DR.C's Academic Online Cruise Ship—Week Eight: Language and Power

To read the initial post about DR C's Academic Online Cruise, go HERE.

DR C—CAPTAIN'S LOG
ADVANCED ENGLISH COMPOSITION 102
ONBOARD AND ONLINE—WEEK EIGHT: MARCH 3 to MARCH 9

ONBOARD—WEEK EIGHT
Day One

This week I focused on discussing the paper that will be due on Day Two. It will be the Diction Theme. There would be two choices:

Post-Colonial Composition 
Pedagogy

Choice A.  In Chapter 1, Shafer, author of Linguistics points out that language has power. In an excerpt from an essay in the book Post-Colonial Composition Pedagogy, edited by Monique Akassi, Akassi discusses language and “culture of power.” Also, Shafer how people “code switch” as, also, does Gerald Witherspoon in an article in Post-Colonial Composition Pedagogy. How does language give one power based on your personal experience and what Shafer, Akassi, and Witherspoon share? Write a well-developed five-paragraph theme answering this question.

Choice B. In Chapter 2, Shafer shows that words can be very persuasive. He points out this fact and gives directions for a paper: Words are explosive. They can be used to spark action where none otherwise be taken. They can inspire perception about life and survival that might not have previously existed. Look at the political language of Bush [George W.], Roosevelt [Teddy], and Beveridge [Sen. Albert] and discuss propaganda, how it operates, what it says and cleverly doesn’t say. Write a well-developed five-paragraph theme addressing these issues.

As you can see I gave the same assignment to my online crew. What I could do with this assignment regarding discussion would be to go into more depth. I worked to ease the crew’s feelings about doing either assignment. It was through discussion that I could work to get them to go beyond just what was written in the book or essay. 

DR. C's Academic Online Cruise Ship—Week Seven: Causes/Effects/Solutions

To read the initial post about DR C's Academic Online Cruise, go HERE.

DR C—CAPTAIN'S LOG
ADVANCED ENGLISH COMPOSITION 102
ONBOARD AND ONLINE—WEEK SEVEN: FEBRUARY 24 to MARCH 2

ONBOARD—WEEK SEVEN
Day One

I focus intensely on the upcoming assignment—causes/effects/solutions.

The choices are:

Choice A. Write about the three causes, three effects, and three solutions of a personal challenge you are currently facing. In addition, to what you personally think is ONE of the major causes, ONE of the major effects, and ONE of the major solutions in body paragraph one, you need to provide a parenthetical citation for every cause, every effect, and every solution to support your discussion regarding the cause, effect, and solution. Thus, there should be at least three parenthetical citations, one for a cause, one for an effect, and one for a solution. And a works-cited page is needed.

Choice B: Write about a cause, effect, and solution to the serious situations that have occurred at Newtown, CT, Aurora, CO, and Parkland, FL. In addition, to noting ONE of the major causes, ONE of the major effects, and ONE of the major solutions in body paragraph one, you need to provide a parenthetical citation to support your discussion regarding the causes, effects, and solutions. Thus, there should be at least three parenthetical citations, one for a cause, one for an effect, and one for a solution in body paragraph one. And a works-cited page is needed.

Thus, I expect a minimum of three (3) different resources and three different parenthetical citations. I am trying to give my trainees an opportunity to cite. I need to see if they are beginning to understand how to do so. Yes, they have been with different captains on an English 101 ship. However, just the experience on the 101 ship is not enough. And based on their inquiries, this is made quite evident.

There are three (3) different samples for them to follow. They are in their handbook. I have written the samples. I have even demonstrated how to write such a paper totally objectively or personally. I do choose the personal challenge dealing with hypertension. I believe if one’s crew never sees the captain write, it is not fair to expect the crew members to do what they have never seen the captain do.

DR. C's Academic Online Cruise Ship—Week Six: Time for Conferences

To read the initial post about DR C's Academic Online Cruise, go HERE.

DR C—CAPTAIN'S LOG
ADVANCED ENGLISH COMPOSITION 102

ONBOARD AND ONLINE—WEEK SIX: FEBRUARY 17 to FEBRUARY 23

ONBOARD—WEEK  SIX
Day One

This is the week I began conferences. I would have these in my office, not in the classroom or just outside of the classroom. Experience has taught me that, after the discussion and assessment of the assignment, trainees may choose to share some very personal things, nothing having to do with the assignment. I want to ensure total comfortability and no concerns about anyone hearing what they tell me.

The conferences are about 25 to 30 minutes per trainee. 

While I am in conferences, I have placed the trainees in groups of three or four. I give them a worksheet that has passages with mechanics and grammatical errors, single sentences that contain the same such errors, and the directive to write a group paragraph. 

The question each group must answer in one paragraph is the following: Why is learning the correct answers and the reasons for the answers for paragraphs and sentences so very important?

I peeked in the classroom to see how the groups were doing. They were working together. I was so pleased. I knew no group would be finished with this activity in one class session. That is why this activity could cover Day One and Day Two. 

After the Day One session, they were to place the test sheet and the answer sheet in my mailbox on the ship. Then, on the second day, I returned the test sheet and their answer sheets back to them so that they continue on the test.

Yes, theoretically, this should work. Trainees come to their conferences. Other trainees work in groups.