This is the course website for English 213, Section A, taught by Quinn Warnick at Iowa State University during fall 2008. Please refer to the policy document, found at the top of the center column, for more information about this class. Updates to the syllabus will be posted to this site one week in advance, and any changes to the readings and/or assignments will be reflected in the summaries for each week.
Reading Journal Assignment
Reading Journal
(worth 10% of your course grade; collected randomly throughout the semester)Description of the Reading Journal
Your reading journal is a collection of all of the readings we will complete for English 213 (other than those readings/websites you are specifically instructed not to print out). First, you should print the reading assignments, 3-hole punch them, and put them in a 3-ring binder. Next, you should read each piece carefully, highlighting or underlining key points, confusing terms, or statements with which you disagree. You should also make comments in the margins or notes at the end of the piece. Finally, at the end of each piece, you should briefly answer three questions:1. What is one word or concept in the piece that you don't understand? (e.g, "I'm not sure what a Google 'cache' is.")
2. What is one statement or idea you find particularly compelling or persuasive? (e.g., "On p. 8 of 'Say Everything,' I completely agree with this conclusion: 'We can take guesses at the future, but it’s hard to gauge the effects of a drug while you’re still taking it.'")
3. What is one statement or idea with which you disagree? (e.g., "I think the people who wrote Cornell University's 'Thoughts on Facebook' are missing the point about keeping our futures in mind: in 20 years, no one will care that I have an online identity, because everyone will have an online identity.")
Assignment Details
Starting in week 4 of the semester, Quinn will collect a few journals each class period. You journal will be collected no more than two times during the semester. Because journal collection is random, you should bring your journal to class every day. If your journal is collected on a day when you forgot to bring it to class, you may submit the journal during the next class period, with a 25% penalty.
Evaluation Criteria
Quinn will evaluate your journal based on the following criteria:- Does your journal contain all of the assigned readings?
- How thoroughly have you annotated the readings?
- How well have you answered the three questions for each reading?