Dear Students,
After much deliberation, and as you already know, I have decided to
not collect your SSA's today, Monday, January 28th.
However, if you are prepared to do so, please come ready to turn in
your essay with all your rough drafts included to class. Only if you
hand in your essay today, you do not have to read the below and can skip down to the *** at the bottom of the page. Also, you do not have to do the
assignment listed below.
After our in-class meeting on Thursday, I must admit that
I was quite crestfallen after noting the lack of progress and polished
quality of your work, but your lack of progress also indicated to me
that perhaps you needed more time. Thus, I'd rather give you an
extension than get back papers that were rushed and do not reflect
instruction.
It is essential that you recognize the
manner in which your class and yourself have not worked within the time
allotment and must identify this misappropriation of time as something
utterly un-dismissible. In fact, it was an egregious error on the part of your class collectively to be
unprepared to turn in a summative piece. If there were any deficits in
your understanding of how to write an analytical essay, the obligation
to seek instruction beyond what was offered in class belongs to the
student. However, requests for appointments have only recently flooded my inbox.
This isn't a hand slap. This does not change the way I believe in
all of you as talented, kind and warm-hearted young people who I
intensely believe in and am proud to teach. I want to celebrate your
learning with you. However, I must react to your actions because I would
not be a good teacher, mentor, fellow human if I did not hold you to a
certain level of expectation. So, please take responsibility by
completing the following assignments.
Homework:
1. Please reflect on the above and respond on this blog no later
than Wednesday, January 30th. A suggestion would be not to make excuses
or assign blame. Instead, demonstrate that you have understood in 75 -
100 words by summarizing the key points above.
2. Also
include in your comments your due date assigned by Mrs. Lee for your
individual paper and list three areas of your essay you intend to fix
and how. You may want to refer back to your outline or ask Mrs. Lee to
see your midterm to help you articulate your needs.
3. In reflection of the way you used your time, indicate 3 or
more concrete method you intend to use going forward to make sure you
meet your due dates (e.g. allot 2 hours a weekend just for editing,
journal about my topic before attacking the conclusion or introduction,
keep my lecture notes out while writing my essay so I know I am
fulfilling the writing expectations of an analytical essay, hold
myself accountable for my actions, ask a peer to be my partner so
that we would both keep each other on track, set my own due dates
for myself for preliminary steps, etc.)
*** Some of you have been asking how to write a Conclusion Paragraph. Please take note of additional instruction indicated below, a review of our lectures and adapted from http://www.writing.ucsb.edu/faculty/donelan/concl.html
Conclusions vary widely in structure, and no prescription can guarantee
that your essay has ended well. If the introduction and body of your essay
have a clear trajectory, your readers should already expect you to conclude
when the final paragraph arrives, so don’t overload it with words or phrases
that indicate its status.
Below is an outline for a hypothetical, abstract
essay with five main sections:
V: Conclusion
-
Transition from last body paragraph
-
Sentences explaining how paper has fit together and leads to a stronger,
more emphatic and more detailed version of your thesis
- Brief mention of the counter argument, to be dismissed by (e.g. Although Mr. Kapasi's actions may suggest he struggled to maintain emotional fidelity, under close inspection Lahiri rather presents a man whose central motivation was [reinsert observation in thesis]).
- Final comment or BIG SO WHAT
-
Why is the essay important or may be interesting to a wider audience?
-
What are areas your essay highlights? An ethical dilemma that is universal? A practical
applications that was overshot? Mores or scruples that were overlooked? A political/moral stronghold?
