Thoughts on a Thursday Morning

I've had some mental blockage when it comes to blog topics lately. Cody's post about incorporating other disciplines, etc. helped me clear up the blockage in my head. I've taken many of the same classes, so I'm aware of the discussions that are happening. Why is English always the outcast? Why do we have to prove our legitimacy? I see it happening all the time, even in everyday conversation. When I tell people that I am an English major, I wait for the inevitable "Oh....so what are you going to do with that? Teach?" Yes, I want to teach, but it can be frustrating whenever I tell people what I do, because there is always that moment when they are wondering what the point of it is. Why didn't I become an accountant? (No thanks). I give a speech at the beginning of every semester discussing the importance of English. Do math teachers feel the need to do that? Some day you will need that algebra...

Anyway, enough of my ranting, I also wanted to discuss our incorporation of other disciplines into our classes. I think it's natural and necessary in our field. We use many different readings and texts in our classes, so it becomes almost automatic to discuss history, politics, etc. As for the use of technology, I believe that we need use it, but we should not overuse it. If we remember that our goal is to help students become better writers, I don't believe that we will overuse it. We can teach design elements to a certain extent, but the focus should still be on the writing.

Worries, Wishes...

I am starting to stress out about our web project, and it has barely begun! I find it kind of intimidating to create my own web space. I feel as though I have more questions than answers. There is so much that can be done with a web site, but how should I put mine together? It generally takes me some time to fully understand a program, so I am worried about this as well. I also wish I had been able to do this before my last semester. I would really like to put a page together for my 191 class (which I am planning to do anyway), but it's too late for me to actually use it since this is my last semester. I'm glad we are getting the chance to learn how to design a web page, because I'm not sure when I will have the opportunity again. It would have been helpful to see how students would utilize a class web page. I guess I will have to wait until I find another job to find out!

D2L

After our discussion about D2L, I started thinking about my own experience with it. I realized that I'm still not accustomed to using it for this class. In nearly every other class that I have taken, D2L has been used primarily as a dropbox and as a means to download the syllabus. I'm just not used to it playing such an integral role in a class. I have a tendecy to forget about the discussions (not on purpose). In my own teaching I use D2L as a place to post notes and other class information, but I rarely use it for class discussion. I admit that I have been slow to adjust to the use of D2L in our class.

I just read an article in the most recent issue of Newsweek about Kindle. The author, Jacob Weisberg, basically believes that the invention of Kindle is akin to the invention of sliced bread. I'm still not ready to give up my books, but he did bring up some interesting points. Whether I like it or not, Kindle is the way of the future-Amazon recently released Stephen King's latest novel in Kindle version only. Authors will no longer need to deal with expensive publishing fees, etc. to get their novels distributed. This will eventually change the entire face of the publishing world-for better or worse remains to be seen. It will eliminate many jobs eventually. On the plus side-this will be great for the environment. Imagine all of the trees that can be saved.

I'm still skeptical. I have a feeling that this is one technological trend that I am going to resist for as long as I possibly can. I just can't imagine curling up on a rainy day with my computer screen, rather than an actual book. If publishers stop distributing books in actual book form, I will have to break down and accept this. My kids are going to laugh at me some day because I'm reading books, just as I laughed at my parents for their 8 tracks. Somehow I never thought that would happen-but I see it already.

Here is the link if you are interested in the article:

http://newsweek.com/id/190358

My Classes Are Intertwining

My students have just picked the topics for their research papers. One of my students is going to write about the influence of new media and Facebook. The paper is a researched argument, so I'm a bit nervous for her. I reminded her that she will need to present some sort of argument regarding the topic, and I'm wondering if she has bit off more than she can chew. I'm supportive of the topic because I think it's important and timely, but I'm just wondering if she will be able to handle a subject this large. I have told her she may need to focus more carefully, but I have a feeling I will need to monitor this closely. This is a subject I'm still learning about, so I'm curious to see where a student who is probably far more tech saavy than I am will take it. Maybe I will have some findings to bring to our class!

Intuition Plus Technology-A Lethal Combination

I had an "interesting" experience while grading papers this weekend. I was reading a paper and having a deja vu moment-I had a feeling that I had read this paper before-during Spring semester last year. I e-mailed my former student and asked her to send me a copy of the paper. Sure enough, my current student had rearranged the content, but it was basically word for word the same paper. I had suspected this in one of his other papers, but I let it go, because I didn't feel as strongly about it as I did this time. I should have trusted my instincts at the time, but I'm glad that I did this time. I tend to second guess myself, but this just goes to show that first instincts are usually right. It's so frustrating that students do this, but over the past few semesters I have learned to trust my intuition regarding plagiarism. I hate to say it, but I'm looking forward to confronting my student about this-I wonder what he will have to say for himself...

Thoughts On Visual Literacy

I was thinking about the reading from last night, and the fact that Selfe kept implying that many instructors/administrators believe that visual literacy is a lesser form compared to alphabetic literacy. I have to say that while I don't really agree with that, I do emphasize alphabetic over visual literacy in my classroom. I would like to spend more time discussing visual analysis with my students, but we really don't have the time. I use the visual analysis as a springboard into rhetorical analysis of essays. It works very well, and provides the students with a solid foundation for doing a rhetorical analysis. The students really enjoy picking apart the visuals that we analyze in class (much more than the essays).

At the end of each semester, I have the students write an essay about the assignment that they felt they learned the most from during the class. It is generally a 50/50 split between the visual analysis and the research paper. The students comment on how they had never really analyzed anything for its visual value, and they seem to remember this most out of everything we have done. It provides them with the analytical skills they can apply to just about anything in life. However valuable this assignment may be, I still don't feel that I can stray from my typical course curriculum. I may have more freedom than high school teachers who have to deal with the restraints of testing, but I have a feeling that the powers that be at SCSU would still want us to focus on the writing in 191, not the visual elements.