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:
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| Post-Colonial Composition Pedagogy |
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.
I wanted them to implement their critical thinking skills. I wanted them to demonstrate that they could see just how detrimental propaganda could be. Also, I wanted them to glean just how important it was to have the language skills to help them gain entrance into the “culture of power” if they so wished to do so. This was why I required that they look at their own personal experiences regarding Choice A and recognize that what they were reading was relevant to their lives.
By the end of this session, I could see many were beginning to understand the importance of seeing how language could be manipulated for personal gain. Also, they began to see why one could be systemically kept in one class without being prepared to use different dialects in different situations. At times the discussion became lively. Ah! That is what I wanted! 😊
WEEK EIGHT
Day Two
On this day I collected the Diction Themes.
Then, I switched gears and focused on discussing in more depth the conferences that will begin March 17 to March. 23. At these conferences, the research proposal and body theme one will be due.
I spent a lot of time discussing this very important assignment. It will help each of my crew members to know exactly what s/he should have to present to me at the conference. Now, yes, I have mentioned this earlier in the semester. However, there are some who were absent. There was one, in particular, who left class very early. Thus, he missed a great deal of what I had said about this particular assignment. As for others, this time to listen to another’s question was a catalyst for them to ask more questions.
And you ask, “Were there samples that everyone would view?” And I answer strongly in the affirmative. Still, some of them, especially those who had missed a class, were totally in the dark.
Still, by the end of this class, my beloved future captains looked like they understood what I expected. Also, by the end of this session, there were fewer questions asked.
Ah! I am hoping the lesser questions at the end is a sign that everyone understood so much better.
I shall find out. The week after Spring Break, when all crew are gone (vacationing, visiting family, or just lollygagging) upon arrival they will meet with me one-on-one. They will present to me their research proposal and body theme one.
ONLINE
WEEK EIGHT
At the beginning of the course, I did do an overview of what would be done. I made it very clear (well, I thought I had—smile) how I wanted the Cause/Effect/Solution paper set. And, just as with the other assignments, I had samples in the handbook.
So, at the beginning of the week, every crew member was to email me this theme. Now, this particular theme has proven to give me much insight into each student’s life and the specific challenge each is facing. This has proven to be most important since I never (well, almost never) meet with my online trainees.
So, this particular assignment lets me see just how much of a rapport I have made with them. I presume a good one because just about all of them choose to write about a particular challenge each was experiencing. There were only a few who chose to write about the causes, effects, and solutions to the mass shootings that have occurred.
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| Dance & Other Tattered Threads |
Who knows? Some may sit on a beach and choose to read one of these works. (Well, hope does spring eternal.)
Reflections: My online and onboard crew are fun to train. Most are truly trying. However, there are those few, very few, who do not recognize the importance of coming to a class session EVERY DAY.
And that brings me to the issue of responsibility on the part of the student. At least I am working with adults. I do not have to work with those parents of those absentee students who have not held their children to task. They have not impressed the importance of school attendance. It is not that when their "Lord Fauntleroy or Queen Anne" is not in class that the world stops for them.
Most definitely, in college much is covered every day. I have tried to emphasize to them that a college course is not like a soap opera in which you can kind of figure out what has happened during the day or two missed. instead, when a college student misses a session, the whole channel is changed. Yes, you will be lost.
In a lesser way, this is the case in high school or grade school but not with as dramatic a change. And if such does occur, there are some parents who expect the teacher to re-teach that assignment or hold up the class so their child can be taught what has already been taught. The reality? It just cannot be done. The dynamics that occurred in the class cannot be replicated.
And what happens, sometimes, to my k-12 colleagues is THEY are the ones held responsible for what the child has not learned. It is so very important that parents and students need to recognize THEIR responsibilities: do not miss any classes and be prepared when they attend. And parents should do all they can i akig this clear.
OK, enough of my yak—enjoy the holiday break.
I shall rejoin you during the week of March 17 to March 23.
What do you think about DR C's Academic Online Cruise Ship? Tell us your thoughts in the comment box below this post.
To find out more about the books mentioned in this post, click on the book title of each book.
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