 Comments
Now that you understand some of the basics of copyright, I'm going to introduce you to a revolutionary new source that you have probably never heard of: Flickr. Many of you are able to figure out how to use creative commons flickr photos on your own, but if you need a short tutorial, I made one.
Pretty easy, huh? Take a moment to go on flickr and try it for yourself, then leave a comment with the photo you find. Try finding a picture that would be a nice addition to Project One and explain briefly why you choose it.
photo source
40 Comments
Fashion in the Workplace 2/19/2015
14 Comments
First off, a note to all classes: those of you who got involved in the last blog conversation did a good job. I got the sense that you all thought about what your peers did well and how you can learn from that. In future blog posts I would really like to see you reading and engaging in with what your peers have to say. There was a lot of talk of refocusing, but no one really acknowledged that everyone was writing about that. Build off of each other. part of the fault is mine for giving you such specific questions to answer, so these directions are a little more open.
Although we did not find a lot of sources in class that would help us enter the conversation surrounding fashion, we did reinforce a very valuable point from the reading: sources are not to confirm common sense, rather, they should advance, add a new dimension, or "thicken" the conversation. So, we're going to pick up where we left off. And if you don't think there is anything interesting happening revolving the conversation about fashion in the workplace besides "where this, don't where that," I am going to do something I don't do very often and tell you that you are flat out wrong.
Here are a few examples of what's out there:
So, here's your task: Find a source that goes beyond the obvious. Read it well enough to provide a two-four sentence summary and then explain how you found it. Please read (and comment) on one another's posts, too, so you don't double post articles and so you can actually learn more about this conversation.
Although we did not find a lot of sources in class that would help us enter the conversation surrounding fashion, we did reinforce a very valuable point from the reading: sources are not to confirm common sense, rather, they should advance, add a new dimension, or "thicken" the conversation. So, we're going to pick up where we left off. And if you don't think there is anything interesting happening revolving the conversation about fashion in the workplace besides "where this, don't where that," I am going to do something I don't do very often and tell you that you are flat out wrong.
Here are a few examples of what's out there:
- Here is one of many articles that discusses the disproportionate time we spend discussing Hilary Clinton's fashion choices.
- Can your clothes make you work better?
- An academic take on dressing and identity.
- A big can of worms.
- One feminist view
- Men in the workplace
- A rather productive Google search
- Fashion influencing gender roles.
So, here's your task: Find a source that goes beyond the obvious. Read it well enough to provide a two-four sentence summary and then explain how you found it. Please read (and comment) on one another's posts, too, so you don't double post articles and so you can actually learn more about this conversation.
Technology and Education 2/18/2015
23 Comments
First off, a note to all classes: those of you who got involved in the last blog conversation did a good job. I got the sense that you all thought about what your peers did well and how you can learn from that. In future blog posts I would really like to see you reading and engaging in with what your peers have to say. There was a lot of talk of refocusing, but no one really acknowledged that everyone was writing about that. Build off of each other. part of the fault is mine for giving you such specific questions to answer, so these directions are a little more open.
All right. you all did an excellent job today in class--you seemed engaged and inquisitive and came up with some good stuff. Before we continue on with research aimed at helping us enter the conversations surrounding technology and education, I want to deal with something that, towards the end of class, I referenced that we want to be wary of: statistics. Statistics are problematic for a couple of reasons. One is that they are reductive, limiting potential productive discussion and often found to support opinions you had when you started researching. Ricky brought up in class that we weren't really talking about issues, and he had a good point: how can we explore the ideas if we're focused on the statistics? Of course, statistics, when used well, can make arguments all on their own, and many of you were relying on them to do this. The problem is that anyone can find or manipulate statistics to support their viewpoint, so when that is your only support for an argument, it is very difficult to trust that you, as the author/speaker, have thought objectively about the ideas behind the statistics thereby readying yourself to enter the conversation as an informed participant, . Take ten minutes to listen to this podcast. He explains how this happens all of the time (the guy is British, so you know he's qualified to comment on this).
As for what I'd like to you accomplish with this blog post, you all brought up some interesting ideas to the table, many of which will help you enter this conversation. Since I am pretty immersed in this field, I am going to offer ideas to direct the next round of research (practical tip: a good--and quick--way to enter a conversation is to do some research and bring it to an expert in the field and ask them what they/and others think about what you've found).
This will seem complicated, but it's not once you start. And if you and another person post the same time so four people comment on something instead of three, no worries. We're just going for variety here.
The first four people to comment on here need to find some research about roadblocks to bringing technology into the classroom. You might look at initiatives that people have tried to start or research a giant in the field, but each of you should be able to offer something different that furthers our ability to discuss roadblocks to bringing technology into the classroom.
The next three people comment on the opposition to having technology in the classroom. Again, each person should offer something different than the last, but you are welcome and encouraged to build off the other ideas.
The next three people should comment on what the last seven people said, finding a source that either agrees or disagrees with what their sources says.
The next two people find a source exploring flipping the classroom.
The next three people find primary research on the students perspective.
The last people to join the conversation, fill in the holes. What's missing? Comment on what others have said and offer up sources to help us understand a side of the conversation that is not currently represented.
Remember that your goal is to understand the conversation surrounding this topic so you can jump in more educated; so don't point out what we already know--find something useful. Imagine you will have to come into class and write an educated opinion paper on the topic.
You found such interesting stuff on the fly today, I'm excited to see what you all come up with now that you have a little more time!
photo source
23 Comments
All right. you all did an excellent job today in class--you seemed engaged and inquisitive and came up with some good stuff. Before we continue on with research aimed at helping us enter the conversations surrounding technology and education, I want to deal with something that, towards the end of class, I referenced that we want to be wary of: statistics. Statistics are problematic for a couple of reasons. One is that they are reductive, limiting potential productive discussion and often found to support opinions you had when you started researching. Ricky brought up in class that we weren't really talking about issues, and he had a good point: how can we explore the ideas if we're focused on the statistics? Of course, statistics, when used well, can make arguments all on their own, and many of you were relying on them to do this. The problem is that anyone can find or manipulate statistics to support their viewpoint, so when that is your only support for an argument, it is very difficult to trust that you, as the author/speaker, have thought objectively about the ideas behind the statistics thereby readying yourself to enter the conversation as an informed participant, . Take ten minutes to listen to this podcast. He explains how this happens all of the time (the guy is British, so you know he's qualified to comment on this).
As for what I'd like to you accomplish with this blog post, you all brought up some interesting ideas to the table, many of which will help you enter this conversation. Since I am pretty immersed in this field, I am going to offer ideas to direct the next round of research (practical tip: a good--and quick--way to enter a conversation is to do some research and bring it to an expert in the field and ask them what they/and others think about what you've found).
This will seem complicated, but it's not once you start. And if you and another person post the same time so four people comment on something instead of three, no worries. We're just going for variety here.
The first four people to comment on here need to find some research about roadblocks to bringing technology into the classroom. You might look at initiatives that people have tried to start or research a giant in the field, but each of you should be able to offer something different that furthers our ability to discuss roadblocks to bringing technology into the classroom.
The next three people comment on the opposition to having technology in the classroom. Again, each person should offer something different than the last, but you are welcome and encouraged to build off the other ideas.
The next three people should comment on what the last seven people said, finding a source that either agrees or disagrees with what their sources says.
The next two people find a source exploring flipping the classroom.
The next three people find primary research on the students perspective.
The last people to join the conversation, fill in the holes. What's missing? Comment on what others have said and offer up sources to help us understand a side of the conversation that is not currently represented.
Remember that your goal is to understand the conversation surrounding this topic so you can jump in more educated; so don't point out what we already know--find something useful. Imagine you will have to come into class and write an educated opinion paper on the topic.
You found such interesting stuff on the fly today, I'm excited to see what you all come up with now that you have a little more time!
photo source
23 Comments
Free Community College Education: Entering the Conversation 2/18/2015
18 Comments
First off, a note to all classes: those of you who got involved in the last blog conversation did a good job. I got the sense that you all thought about what your peers did well and how you can learn from that. In future blog posts I would really like to see you reading and engaging in with what your peers have to say. There was a lot of talk of refocusing, but no one really acknowledged that everyone was writing about that. Build off of each other. part of the fault is mine for giving you such specific questions to answer, so these directions are a little more open.
So that you can all be involved in the same conversation, let's narrow this discussion to free community college education. Sorry AP group.
In class you started researching this topic and a couple of issues emerged. One, most of you found the same sources. This is a good place to start, but if we want to enter the conversation with a good idea of the chatter surrounding it, we don't want to get all of our information from a few sources. The other issue is that we came up with a lot of statistics. Statistics can be valuable, but for some reason we're taught that they are the go to in supporting an argument.
Statistics are problematic for a couple of reasons. One is that they are reductive, limiting potential productive discussion and often found to support opinions you had when you started researching. Ricky brought up in class that we weren't really talking about issues, and he had a good point: how can we explore the ideas if we're focused on the statistics? Of course, statistics, when used well, can make arguments all on their own, and many of you were relying on them to do this. The problem is that anyone can find or manipulate statistics to support their viewpoint, so when that is your only support for an argument, it is very difficult to trust that you, as the author/speaker, have thought objectively about the ideas behind the statistics thereby readying yourself to enter the conversation as an informed participant, . Take ten minutes to listen to this podcast. He explains how this happens all of the time (the guy is British, so you know he's qualified to comment on this).
So, we need to keep working on entering the conversation surrounding education without the use of statistics (although you all found some interesting stats that merit further exploration). It might be helpful to approach this topic from someone in the Burkean Parlor (What does the Radical have to say? The Contrarian? The Historian? The Everyman? The Optimist? Anyone else?) , or from a certain perceptive (social justice, policy, business, financial, educator's, student's, technological). As always, make sure you are weighing the reliability/purpose of the source.
There is no way we are going to understand the entirety of the conversation. As speaker in the video states, the conversation started long ago and will continue long after we leave, our goal is to get a good enough understanding of it to interject in an informed way. Remember that our goal is to "advance discourse" and "meaningful change."
Your task is to spend one hour on better preparing yourself and your classmates, through research and commenting on your peers' comments (this part is important!), to enter the conversation surrounding free community college education. And you already know what you all think (you read one another's papers), so focus on finding sources and discussing the ideas in those.
photo source 18 Comments
So that you can all be involved in the same conversation, let's narrow this discussion to free community college education. Sorry AP group.
In class you started researching this topic and a couple of issues emerged. One, most of you found the same sources. This is a good place to start, but if we want to enter the conversation with a good idea of the chatter surrounding it, we don't want to get all of our information from a few sources. The other issue is that we came up with a lot of statistics. Statistics can be valuable, but for some reason we're taught that they are the go to in supporting an argument.
Statistics are problematic for a couple of reasons. One is that they are reductive, limiting potential productive discussion and often found to support opinions you had when you started researching. Ricky brought up in class that we weren't really talking about issues, and he had a good point: how can we explore the ideas if we're focused on the statistics? Of course, statistics, when used well, can make arguments all on their own, and many of you were relying on them to do this. The problem is that anyone can find or manipulate statistics to support their viewpoint, so when that is your only support for an argument, it is very difficult to trust that you, as the author/speaker, have thought objectively about the ideas behind the statistics thereby readying yourself to enter the conversation as an informed participant, . Take ten minutes to listen to this podcast. He explains how this happens all of the time (the guy is British, so you know he's qualified to comment on this).
So, we need to keep working on entering the conversation surrounding education without the use of statistics (although you all found some interesting stats that merit further exploration). It might be helpful to approach this topic from someone in the Burkean Parlor (What does the Radical have to say? The Contrarian? The Historian? The Everyman? The Optimist? Anyone else?) , or from a certain perceptive (social justice, policy, business, financial, educator's, student's, technological). As always, make sure you are weighing the reliability/purpose of the source.
There is no way we are going to understand the entirety of the conversation. As speaker in the video states, the conversation started long ago and will continue long after we leave, our goal is to get a good enough understanding of it to interject in an informed way. Remember that our goal is to "advance discourse" and "meaningful change."
Your task is to spend one hour on better preparing yourself and your classmates, through research and commenting on your peers' comments (this part is important!), to enter the conversation surrounding free community college education. And you already know what you all think (you read one another's papers), so focus on finding sources and discussing the ideas in those.
photo source 18 Comments
Some Good Stuff 2/11/2015
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Today you all voted on the top papers in your class. Thanks to everyone for writing engaging papers, and congrats to those of you who were chosen by your peers as top papers. Here are the winning papers: Ricky Johnson's "Pressures of an Educated Black Man"; Kristen Hayman's "Social Media’s Effect on Our Friendships: Is it Hurting More than it’s Helping?"; Bradley Price's "Decades of Fashion". Some of these were chosen for their accessible tones, some for the way they made the reader think differently about an issue, but all were chosen because they were "easy to read" and "well-written." I want you to think about what made them well-written.
I also want to highlight a couple papers that I thought were trying some interesting things. First, head over here an read this paper, focusing on the conclusion. The paper itself is very ambitious, dealing with a lot of complex issues. The author uses common sense and analysis to make meaning of the fashion industry, and although there is still some work that needs to be done developing these ideas, it's always exciting to see someone encouraging us to think about an issue from a new, critical angle. So there are a lot of things working here, but the one that I want to point out is the address to the audience in the conclusion:
Fortunately, the consumers possess large amount of power over the companies they buy from. Consumers have the power to dictate companies’ policy rather than let them dictate their lives. This immense power to influence corporations is only seen about in rare instances because corporations understand its potentially devastating effects to their profits, and actively work to squash this power. The fashion industry has successfully gained control over its consumers through aggressive advertising, which plays on people’s deepest fears and insecurities. This oppression should make people want to flex their powers as consumers. This does not mean taking to the streets with signs as some feminists have chosen to do, but by simply shopping at retailers and wearing brands that employ principled marketing tactics. This is an exciting rhetorical move that not only brings together the author's argument, but also leaves the reader with a sense of agency over his/her choices instead of a the sense of hopelessness that critical papers often inspire in their readers.
Conclusions are tough, and the last author makes a strong choice in how to wrap up his paper. Another place people get stuck is the beginning, and the second example show an author who has spent some time trying to think of how to make the beginning of the paper come alive in a tangible way that makes us think differently about something we encounter every day :
One like, one comment, one share. These things all have something dangerous in common: a sense of power. With one like we can make someone smile. With one comment we can make someone laugh. With one share we can make someone’s day. The thing is, some people don’t use their power for good. They would rather hide behind their screen and tear someone else down. They feed their self-esteem with the tears they know they have caused to the person on the other end of the network. These people say things they wouldn’t dare to say in public, and they get away with it because no one knows how to regulate what happens when we are glued to our devices. We love our smartphones and our computers but the more access we have to social media through our devices, the easier it will be for self-esteems everywhere to plummet.
I remember sitting in my family room on the computer when the Facebook message alert sound had gone off. I was so excited because...
There is nothing cliche about this introduction. It's informative, interesting, and leads us right into an anecdote about the author's experience with this topic.
I think we all can learn a lot from reading our peers' work. They're not perfect, but they're in the same place you are, grappling with the same questions. All of you have read at least a handful of your peers' papers in class today, and I encourage you to read the papers/excepts above. Once you've done that, comment on what you learned from reading these.
What would you do differently if you revised this paper? Or would you start over? Of the papers you read that were most engaging, what made them engaging? 32 Comments
I also want to highlight a couple papers that I thought were trying some interesting things. First, head over here an read this paper, focusing on the conclusion. The paper itself is very ambitious, dealing with a lot of complex issues. The author uses common sense and analysis to make meaning of the fashion industry, and although there is still some work that needs to be done developing these ideas, it's always exciting to see someone encouraging us to think about an issue from a new, critical angle. So there are a lot of things working here, but the one that I want to point out is the address to the audience in the conclusion:
Fortunately, the consumers possess large amount of power over the companies they buy from. Consumers have the power to dictate companies’ policy rather than let them dictate their lives. This immense power to influence corporations is only seen about in rare instances because corporations understand its potentially devastating effects to their profits, and actively work to squash this power. The fashion industry has successfully gained control over its consumers through aggressive advertising, which plays on people’s deepest fears and insecurities. This oppression should make people want to flex their powers as consumers. This does not mean taking to the streets with signs as some feminists have chosen to do, but by simply shopping at retailers and wearing brands that employ principled marketing tactics. This is an exciting rhetorical move that not only brings together the author's argument, but also leaves the reader with a sense of agency over his/her choices instead of a the sense of hopelessness that critical papers often inspire in their readers.
Conclusions are tough, and the last author makes a strong choice in how to wrap up his paper. Another place people get stuck is the beginning, and the second example show an author who has spent some time trying to think of how to make the beginning of the paper come alive in a tangible way that makes us think differently about something we encounter every day :
One like, one comment, one share. These things all have something dangerous in common: a sense of power. With one like we can make someone smile. With one comment we can make someone laugh. With one share we can make someone’s day. The thing is, some people don’t use their power for good. They would rather hide behind their screen and tear someone else down. They feed their self-esteem with the tears they know they have caused to the person on the other end of the network. These people say things they wouldn’t dare to say in public, and they get away with it because no one knows how to regulate what happens when we are glued to our devices. We love our smartphones and our computers but the more access we have to social media through our devices, the easier it will be for self-esteems everywhere to plummet.
I remember sitting in my family room on the computer when the Facebook message alert sound had gone off. I was so excited because...
There is nothing cliche about this introduction. It's informative, interesting, and leads us right into an anecdote about the author's experience with this topic.
I think we all can learn a lot from reading our peers' work. They're not perfect, but they're in the same place you are, grappling with the same questions. All of you have read at least a handful of your peers' papers in class today, and I encourage you to read the papers/excepts above. Once you've done that, comment on what you learned from reading these.
What would you do differently if you revised this paper? Or would you start over? Of the papers you read that were most engaging, what made them engaging? 32 Comments
Are you game for a drafting experiment? 2/4/2015
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Right now the assignment document for Project Two says a final draft is "due for review Monday, February 9 by class time, uploaded to Google Drive as a separate document. Please bring either a digital or physical copy to class on Monday." The plan was to do a peer review activity with your complete drafts and then have you work on them a little more. But I've been thinking about changing it up a little and I'd like your input.
What if, instead of requiring a complete draft, everyone committed to working on writing the interview for at least an hour and a half. Everyone would bring in their piece in different stages, but everyone would have something (telling me you thought about it for an hour and a half is not gonna fly, whether it's true or not). Then, we would discuss where we were in the process--anything that worked, anything you all struggled with. My idea is that everyone could benefit from getting together and talking with someone in the middle of drafting. Also, I hope that this would stop the thing that happens sometimes when you just write something really quickly, under a lot of pressure, just so you have something to turn in the next day and you know it's not your best work but you turn it in anyways and your peers review it and tell you everything that's wrong and you know they're right but you end up being attached to it anyways even though you know it's not that great because you spent the time writing it. Is this ringing true to anyone? This way, you could bring in something you think it good, something you believe in, even if it's not all done.
So, what do you think? Do you think people would commit to an hour and a half of earnest work? Would it be helpful for you as a writer to work on your writing in progress? Comment below and tell me/your classmates what you want to do.
Also, here are a couple sources I think will be helpful if you're struggling with this. One, these questions might help establish a purpose in your interview--remember to think about where this might be published/who your audience is. Second, here is a guy who knows what he's talking about, talking about profiles: 22 Comments
What if, instead of requiring a complete draft, everyone committed to working on writing the interview for at least an hour and a half. Everyone would bring in their piece in different stages, but everyone would have something (telling me you thought about it for an hour and a half is not gonna fly, whether it's true or not). Then, we would discuss where we were in the process--anything that worked, anything you all struggled with. My idea is that everyone could benefit from getting together and talking with someone in the middle of drafting. Also, I hope that this would stop the thing that happens sometimes when you just write something really quickly, under a lot of pressure, just so you have something to turn in the next day and you know it's not your best work but you turn it in anyways and your peers review it and tell you everything that's wrong and you know they're right but you end up being attached to it anyways even though you know it's not that great because you spent the time writing it. Is this ringing true to anyone? This way, you could bring in something you think it good, something you believe in, even if it's not all done.
So, what do you think? Do you think people would commit to an hour and a half of earnest work? Would it be helpful for you as a writer to work on your writing in progress? Comment below and tell me/your classmates what you want to do.
Also, here are a couple sources I think will be helpful if you're struggling with this. One, these questions might help establish a purpose in your interview--remember to think about where this might be published/who your audience is. Second, here is a guy who knows what he's talking about, talking about profiles: 22 Comments
Class Topics-Here We Go! 1/23/2015
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Another week down, and I'm sitting here at the computer reflecting on the topics you've chosen. I'm excited about them. I think each class has chosen relevant issues that will not only be fun to research and discuss, but will be worthwhile to reflect on on your own.
Class one (9AM) has decided to discuss higher education and money. The questions they've come up with include :
Next is our technology group (10AM). Again, don't limit yourself to the obvious technology. And don't limit yourself to technology in the traditional sense of the world. When I first started to use computers in early elementary school, I remember saying giving the wrong answer to a math question during all-class discussion and found my fingers desperately searching for the CTRL "Z."Your official question is: How has technology negatively/positively affected our generation? I want to encourage you to start by asking yourself: how has technology changed you?
Last is 1:10, who chose to deal with the question: Does fashion matter? I fear I may have steered you into this topic (because-yay!-it's a topic I find really fascinating), but I think it will provide you with an opportunity to see that all topics can be rife with controversy. I also think that it's something that, whether or not we like to admit it, we affects us all and occupies our minds in some way or another; unearthing those ideas will be challenging and fun.
And this goes to all of you: you can refocus your question. Use it as inspiration, not a question you need to provide an answer for. Good writers often sit down to answer one thing and discover something else they are more excited about/is more interesting. Don't box yourself in. Take risks. You might fail, but if you're not failing, you're not learning. If you want to potentially be inspired (or just procrastinate), you can watch the video below:
See you on Monday with a rough rough draft.
One last note, the comment function on the blog is not working for some reason. I'm working on fixing it.
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Class one (9AM) has decided to discuss higher education and money. The questions they've come up with include :
- Should community college be free?
- Are there benefits of free education?
- Are the middle class at a disadvantage for educational funding?
Next is our technology group (10AM). Again, don't limit yourself to the obvious technology. And don't limit yourself to technology in the traditional sense of the world. When I first started to use computers in early elementary school, I remember saying giving the wrong answer to a math question during all-class discussion and found my fingers desperately searching for the CTRL "Z."Your official question is: How has technology negatively/positively affected our generation? I want to encourage you to start by asking yourself: how has technology changed you?
Last is 1:10, who chose to deal with the question: Does fashion matter? I fear I may have steered you into this topic (because-yay!-it's a topic I find really fascinating), but I think it will provide you with an opportunity to see that all topics can be rife with controversy. I also think that it's something that, whether or not we like to admit it, we affects us all and occupies our minds in some way or another; unearthing those ideas will be challenging and fun.
And this goes to all of you: you can refocus your question. Use it as inspiration, not a question you need to provide an answer for. Good writers often sit down to answer one thing and discover something else they are more excited about/is more interesting. Don't box yourself in. Take risks. You might fail, but if you're not failing, you're not learning. If you want to potentially be inspired (or just procrastinate), you can watch the video below:
See you on Monday with a rough rough draft.
One last note, the comment function on the blog is not working for some reason. I'm working on fixing it.
0 Comments
First week down! 1/21/2015
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It always feels good to get that first week under our belts. This week we're going to work on developing our opinions. When we're asked what we think about a topic on which we might only be vaguely familiar, we often go right to the researching step--googling what various people have to say. Or we might ask someone whose opinion we respect. Then our opinions begin to take shape. However, the first step to forming a considered opinion is really assessing where you stand.
You want to know what you think and why you think it. If I asked you to write a paper on social media's role in our lives, you probably have some ideas about this topic that you could you use. But where did those ideas come from? Often, from friends, old teachers, parents, and you've adapted those opinions as your own without really thinking about if you agree or not. Then, if you go googling around for ideas to get started, you might just be looking for writing that furthers your own previous held opinions. So far, you would not be off to a good start in coming up with something fresh and exciting to say about social media.
So, before we start formal researching (the library, databases) or informal researching (talking to people, googling), I want us to really understand our unique perspectives on the topics we choose to explore.
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You want to know what you think and why you think it. If I asked you to write a paper on social media's role in our lives, you probably have some ideas about this topic that you could you use. But where did those ideas come from? Often, from friends, old teachers, parents, and you've adapted those opinions as your own without really thinking about if you agree or not. Then, if you go googling around for ideas to get started, you might just be looking for writing that furthers your own previous held opinions. So far, you would not be off to a good start in coming up with something fresh and exciting to say about social media.
So, before we start formal researching (the library, databases) or informal researching (talking to people, googling), I want us to really understand our unique perspectives on the topics we choose to explore.
0 Comments
First Day of Class 1/7/2015
First Day of Class 1/7/2015
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Hey Future English 101-ers.
As I'm starting this post, it's 12:55 on January 7th and I haven't gotten into school head-space for around two weeks, so I'm slowly reintegrating myself into that world. Maybe you want to slowly get your head in the game, too, so that's why I'm sending you all the link to the website. Feel free to poke around., but don't be surprised if it changes up until the first day of class. I'll be moving stuff around, editing wonky sentences, and second guessing organization until I get it just so.
Although it's titled "Kate Reed's English Site," it is also your English 101 website. I am the writer, you are the audience; it wouldn't exist without you. I will use this website to communicate with you outside of class, to give you a rough idea of what the week will look like, and to share good work from your peers. If you check out the categories to the left of this post, you'll see one for each class and, soon, there will be one titled: "Best of." I will use this blog to share some of the best stuff your peers are doing and comment on why I think it's working.
This leads me to how you can use this website; I highly encourage you to comment on these "Best of" posts, and all of the posts for that matter. I will try to keep them under 250 words so you're not overwhelmed by text. If you get yourself involved in this class blog, when the time comes for you to start your own blog for this class, you'll have a good idea what the blogging thing is all about.
Email me if you have questions. Better yet, comment below!
0 Comments
0 Comments
Hey Future English 101-ers.
As I'm starting this post, it's 12:55 on January 7th and I haven't gotten into school head-space for around two weeks, so I'm slowly reintegrating myself into that world. Maybe you want to slowly get your head in the game, too, so that's why I'm sending you all the link to the website. Feel free to poke around., but don't be surprised if it changes up until the first day of class. I'll be moving stuff around, editing wonky sentences, and second guessing organization until I get it just so.
Although it's titled "Kate Reed's English Site," it is also your English 101 website. I am the writer, you are the audience; it wouldn't exist without you. I will use this website to communicate with you outside of class, to give you a rough idea of what the week will look like, and to share good work from your peers. If you check out the categories to the left of this post, you'll see one for each class and, soon, there will be one titled: "Best of." I will use this blog to share some of the best stuff your peers are doing and comment on why I think it's working.
This leads me to how you can use this website; I highly encourage you to comment on these "Best of" posts, and all of the posts for that matter. I will try to keep them under 250 words so you're not overwhelmed by text. If you get yourself involved in this class blog, when the time comes for you to start your own blog for this class, you'll have a good idea what the blogging thing is all about.
Email me if you have questions. Better yet, comment below!
0 Comments