I am Malala

I really liked this one for no other reason than I am completely in awe of the main character. This is one of those stories that if you didn’t know was actually true you would completely believe was fiction. What’s more is you’d probably think the author was making the characters a little unrealistic. Malala is just incredible! I like the way the work was structured, starting with the moment she was shot and then going back in time to see the series of events, and Malala’s own development that led to that moment. I think it is a great work to structure the work because it shows the development of the main character, while also allowing the reader to stress about the end result for the entire work. It is similar to Romeo and Juliet in that fashion.

I think the themes of bravery and standing up for what you believe are incredibly powerful and important ideas made even more so by the fact that this is a work based in reality. It shows to us that there are good people in the world, strong people, willing to stand up for what is right despite the incredibly costs that it may impose. It is an incredible story of inspiration and it also reminds us as readers of just how strong we can be, even if we don’t think we can be.

This text focuses around Malala who is an adolescent despite the fact that she has more bravery than any adult I have ever met. I think she is a relatable character, she is not a god or some untouchable individual, just someone who stood up for what she knew was right. I think it would help to inspire students to do the same. Additionally, I also think that this novel really illustrate how we take some things for granted such as a free education and a sense of safety. These are important ideas for students to think about when in high school.

On top of this, in the times we live in I think it is important to have a book that looks at the events of the Middle East and illustrates a very very clear distinction between actions taken by Radical Islamic terrorists, the Taliban, and ordinary Muslim citizens. Here is a hero that stood up to the Taliban, and she is a Muslim. Kinda puts the whole assumption about Muslims on pretty shaky ground.

Overall, I really enjoyed the novel and was blown away by Malala herself. The only thing that could possibly hurt it is that the novel is foreign in many ways to students and may not draw them in as much as a traditional YA work set in a high school. I think that this obstacle can and should be overcome however. A- overall on this one.  

English 325: I am J

I’ll be honest here, I really don’t know what to think of this one. I liked it, I thought it was a nice read with interesting characters and a good storyline. The thing is I don’t have much experience dealing with works of literature regarding the issues that this novel focuses on. I don’t really know what a fair portrayal is and what a stereotype is. Because of my own ignorance I felt like I was just floating through this work, buying into the information that was being presented before me as truth and just going with the story from there.

I empathize with J, and his whole ordeal. I think a lot of the work focused on teenage love, a subject that most people can admit is already hard enough. Add on the fact that J is transgender and it just makes the whole thing even more confusing. I think that’s one of the reasons I like this work is because even though I couldn’t relate to the main focus of the work, it makes it very clear that J is dealing with the same issues other guys deal with, just with some added stress tacked on.

The work feels very scatterbrained in many ways, popping between many different character and with those characters perceptions of J and what he’s going through. For this reason I found it somewhat difficult to follow the progression of him throughout the work, because I was constantly barraged with different and contrasting views of the protagonist, whether from J’s parents, Melissa, or the other characters in the work.

I think this text would work well with adolescents. First of all, I think it would do good relating to anybody going through the same sort of thing, but I don’t think this is the only merit. It also presents, at least I think it presents, a fair view of someone who is transgender, and that’s a good lesson for kids in high school. Plus, the book has relatable teenage problems that I think most kids can really connect and relate to whether they are transgender or not. Not being understood is a huge issue for most teens I think, and while this book takes that idea farther than what I think most people experience, it is a very relatable and relevant idea.

Like I said, I enjoyed this work. I didn’t think it was spectacular, it just kind of came and went. I liked it, didn’t love it. Maybe if I had a better understanding of the subject matter I would have liked it more, or perhaps less. What else can I say. Solid B. 

English 325: Wintergirls

This is an interesting one. I think that first and foremost, this is a difficult work to read solely because it address so many uncomfortable and hot issues. Suicide is a tough discussion on its own, but mix that with anorexia, an incredibly strong sense of guilt, and self harm, and this book becomes even more serious.

I know that our class spends a lot of time talking about do whether author’s have “the right” to create these stories if they haven’t experienced them themselves. In the vast majority of cases I role my eyes and say “Of course they do!” If people only wrote about their own experiences chances would never be taken, and many great stories would never be told. You can’t remain silent because you fear what will happen if you speak up. That said, for this novel I think it is very important to either have some firsthand experience or have done some very extensive research. I say this because I’m taking the author’s word on this subject as fact: this is how it is. I’m buying into the idea that this is how people with anorexia feel about themselves and others. I have no knowledge on the subject matter so I’m going to believe this stuff, and students will do the same. When what you are writing is taken as fact on a very hot topic, it is important to know what you’re talking about.

With that out of the way, I think the theme of this novel is good. It is basically a coming of age story in its own unique way. Growing up in this case means understanding that you need to help yourself, identifying a problem and being willing to fix it. Even the title Wintergirls almost hints at this sort of frozen stasis that Lia is in and only at the end does she emerge from this state to grow. Going hand in hand with this is Lia’s growth throughout the novel not only coming to terms with the grief she feels for Cassie’s death but also with her own anorexia. I think it is an interesting way of doing a coming of age story.

I’m not sure about this book’s appeal. It deals with a very important issue, but I’m not sure how many kids would be interested in it. It is in a way a ghost story which are always interesting, but beyond that anorexia is not a universally relatable idea. I don’t think this is a reason not to teach it, just because something is not relatable does not make it any less valuable, I just mean to say that I think it lacks the immediate relevance that some other books we’ve read possess.

With all that said, I’ll be honest, I just didn’t really like this one. It wasn’t bad by any means but I just never felt fully invested or engaged. Perhaps it was the lack of relatability or just the uncomfortable nature of the text but I never really enjoyed this novel. Like I said, it wasn’t bad in any way, just not great. I’ll give it a solid B. 

English 326: Final Blog

I have always enjoyed writing stories, it was something that has been close to my heart since a very young age, and I honestly think that most kids have a strong imagination and are not given a change to utilize it very often. Now this is just a concept, but I like the idea of teaching grammar through creative writing. Imagine having an English class where you do the normal everyday high school English class things. Read a novel, pick it apart, and analyze the themes – those sorts of things. Now imagine that same class but every Friday there is a new grammar concept. I teach the class the rules of using whatever that week’s concept is and then give them their task: continue their story, experimenting with this week’s concept.

I like the idea that throughout the course of the semester students write a novel of sorts, piece by piece. Every Monday another page, double spaced, of their story is due. It is a pretty small assignment, but by the end of the year they have a pretty substantial story on their hands. Not only does it get students just to write, never a bad things, and not only does it allow students to utilize a creative side of themselves that schools normally don’t stress, but by asking them to experiment with new grammar concepts it as helps them learn.

Then students can share with the class, if they want to, what is happening in their story and how they used the grammar concept to help them make a more solid sentence. This concept is very similar to how you have us use a new grammar concept every week, but instead of a blog post on a certain subject, it is a running story of the student’s own creation. It makes grammar relevant and its integration hopefully less stressful.

If all that wasn’t enough, it also makes grammar relevant to writing. Instead of being something that is tied to a worksheet or a lesson, students are trying to utilize it within the bounds of their own writing, their own story. I think it creates a bond between grammar and writing that is much stronger than just teaching a lesson on grammar.

I understand that this sort of strategy might not be for everyone, and that not everyone loves to write creative stories, but it is a very small amount of writing on a weekly basis that ingrains concepts in a fun and innovative way.

    

English 325: Whatever blog number this is. I'm really tired right now...

Okay, I’m not a big fan. Normally I really enjoy dystopian novels. I like how they can reflect the darker aspects of our culture, but also provide us with a certain amount of hope. I love how characters come to realize the injustice of their way of life. Books like 1984, Brave New World, and The Giver are among some of my favorite novels of all time. Despite this however, I have not enjoyed this novel so far. I think a major reason for this is that it doesn’t seem reasonable. While the other works I mentioned seem believable in their own right because they allow time for the change to occur or provide a believable explanation for the changed circumstances, this novel provides us with a very foreign world with major, unlikely and unbelievable changes, while still grounding it with modern popular culture references. Perhaps this was an attempt to make it seem like this future is closer than we think, but it just comes off as out of place and strange.

I feel as if the themes of this novel are also forced and over the top. The novel presents a world that is ridiculous, would never come to pass, and is clearly over the top wrong and incompetent. Then the novel proceeds to try and convince us that that world is wrong. No duh! I’m sorry but you’re not clever because you’re telling us that killing off children is a bad idea. It is an oversimplification of a complexed issue and it does nothing to further any sort of point.

Characters at this point in time are okay I suppose. Nothing special here. I don’t dislike any of the characters but feel no sort of real connection with them. The plot for the most part is just the kids getting into and out of bad situations, interwoven with comments about how bad their unrealistic world is.

The main characters are pretty young, but I still feel as if they’re not represented in the best way. It feels like young teens as written by older adults. Kids like Taylor Swift right? We should include Taylor Swift in their conversation! Additionally, I don’t care how weird your world is, I don’t think anybody would be happy to just go off and die, so there’s also that.

It must be pretty sure that I don’t really like this one. It just feels forced to me and additionally it seems like its building up a massive straw man just to feel superior when it beats it down. I could always buy the world of 1984 or other dystopian novels, and this one fails to do that, a critical failure that I can’t overcome. I don’t know what else to say, I’m just not a fan. It’s not terrible, but certainly not something I have enjoyed thus far. C- 

English 325: All American Boys

Where to start with this one? This is going to be more of a stream of consciousness post than my previous posts, simply because I have so much going on in my head and no real way of organizing it. I apologize in advance.

Now perhaps it is because I knew I was going to teach this book, but I really enjoyed this novel. “Enjoyed” isn’t the right word, “enjoyed” implies that I found pleasure in it for pleasure’s sake. Don’t get me wrong, I did find myself smiling from time to time when reading, but the real joy I obtained from this novel was looking at it from the lens of how I would teach it. I really wish I could teach this work, chapter by chapter rather than simply pushing it into one lesson. There is so much I want to talk about, so many lines to dissect and reassemble, so many themes to dive into, so many analogies to interpret! I want to rip this book apart, chapter by chapter, line by line, word by word, and reconstruct it. There is so much here that I’m just overwhelmed. I need more time with this one, I need to read it again, and then again. I need to write notes in the margins, I need to spend an hour or so thinking about what “We are not the same,” or “leave it at the door” could mean and what ramifications those ideologies could have. This work just feels like its dripping with meaning, and I’ve only been able to squeeze it once.

The characters are great. Not only do I feel like both of the many characters are real teenagers, with their language, their topics for discussion, and their lives, but the way in which they deal with the tough issues of the work seem very authentic as well. Additionally, I think all the characters represent certain types of people in the real world. Whether it’s the political activist, the silent bystander, the protective parent, or a collection of other personality types, I feel as if this work reflects back on us in the real world very well.

Now the work touches on a lot of big issues: police brutality, race, bystander mentality, religion, the uncertainty of the future, doing what is right vs. easy, etc. I think these are all very important issues that teens can not only relate to, but should also become very aware of. This isn’t an easy book to read, and it shouldn’t be. It makes you feel uncomfortable. It makes you think and rethink your position on issues that are not always easy to talk about. This is a hard book, but a necessary one. It is relevant to teenager’s lives in the most difficult way. Welcome to the real world kiddos.

So yeah, I really liked this novel, but I liked it because I want to teach it. I want to pick it apart, and come to understand it better, but I also want the challenge of making students confront this work. It is not an easy book to teach, in many ways it is a minefield of sensitivity and deeply held convictions. This work is dangerous, and it is I for that very reason that I love it so much. I want to push the envelope, I want to skate the line.

I’m now going to go on a lengthy and likely unnecessary rant. I’m kind of a space nerd. Now I say this because there is this movie, based on true event, that I really love, called The Right Stuff, and it’s about the Mercury astronauts. Long story short, all these astronauts were test pilots, insanely talented (and perhaps stupid) adrenaline junkies that pushed the limits of what their aircraft and their own bodies could handle. They had a knack for this stuff, a talent that other people didn’t possess, a skill that allowed them to push the boundaries a little further than anyone else: they had the right stuff. That’s what I want to do, not with planes or rockets, but with my teaching. I want to see if I can push those boundaries: see if I have the right stuff. This book allows me to do that.

Anyway, I apologize for my ranting, time to wrap this up. I have only one complaint with the novel: it’s a little obvious sometimes. There were a couple of moments where I went, “No don’t explain how it’s like racism, we already understand!” You can leave some things unsaid. It’s like how explaining a joke will never make it funnier. This is my only complaint and the only reason I am giving the work a flat A instead of an A+.

This was a good one. This one’s going to stick.  

English 326: Early draft

When looking at the Roman Empire and the role language played in the assimilation of the people conquered by the Romans throughout their long and expansive history, on might originally presume that Latin, the language of Rome, would play a role similar to how English was utilized when colonizing large portions of the world. However (pointing back to the previous sentence, thereby connecting original presumption and actual conclusion),  Latin was not a major aspect of Roman assimilation, in fact the process of Roman assimilation almost worked counter to what we traditionally see with Empires and conquest. Instead of enforcing Roman culture unto those people conquered by Rome, many of the cultures of the native people were incorporated into Roman culture. Obviously there is a give and take between cultures, but the Roman Empire is curiously characterized with a surprisingly large amount of “take”, especially when it comes to language. By looking at how Roman cultural, language included, shifted in order to adapt to the people and culture, it can be concluded that the longevity and success of Rome was at least in part due to its acceptance and inclusion of those that they conquered.  

While this paper’s primary focus is to look at language, it is first important to have a firm understanding of what the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire where, their growth, their culture, and their success. Rome was a major power for nearly six centuries, from around 200 BC to 400 AD. While we traditionally talk about the fall of Rome, it is important to remember that this culture lasted an incredibly long time, especially considering how large of an area Rome controlled. By comparison, the British Empire really only lasted 400 years, and that is generous. Rome changed to incorporate the people it conquered. It bent where other Empires broke. Yes, the great Roman Empire would eventually fall, but because of how it did not overtly push its culture unto those people it conquered, it managed to prevail for a long period of time.     

Religion for example illustrates this idea well. Take Christianity, a foreign religion that, despite being fought for an extended period of time, actually replaced the official religion of the state. The Egyptian pantheon of Gods was also incorporated into the Roman religion long before Christianity came to be. The very belief system of this great state morphed and changed with the people of time.

More interestingly, this reverse flow of influence also relates to language. At the height of the Roman Empire, Greek was almost as common a language, and just as accepted, as Latin. Image the language of a defeated foe not only being free from persecution, but accepted as an equal to the language of the Roman state! I thought that Rome would use language as a way to oppress, but rather it has shown itself to be a way to include.

Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion to Tim’s research paper…

English 325: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

I’m not going to lie: I’m torn on this one. On one hand I really like the work. Viewed through a certain lens, this a story about a young boy who is in a bad situation and through hard work, determination and a desire for a better life, claws his way out of that situation and improves himself. In a way, it exemplifies the American dream. It is an inspiring story, something that reminds us that something better is always within our grasp.

But on the other hand, this book makes me feel slightly uncomfortable. It feels as if all the good things that happen are a result of leaving the reservation and Native American traditions behind. Going to a White school, making good friends with White kids, having White teachers that care about him. Almost everything on the reservation is viewed in a negative light. While the people on the reservation are decent enough, everything else about the location is painted as grim, dark and hopeless. Perhaps this is the truth, perhaps nothing good ever comes from places like that, but it feels wrong to assume that everything about a place is bad. To me, at times, it seemed like the reservation was shown as flat out bad, and the White school was portrayed as better, not just in an academic sense but every sense. Perhaps this was intended to show the poor situation that many native people deal with, but by giving it next to no redeemable features it comes off as a little insensitive.

Anyway, I did enjoy reading the novel. I thought that the characters were interesting, and they developed well enough. I like the diary format, which makes it seem more personal, and I really like how you can jump into a young teenager’s head. It was a fun read for me.

I think that this would capture the attention of many students. Even if it was not taught to Native American students, students could still find ways to connect to the text. There are a lot of very teenage centered issues in this work. Not fitting in, figuring out who you are and what you want to be, balancing responsibility to family and society with responsibility for self, grief, friendship, loneliness, the list goes on. I think the novel does a good job of presenting these issues in a fair light and students will relate to these things, making the work more interesting.

As for a grade, I’m kind of stuck. I’m still torn as to whether or not I think this work is offensive. I’m going to say no, and assume that it was written with the intent of pointing out a bad situation rather than simply bashing on a certain culture. Still a little uneasy though. With that in mind, I really liked reading the novel and I got invested in the story so: B+.

I guess.

Maybe.   

English 326: Blog #5

Wow! I really enjoyed reading this, and by this I should specify that I read How to Tame a Wild Tongue. Growing up in a middle-class white family in the state of Washington I think I took, and still take, language for granted. The language I speak is not only easily recognized and identified but it is also the language of the mainstream. News anchors talk like me, politicians talk like me, famous actors talk like me. It is strange for me to think that one’s own language could not be accepted and even serve as a source of shame. To think about an entire group of people that feel as if they do not have a place because their own language is viewed as different and inferior is an incredibly disheartening idea. Having a language that is consider in between to “real” languages must be incredibly difficult. Sadly however, it is a fact of life, something that this selection does a good job of looking at.

I’m going to go off on something of a tangent here so I hope you can stay with me. Being a history major I spend a lot of time thinking about conquests. For better or worse, humanity’s story is nearly a constant cycle of one people taking over another people. The players change, the rules change, but the game… the game never does. Whether it’s German and Poland, France and Spain, the British and Native Americans, one group of people conquers another. And when I think about these things I think about events or policies that show how the oppressors dominate over the oppressed. I think about mass killings like the Holocaust, or terrible events like the Trail of Tears, or disgusting institutions like slavery. These issues are incredibly important and they are also flashy: their terrible nature attracts attention. (Colon provides additional explanation by stating that it is the particular vial nature of these events that cause them to be analyzed). They are a spectacle, something we can look at and easily say, “Wow, that was a terrible thing.” They’re clear, they’re recognizable, they are a voice of agony crying out at the top of their lungs. However, drowned out by that cry, is the soft yet ever present sobs of language desecration. We focus on the big things, but in doing so we overlook perhaps a vital aspect of how oppression works. Okay, there’s my little rant, thanks for not changing the channel.   

      

As an educator I clearly don’t want to take away a part of them or make them feel lesser or oppressed. I think by first understanding that language is something very important to someone’s sense of self, one can more tactfully approach the teaching of language. I like the idea of having students have writing journals that they must use throughout the course of the semester, however how they write in that journal is completely up to them. I think this is just one simple way of letting students utilize their own language, but also getting them use to simply writing on a regular basis.

5B: I'm thinking of looking at the Roman Empire and how the role Latin played in the conquest and assimilation of such a large area with many diverse cultures. Here are the three source:

MacMullen, Ramsay. "Provincial Languages in the Roman Empire." The American Journal of Philology 87.1 (1966): 1-17. Web.

Jones, A. H. M. "The Greeks under the Roman Empire." Dumbarton Oaks Papers 17 (1963): 1-19. Web.

"Language of the Ancient Romans." Ancient Roman Language. Web. 16 Oct. 2016. <http://www.legendsandchronicles.com/ancient-civilizations/ancient-rome/language-of-the-ancient-romans/>.

English 325: Gabi, A Girl in Pieces

This text is interesting in my opinion because it touches on a lot of issues. I think the themes that this book addresses are relatable and relevant. A lot of bad stuff happen in this work, but the characters manage to deal with these things in the best way they can. Rape, addiction, race, the double standard between men and women, body image, the list goes on. These are not light subjects, but Gabi faces them head on, thinking about them, trying to understand them, and taking action that she thinks is appropriate and necessary. Even if these actions don’t align with what we think is best, they are very human, and illustrate that Gabi is doing the best she can. These themes are deep, dark, and realistic, and I think the novel addresses them in a well thought out manner.

Additionally, all characters, but most notably Gabi grow in this novel. Gabi has to face a lot of inconvenient truths throughout the course of the work, and these help her grow as an individual. On top of that, she also experiences a lot of new things through her relationships with other. She grows as she comes to better understand sexuality, what to expect from a decent partner, and herself.  I think the character development of the novel is well executed.

I don’t have many complaints with this work mainly because it addresses so many issues. There is not much that the work leaves out. That said, I do think that this work would be harder for guys to read. The novel is written in a diary format from the perspective a female character who spends a large amount of time talking about issues focused primarily around women. These are important issues that should be address and men should certainly be aware and considerate of, however by presenting it in this format, I think it would lose some male interest. I could be, and hope I am wrong about this because I think the themes addressed by this book need to be heard, but I’m not sure this format allows for this to be executed as well as it could be. This is only a minor complaint however, and I think for the most part it can be easily overcome.

I think that this text would appeal to most students. There is a lot of important stuff that I think could be very relatable to them. The work touches on a lot of important subjects, and I think even if a student can relate to one of them, it would pull them in. While I do think this work would be slightly less popular with males, I also believe that there are many aspects of the novel that transcend gender.

In conclusion, I think this is a well-crafted work that touches on a lot of really important issues of teenage life. I also think that it addresses those issues in an admirable and realistic fashion. With its wide range and touchingly real characters, it does a good job of portraying teenage life while also helping to address some of its most difficult challenges. I do think the focus on solely female experiences in some instances may isolate part of the viewership, but I do think that this should not be a major hindrance.  A good novel all around, I’d give it an A-.         

English 326: Blog #4

The article starts by describing the problem that the rest of the work will address and what actions can be taken to fix the problem. It states that the classroom is a major influence on students and how they grow. If only one language is taught in the classroom as correct or acceptable, then it will greatly hinder students’ ability to appreciate and utilize their own distinct variety of speaking and writing.

The article then continues to describe a difference in how English is perceived in the world today. Metropolitan Englishes (as it is referred to) is English spoken in countries than traditionally claim ownership over the language such as Britain, Australia, and the United States (Aside set off by parentheses. I decided to put the statement in parentheses because although I wanted to mention that the article referred to Metropolitan English in such a fashion, I didn’t want it to overpower the sentence. It was a side note). On the other hand World Englishes are described as versions of English that are in countries not normally associated with the English language. These languages, although they are just as well constructed as Metropolitan Englishes, are considered lesser and not fit to be taught in schools because it is “improper.” As the article points out however, World Englishes are growing and will soon overtake people who speak “proper” English.

It then goes on to describe how individuals who speak multiple languages are more likely to meet others in the middle when it comes to communicating. While ME speakers expect those around them to conform to their own form of the language, WE speakers are more likely to compensate, allowing for a blend of the languages to occur. This is described as a major advantage for WE speakers because this ability helps them to be much better negotiators.

The article also describes a situation where teaching “proper” English in schools proves ineffective. Students are made to feel that their speech or writing is “broken English” and that they are not learning the language properly. An example is given of one student who stays silent in class out of fear of failure, but communicates avidly with others online in English. Here he is fluent and comfortable and, using his own interests, he begins to learn the language in a way that works for him.

Lastly, the focus at the end of the article is centered on a shift in how to teach language. Rather than simply making students learn a specific dialect and having them join that group, students should be taught how to “shuttle” between different styles of a language. Rather than being stuck with one “right” way of speaking or writing, students should be able to read a situation and adapt their own language to fit that circumstance.

I found this article interesting because I never thought about people that might have learned their own form of English since birth but because it is not a mainstream English dialect, people see it as broken. It had never occurred to me that such a large power differential could become present simply based on how people use the same language. It is rather sad in a sense that this hierarchy has been constructed.

These are important lessons to know going into teaching a middle or high school English class because it really rearranges your priorities. Rather than drilling students to learn the “correct” way to speak one very specific type of English, it would be in their best interests to learn how to swap between different styles of English. This does not mean that one must abandon teaching the rules of Standard English, rather it simply serves as a reminder that there are different styles of the English Language, and pigeonholing students into a singular one will do them no good.       

English 326: DOL

After reading Crovitz’s points on error analysis I’ve got to say that I agree with the issues being presented. I remember doing similar exercises in my early grammar classes and thinking to myself that while I was able to identify errors when I knew one was present, it was difficult for me to find them in my own writing. The DOL style isn’t realistic. It thrusts students into an environment where they know they are looking for an error, so it is not surprising when students find one (Compound sentence: two independent clauses joined by a “,so”). I think the intention behind DOL is good, and in a way it makes sense: practice makes perfect right? However, in trying to create an isolated environment where errors can be clearly identified, it robs the students of the ability to identify errors in more complexed, and realistic, sentences and works. Additionally, the activity feeds into the general issue of negativity when dealing with grammar. “What is wrong with this sentence?” “How do we fix this sentence.” Etc.. It is an exercise that, in my mind at least, is a good concept but is flawed in its execution.

So how do you fix it? I still like the idea that practice makes perfect, but just as a baseball team doesn’t practice by playing catch for two hours, we cannot expect students to learn when they are placed in a highly simplified environment. To correct this, I believe DOL could still be used, but it should utilize more difficult sentences. Instead of asking students what is wrong with a sentence like:

James go to the store yesterday

Instead pose the question to students, “What, if anything, is wrong with this sentence”:

James, having just witnessed the last BLT be devoured let out a desperate wail.

The sentences need to be more difficult, and should not always have something wrong with them. Perhaps sentences could be taken from novels that the students might be reading, just to increase the relatability. However, the negative approach to learning grammar is still present and the isolation of a sentence is still just as big of an issue.

With this in mind I’d like to get away from DOL, though not completely abandon it, and focus more on creation than destruction. I think it would be effective to teach students and then have them construct sentences that utilize that new concept. Instead of finding what should be and isn’t, students instead get to utilize their knowledge to create something. Hopefully, this will instill in them the same understanding of how and when to utilize a certain grammar tool that DOL hopes to do, without the negativity associated with correcting a sentence. I still think that finding errors in a sentence is important for editing purposes, but I think that through creative learning, supplemented with some more complexed DOL, that goal can be achieved without the simplistic repetition of error analysis.    

English 325: Marcelo in the Real World

I really enjoyed this novel. I think the reason behind this is because, at its core, this is a coming of age story. Everyone at some point in their life has to step out from their comfort zone and enter “the real world.” I don’t see the real world as a derogatory term towards Marcelo, while I think it may have connotations that indicate that his world isn’t “real”, I think it is simply a term that is used to describe the environment that the large majority of people operate in. Marcelo joining the “real world” is a triumph, made greater by the fact that he did not have to lose himself in order to join it. This story may have a character with someone on the spectrum, but that’s not what the novel is about. This is a tale about growth, about discovering how incredibly terrible yet simultaneously beautiful the world can be. The plot is engaging, the progression of Marcelo is fantastic, and the themes of growing up to face a new, scary, and exciting world are incredibly relatable to almost everyone.

Despite my feelings towards the novel, it’s not perfect. I found that a lot of the characters, with the exception of Marcelo, were too one dimensional. Arturo is the clueless and ignorant father who just doesn’t understand. Jasmine is the beautiful girl with big dreams. Rabbi Heschel is the wise mentor. Ixtel is the sad hopeless victim saved by our hero’s brave and selfless acts. Wendell is unrealistically unlikeable, with no redeeming features whatsoever. There’s nothing wrong with these characters, but they are very cookie cutter. I give this novel a lot of credit for giving us a different type of hero, but it fails to provide a similarly complexed villain. Instead we are left with a stereotypical jerk, an oblivious father, and an evil corporation. Yeah, I haven’t seen that before.  

In a way I already addressed how this story is relatable above. This is a coming of age story. I find nearly everything about this book is either relatable or will be relatable. It doesn’t matter that the readers, for the most part, are not on the spectrum; the vast majority will be able to relate to the themes of the novel. The fear of a first job. Nervousness about leaving your comfort zone is completely normal. First love is also something pretty close to home. The battle between what is right and wrong is an incredibly human issue. I like this novel because I think it does the job of both a young adult literature book, and something from the cannon. It has relatability but also very adult world issues and themes. Have I said I liked this novel yet?

Not going to say it again. Though not without its flaws, I really enjoyed this one. With that in mind, I give it a solid A-.   

English 325: Blog #2

This text is interesting in that it is both incredibly depressing while at the same time being rather uplifting. The novel is centered on hope, even in the darkest of times. It is a beautiful story in its representation of humanity. It illustrates the most despicable, heinous, and dark acts that we, as humans, are capable, but it also focuses on how despite those things, the spirit of humanity is strong. Despite all the pain, loss, and tragedy we can carry on. Nothing, no matter how menacing, is a hopeless situation. This is not to say that bad things do not happen, the novel is practically a list of terrible things that occur. Rather, the idea here is that in the end, our hero survives. Not only that, she survives and finds love and happiness. Lina wins. For twelve years she lived through hell, but in the end she overcomes it all. This is a story about hope, contrasted by one of the darkest deeds in world history. I found the theme noble, clear, and well presented.

In reality I don’t know if hope could survive in that situation. The novel may approach a terrible subject with a slight rosy perspective (Though it clearly does not ignore the terrible things that people had to endure) by having a hopeful message. In reality, perhaps the situation would have broken the will of every individual and extinguished any flame of hope. I think that is beside the point however. The novel wants us to believe that hope can in fact endure, and honestly I agree with it. Call me a romantic, but I believe the human spirit is a hard thing to break, that no matter how many times we’re pushed down, we keep trying to get back up again. We find a light in the darkness, something to hold unto and we don’t let go.

I like this novel, but I think it fails to do what we’ve said the goal of young adult literature is: to be relatable. Yes, the main character is a teenager, but it doesn’t really feel like it. The problems that Lina faces are not teenage problems, they are very disturbing results of an incredibly adult and evil world. This novel is great in talking about adult issues, and for that reason I would almost place it closer to something like 1984 than say Eleanor and Park. This book doesn’t focus on being a teenager, it focuses on being human. There is nothing wrong with this at all, and frankly I like it, but just because the main character is a teenager doesn’t mean that it revolves around teenage issues.

Overall, I liked the novel. Like I said before I didn’t really see it as a Young Adult Lit book, but I still enjoyed it. It highlights a dark time in world history, but also provides a positive message. For whatever reason though, I was never completely enthralled with the novel; I never felt like I needed to keep reading. For that reason, I give the novel a B+.  

English 326: Blog #2

In this post I worked on using the semi-colon. I like the idea of melding two closely connected but still independent thoughts into one closely tied idea.

Reading the Christensen article and the first two chapters of Grammar Alive! has really changed how I look at grammar and how I will one day teach it. I was always under the impression that teaching grammar would be a systematic and orderly practice of the rules of Standard English. While I think to a certain extent that is still partly the goal, I have become aware that grammar is much more than simply being able to correctly place a comma or semi-colon.

I think that the two works are bound together by the common idea that no form of English is “correct” or “incorrect”; they are both bent on proving that to simply assume that there is only one correct way to write English is a ridiculous and ignorant position. This idea is most clearly illustrated in Grammar Alive! when defining goal C for teaching grammar, “Every student will complete school with an understanding of, and appreciation for, the natural variation that occurs in language across time, social situation, and social group” (Haussamen 4).

This sentiment is mirrored in Christensen, “As teachers, we daily opportunities to affirm that our students’ lives and languages are unique and important.” (Christensen 102).Both of these statements accurately summarize the general theme of acceptance and understanding of everyone’s own culture and language.

The articles also agree however that while it is important to understand and respects students’ own languages, it is also our mission as teachers to teach them Standard English. In Grammar Alive!, this is the central focus of goal A which states that all students should be able to comfortably communicate in both spoken and written English (Haussamen 3-5). Christensen also concurs on this state, though it does appear that she only does this to prepare students for, in her mind at least, an unfair and judgmental world. She calls Standard English the “language of power” says she teaches the “rules” simply because to not do so would be to cheat her students (Christensen 103). Christensen also stresses that it is important to teach Standard English without humiliating students and making them feel like their language is any lesser.

I think at this point in my post it is only fitting that I talk about my feelings on this subject. Now I completely agree that students should know that their own language is not in any way less than any other language. Inclusion and acceptance of every person’s own language is definitely important and something I will set out to do as a future educator. I get the feeling however that both of these works, but more so Christensen, are upset that Standard English dominates; I think she does not like the idea that one type of English is elevated, through its widespread teaching, above the others. I really have no issue with this however. I don’t think that having a standard language that everyone can fall back on is a bad thing in any way. Everyone is clearly entitled to their own language, but I don’t think that by having one “standard” it means we have to look down on the others. A standard language, allows for easier communication between all people and, if taught correctly, does not demean anyone’s own language. It serves to unite, not divide. 

English 325: Eleanor and Park

I’ve enjoyed the novel up to this point. The central theme centers on love, teenage love specifically though I’m unsure if that really needs to be a sub classification. In my opinion, the subject is handled well. The progression of the two lead characters feels natural and unrushed, and you can clearly see how they slowly come to together. The fact that love does not simply and suddenly materialize for the two characters is one of the stronger aspects of the novel. It is a slow burning, but constantly growing, passion. This is not a Romeo and Juliet love story, it is not instant and powerful love, but rather a more realistic representation. It feels very authentic. The passion, fantasy, and reality of young love is well captured. There are moments of romantic fluff, but they are grounded by authentic sounding dialogue and situations. The characters are developed well, and the plot, though fairly straightforward at this point, is not bad.

I do have a few issues with the novel however. The story, despite being well written, follows an overused format. Who are the protagonists? The social outcasts. Who are the antagonists? The mean bullies. Why can’t the lovers be together? Because of the social stigma. Don’t get me wrong, these are all legitimate issues that teenagers have to deal with, but we’ve heard this story a million times before. We like stories of unlikely and beaten down heroes rising up and finding success and happiness. It’s a great story! But it’s an oversimplification of reality. Most people are not treated like dirt, and most people don’t treat people like dirt. It does happen though, it sucks and that should be focused on, but in YA Lit that is all we focus on. I think the novel, like a lot of other works of this type, illustrate teenagers as haves and have nots when in reality most people don’t fall into either of those categories. I hate bringing this up because it sounds like I don’t care about people who are bullied or have terrible home lives, I really do care. I’m just trying to say that by focusing so heavily on the negative aspects of the teenage experience, the novel fail to truly illustrate an accurate representation of what that experience is.

That said, I think the text is still relatable in the languages that it uses (while in some cases it may be over exaggerated). Characters speak in an authentic manner and it feels like the thoughts of the characters are really the thoughts of teenagers. For these reasons, I think adolescents would enjoy the novel.  

     

Overall, I give the novel a B+ so far. While I do think the story is cliché in many aspects, it executes everything else perfectly. The romance feels just right, the characters are believable, the language is accurate, and the issues are important. In a sense, the book is like a marvel movie: It’s still just another superhero movie, but it has enough action, humor, romance, and heart to make you enjoy it. 

English 326: Blog #1

What grammar and punctuation issues do you, as a writer, want to focus on this semester?

  

I have two different issues that I would like to delve into this semester. They are quite different because they involve different aspects of my writing. The first focuses on my formal writing, while the second is more centered on my interest in recreational creative writing. They are important for different reasons, but I am equally interested in both of them.

Getting an endorsement in history as well as English requires me to write a substantial amount of papers. Because of this, I would like to make my writing as formally presentable as possible. While I would like to focus on all aspects of writing a formal paper, I have consistently been told that I need to avoid “passive voice”. This topic has always been somewhat clouded in confusion because, even after multiple explanations, I’m not quite sure what passive voice is. At one point in time last year I felt like I had a solid, or at least reasonable, understanding of what it was, but I was still unable to eliminate it from my writing. In all honesty, I’m not even sure if passive voice falls under the banner of grammar and punctuation, but if it does I would like to be able to finally understand what it is and how to avoid it.

On a different note, I have another issue I’d like to focus on. While passive voice is important because it involves my school work, I enjoy writing for pleasure as well. With that in mind, there has always been an aspect of creative writing that I have never fully grasped: how to write dialogue.

I think the reason this is so confusing for me is because it’s never focused on in school. When learning grammar and punctuation in school the focus is on being able to write a good paper, and writing a good paper does not require a firm understanding of how to structure dialogue. Because of this, I often feel lost when trying to structure long conversations in my writing. Do I indent when someone speaks? Can I connect a line of dialogue to the beginning or end of a paragraph? How many times do I have to state “he/she said” before I can drop it completely? If the character states a full sentence do I end it with a period or a comma before capping the quotes and adding the additional “he/she said”? These are just a few questions I have when dealing with dialogue. Take this example from a short story I wrote awhile back:

“Wait,” I stammered, stumbling backwards, “you want me… I mean I will be…”

Should I have capitalized “you”? Is the “stumbling backwards” formatted correctly? There are just so many questions that I have that have never been answered by traditional grammar classes. I hope this semester I can learn a little more about how to correctly punctuate dialogue as well as avoid passive voice.