English 6240 Seminar in American Literature -- Global Contemporary Fiction
Requirements
The requirements of this course are connected to the learning outcomes in which the WSU MENG Program is grounded. Below please find a list of the Program's Learning Outcomes (LO) and, in brackets, how they correlate to particular requirements.
LO 1: Gather, analyze, and communication information and insights creatively and critically.
LO 2: Cultivate
skills in close reading, critical thinking, creative
expression, and persuasive writing.
LO 3:
Understand and apply various theoretical perspectives
and discipline-specific terminology to interpretations
of texts and /or analysis of data.
LO 4:
Acknowledge and articulate the significance of key
text(s) in specific genres, periods, cultures, styles,
or theoretical perspectives.
LO 5:
Demonstrate knowledge of current scholarship and
practices.
LO 6: Employ discipline-specific
conventions and protocols for written or multimodal
presentations.
- ATTENDANCE: I expect
regular and punctual attendance,
which will enable you to make sustained contributions to our discussions and make our seminar into a
community of learners. If you miss more than 1 class (the equal of
three 50-minute day class periods), please drop the course this semester
and enroll at another time. There are no "excused absences."
(LO 1, 2, 3, 6)
If you do have to miss class, please contact a peer -- not me -- to find out what we did and homework for the next class period:
Name: __________________ E-mail/phone _______________________________________
__________________ ________________________________________
__________________ ________________________________________ - WEEKLY RESPONSE PAPERS: I will ask you to write
4 self-directed response papers (of about 500 words) to the assigned readings, to
which you should add at least two (=2) substantive discussion-oriented
questions; you are free to pick whatever weeks fit your
schedule best. I will collect these responses as a hard copy at the
end of each class, so that you can use your WRP/questions during class
discussion. Please note that you cannot "hand them in" electronically.
Bottom line: WRPs are not essays, but a space of exploration and experimentation. Please
take risks! (LO 1-6)
- TALK & CLASS FACILITATION: Since this seminar is meant to be a networked community of learners, you will--above and beyond regular class contributions--need to present your research and thinking (or work in progress) on a particular author or related project. Your talk, of about 20 minutes, should serve as a point of departure for further discussion, which you then facilitate, and must be accompanied by a typed handout that you distribute in the class period before your report. The handout should not exceed two pages (one sheet, front and back) and contain the following information:
• title of presentation/name of presenter • text(s) you expect your fellow students to study |
• a summary of your major ideas and observations • the sources/web sites you have consulted |
A sign-up sheet for these presentations is posted on my door. To enhance your learning (and, let's be honest, to kill two birds with one stone, different as these birds may be), I encourage you to consider building upon your oral report for your final research essay. Use the class as a testing ground for your ideas! Here is a Sample Handout (LO 1, 2, 3, 6)
- BOOK REVIEW
OR ACADEMIC
CONFERENCE ABSTRACT: To help you get your
feet wet in the mercurial quicksand of literary
studies, you will be asked to write and
submit (a) a book review to an academic
journal, (b) an abstract for an academic conference
paper in response to a CFP, or, (c) alternately, write a
CFP yourself (LO 1-6). The
clearing house for CFP at the University of
Pennsylvania might be a good place to start:
http://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/rss
- RESEARCH ESSAY: You are required to write a 12-15+ page essay that should engage some of the major critical statements
relating to the writer(s)/themes of your choice. You may, of course, also write a longer paper if you
wish. . . . . Message: let's talk!
Here are someSample Essays (LO 1-6)
Please expect to invest about 3-4 hours of solid work outside of class for each each hour in class, and substantially more for your class talk & presentation, your book review/conference abstract, and your research essay. Your final grade will be made up as follows:
Regular and sustained participation — 20% Talk & Facilitation — 20% Book Review or Conference Proposal — 10% |
WRP — 20% Final Essay — 30% |
Please note that you will have to fulfill all of these requirements to pass the class.
It is your responsibility to become familiar with the standards of academic integrity at WSU. Passing off someone else's work or ideas as your own is grounds for failure.
Electronics: Laptops and notebooks are part of classroom resources, but I expect you to use them judiciously. That means you are focused on class learning, not checking email, surfing, gaming, etc. during class. I reserve the right to ask a student to switch off a laptop/notebook if I feel it is not used appropriately. I do not allow the use of cell phones or handheld devices in class and, in the event of non-compliance, will ask you to leave class for the remaining period. Please turn off your phone and put it away during the class hour.
Disability Accommodation: PPM 3-34 notes: "When students seek accommodation in a regularly scheduled course, they have the responsibility to make such requests at the Center for Students with Disabilities (SSD, #181 of Student Services Center) before the beginning of the semester in which the accommodation is being requested. When a student does not make such arrangements, interim accommodations can be made by the instructor, pending the determination of the request for a permanent accommodation." Such accommodations include reading services, provisions in case of mobility impairment, sign language and interpretive assistance, and closed captions for the hearing impaired, among others.
Emergency Closure: In the unlikely event of an extended campus closure, we will conduct our course electronically via email and virtual discussion groups. In this case, please make sure that you check your email account regularly for messages and attachments (in Word, PowerPoint, or audio) coming from me and/or your fellow seminar participants. Such messages may function as lecture substitutes, provide directions for reading and writing assignments, and contain other relevant information. Also make sure that your account has adequate storage capacity for transmitting documents. I will collect your email address and verify its availability during the first week of class. Please let me know by the end of the first week of the semester if you do not have access to a computer and/or the Internet from your home. Thanks.
Core Beliefs: According to PPM 6-22 IV, students are to "[d]etermine, before the last day to drop courses without penalty, when course requirements conflict with a student's core beliefs. If there is such a conflict, the student should consider dropping the class. A student who finds this solution impracticable may request a resolution from the instructor. This policy does not oblige the instructor to grant the request, except in those cases when a denial would be arbitrary and capricious or illegal. This request must be made to the instructor in writing and the student must deliver a copy of the request to the office of the department head. The student's request must articulate the burden the requirement would place on the student's beliefs."
Note: If you prefer an alternate
name or gender pronoun, please advise me of your preference
and I will happily honor your request.