| |
 |
| | |
Where in the World?
|
When you learned about Medaille, you may have read on the web site or on a printed document:
We take that so seriously that we deliberately work it into the curriculum. In this course, we use the idea of a learning community.
You are in a learning community this semester pairing ENG 110 and GEN 110. In addition, we are sharing a broader topic with another ENG 110 / GEN 110 pair as well as a GEN 411 capstone course and a photography course.
The common topic is a community-based learning project
learning more about foreign refugees in Buffalo. Note that's not
immigrants. That's refugees, like the family on the right.
We will be working with a community not-for-profit organization called Journey's End, where I got the definition above. This spring, Medaille students are going to engage Journey's End's clients -- that is, refugees -- in a variety of ways. The refugees themselves will have come from a long list of countries, and many of them don't speak any English.
It is very helpful if the students who relate to these refugees know at least a little bit about the countries the refugees came from and what political conditions (usually) caused them to leave.
Your job in this course will be to provide that
background information to your fellow students. Your writing for this
course will be required reading for them. They will have a purpose for
that reading, so they can relate to the refugees a little better.
Perhaps our students can get Google Maps on their iPhone and ask the
refugees to show exactly where they came from. It would be great if our
students knew a little bit about the country.
We cannot cover all of the possible countries in sufficient depth, so we have narrowed down three areas of the world that are the homelands of most of the refugees that we expect to encounter this semeseter.
The Horn of Africa - Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia
The Mideast - Iraq and Afghanistan
The Southeast - Burma
In six groups of three, you're going to do research about one of these countries. Based on that research, each of you will write paragraphs and essays that give the students in the other sections the information and perspectives they need to more effectively communicate with the refugees they, and you, will be encountering this semester.
These are just topics. You still need a rhetorical situation.
You learn to write by writing. For this course, you are going to write several short pieces that would be appropriate to a newspaper or magazine, and then two longer essays that would be more appropriate for a magazine or wiki.
We will spend several class sessions in a workshop/game film mode looking closely at your writing.
We're
going to need a considerable amount of class time for learning more
about the refugee situation and what the other courses in doing.
We're also going to take advantage of the two-hour time frame for the two sections to go on some field trips.
|
In general, the best topics are what are called wicked problems, messy complex situations with no clear way forward. That's what organizations pay college graduates to do -- solve the messy problems. If the company already know where they're going and how to get there, what does it need you for?
Who will read your writing? Why will they be reading it? What do they need to know?
Primary
audience.
You make your writing more effective by writing to a specific audience.
The more specific the better. If you can, boil it down to one human
with a face and emotional reactions. Pick one. Take his/her picture.
Put the picture in front of you when you sit down to write. When you
get stuck,
look at the picture and think of what he/she would ask next or want to
know next. I also call this your foreground audience.
In this case, you will meet and be able to communicate
with your primary audience, the students who will be reading your
essays and working with the refugees.
Secondary audience. Your writing will often have a secondary audience that can be more numerous and more important to you than the primary audience. Write to the primary audience, but keep the needs of that secondary audience in mind. An example would be something that you write for a client, the primary audience, but which will be reviewed first by your boss, the secondary audience. I also call this your background audience.
In this case, your secondary audience is the other
people at Medaille and Journey's End who will be involved in this
project and may well find your essays helpful to solve their own
problems.
Generally speaking, we use information for two purposes, two solve problems and to make decisions. How will your primary audience use this information? What problem needs to be solved? What decision needs to be made? How will your secondary audience use it? Please note that your personal opinion is not relevant here.
Another way to look at a problem is a gap between the way things are and the way you want them to be. Then the solution overcomes the gap. In this case, Medaille students know X about the countries that the refugees come from. In order to relate better to the refugees, they want to know Y about the countries. Your job is to solve that problem, help them bridge the gap from X to Y.
The good news is that you'll be able to work with those
students directly and ask them, "What else do you need to know so you
don't sound like an idiot around those refugees?"
It is seldom true that there is one and only one correct solution to a problem and all the other potential solutions would have led to disaster. It is seldom true that one and only one option is best and everything else is the absolute worst.
In other words, the world is full of grays, not blacks and whites. Solutions and options are contingent and relative: "it depends".
In this case, you are not going to be able to cover everything about these countries. In fact, you're hardly going to scratch the surface. But it will be enough for solving your audience's problem.
So what should you write about, knowing the most things, you won't write about?
What are the
opposing viewpoints? How strong are they (the viewpoints, not the
people holding them)? Where are their weaknesses?
From what perspective are you going to look at it? A
good way to answer this might be to think what course it would be in.
For example, if your topic is romance, you can use a psychological
framework (individual relationships), sociological (men vs women),
financial (marketing flowers to forgetful males), historical, etc. If
you were working in an organization, your department would determine
that framework: marketing, finance, production, R&D, etc.
In organizations, the process of defining the problem is often called an "environmental scan". When you take a snapshot of a situation, what perspective are you going to bring to it?
Another way of asking this: any situation is part of several systems. Which are you going to use to define your situation? The conventional categories are PEST: political, economic, social, and technological. For example, if you're looking at the welfare system or the Haitian adoption system, do you look at it as part of a political system, an economic system, a social system, or a technological system?
Why is this important?
1) The reader needs to know the context in order to understand your essays.
2) You need to know in order to focus your research. If you look at welfare as part of a political system, then you will use keywords like "US congress welfare policy" and "welfare reform". If you look at welfare as part of an economic system, then you will use keywords like "agricultural subsidies" and "supply demand food prices". If you look at welfare as part of a social system, then you will use keywords like "class resentment" and "socio-economic status poverty". If you look at it as a technological problem, then you will use keywords like "farm technology distribution infrastructure".
In this case, the PEST framework works very well. We will add an historical category.
Now that you have a topic, audience, and purpose, you are ready to plan your research.
Your writing will close a gap between what the foreground or primary audience knows and thinks now and what they'll know after reading what you wrote. So put yourself in their shoes and think of the questions they might have to close that gap. Your research and writing will answer some of (not all of) those questions.
The questions from our audience, your fellow students,
grouped into three areas: what life is like in the countries, what
conditions forced some of the people to become refugees, and how the
refugee process works.
What is each country like? geography and climate, languages, occupations, religious beliefs, education, social life, etc.
What are the refugee camps like? Where are they?
What
are the issues in the country forcing these individuals to become
refugees? political, ethnic, economic, religious, ecologicalHow exactly do the refugees get here?
What countries send the most refugees? Why?
Do the refugees have a choice about where they relocate?
Why do some refugees have to wait in Canada before relocating to the USA?
How long is the process to relocate?
What are the requirements that the refugees have to meet to relocate?
Can refugees go back home?
Does the whole family get to relocate together?
These questions are best addressed by one of the rhetorical modes:
what life is like in the countries - definition and comparison
what conditions forced some of the people to become refugees - cause and effect
how the refugee process works - process description
I am very excited for this project to help a family come from being in a poor condition to being in the city of Buffalo where they will call it thier new home. I feel as though it is important to give back to the community that has offered all of us, as college students, a great opportunity to live and get an education and some day a job. It does however make me very sad that there are so many families and people still displaced in conditions that would not be ideal. The fact that the families see the West Side of Buffalo home, when many of us take it for granted means a lot to me. Many people who came to America looking for oppurtunity settled and lived on the citys West Side for decades, including my ancestors and family. I think that by growing the refugees in Buffalo it will bring life to the city and people can see the city as a safe haven instead of just troublesome neighborhood. I am vert excited to take on many parts and different roles in this project and I hope everyone else that is involved is too. The chance to give a family a home when they've never had one really warms my heart and makes me feel proud to be a part of this. I think that it is very special what the people at Jorneys End do daily, and this is a career path that I was looking into by helping people Assimilate into American culture and teaching them English as a foreign language and how to do certain tasks we take advantage of every day such as how to do dishes, how to lock a door, how to go grocery shopping, and how to make a bed or communicate with other people.
------------
I have meet many of people from Journey’s End already many refugees and the ELL teachers. Also I have been exposed to the majority of the information that was given to us at the orientation. Since being exposed to refugees for an entire semester it has been tough to realize not everyone knows what a refugee is or what they have gone through to be in the city of Buffalo. I’m really excited about this more interactive experience I will be having this time it’ll be better than the interview process that I was a part of last semester. To get a chance to set up a home for a needy family is a good experience but to do it for a family that has never experienced toys beyond what they have created on their own. I can’t wait to hear more from Joanie about this project since I have sent an email out to my family just to ensure if they did have anything that they were willing to donate before that decided to get rid of any useful items. Many of the people I have mentioned this project to are very willing and excited to help out with ensuring that this family does have all that they possibly can find in their homes. Many keep asking about specific items that they can donate to this family.
-----------
The concept of this project and the orginazation are
both great! To be apart of this experience will be genuinely rewarding.
For once, this is a chance for many to take part in the bettering of
Buffalo. For many Buffalo is home, because this is where we grew up, or
have come for a higher education. I only know of a few that have
relocated to Buffalo because of a job opportunity, or because they have
expressed interest in living in this city. The people we are helping
are refugees, yes but more importantly they are people. They are people
that are hoping this "big move" will be the sole factor that will
increase their quality of life. I am sure if you asked them, they would
much rather have lived peacefully in their homeland, with their family
(much like we have) but that is not the case for them. They like many
others must be uprooted and transported across the world to and unknown
land. No one, unless successfully relocated with family, knows them,
they do not know the language, and for every accepting person, im sure
there are hundreds who feel "the dont belong" (what a wonderful
experience). Then they are told they must learn a foreign language,
learn our culture and survive all in about 8 weeks! Journeys End is
fanominal. They are teaching people how to live in 8 weeks. We as
Americans spend 18-20 years (give or take) and even then many are not
ready to live in "the real world". I am very excited to be
participating in this project, I only wish I was able to be more
readily available for helping. However, as I've mentioned to Joanie I
plan on contacting my manager and supervisor to see if there is
anything that can be donated by my company or if they would be able to
make a small yet significant donation. ((cross your fingers for SWA
luv))
----------
I am very excited about working with Journey’s End this semester. I think it is a great opportunity for our class and our college to get involved in the community and have an experience that we will never forget. Giving back to people in need is one of the most rewarding experiences to have and I am looking forward to being able to help one family find comfort in their new home soon. Journey’s End is an amazing organization that I knew nothing about until this class. I think that the opportunities they are providing for refugees are incredible and I am glad that there is an organization like this in Buffalo. I have never learned much about refugees before this class and I was shocked to hear that there are about 2,000 that relocate to Buffalo each year. It is amazing to me that Journey’s End is able to teach them the skills and knowledge they will need to live in just eight short weeks. I am twenty years old and I often feel that I still have so much to learn about people and society. I didn’t realize how much they would need because I don’t think I ever really thought about it until the presentation on Wednesday. These refugees are literally coming from nothing in refugee camps and are now given the opportunity to live a life they may have always dreamed of. All of the kitchen supplies, cleaning products, bedroom items, etc. seem like such small items that we use on a daily basis, but to this family it is going to be everything. It is going to be interesting to see how this project progresses as we continue to go through the semester.
----------
Okay so I love this project, yes it is a little time consuming but its for a great cause any little bit of help will make a big difference in these families lives. I can't believe the things we learned about them in the meeting, like how they live basically in a jail with no freedom for almost seventeen years! Or how that is all the little kids know, could you imagine that being your childhood memories that is terrible.I think the Journey's End program is amazing I can't believe how much they do to make sure these people adapt to American way of life or even assimilate when they come here. I can not believe how much dedication is involved, like how the refugees have ELA classes at least thirty-five hours a week that's more then a part time job.I am really excited to set up an apartment and clean it, it's almost like when i was little setting up houses for my toys lol. Cleaning is my thing I defiantly will be apart of that.I actually worked with some refugees at Panos they had them do dishes and some could bus tables if they knew English and the owner would just hire refugees. Now that I know what a refugee is I think that is so wonderful that he does that. Then it makes me wonder what did those people that I worked with have to go threw to end up here. I am excited to hear some stories later in this project.
----------
In my opinion, I feel this will be an interesting journey to be part of. Not only will this experience help me grow personally, but economically as well. This is a wonderful thing that these organizations are taking part of, Journeys End gives the feeling of “Hope” for these refugees, and supplies them with the reinsurance that people do care, and I am not alone. I had no clue that almost 2,000 refugees relocate to Buffalo each year. With knowing that a single refugee can spend up to 17 years in a refugee camp, is unbelievable. I could never imagine being in a place like that after fleeing my homeland.
The only thing that concerns me with this project is
coming through with the necessary housing supplies. We are responsible
for making this family comfortable as possible. That’s a lot to handle.
Hopefully, because there are 4 classes working together we will
accomplish this. This will take tremendous communication skills from
everyone. Well let’s just do our best, that’s what’s more important
here.
the difference between the situation as it is now and as it should be or could be
Over the centuries, we have developed half a dozen or so patterns of organizing our ideas. In general, we call these patterns "rational". That is, a person who uses them -- who can read and write with the patterns, are called rational people. Their arguments are called rational arguments. They gain legitimacy just for following the basic patterns.
People who can't use these patterns are difficult to communicate with because they aren't playing by the same rules, so to speak.
In ENG 110, we are calling those patterns rhetorical modes. Mode is another word for pattern, and rhetorical means that we're going to use them in essays to support a thesis.
What does the data say?
What inferences can you draw from your data?
What are inferences? Just as there are patterns for
organizing ideas (see rhetorical modes below), there are rules to play
by.
What are the problems?
fallacies
cognitive biases: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_bias
Learn more on the Essay page of this course web.
While topic sentences can be phrased as questions, it is usually more clear to phrase them as declarative statements. A useful topic sentence will make a claim that needs support and explanation.
For example, Why did the refugees leave Myanmar? To turn that into a topic sentence, you need the answer, which will come from your research.
The topic sentence (or "controlling" sentence) for a cause/effect
paragraph might start: Myanmar has been
Looking above at the organizing principles, definitions group and separate. What group does it belong to? How is it different from every other member of that group? You can probably do that in a couple of sentences. Then extend that basic definition with the support the the claim (topic sentence) needs.
The group that you put it into makes all the difference. Domestic violence could be defined as a kind of violence. The definition would then separate it from other kinds of violence such as public violence or stranger violence.
In not all cases will the grouping/separating be so straightforward.
Another example:
Every year, xx thousand Pakistani women are physically beaten at least
X times by a male relative.
Put your topic sentence first. What comes next? The support for the claim or assertion in the topic sentence (the bullets) as well as the explanation of what it means, how the support relates to the claim (pulling the trigger).
|
support |
evidence - facts, statistics, experts examples - stories about people, things, and events illustrations - images, tables, charts |
|
explanation |
what it means, what reader is supposed to get out of it, how it contributes to the answer |
paragraph 1 - culture
This course is called College Writing because it prepares you to do the kind of writing you will be asked to do in other courses' term papers and essay exams. In some cases, especially term papers, you can write your own thesis statement. In many cases, however, you will be responding to a question or instructions posed by the teacher. In that case, here's the strategy that you're learning in this course.
1 - Determine the rhetorical mode(s) being asked for: description, definition, comparison, process? It may well ask for a mixture or combination or hybrid, but one will probably (hopefully) be dominant.
2 - Imagine in detail the audience / scenario. Even if you never mention it in the essay, having one is a major crucial assist in writing effectively.
3 - Write a helpful thesis statement. It should include all the important words from the teacher's question. In addition, it should lay out a clear, manageable focus and plan for your whole essay. The dominant rhetorical mode should be unambiguous. If the teacher's question does not give you enough, add to it by connecting it to other ideas. Cause and effect relationships are especially effective. "Because", "due to this", "as a result" and other such phrases will give you something to discuss in the body of the essay.
4 - With your audience / scenario firmly in mind, establish a direct, friendly tone or voice in the introduction and sustain it through the whole essay.
5 - Use transitions between body sections and between ideas to clearly direct the reader and keep the flow going.
6 - In the body, make claims (gun), use evidence (bullets), and explain how the evidence supports your claims, develop your ideas (pull the trigger). Don't just present your evidence and support as though it speaks for itself. Use your essay voice to tell the reader what to think about it. Develop the implications.
7 - Drop names. Reference all your sources, preferably in the flow of the text.
8 - In the conclusion, give a sense of closure and make sure you work in all the important words from the original question and the ideas (if not the exact words) in your thesis statement.
9 - Try to use vivid, concrete images. Write pictures. Humanize it.
10 - As a cherry atop a cake, try to come up with a snappy title. If you can't, just use the most important words from your thesis statement.
11 - While you are working on the essay, use the College-wide evaluation rubric as a guide.
Tip | This is not a course or a project with One Right Answer.
intro: the pain points experienced by the reader and the problems caused by those pains establish credibility with the reader
Why is it better for your writing to be displayed publicly in class rather than passed privately between you and me?
Communicating is the point of the writing you will do in the kind of job you want. On the job, your writing doesn't belong to you. It belongs to the organization that pays your salary. In this course, I'm not asking you to write about anything personal or private. I emphasize writing for an audience. Also, it's good for you as a writer to have not some vague theoretical audience, but a real audience. You'll write it differently (and, I believe, better) if you know your peers are going to see it than you would write it if only an authority figure (me) is going to see it. Finally, I think you as a student can profit by reading what your classmates wrote and how I responded. You can apply it to your own writing. It's not fair for that process to be one-way -- you get to see theirs but they don't get to see yours.
modified: February 2012
by Douglas Anderson
http://toLearn.net/eng110/case.htm