EWRT1A-24: run-on sentences exercise

Here is the run-on sentences exercise. Remember that pages 148-151 in the Longman address run-ons.

Also, I've noticed a high number of students in this class who are having trouble understanding my directions. I'll try to be clearer in the future. For your part, make sure you get clarification from me if you are ever unsure about something. You can do it in person or via e-mail.

EWRT1A-24: Malcolm X, essay 1, and fragments

If you have never seen or heard Malcolm X speak before, there are a lot of videos on YouTube. Here's one Malcolm X gave in Oxford, England. Keep in mind that, according to our reading, this man never went past the eighth grade in school.

If you lose the handout, you can get a pdf of the prompts for essay 1 here.

Lastly, here is the fragments exercise.

EWRT1A-24: Paulo Freire

Remember that the prompt for reading response 1 is in the syllabus, on the page titled "reading responses."

If you want some more help trying to understand Freire, you may want to look at this page. And this page lays out several of Freire's theories, pulling from Freire's various writings. And this page has a little more biographical information.

higher demand, lower supply

Here's an article about the current struggles to get into community college classes.

So many ask: if the demand is high, then why is supply low? Don't more students equal more money? Yes, but not enough money. At De Anza, tuition covers only about 16% of what it costs to educate a student*. That means 84% of the cost has to be paid for elsewhere. Some of that comes from donations and other private sources, but it used to be that much of that money came from the state. Yet the percentage given by the state has gone down since the mid 1970s, and it has really declined in the last few years. In 2006, the state covered 34% of what it cost to educate a student. In 2007, the state gave 31%. It 2009 it dropped to 26%. Basically, public education is getting less and less public funding. Without increased funding, the only option we have is to reduce spending. That means fewer classes.

*I had trouble finding consistent data about all this, so consider the numbers I give as a rough estimate.

EWRT1A-24: syllabus

Welcome to EWRT1A section 24. This is the blog for the class. I will post pdfs of handouts as well as additional information here. Make it part of your school routine to check this blog at least once a week.

To start off, here's a pdf of the syllabus for the class.

Why do people read Frankenstein?

Here's another answer to that question along the lines of what I said about the more you analyze a good book the more you get out of it. BBC News just published an article about ten interpretations of Frankenstein. And the readers were so inspired that they wrote in with their own interpretations and the BBC published sixteen of them.

Grades should be up by Friday.

EWRT1A-25: 2 final thoughts

There will be no office hours finals week. If you were planning on seeing me, please send me an e-mail.

There is a final at 6:15 in our classroom. That means we must be done by 6, no exceptions. So please show up on time. I'll hand everything out right before 4 so everyone can have the full two hours.