I believe that life offers us multiple teachable moments and the true student sees life as one big classroom; this said, we will be doing a little field study Tuesday at Joyce Gordon Gallery. What this means is that my plans for class 9/2 will shift to accomodate this. I think we were going write the assessment essay Thursday, Sept. 4, plus make presentations on What is Hip Hop? We'll see what we can fit in. We'll continue our conversation on Dyson, on-line. Be sure to respond to one student post after you post your comments. I'll have another chapter for you Tuesday, Sept. 2.
We will survey hip hop culture: the music, the writing, art, theatre, poetry, the fashion, literature in the context of it's history and social ramifications. We will note how it has changed over its 50 year history and how various cultures have personalized it to fit in with its cultural mores.
Group projects: Start thinking about hip hop as a global movement and what region that interests you. Each group will collectively research the hip hop movement in a region such as the Middle East, Africa, Europe, South America, Caribbean, Australia, Far East, South Asia. This project will include an analysis and discussion of three elements, one of the three has to be literary: poetry, rap music, visual arts, dance, theatre, literature, music.
Research project: The research project is a profile of an artist who is also an entrepreneur who uses hip hop tools to develop social conscious.
These are big projects. Smaller projects are our writing attached to events, such as the gallery visit, theatre parties, and dance and other concerts. Students will also have collected writings on each book we read. So far these books are Dyson's and the two by Chang, plus The Message: 100 Life Lessons (recommended), From Totems to Hip Hop (recommended), and The Spoken Word Revolution (slam, hip hop @ the poetry of a new generation) (required).
Sunday, August 31, 2008
AeroSOUL at Joyce Gordon Gallery
I went to a wonderful art exhibit in downtown Oakland Friday night: "AeroSOUL: We Do Fine Art." The exhibit is up at Joyce Gordon Gallery, 406 14th Street, Oakland (14th near Broadway) through Wednesday, Sept. 4, call (510) 465-8928 and www.joycegordongallery.com.
AeroSOUL features the work of the TCB crew: Refa One, Toons One, and Chris Herod. I took a few photos at the opening reception Friday night.
English 1B will head over to the gallery 9/2 for a tour beginning at 9:30 AM. If students want to meet me there this is fine. We will return to campus at 10:30 AM. I'm hoping to get a tour and talk with the artist Refa One. Refa One is pictured here with Malaika. His work is the writing, while Toons uses crayon on canvas and Chris does the larger pieces, (I think.)
If Refa can't make it, maybe the curator, Matema Hadi, can. She writes that AeroSOUL celebrates the "social significance of Spray Can Art and the expanding definition of Fine Art through Urban Street Calligraphy (Writing)."
Bring you notebooks. We will write a review of the exhibit and include commentary from the artist, and research from other sources on hip hop art. Jeff Chang has a chapter in Total Chaos on visual arts (Words and Images: 117). I ordered the book, but it's not in yet.
Call me, and let me know if you have a car and can give classmates a ride. If you don't have a car, you might want to meet us there if you are in Oakland already near downtown. The 51 bus stops on Broadway and 14th Street.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Know What I Mean: This Dark Diction Has Become America's Addiction
From, Know What I Mean: Reflections on Hip Hop, Track 1: "How Real Is This?" Cyber Post
Besides responding to The Second Line, read the next chapter from Dyson's book and post your response here, minimally 250 words before class Tuesday, so by Monday, Sept. 1, before noon.
Read the chapter, annotate it and be prepared to discuss it in class. Pull out the arguments and its supporting evidence. What themes run through the conversation? What is the tone of the discussion? Are there any questions you'd weren't satisfied with the answers? What would you like to know more about? How would you rate the conversation? What did you learn?
We will use this formula for most of our responses.
Besides responding to The Second Line, read the next chapter from Dyson's book and post your response here, minimally 250 words before class Tuesday, so by Monday, Sept. 1, before noon.
Read the chapter, annotate it and be prepared to discuss it in class. Pull out the arguments and its supporting evidence. What themes run through the conversation? What is the tone of the discussion? Are there any questions you'd weren't satisfied with the answers? What would you like to know more about? How would you rate the conversation? What did you learn?
We will use this formula for most of our responses.
The Second Line
Today in class we watched the film: The Second Line. Students watched the film with an eye for: the cinematography, colors, scene selection, characters (main characters: MacArthur and Katt), music, motif or reoccurring theme, underlying message; plot or storyline.
We also looked at the efficacy or using Hurricane Katrina as the frame story to tell this human story that unfortunately transcends time, race and culture.
What is the point of the film?
How does the director get there?
Film Notes: http://www.tribecafilm.com/filmguide/Second_Line.html
Interview with directors:
http://www.filmcatcher.com/festivals/Sundance_Film_Festival/day_2/67/
Short Student Competition
This is a test
[SSPLI] | 2007 | 20 min | Short Narrative
Directed by: John Magary
USA
New York Premiere
Interests: Drama
http://www.cufilmfest.com/films/second_line.html
Cast & Credits
Director: John Magary
Principal Cast: Al Thompson, J.D. Williams, Dane Rhodes, Karen Pritchett, Saida Arrika Ekulona, Brittany Parker
Screenwriter: John Magary
Producers: Geoffrey Quan, Myna Joseph, Nelson Kim
Director of Photography: Chris Teague
Production Designer: Mara LePere-Schloop
Music: Kai Gross
Program Notes
After MacArthur's savings are stolen from his FEMA trailer, he and his cousin Natt take work gutting a house. The Second Line was a national finalist for the Student Academy Awards® and has played at Sundance, SXSW, and the Edinburgh International Film Festival.
We also looked at the efficacy or using Hurricane Katrina as the frame story to tell this human story that unfortunately transcends time, race and culture.
What is the point of the film?
How does the director get there?
Film Notes: http://www.tribecafilm.com/filmguide/Second_Line.html
Interview with directors:
http://www.filmcatcher.com/festivals/Sundance_Film_Festival/day_2/67/
Short Student Competition
This is a test
[SSPLI] | 2007 | 20 min | Short Narrative
Directed by: John Magary
USA
New York Premiere
Interests: Drama
http://www.cufilmfest.com/films/second_line.html
Cast & Credits
Director: John Magary
Principal Cast: Al Thompson, J.D. Williams, Dane Rhodes, Karen Pritchett, Saida Arrika Ekulona, Brittany Parker
Screenwriter: John Magary
Producers: Geoffrey Quan, Myna Joseph, Nelson Kim
Director of Photography: Chris Teague
Production Designer: Mara LePere-Schloop
Music: Kai Gross
Program Notes
After MacArthur's savings are stolen from his FEMA trailer, he and his cousin Natt take work gutting a house. The Second Line was a national finalist for the Student Academy Awards® and has played at Sundance, SXSW, and the Edinburgh International Film Festival.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Recap
Today in class we reviewed the Dyson homework, went over the syllabus and tried to clarify a few things. New students joined us. I had students move closer together depending on their preparedness for class today. I had to go pick up handouts while students wrote responses in small groups to the first section of Know What I Mean.
The writing was great and the insights even more remarkable. You are a sharp group of students, certainly the scholars I deem you to be. This was further illustrated when students shared certain quotes from the reading to share and why. I jotted down a few names of students who shared such as Dominique, Rashad, John, Farad, and Deon. Benjamin gave me the idea.
We had fun deciphering the Roman numeral system. I think students got it in the end :-)
The freewrite was on "Not Enough," taken from the book, The Message, by Felicia Pride. We listened to the song first. We'll take the topic of our first essay from this freewrite. Be prepared to write a short essay in class, Tuesday, Sept. 9. 9/9 is also the date students will bring objects for a presentation on American culture (check the syllabus).
Other homework. Read Track 1. Be prepared to write a response based on themes from the chapter Thursday.
Remind me to give you a copy of the Initial Planning Sheet Thursday. If you miss any handouts, like the syllabus, I will put extra copies in the bin outside my office. I suggested students purchase the Dyson book or check it out from the library.
The writing was great and the insights even more remarkable. You are a sharp group of students, certainly the scholars I deem you to be. This was further illustrated when students shared certain quotes from the reading to share and why. I jotted down a few names of students who shared such as Dominique, Rashad, John, Farad, and Deon. Benjamin gave me the idea.
We had fun deciphering the Roman numeral system. I think students got it in the end :-)
The freewrite was on "Not Enough," taken from the book, The Message, by Felicia Pride. We listened to the song first. We'll take the topic of our first essay from this freewrite. Be prepared to write a short essay in class, Tuesday, Sept. 9. 9/9 is also the date students will bring objects for a presentation on American culture (check the syllabus).
Other homework. Read Track 1. Be prepared to write a response based on themes from the chapter Thursday.
Remind me to give you a copy of the Initial Planning Sheet Thursday. If you miss any handouts, like the syllabus, I will put extra copies in the bin outside my office. I suggested students purchase the Dyson book or check it out from the library.
Intro/Prelude Cyber Post
Post your response to the reading here. In class today we wrote summaries. You can post them here as a group and as individuals. You can also post your quotes you shared and why.
Thursday, we will continue writing summaries. The next one is on Chapter 1, which you will be able to post below.
Thursday, we will continue writing summaries. The next one is on Chapter 1, which you will be able to post below.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Homework August 21 from, Know What I Mean: Reflections on Hip Hop, Track 1: "How Real Is This?"
I gave students a handout from Dyson's book: Know What I Mean: Reflections on Hip Hop, Track 1: "How Real Is This?" Read the chapter, annotate it and be prepared to discuss it in a short essay Tuesday morning. Pull out the arguments and its supporting evidence. What themes run through the conversation? What is the tone of the discussion? Are there any questions you'd weren't satisfied with the answers? What would you like to know more about? How would you rate the conversation? What did you learn?
We will use this formula for most of our responses.
You can wait to respond to until Thursday, August 28, in class and post your answer then.
We will use this formula for most of our responses.
You can wait to respond to until Thursday, August 28, in class and post your answer then.
Questions?
If you ever have a question about anything, shoot me an email: professorwandasposse@gmail.com. You can also call me, just be respectful of my time. Make certain that you identify yourself. I have four classes, three preps, all writing about some aspect of hip-hop culture. Read all the posts. There are six. If you don't read them, you are still responsible for the information contained there. The first one is the syllabus. There are a few assignments there. I will print copies of the syllabus for students, as well as assignments posted.
It's hard to plan too far in advance because the class assignments come from the discussions. I might have an idea and change it depending on the dynamic in the room. Stay loose and you'll be fine :-)
I am a jazz riff singing off the chart. I'll try to stay in view, but you have to look up
It's hard to plan too far in advance because the class assignments come from the discussions. I might have an idea and change it depending on the dynamic in the room. Stay loose and you'll be fine :-)
I am a jazz riff singing off the chart. I'll try to stay in view, but you have to look up
What is Hip Hop?
Today in class students presented their ideas and arguments about hip hop culture: what it is, was or hopes to continue to be. The views shared ranged from: hip hop is dead to the honored and anointed position those who claim to be a part of the fraternity possess.
Post comments from your group here. Please include the names of participants.
Post comments from your group here. Please include the names of participants.
Letter to Students
Revised First Drafts
August 20, 2008
Dear Students:
I’ve been writing this letter in my head for a few months now and here we are, the first week of school , the last weeks of summer. I hope you had a chance to enjoy the season now that it’s nearly gone. I had the opportunity to attend a family reunion in Biloxi, Mississippi. It was our first. We all met at Great Aunt Bea’s funeral in January and decided that as a family, we really needed to stop meeting like this…funerals are so depressing.
The weather in Ocean Spring, Mississippi, was 92 degrees daily with 100 percent humidity. My hair still hasn’t lost its natural curl and my skin…it was a facial delight, like being in a sauna…great for getting rid of toxins. We had the usual family drama—I was standed in New Orleans when the one Greyhound bus back to Chicago had no seats, but another cousin rescued me, so I spent the week in New Orleans and was able to celebrate Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday at Ashe Community Center, attend a great African film festival featuing the work or Kola Maseko, visit relatives, walk the levess in Algiers, interview Malik Rahim, co-founder of Common Ground Relief, an all volunteer organization that was a first responder to Hurricane Katrina victims about his bid for the Louisiana Congress on the Green Party ticket. I was also able to catch up with some ex-pats—just kidding, friends who went to New Orleans to help, who now live there like Sakura Kone and Don Paul. (Sakura and I will be interviewed on KPFA, 94.1 FM, on Chris Welch’s show Friday, 12-1 p.m. I am co-host of a Hurricane Katrina benefit and report back at Rebecca’s Books in Berkeley. Visit www.wandaspicks.com for the details. It starts at 7 p.m. We’re asking for a $5 donation.)
When I walked out into the Oakland evening a week later—July 22, I actually felt cold. It had been about two weeks since I’d flow to Chicago, to ride/drive with my cousin, Wlydflour to Mississippi. She has a new RV that she wanted to take on the road. Cousin Ronald also went. He’s a professional driver—he drives trucks. Between my uninhibited cousin and the more laid back Ronald, who’d never driven the Mississippi from Chicago, it took 16 hours—sixteen long hours. I do not recommend this trip unless you make stops in between, such as in Memphis to see the sites, Alabama and elsewhere.
I was sleepy almost my entire time away, but I never got a chance to sleep well. You see, there were these huge roaches that one finds in the oddest places. I didn’t want to keep the lights on and attract unnecessary attention to myself, and then I didn’t want to step on one or get into the bed next to one either. Oh, need I mention the misquitoes?
It was scary at times, but my cousin Ronald would remove the offending bug whenever I spotted one. And I found some anti-itch cream that worked when I was bitten by a gnat or other predatory bug.
Everything seems to grow bigger where there is wetness, heat and open space.
In New Orleans where the houses were demolished in the Lower Ninth Ward, all that’s left of the hundreds of families displaced by the broken levees, are weeds which grow taller than a man if not contained. There are signs of life…an occupied house here and there. However, miles of abandoned land lie between—the levee still not complete.
Okay, so back to the letter. Yes, everything you heard is true. I am tough— I treat my students like the adults they are or will be soon, which means, I do not take responsibility for those tasks students need to stay on top of themselves, like doing one's homework, having good study habits, getting proper sleep, staying on top of assignments, such as, the reading.
I try to be clear, but if I’m not, please ask questions for clarity—often I have so much on my mind, I speak really fast and native speakers can’t keep up. Also, if you are in an early class, or have my class after lunch, you might be sleepy. Bring water to class, stand up, if necessary and stretch, step to the side by the wall and touch your toes.
You can try your hand at negotiating…I’m fair and reasonable. I realize that life-happens, but you need to be serious about what you have committed yourself to when you enrolled in this course. If you haven’t taken College Success, I highly recommend the course (3 units). If you don’t have time, keep you ears open for the Super Saturday when some of the same information is decimated. Visit counseling and ask for the date(s). At the Back to School Bash, Sept. 2 and 4, pick up a student organizer. It’s free and you can put important assignments in it.
The only things I will not compromise on are the objectives and goals of the course. Whether you remember all the specific language of the discourse we will have this semester or not, is not the point—but I do suggest keeping a vocabulary log, beginning with this letter which I want you to respond to for the next meeting—this is your first blog assignment— the point is that each of the students in this class grow to understand their unique purpose. You’re honoring your gifts. Every one of you has something unique and precious to offer the world. I am the coach. We’re going to identify it and help you polish it.
Language is communication, whether this is written or verbal or nonverbal. We are all sharing a story. Just the clothes you decided to wear this morning or afternoon, indicates something about you.
Human beings are judgmental and because we jump to conclusions often without weighing the evidence, separating bigotry and ignorance, from other biases, we make mistakes, some costly. A critical thinker brackets his or her biases and tries to look at each communicative event or genre as openly and freely as he or she can. It’s hard being unbiased because we all unconsciously bring our entire life, all our experiences, both good and bad to the table whenever we have to make a decision. Advertisers know this, so they complicate the choices with lies called propaganda (logical fallacies, is the technical term). Nothing is clear, everyone is suspect in the market place whether the salesman is the presidential hopeful or the clerk at the dress shop or the photograph in your favorite magazine.
We will try to be as honest as we can in our writing. Don’t confuse honesty with truth. Truth is subjective and as I mention above, if all of us has an agenda, then there really is no such thing as objectivity only shades of gray in a black and white world.
Let’s just say, if we leave this 18 week experience, better listeners, this would be a start toward opening ourselves up to the larger more human dialogue we need to have with each other and by extension the planet because as I said, all communication is not verbal. If we are to survive as a species, we need to learn to speak other languages—fluently, and respect the voices of those creatures whom we have a tendency to disrespect or look down on like children, animals and other species like trees, rocks and toads.
Too philosophical? Well my undergraduate degree is in philosophy, which I call a degree in learning how to articulate those values which determine one’s direction in life and avoid those arguments which are incongruent with one’s soul’s journey. I’m talking about the stalkers or propagandists lurking everywhere trying to sell you false ideas, trip you up and confuse you so that you purchase with your soul their ideas, often to your determent, not always, but most often.
In the academy, or the halls of higher education—translate, college, the goal is to become freer, and to do this one has to notice everything and learn the language of query. We have to enjoy asking questions because only then will we locate the answers—the most important answers inside each of you.
All I can do is guide the process. I know a bit more about writing than you so. I know a bit more about life than most of you because I am a bit older than most of you. I’ve raised two daughters and have tried to live consciously in the world and there are some tools I can share with you to make the journey a little less treacherous.
What does this have to do with the writing process? Everything. Remember when I told you the great writer is honest. Well to be honest, one must first know oneself.
Writing is one of the disciplines that encourages honesty and revelation. Whatever you read or share in the class needs to stay here. You can’t tell anyone unless you get permission from your classmate who wrote the paper first. If I say it, feel free to publish it :-)
By the end of the first month, we will have established a writing community and in the next week or so, we will have to develop ground rules so everyone will feel comfortable sharing their thoughts about the topics we will discuss.
Hip hop culture is the lens we will be using to explore the writing process. We will look at the history of hip hop, how it has developed and most of all the controversy, especially involving women. However, the purpose of the class is not to become experts in hip hop culture. This is just the hook to keep you in the room, on the floor, in the club, buying drinks, staying high.
You will become scholars and learn to talk about a culture many of you participate in unconsciously without really knowing its history…your participation, depending on how old you are is a result of subtle brainwashing or inheritance—if this word sounds better. In any case, you have swallowed these ideas about women or girls, fashion and career goals—the bling bling of life, without a blink or any analysis.
Scholars do not do this. Scholars evaluate the evidence and motives behind the argument before making a decision about its validity or value.
I am rambling and will get to the point now. You need to be awake when you come to class and prepared. Visit me in my office hours at least three times this semester, more if I ask you to. We will have a study hour—attend a few of those, especially if you are weak in certain areas like reading comprehension.
Michael Eric Dyson, Ph.D. is difficult, a lot more difficult than my English 201 students will find, Jasmine Guy or even Tupac. Jeff Chang is not hard, per se, but Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop, is dense. There is a lot of information here, so students need to apply certain reading strategies, so that the material which is most important is identified.
A good writer is a good planner. A good writer is also a good reader. If you don’t like to read, if you are lazy and don’t like to look up words when you can't pronounce them, let alone, don’t know what they mean—you are in the wrong class.
Some of you are here because this is the only time you could fit an English class into your schedule. You’ll just have to make the best of it; however, if you have a choice and find, after this class or subsequent ones, you and I are not a good match, transfer to another section.
A this level its all about personality. I am seemingly laid back, easy going, and kind of scattered—blame that on my Gemini nature, no seriously, we’re peers and then we’re not. I have something you want—information, knowledge, skill. But so do my other colleague teaching this same course—the objectives and goals and students learning outcomes are consistent across the department, so you will not loose anything if you transfer to another class.
I encourage you to shop around and not buy the rhetoric or arguments of this salesperson standing before you without understanding that you have options. You are not stuck; you can make choices.
I try to keep track of your grades, but if you’d like an A, I’d suggest you keep track of all your papers, especially the graded ones. This is a portfolio class and your final grade is cumulative. Do not throw anything away. I am serious. If you are careless, then at the end of the 18 weeks you will not have any evidence of your progress in the class and so I will not be able to substantiate the grade you say you deserve.
Attendance is important, so come to class and come on time. Get a classmate's phone number and email address so if something is unclear when you get home, you can get help. You can always ask me; however, I think we are all thinking beings and your ideas and thoughts are just as valid as mine when it comes to interpretation.
Respect for each other’s ideas is paramount for this class to function optimally. It’s easy to slip into dysfunction when we allow those unexamined values to intrude on authenticity. We need to disclose, if to no one other than ourselves who we are and what baggage or unexamined ideas we have carried for so long that we need to let go.
This cleansing process is on-going. Look at our nation, seven years post-9/11. Look at how our views of Muslims and the Middle East shifted that early morning in September 2001. Look at the world now, and the world, pre-Sept. 11. Look at the policies tied directly to Sept. 11. Look at what you believe and what you know about Arabs and war, and how that effects your consumption, of both ideologies and commodities.
The possibility of a first black president is a reality, as was the possibility of a first woman president. We will look at the presidential election and how the hip hop community is responding. I hope all of you who can vote are registered. If you are not on parole and are an American citizen, you can and should vote, otherwise you can’t complain.
What else? We will be going on fieldtrips, so stay tuned to the blog or on-line diary. If you don’t have access to a computer with Internet at home, do your assignments in the Writing Center, L-234 suite. It is open six days a week, five of them until 7:45 p.m. it opens at 9 a.m. which is not convenient if you have an 8 a.m. class.
Oh, I am a professional writer. Over the summer the San Francisco Bay View, after 20 years of publishing, stopped printing the paper. We have a web presence, but my editor doesn't know how to maintain the website and has no money to pay someone to do so. If you can help her or know someone who can visit www.sfbayview.com and drop her a line at editor@sfbayview.com
Good luck on everything. Writing is a discipline where your life leaks into the process; try to separate the assignment from your narrative. Of course, everything you write is your story, but there are ways to appeal to different audiences. Remember you are a scholar, and the language of the discourse here is not the same as the one in the streets, locker room, or on the dance floor—even if the topic or theme—hip hop culture—it’s poetics if you are in my English 201; it’s politics especially regarding women, if you are in my English 1A or the global movement of this form of discourse, if you are in my English 1B.
Peace and Blessings,
Wanda Sabir
English, Basic Skills Instructor
L-236 office
(510) 748-2131
PS Let me know if there is anything happening which you might recommend we watch or attend that will broaden our knowledge of these themes and the topic we are exploring. Did anyone attend Rock the Bells last weekend? I wish I’d gone, but I couldn’t find anyone in my peer group who wanted to attend :-) Next time though, I’m going anyway. If any of you is a performance artist or visual artist, also let us know so we can support you and attend your exhibitions.
PSS My email address is professorwandasposse@gmail.com
The blog site for English 201 is http://professorsabirsposse.blogspot.com
English 1A is http://professorwandasposse.blogspot.com
English 1B is http://poeticsrapandtothersocialdiscourses.blogspot.com
August 20, 2008
Dear Students:
I’ve been writing this letter in my head for a few months now and here we are, the first week of school , the last weeks of summer. I hope you had a chance to enjoy the season now that it’s nearly gone. I had the opportunity to attend a family reunion in Biloxi, Mississippi. It was our first. We all met at Great Aunt Bea’s funeral in January and decided that as a family, we really needed to stop meeting like this…funerals are so depressing.
The weather in Ocean Spring, Mississippi, was 92 degrees daily with 100 percent humidity. My hair still hasn’t lost its natural curl and my skin…it was a facial delight, like being in a sauna…great for getting rid of toxins. We had the usual family drama—I was standed in New Orleans when the one Greyhound bus back to Chicago had no seats, but another cousin rescued me, so I spent the week in New Orleans and was able to celebrate Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday at Ashe Community Center, attend a great African film festival featuing the work or Kola Maseko, visit relatives, walk the levess in Algiers, interview Malik Rahim, co-founder of Common Ground Relief, an all volunteer organization that was a first responder to Hurricane Katrina victims about his bid for the Louisiana Congress on the Green Party ticket. I was also able to catch up with some ex-pats—just kidding, friends who went to New Orleans to help, who now live there like Sakura Kone and Don Paul. (Sakura and I will be interviewed on KPFA, 94.1 FM, on Chris Welch’s show Friday, 12-1 p.m. I am co-host of a Hurricane Katrina benefit and report back at Rebecca’s Books in Berkeley. Visit www.wandaspicks.com for the details. It starts at 7 p.m. We’re asking for a $5 donation.)
When I walked out into the Oakland evening a week later—July 22, I actually felt cold. It had been about two weeks since I’d flow to Chicago, to ride/drive with my cousin, Wlydflour to Mississippi. She has a new RV that she wanted to take on the road. Cousin Ronald also went. He’s a professional driver—he drives trucks. Between my uninhibited cousin and the more laid back Ronald, who’d never driven the Mississippi from Chicago, it took 16 hours—sixteen long hours. I do not recommend this trip unless you make stops in between, such as in Memphis to see the sites, Alabama and elsewhere.
I was sleepy almost my entire time away, but I never got a chance to sleep well. You see, there were these huge roaches that one finds in the oddest places. I didn’t want to keep the lights on and attract unnecessary attention to myself, and then I didn’t want to step on one or get into the bed next to one either. Oh, need I mention the misquitoes?
It was scary at times, but my cousin Ronald would remove the offending bug whenever I spotted one. And I found some anti-itch cream that worked when I was bitten by a gnat or other predatory bug.
Everything seems to grow bigger where there is wetness, heat and open space.
In New Orleans where the houses were demolished in the Lower Ninth Ward, all that’s left of the hundreds of families displaced by the broken levees, are weeds which grow taller than a man if not contained. There are signs of life…an occupied house here and there. However, miles of abandoned land lie between—the levee still not complete.
Okay, so back to the letter. Yes, everything you heard is true. I am tough— I treat my students like the adults they are or will be soon, which means, I do not take responsibility for those tasks students need to stay on top of themselves, like doing one's homework, having good study habits, getting proper sleep, staying on top of assignments, such as, the reading.
I try to be clear, but if I’m not, please ask questions for clarity—often I have so much on my mind, I speak really fast and native speakers can’t keep up. Also, if you are in an early class, or have my class after lunch, you might be sleepy. Bring water to class, stand up, if necessary and stretch, step to the side by the wall and touch your toes.
You can try your hand at negotiating…I’m fair and reasonable. I realize that life-happens, but you need to be serious about what you have committed yourself to when you enrolled in this course. If you haven’t taken College Success, I highly recommend the course (3 units). If you don’t have time, keep you ears open for the Super Saturday when some of the same information is decimated. Visit counseling and ask for the date(s). At the Back to School Bash, Sept. 2 and 4, pick up a student organizer. It’s free and you can put important assignments in it.
The only things I will not compromise on are the objectives and goals of the course. Whether you remember all the specific language of the discourse we will have this semester or not, is not the point—but I do suggest keeping a vocabulary log, beginning with this letter which I want you to respond to for the next meeting—this is your first blog assignment— the point is that each of the students in this class grow to understand their unique purpose. You’re honoring your gifts. Every one of you has something unique and precious to offer the world. I am the coach. We’re going to identify it and help you polish it.
Language is communication, whether this is written or verbal or nonverbal. We are all sharing a story. Just the clothes you decided to wear this morning or afternoon, indicates something about you.
Human beings are judgmental and because we jump to conclusions often without weighing the evidence, separating bigotry and ignorance, from other biases, we make mistakes, some costly. A critical thinker brackets his or her biases and tries to look at each communicative event or genre as openly and freely as he or she can. It’s hard being unbiased because we all unconsciously bring our entire life, all our experiences, both good and bad to the table whenever we have to make a decision. Advertisers know this, so they complicate the choices with lies called propaganda (logical fallacies, is the technical term). Nothing is clear, everyone is suspect in the market place whether the salesman is the presidential hopeful or the clerk at the dress shop or the photograph in your favorite magazine.
We will try to be as honest as we can in our writing. Don’t confuse honesty with truth. Truth is subjective and as I mention above, if all of us has an agenda, then there really is no such thing as objectivity only shades of gray in a black and white world.
Let’s just say, if we leave this 18 week experience, better listeners, this would be a start toward opening ourselves up to the larger more human dialogue we need to have with each other and by extension the planet because as I said, all communication is not verbal. If we are to survive as a species, we need to learn to speak other languages—fluently, and respect the voices of those creatures whom we have a tendency to disrespect or look down on like children, animals and other species like trees, rocks and toads.
Too philosophical? Well my undergraduate degree is in philosophy, which I call a degree in learning how to articulate those values which determine one’s direction in life and avoid those arguments which are incongruent with one’s soul’s journey. I’m talking about the stalkers or propagandists lurking everywhere trying to sell you false ideas, trip you up and confuse you so that you purchase with your soul their ideas, often to your determent, not always, but most often.
In the academy, or the halls of higher education—translate, college, the goal is to become freer, and to do this one has to notice everything and learn the language of query. We have to enjoy asking questions because only then will we locate the answers—the most important answers inside each of you.
All I can do is guide the process. I know a bit more about writing than you so. I know a bit more about life than most of you because I am a bit older than most of you. I’ve raised two daughters and have tried to live consciously in the world and there are some tools I can share with you to make the journey a little less treacherous.
What does this have to do with the writing process? Everything. Remember when I told you the great writer is honest. Well to be honest, one must first know oneself.
Writing is one of the disciplines that encourages honesty and revelation. Whatever you read or share in the class needs to stay here. You can’t tell anyone unless you get permission from your classmate who wrote the paper first. If I say it, feel free to publish it :-)
By the end of the first month, we will have established a writing community and in the next week or so, we will have to develop ground rules so everyone will feel comfortable sharing their thoughts about the topics we will discuss.
Hip hop culture is the lens we will be using to explore the writing process. We will look at the history of hip hop, how it has developed and most of all the controversy, especially involving women. However, the purpose of the class is not to become experts in hip hop culture. This is just the hook to keep you in the room, on the floor, in the club, buying drinks, staying high.
You will become scholars and learn to talk about a culture many of you participate in unconsciously without really knowing its history…your participation, depending on how old you are is a result of subtle brainwashing or inheritance—if this word sounds better. In any case, you have swallowed these ideas about women or girls, fashion and career goals—the bling bling of life, without a blink or any analysis.
Scholars do not do this. Scholars evaluate the evidence and motives behind the argument before making a decision about its validity or value.
I am rambling and will get to the point now. You need to be awake when you come to class and prepared. Visit me in my office hours at least three times this semester, more if I ask you to. We will have a study hour—attend a few of those, especially if you are weak in certain areas like reading comprehension.
Michael Eric Dyson, Ph.D. is difficult, a lot more difficult than my English 201 students will find, Jasmine Guy or even Tupac. Jeff Chang is not hard, per se, but Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop, is dense. There is a lot of information here, so students need to apply certain reading strategies, so that the material which is most important is identified.
A good writer is a good planner. A good writer is also a good reader. If you don’t like to read, if you are lazy and don’t like to look up words when you can't pronounce them, let alone, don’t know what they mean—you are in the wrong class.
Some of you are here because this is the only time you could fit an English class into your schedule. You’ll just have to make the best of it; however, if you have a choice and find, after this class or subsequent ones, you and I are not a good match, transfer to another section.
A this level its all about personality. I am seemingly laid back, easy going, and kind of scattered—blame that on my Gemini nature, no seriously, we’re peers and then we’re not. I have something you want—information, knowledge, skill. But so do my other colleague teaching this same course—the objectives and goals and students learning outcomes are consistent across the department, so you will not loose anything if you transfer to another class.
I encourage you to shop around and not buy the rhetoric or arguments of this salesperson standing before you without understanding that you have options. You are not stuck; you can make choices.
I try to keep track of your grades, but if you’d like an A, I’d suggest you keep track of all your papers, especially the graded ones. This is a portfolio class and your final grade is cumulative. Do not throw anything away. I am serious. If you are careless, then at the end of the 18 weeks you will not have any evidence of your progress in the class and so I will not be able to substantiate the grade you say you deserve.
Attendance is important, so come to class and come on time. Get a classmate's phone number and email address so if something is unclear when you get home, you can get help. You can always ask me; however, I think we are all thinking beings and your ideas and thoughts are just as valid as mine when it comes to interpretation.
Respect for each other’s ideas is paramount for this class to function optimally. It’s easy to slip into dysfunction when we allow those unexamined values to intrude on authenticity. We need to disclose, if to no one other than ourselves who we are and what baggage or unexamined ideas we have carried for so long that we need to let go.
This cleansing process is on-going. Look at our nation, seven years post-9/11. Look at how our views of Muslims and the Middle East shifted that early morning in September 2001. Look at the world now, and the world, pre-Sept. 11. Look at the policies tied directly to Sept. 11. Look at what you believe and what you know about Arabs and war, and how that effects your consumption, of both ideologies and commodities.
The possibility of a first black president is a reality, as was the possibility of a first woman president. We will look at the presidential election and how the hip hop community is responding. I hope all of you who can vote are registered. If you are not on parole and are an American citizen, you can and should vote, otherwise you can’t complain.
What else? We will be going on fieldtrips, so stay tuned to the blog or on-line diary. If you don’t have access to a computer with Internet at home, do your assignments in the Writing Center, L-234 suite. It is open six days a week, five of them until 7:45 p.m. it opens at 9 a.m. which is not convenient if you have an 8 a.m. class.
Oh, I am a professional writer. Over the summer the San Francisco Bay View, after 20 years of publishing, stopped printing the paper. We have a web presence, but my editor doesn't know how to maintain the website and has no money to pay someone to do so. If you can help her or know someone who can visit www.sfbayview.com and drop her a line at editor@sfbayview.com
Good luck on everything. Writing is a discipline where your life leaks into the process; try to separate the assignment from your narrative. Of course, everything you write is your story, but there are ways to appeal to different audiences. Remember you are a scholar, and the language of the discourse here is not the same as the one in the streets, locker room, or on the dance floor—even if the topic or theme—hip hop culture—it’s poetics if you are in my English 201; it’s politics especially regarding women, if you are in my English 1A or the global movement of this form of discourse, if you are in my English 1B.
Peace and Blessings,
Wanda Sabir
English, Basic Skills Instructor
L-236 office
(510) 748-2131
PS Let me know if there is anything happening which you might recommend we watch or attend that will broaden our knowledge of these themes and the topic we are exploring. Did anyone attend Rock the Bells last weekend? I wish I’d gone, but I couldn’t find anyone in my peer group who wanted to attend :-) Next time though, I’m going anyway. If any of you is a performance artist or visual artist, also let us know so we can support you and attend your exhibitions.
PSS My email address is professorwandasposse@gmail.com
The blog site for English 201 is http://professorsabirsposse.blogspot.com
English 1A is http://professorwandasposse.blogspot.com
English 1B is http://poeticsrapandtothersocialdiscourses.blogspot.com
Syllabus less drafty
English 1B, Fall 2008
College of Alameda; Professor Wanda Sabir
Course code 42800, Room C-104 9-10:50 TTh
Class Meetings: August 21-Dec. 11; No classes: 9/1; 10/22; 11/11; 11/27-28
Final Exam: 8-10, Tuesday, Dec.16
Drop dates: Sept. 4 (w/refund), Sept. 13 (w/out a W), Nov. 18 (w/W).
Syllabus for English 1B: College Composition and Reading
English 1B is a transferable college writing course. It builds on the competencies gained in English 1A with a more careful and studied analysis of expository writing based on careful reading of selected plays, poems, novels, and short fiction.
Plan to have a challenging, yet intellectually stimulating 18 weeks, which I hope you begin by setting goals for yourself. Make a schedule and join or create a study group. Writing is a social activity, especially the type of writing you’ll be doing here. We always consider our audience, have purpose or reason to write, and use research to substantiate our claims, even those we are considered experts in.
We’re supposed to write about 8000 words or so at this level course. This includes drafts. What this amounts to is time at home writing, time in the library researching, reading documents to increase your facility with the ideas or themes your are contemplating, before you once again sit at your desk writing, revising, and writing some more.
Writing is a lonely process. No one can write for you. The social aspect comes into play once you are finished and you have an opportunity to share.
I thought it might be interesting this semester to look at the global reach of hip hop as we also look at how hip hop has influenced or perpetuated certain views of women. Byron Hurt directs a film, Hip Hop Beyond Beats and Rhymes, which looks at mysegeny in hip hop culture. I am still trying to decide on what books we’ll use, so for the moment we will look at essays about genre from scholars and artists, to compare the personal with the theoretical. At each meeting we will listen to an artist or watch a film to analyze the work—is it fair to look at raps literary quality, minus the performance aspect? What happens when we take a song out of context?
As the weeks progress we will develop a list of the key architects of this genre. Why aren’t their names more well known by contemporary fans? Does their absence from popular culture limit or change the nature of hip hop? What is this argument that hip hop is dead? Who is KRS-1 who calls himself “hip hop” and refers to the genre as a nation?
Keep a reading log. Discussion groups will meet each week. Students will also keep a reading log/journal/notes with key ideas outlined for each discussion section, along with vocabulary and key arguments listed, along with primary writing strategies employed: description, process analysis, narration, argument, cause and effect, compare and contrast, definition, problem solving.
Research Project
Your research project will entail finding a social entrepreneur who is an artist, who has been active in his or her community for at least 20 years and have documented resources you can draw from: books, essays, articles, films, music, performances. The paper will be about 10 pages. This will include a works cited page and bibliography. Students will make 5-10 minute presentations of these papers the day of the final. The paper will be due about two-three weeks prior to the presentation. I thought students could look for women in hip hop here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I’m just not certain if there are enough to go around (smile). We’ll discuss this task further later on.
New Heroes
Visit PBS.org “The New Heroes,” to read about social entrepreneurs. (I’ll show you a few episodes from the series.) Too often people feel helpless or hopeless when there is a lot you can do as an individual as soon as you realize the answer lies inside of you.
Other writing
We will write short essays that reflect themes and ideas discussed that week. Some of these essays will be written in class. The research essay will be an argument. There will be a midterm and a final.
Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in order of importance.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Presentation 1: Due Tuesday, Sept. 2
Bring in an object that represents hip hop culture. Be prepared to share. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). You will post the written response on the blog. I’ll take photos. (If you were in my class Fall 2007, choose another object.)
Presentation 2: Due Tuesday, Sept. 9
Bring in an object that reflects America, American values, its people, landscape, or history. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). Same as above. It is also a cyber-assignment.
Grading
Weekly essays: 15 percent
Daily journals: 15 percent
Midterm: 10 percent
Final: 15 percent
Research Essay/Presentation: 20 percent
Portfolio: 15 percent
Peer Reviews from Lab teachers: 10 percent
Participation: 5 percent
The essays, which take their themes from the class: hip hop as global movement, hip hop and women, the aesthetics of hip hop, are practice essays, and are about a fourth of your grade, your midterm and final are another fourth and your portfolio is the final fourth. (Save all of your work.) You can average the grades to see how to weigh the various components. Participation is included in the daily exercises and homework portion of the grade, so if your attendance is exemplary, yet you say nothing the entire 18 weeks, you loose percentage points.
You will also need to plan to spend time weekly in the Writing Lab (L-234-235, 748-2132). It is a great place to get one-on-on assistance on your essays, from brainstorming and planning the essays, to critique on the essay for clarity, organization, clearly stated thesis, evidence of support, logical conclusions, and grammatical problems for referrals to other ancillary materials to build strong writing muscles such as SkillsBank, the Bedford Handbook on-line, Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers on-line, Townsend Press, and other such computer and cyber-based resources. Call for hours. There is also an Open Lab for checking e-mail, and a Math Lab. All academic labs are located in the Learning Resource Center (LRC) or library.
Students need a student ID to use the labs and to check out books. The IDs are free and you can take the photo in the F-Building, Student Services.
Have a tutor of teacher sign off on your essays before you turn them in; if you have a “R,” which means revision necessary for a grade or “NC” which means “no credit,” you have to go to the lab and revise the essay with a tutor or teacher before you return both the graded original and the revision (with signature) to me. Revise does not mean “rewrite,” it means to “see again.”
When getting assistance on an essay, the teacher or tutor is not an editor, so have questions prepared for them to make best use of the 15-20 minute session in the Lab. For more specific assistance sign up for one-on-one tutoring, another free service. For those of you on other campuses, you can get assistance at the Merritt Colleges’ Writing Center, as well as Laney’s.
All essay assignments you receive comments on have to be revised prior to resubmission; included with the revision is a student narrative to me regarding your understanding of what needed to be done; a student can prepare this as a part of the Lab visit, especially if said student is unclear over what steps to take.
Students can also visit me in office hours for assistance; again, prepare your questions in advance to best make use of the time. Do not leave class without understanding the comments on a paper. I don’t mind reading them to you.
English language fluency in writing and reading; a certain comfort and ease with the language; confidence and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing. Familiarity if not mastery of the rhetorical styles used in argumentation, exposition and narration will be addressed in this class and is a key student learning outcome (SLO).
We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.
This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process - critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with bigotry; it’s easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more just, alternative protocol.
Grades, Portfolio
We will be honest with one another. Grades are not necessarily an honest response to work; grades do not take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not students can demonstrate mastery of a skill - in this case: essay writing. Grades are an approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or failure this summer session in meeting your goal.
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:30 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. by appointment in A-200. Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. All the office hours take place in my office, L-236, except where noted. (I’m inside the Writing Center Lab L-235). I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
I don’t check my e-mail on weekends so I’d advise you to exchange phone numbers with classmates (2), so if you have a concern, it can be addressed more expediently. Again study groups are recommended, especially for those students finding the readings difficult; don’t forget, you can also discuss the readings as a group in the Lab with a teacher or tutor acting as facilitator. Keep a vocabulary log for the semester and an error chart (taken from comments on essay assignments). List the words you need to look up in the dictionary, also list where you first encountered them: page, book and definition, also use the word in a sentence. You will turn this in with your portfolio.
Students are expected to complete their work on time. If you need more time on an assignment, discuss this with me in advance, if possible to keep full credit. You loose credit each day an assignment is late and certain assignments, such as in-class essays cannot be made up. All assignments prepared outside of class are to be typed, 12-pt. font, double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the written work (see Hacker: The Writing Process; Document Design.)
Cheating
Plagiarism is ethically abhorrent, and if any student tries to take credit for work authored by another person the result will be a failed grade on the assignment and possibly a failed grade in the course if this is attempted again. This is a graded course.
Homework
If you do not identify the assignment, I cannot grade it. If you do not return the original assignment you revised, I cannot compare what changed. If you accidentally toss out or lose the original assignment, you get a zero on the assignment to be revised. I will not look at revisions without the original attached - no exceptions. Some students essays will be posted on-line at the website. Students will also have the option of submitting assignments on-line.
All assignments completed away from class should be typed. Use blue or black ink when writing responses in class. You can annotate your books in pencil.
Textbooks Recap:
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Jeff Chang. Picador. 2005. ISBN: 0-312-42579-1
Know What I Mean? Reflections on Hip Hop. Michael Eric Dyson. Basic Civitias Books. 2007. ISBN: 0-465-017716-9 (I am making copiesof certain chapters, but I recommend purchasing it.)
Total Chaos: The Art and Aesthetics of Hip Hop. Ed. Jeff Chang. Basic Civitas Books. 2006. ISBN: 10: 0-465-00909-3 (I’m thinking about this book.)
The Coldest Winter Ever. Sister Souljah. Simon & Schuster. 2006.
http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?tab=1&pid=514298&er=9781416521693
Rules For Writers. Fourth or Fifth edition. Diana Hacker. Bedford/St. Martins. (If you don’t already have such a book.)
Elements of Style (any edition)
I am thinking about:
From Totems to Hip-Hop: A Multicultural Anthology of Poetry Across the Americas, 1900-2002. Ed. Ishmael Reed. Thunder’s Mouth Press. 2003. ISBN 1-56025-458-0 (but you might have enough with the survey of hip hop music)
The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop’s Greatest Songs. Felicia Pride. Thunder’s Mouth Press. 2007. ISBN-13: 978-1-56858-335-8
The Spoken Word Revolution (slam, hip hop & the poetry of a new generation). Ed. Mark Eleveld. Sourcebooks MediaFusion. 2004. ISBN: 1-4022-0246-6.
Students also need a dictionary. I recommend: The American Heritage Dictionary. Fourth Edition.
Along with a dictionary, the prepared student needs pens with blue or black ink, along with a pencil for annotating texts, paper, a stapler or paper clips, floppy disks, a notebook, three hole punch, a folder for work-in-progress, and a divided binder to keep materials together.
Also stay abreast of the news. Buy a daily paper. Listen to alternative radio:
KPFA 94.1 FM (Hardknock), KQED 88.5, KALW 91.7. Visit news websites: AllAfrica.com, Al Jazeera, CNN.com, AlterNet.org, DemocracyNow.org, FlashPoints.org, CBS 60Minutes.
Index Cards Week 2 August 26-August 28
Please list your contact information: Name, Address, phone number e-mail address, best time to call.
What strengths do you bring to the class? What do you hope to obtain from the course – any particular exit skills? What do I need to know about you to help you meet your goals?
College of Alameda; Professor Wanda Sabir
Course code 42800, Room C-104 9-10:50 TTh
Class Meetings: August 21-Dec. 11; No classes: 9/1; 10/22; 11/11; 11/27-28
Final Exam: 8-10, Tuesday, Dec.16
Drop dates: Sept. 4 (w/refund), Sept. 13 (w/out a W), Nov. 18 (w/W).
Syllabus for English 1B: College Composition and Reading
English 1B is a transferable college writing course. It builds on the competencies gained in English 1A with a more careful and studied analysis of expository writing based on careful reading of selected plays, poems, novels, and short fiction.
Plan to have a challenging, yet intellectually stimulating 18 weeks, which I hope you begin by setting goals for yourself. Make a schedule and join or create a study group. Writing is a social activity, especially the type of writing you’ll be doing here. We always consider our audience, have purpose or reason to write, and use research to substantiate our claims, even those we are considered experts in.
We’re supposed to write about 8000 words or so at this level course. This includes drafts. What this amounts to is time at home writing, time in the library researching, reading documents to increase your facility with the ideas or themes your are contemplating, before you once again sit at your desk writing, revising, and writing some more.
Writing is a lonely process. No one can write for you. The social aspect comes into play once you are finished and you have an opportunity to share.
I thought it might be interesting this semester to look at the global reach of hip hop as we also look at how hip hop has influenced or perpetuated certain views of women. Byron Hurt directs a film, Hip Hop Beyond Beats and Rhymes, which looks at mysegeny in hip hop culture. I am still trying to decide on what books we’ll use, so for the moment we will look at essays about genre from scholars and artists, to compare the personal with the theoretical. At each meeting we will listen to an artist or watch a film to analyze the work—is it fair to look at raps literary quality, minus the performance aspect? What happens when we take a song out of context?
As the weeks progress we will develop a list of the key architects of this genre. Why aren’t their names more well known by contemporary fans? Does their absence from popular culture limit or change the nature of hip hop? What is this argument that hip hop is dead? Who is KRS-1 who calls himself “hip hop” and refers to the genre as a nation?
Keep a reading log. Discussion groups will meet each week. Students will also keep a reading log/journal/notes with key ideas outlined for each discussion section, along with vocabulary and key arguments listed, along with primary writing strategies employed: description, process analysis, narration, argument, cause and effect, compare and contrast, definition, problem solving.
Research Project
Your research project will entail finding a social entrepreneur who is an artist, who has been active in his or her community for at least 20 years and have documented resources you can draw from: books, essays, articles, films, music, performances. The paper will be about 10 pages. This will include a works cited page and bibliography. Students will make 5-10 minute presentations of these papers the day of the final. The paper will be due about two-three weeks prior to the presentation. I thought students could look for women in hip hop here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I’m just not certain if there are enough to go around (smile). We’ll discuss this task further later on.
New Heroes
Visit PBS.org “The New Heroes,” to read about social entrepreneurs. (I’ll show you a few episodes from the series.) Too often people feel helpless or hopeless when there is a lot you can do as an individual as soon as you realize the answer lies inside of you.
Other writing
We will write short essays that reflect themes and ideas discussed that week. Some of these essays will be written in class. The research essay will be an argument. There will be a midterm and a final.
Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in order of importance.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Presentation 1: Due Tuesday, Sept. 2
Bring in an object that represents hip hop culture. Be prepared to share. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). You will post the written response on the blog. I’ll take photos. (If you were in my class Fall 2007, choose another object.)
Presentation 2: Due Tuesday, Sept. 9
Bring in an object that reflects America, American values, its people, landscape, or history. Write a brief profile on the object justifying its inclusion in the archives (100 words or so). Same as above. It is also a cyber-assignment.
Grading
Weekly essays: 15 percent
Daily journals: 15 percent
Midterm: 10 percent
Final: 15 percent
Research Essay/Presentation: 20 percent
Portfolio: 15 percent
Peer Reviews from Lab teachers: 10 percent
Participation: 5 percent
The essays, which take their themes from the class: hip hop as global movement, hip hop and women, the aesthetics of hip hop, are practice essays, and are about a fourth of your grade, your midterm and final are another fourth and your portfolio is the final fourth. (Save all of your work.) You can average the grades to see how to weigh the various components. Participation is included in the daily exercises and homework portion of the grade, so if your attendance is exemplary, yet you say nothing the entire 18 weeks, you loose percentage points.
You will also need to plan to spend time weekly in the Writing Lab (L-234-235, 748-2132). It is a great place to get one-on-on assistance on your essays, from brainstorming and planning the essays, to critique on the essay for clarity, organization, clearly stated thesis, evidence of support, logical conclusions, and grammatical problems for referrals to other ancillary materials to build strong writing muscles such as SkillsBank, the Bedford Handbook on-line, Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers on-line, Townsend Press, and other such computer and cyber-based resources. Call for hours. There is also an Open Lab for checking e-mail, and a Math Lab. All academic labs are located in the Learning Resource Center (LRC) or library.
Students need a student ID to use the labs and to check out books. The IDs are free and you can take the photo in the F-Building, Student Services.
Have a tutor of teacher sign off on your essays before you turn them in; if you have a “R,” which means revision necessary for a grade or “NC” which means “no credit,” you have to go to the lab and revise the essay with a tutor or teacher before you return both the graded original and the revision (with signature) to me. Revise does not mean “rewrite,” it means to “see again.”
When getting assistance on an essay, the teacher or tutor is not an editor, so have questions prepared for them to make best use of the 15-20 minute session in the Lab. For more specific assistance sign up for one-on-one tutoring, another free service. For those of you on other campuses, you can get assistance at the Merritt Colleges’ Writing Center, as well as Laney’s.
All essay assignments you receive comments on have to be revised prior to resubmission; included with the revision is a student narrative to me regarding your understanding of what needed to be done; a student can prepare this as a part of the Lab visit, especially if said student is unclear over what steps to take.
Students can also visit me in office hours for assistance; again, prepare your questions in advance to best make use of the time. Do not leave class without understanding the comments on a paper. I don’t mind reading them to you.
English language fluency in writing and reading; a certain comfort and ease with the language; confidence and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing. Familiarity if not mastery of the rhetorical styles used in argumentation, exposition and narration will be addressed in this class and is a key student learning outcome (SLO).
We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.
This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process - critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with bigotry; it’s easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more just, alternative protocol.
Grades, Portfolio
We will be honest with one another. Grades are not necessarily an honest response to work; grades do not take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not students can demonstrate mastery of a skill - in this case: essay writing. Grades are an approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or failure this summer session in meeting your goal.
Office Hours
I’d like to wish everyone good luck. I am available for consultation on Monday mornings 9:30-10:30 a.m. , Wednesday 9:30-10:30 a.m., Wednesday afternoon 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. by appointment in A-200. Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you want to take me to lunch—just kidding, I am available after 12 for appointments if you notify me in advance. All the office hours take place in my office, L-236, except where noted. (I’m inside the Writing Center Lab L-235). I am not on campus on Fridays. (Jot my cell number down in this section.) My office number is (510) 748-2131, e-mail professorwandasposse@gmail.com.
I don’t check my e-mail on weekends so I’d advise you to exchange phone numbers with classmates (2), so if you have a concern, it can be addressed more expediently. Again study groups are recommended, especially for those students finding the readings difficult; don’t forget, you can also discuss the readings as a group in the Lab with a teacher or tutor acting as facilitator. Keep a vocabulary log for the semester and an error chart (taken from comments on essay assignments). List the words you need to look up in the dictionary, also list where you first encountered them: page, book and definition, also use the word in a sentence. You will turn this in with your portfolio.
Students are expected to complete their work on time. If you need more time on an assignment, discuss this with me in advance, if possible to keep full credit. You loose credit each day an assignment is late and certain assignments, such as in-class essays cannot be made up. All assignments prepared outside of class are to be typed, 12-pt. font, double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the written work (see Hacker: The Writing Process; Document Design.)
Cheating
Plagiarism is ethically abhorrent, and if any student tries to take credit for work authored by another person the result will be a failed grade on the assignment and possibly a failed grade in the course if this is attempted again. This is a graded course.
Homework
If you do not identify the assignment, I cannot grade it. If you do not return the original assignment you revised, I cannot compare what changed. If you accidentally toss out or lose the original assignment, you get a zero on the assignment to be revised. I will not look at revisions without the original attached - no exceptions. Some students essays will be posted on-line at the website. Students will also have the option of submitting assignments on-line.
All assignments completed away from class should be typed. Use blue or black ink when writing responses in class. You can annotate your books in pencil.
Textbooks Recap:
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Jeff Chang. Picador. 2005. ISBN: 0-312-42579-1
Know What I Mean? Reflections on Hip Hop. Michael Eric Dyson. Basic Civitias Books. 2007. ISBN: 0-465-017716-9 (I am making copiesof certain chapters, but I recommend purchasing it.)
Total Chaos: The Art and Aesthetics of Hip Hop. Ed. Jeff Chang. Basic Civitas Books. 2006. ISBN: 10: 0-465-00909-3 (I’m thinking about this book.)
The Coldest Winter Ever. Sister Souljah. Simon & Schuster. 2006.
http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?tab=1&pid=514298&er=9781416521693
Rules For Writers. Fourth or Fifth edition. Diana Hacker. Bedford/St. Martins. (If you don’t already have such a book.)
Elements of Style (any edition)
I am thinking about:
From Totems to Hip-Hop: A Multicultural Anthology of Poetry Across the Americas, 1900-2002. Ed. Ishmael Reed. Thunder’s Mouth Press. 2003. ISBN 1-56025-458-0 (but you might have enough with the survey of hip hop music)
The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop’s Greatest Songs. Felicia Pride. Thunder’s Mouth Press. 2007. ISBN-13: 978-1-56858-335-8
The Spoken Word Revolution (slam, hip hop & the poetry of a new generation). Ed. Mark Eleveld. Sourcebooks MediaFusion. 2004. ISBN: 1-4022-0246-6.
Students also need a dictionary. I recommend: The American Heritage Dictionary. Fourth Edition.
Along with a dictionary, the prepared student needs pens with blue or black ink, along with a pencil for annotating texts, paper, a stapler or paper clips, floppy disks, a notebook, three hole punch, a folder for work-in-progress, and a divided binder to keep materials together.
Also stay abreast of the news. Buy a daily paper. Listen to alternative radio:
KPFA 94.1 FM (Hardknock), KQED 88.5, KALW 91.7. Visit news websites: AllAfrica.com, Al Jazeera, CNN.com, AlterNet.org, DemocracyNow.org, FlashPoints.org, CBS 60Minutes.
Index Cards Week 2 August 26-August 28
Please list your contact information: Name, Address, phone number e-mail address, best time to call.
What strengths do you bring to the class? What do you hope to obtain from the course – any particular exit skills? What do I need to know about you to help you meet your goals?
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