Welcome

Welcome to Composition II (COM102) at Moraine Valley Community College. This is Prof Mike McGuire's course. Come on in. Look around. Write. Think. Join a conversation.

Standing To Do

There are a few basic activities that you should be doing on an ongoing basis as part of this course. They are repeated activities and critical for your success here.

1

Post under “Research Journal” in the Conversation Center at least once a week, focusing on what you're reading, researching, hearing, and thinking regarding your area of focus in the course. Each post should center on your response to one cited information source and be at least 250 words long.

2

Publish a 1250 to 1500 word draft (or a revision) to your blog as assigned—in response to the given prompt. All major writing prompts will be posted here to the professor's blog as they are assigned.

3

During the week immediately following a major draft due date, read and comment on the posts that are categorized as “Ready for Review” published by the members of your review group. Respond to at least three peers.

4

As assigned throughout the course, complete a “Personal Action Report and Self-Assessment.” The report assignment will be made available to you here when assigned through the professor's blog and submitted privately to the instructor. It is an essential part of the course and should be done thoroughly and thoughtfully.

These are some of the key (and repeated) activities of our course. You'll get the feel for it. Consult the official course schedule for specifics.

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Note: Regardless of the number of people in hour group, you need to respond to at least 3 peers during our peer review weeks. Work outside of your group as needed. Thanks.

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Schedule

This is your course schedule. You should visit this document regularly to see what you should be doing on any particular day of the semester. It includes all major due dates, reading assignments, and so on. If you’re not sure when something is due or what the reading assignment is, this is the place to check. Did I already say that? Well, it’s important.

A Standing To Do List

There are a few basic activities that you should be doing on an ongoing basis as part of this course. They are repeated activities and critical for your success here. I’ve listed these key activities below in summary, consult the full calendar further down the page, though, for details on assignment due dates and the timing of our major course activities.

  • Post to the Conversation Center under “Reading/Research Journal” at least once a week, focusing on what you’re reading for the course. For each “Reading/Research Journal” post focus on and cite just one information source (along with with writing your thoughts on it) per post. Each post should be at least 250 words long. You should also read and respond to what others are posting. Keeping up with your regular posts is essential, as it will serve as a reading and thinking log that you can draw upon throughout the class.
  • As assigned, write a 1250- to 1500-word piece (4 to 5 pages) and post it to your blog in the course. (Some if not all of these, once revised, will become the major work of your course portfolio.) I will likely give you a prompt every other week to keep you writing. There may be opportunity to skip a prompt to work on a significant revision instead, but I will specify this in the week’s materials. You will write major pieces in response to prompts I provide or prompts that you play a part in defining. Once you get into the habit of writing, it will feel easier. We learn to write by writing and this leads to important action.
  • In the week following a major draft assignment, read and comment on the posts that are categorized as “Ready for Review” published by the members of your review/action team. You must comment on the work of at least 3 other members of the class (starting with your action/review group within the class). You do this by clicking “reply” beneath the post you want to respond to. This will form the basis of our peer review experiences in the class, which will be a significant part of the course.
  • As assigned throughout the course, complete a “Personal Action Report and Self-Assessment.” This is done through the course site and submitted privately to the instructor. It is an essential part of the course and should be done thoroughly and thoughtfully.
Week-by-Week Details

This schedule is very tentative. While the basic due dates will likely stay the same, I reserve the right to embrace the spontaneity of our learning, to add, remove, or swap out readings and assignments, to mix up activities, and to follow a thread of discussion/thought a bit farther than planned if it seems worthwhile. Important changes will be announced online. You are responsible for noting any changes. Cool? Cool.

** Unless otherwise noted, writing assignments are due on or before 8am of the day indicated.

Week Possible Class Topic/Activity Read/Write/Due
Week 1
Jan 17
  • introductions, orientation, etc.
  • defining the terms of our experience; a democratic discussion?
  • talking about concerns; what’s your thing?
  • establishing action teams

Read: the syllabus, the course schedule, WWR? (chapter 1), and Fritjof Capra, “Ecological Literacy”

Write: Paper/Project 1: Live. Die. Kill. (aka What’s important to you?) (P1)
Week 2
Jan 23
  • a little how to on peer review
  • finding sources and doing background research
  • MLA review

Due Monday: Paper/Project 1: Live. Die. Kill. (aka What’s important to you?) (P1)

Read: WWR? (chapter 5); Dave Eggers, selected stories

Write: Peer Review 1 (PR1)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 1 (RJE1)
Week 3
Jan 30
  • on finding focus and zooming in
  • volunteerism and activism: discussing the relationship
  • writing annotations
  • on using sources

Due Monday: Peer Review 1 (PR1)

Read: WWR? (chapter 3)

Write:Self-Assessment #1 (SA1); Paper/Project 2: Service/Activists Guide to an Issue (P2)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 2 (RJE2)
Week 4
Feb 6
  • on using sources: synthesis, mash-ups, and positioning
  • debriefing first peer review round
  • FMSC Service Opportunity 1 (2/7 and 2/9 @ 2:30 – 4:30)
  • stories of service/reflective writing

Due Monday: Self-Assessment #1 (SA1)

Read: WWR? (chapter 7); Peter Hessler, “Village Voice: The Peace Corps’s Brightest Hope”

Write: Paper/Project 2: Service/Activists Guide to an Issue (P2)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 3 (RJE3)
Week 5
Feb 13
  • whole class workshop #1
  • thinking about thinking (critically)
  • thesis and deduction (vs. question and association)

Due Monday: Paper/Project 2: Service/Activists Guide to an Issue (P2)

Read: WWR? (chapter 4)

Write: Peer Review 2 (PR2)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 4 (RJE4)
Week 6
Feb 20
  • presentations (a 3-minute “elevator” speech via voice mail)
  • working, thinking, and solving problems creatively

Due Monday: Peer Review 2 (PR2)

Read: TBD

Write: Project/Paper 3: A Letter to the Editor (P3)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 5 (RJE5)
Week 7
Feb 27
  • working, thinking, and solving problems creatively, continued
  • taking risks
  • a guest speaker? (re: activism, civic engagement, how-to’s)
  • possible GCFD service opportunity (3/1 @ 1:00 – 4:00)

Due Monday: Project/Paper 3: A Letter to the Editor (P3)

Read: WWR? (chapter 2)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 6 (RJE6)

Write: Peer Review 3 (PR3) and Self-Assessment 2 (SA2)

Week 8
Mar 5
  • whole class workshop #2
  • interviewing strategies and skills
  • writing about people
  • a possible film?
  • possible SYS field trip and service opportunity (TBD)
  • possible on-campus whole-class service activity (TBD)

Due Monday: Peer Review 3 (PR3)

Read: Zinsser, “Writing about People”

Write: Paper/Project 4: Reflections of Service 1(P4)

Due Thursday: Self-Assessment 2 (SA2) and Research/Reading Journal Entry 7 (RJE7)
SPRING BREAK WEEK
:: No Classes ::
Week 9
Mar 19
  • introducing fieldwork and the story of activism/service ethnography project
  • defining culture; defining ethnography and talking about ethnographic research methods
  • perspectives: stepping in and stepping out

Due Monday: Paper/Project 4: Reflections of Service 1(P4)

Read: Harro, “The Cycle of Socialization”

Write: Peer Review 4 (PR4)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 8 (RJE8)
Week 10
Mar 26
  • posing questions
  • negotiating the ethics of entry (moving from the outside in, permissions, courtesies and correspondence)
  • understanding the ethics of presence (and service)

Due Monday: Peer Review 4 (PR4)

Read: Taylor (ed.), “Interdependence”

Write: Paper/Project 5: Story of Activism/Service Ethnography (PR5)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 9 (RJE9)
Week 11
Apr 2
  • whole class workshop #3
  • posing questions in the field
  • participant observation
  • field notes: capturing, details, analysis, questioning, and reflection

Read: Carrick et al., “Ruptura: Acknowledging the Lost Subjects of the Service Learning Story”

Write: Self-Assessment #3; Paper/Project 5: Story of Activism/Service Ethnography (PR5)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 10 (RJE10)
Week 12
Apr 9
  • mapping the politics of space: the geographies of exclusion?
  • positioning
  • writing images: using the camera as an essential tool of fieldwork

Due Monday: Self-Assessment #3

Read: WWR? (chapter 6)

Write: Paper/Project 5: Story of Activism/Service Ethnography (PR5)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 11 (RJE11)
Week 13
Apr 16
  • language matters: the politics of language

Due Monday: Paper/Project 5: Story of Activism/Service Ethnography (PR5)

Read: Copossela ed., “What We Call Ourselves and Others: Names, Solidarity, and Stereotypes”

Write: Peer Review 5 (PR5)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 12 (RJE12)
Week 14
Apr 23
  • introductions, conclusions, reflections, and framing your research experience
  • possible whole class workshop #4

Due Monday: Peer Review 5 (PR5)

Read: WWR? (chapter 8)

Write: Project/Paper 6: Re/gaining perspective piece(s) (a beginning and/or an end to the portfolio project)

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 13 (RJE13)
Week 15
Apr 30
  • mopping up: proofreading/editing strategies
  • possible final grade conferences?

Due Monday: Project/Paper 6: Re/gaining perspective piece(s) (a beginning and/or an end to the portfolio project)

Write: peer review as requested

Due Thursday: Research/Reading Journal Entry 14 (RJE14) and Final Self-Assessment (SA4)
Week 16
May 7
  • a body in motion: discussions of what’s next
  • staying involved
  • preparing for the final

Due Monday: Final Portfolio Project (the whole thing)
Week 17
May 11 – 17
FINAL EXAM WEEK
Consult the Final Exam Schedule

 

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