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AMIND STDS. 120
WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
PROF. ALAN KILPATRICK
OFFICE: Arts& Letter 327
PHONE: 619-594-1679
EMAIL: akilpatr@mail.sdsu.edu
Office Hours: 4-7pm T/TBA
The purpose of this course is to develop students’ rhetoric and writing skills so
that they can successfully negotiate writing assignments at the university level.
By the end of the course, students should be able to identify the salient features
of a written argument and to write a critical response which is both coherent and
logical. They should also be able to develop sound research techniques which
will allow them to find information efficiently and to develop editorial skills which
will allow them to revise their papers into effective vehicles of human
communication.
COURSE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
GOAL 1: Be able to explicate the main socio-economic problems which confront
minority communities.
Objective 1.1
demonstrate an understanding of the complexity of
issues which confront modern Native American
societies.
Objective 1.2
demonstrate an understanding of the effect of
Post-Colonialism on marginalized people.
GOAL 2: Develop skills that will help students meet the college level writing
requirement.
Objective 2.1
demonstrate the ability to analyze texts and to create
cogent and logical oral and written responses.
Objective 2.2
demonstrate the ability to research a topic and
to extract pertinent information from bibliographic
sources.
Objective 2.3
demonstrate the ability to utilize all aspects of the
writing process involving editing, revising, and
proofreading.
Objective 2.4.
demonstrate the ability to orally articulate their
arguments in a clear and persuasive manner.
TEXTS:
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REQUIRED:
The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison, 1970, NY: Vintage Books (or later editions)
CLASS READER: Montezuma Publishing will furnish you with this
anthology for a nominal price.
OPTIONAL:
Keys for Writers, Ann Raimes, 4th ed.
REQUIREMENTS
Students wil be expected to attend class regularly and to participate in the
discussions. It is your responsibility to attend class on a regular basis. An
occasional absence for medical or personal reasons is acceptable. However,
excessive “unexcused” absences will result in a 1.0 point grade reduction.
Students will be required to produce two acceptable written papers as well as
complete a series of guided in-class writing exercises.
Your grade will be based on the following criteria:
1) Essay #1 (concept, rough draft and final draft)
2) Essay #2 ( “
“
)
Group Presentations
In-class Writing Assignments/ Peer Review critiques
40%
40%
10%
10%
NOTE: In order to pass the course, STUDENTS MUST COMPLETE ALL
REQUIREMENTS.
STUDENT CONDUCT:
Students will be expected to maintain a reasonable public decorum and to
conduct themselves in a manner that is consistent with a university-based
learning system. Disrupting the class by arriving late, leaving early, reading
extraneous material, TEXTING, USING CELL PHONES, or talking to other
students during lectures is considered rude and will not be tolerated! In such
cases, the instructor reserves the right to dismiss the student from the
classroom. All cell phones should remain off during class.
Plagiarism is considered an academic felony. Evidence of such activity on
papers or exams will result in immediate failure in the course. Regulations about
student cheating and classroom behavior are covered in the Judicial Procedures
Guidelines, San Diego State University. See also California Code of Regulations,
Title V., No 41301, section D and Student Discipline and Grievances in the
General Catalog and Announcement of Courses, Vol. 85, 1998-99, pps. 96-97,
San Diego State University.
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TENTATIVE CLASS SCHEDULE
Week ONE:
Discussion of the syllabus and the organization of class
assignments. In-Class Diagnostic Writing Exercise.
UNIT ONE: RACE
Week TWO:
ASSIGNMENT:
LECTURE: What is an Indian? Race vs. Ethnicity
VIDEO: “Mystery of the Ancient Americans”
ARTICLES: “Kennewick Man- A Kin? Too distant” (Barkan
and Bush); “Why Anthropologists Study Human Remains”
(Patricia M. Landau and D. Gentry Steele); and “American
Indians, Anthropologists, Pothunters, and Repatriation”
(Devon A. Mihesuah).
Week THREE:
GROUPS 1,2, and 3 will use class time to
organize their presentations from the three readings. ALL
STUDENTS should outline the main points of the 3 articles:
consider the following: the scientific arguments about the
value of reconstructing diet, disease, and historical
circumstances versus Mihesuah’s concerns about violations
of Native religion as well as the perpetuation of racial and
cultural stereotypes.
Week FOUR
GROUP PRESENTATIONS
Week FIVE:
BRING TYPED DRAFT OF PAPER #1 TO CLASS for peer
review
UNIT TWO: GENDER
Week SIX:
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ASSIGNMENT:
PAPER #1 DUE (NO LATE PAPERS!!!) HARD COPIES ONLY!!!
Successful papers will be polished and proofed featuring an
articulated argument that is substantiated by textual
examples.
VIDEO: “SEXUALITY” (National Geographic special)
TONI MORRISON novel, The Bluest Eye.
Week SEVEN:
NO CLASS!!!
Week EIGHT:
ASSIGNMENT:
DISCUSSION OF “THE BLUEST EYE.”
ARTICLES: Intro & Chap. 1 “The Hands of God” from The
Riddle of Gender (Deborah Rudacille); “Confessions of an
Eater” (Kim Chernin) and “The Disease of Young Women”
(Brett Silverstein and Deborah Peck).
Groups should meet to organize presentations. ALL
STUDENTS should outline main ideas in the three articles.
Week NINE:
ASSIGNMENT:
audience
GROUP PRESENTATIONS RE: GENDER
Sherman Alexie’s “Class.”
(Consider Alexie’s writing style, characterization, and
narrative technique. How does this contribute to his
and appreciation of his message).
UNIT THREE: CLASS
Week TEN:
DISCUSSION OF SHORT STORY, “CLASS.”
PAPER #2 TOPIC TO BE ASSIGNED.
Week ELEVEN:
NO CLASS!!!
Week TWELVE:
IN-CLASS Development of outline for Paper #2
Week THIRTEEN:
NO CLASS!! THANKSGIVING!!!
Week FOURTEEN:
BRING TYPED ROUGH DRAFT to class. Peer Review.
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Week FIFTEEN:
LAST DAY OF CLASS: PAPER #2 IS DUE!!!
(NO LATE PAPERS!!!)