California State University, Northridge
English 455: Literacy, Rhetoric, and Culture
Fall 2012
Syllabus Table of Contents:
Instructor Information
Course Description
Required Texts
Grade Distribution
Literacy Autoethnography
Collaborative Presentation
Web Manifesto
Ethnography
Other Assignments
Course Policies
Tentative Schedule
Acknowledgements
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Instructor: Ian Barnard, Ph.D.
Office Hours in ST 834: TR 3:30-4:30 p.m., and by appointment
Email Contact: ian.barnard@csun.edu
Course
Description:
Teaching Philosophy:
I will not spend much time lecturing and expect you to participate
vigorously in the many workshops and discussions around which
the course is organized. We all teach and learn in this course--I
do not believe in a one-way transmission of “knowledge” from
instructor to students. I don’t have all the answers, and I look
forward to learning as much as teaching in this course. You
should direct your questions and comments in class to your
colleagues as much as to me. I encourage you to talk in class: try
to speak at least once during each class discussion and peer
workshop.
Study of current and past theories of literacy, including the nature of literacy itself; connections between rhetoric
and literacy; the ways literacy is shared and used by individuals, families, and cultures; and the political, social,
and personal ramifications of literacy. Core course for English Department minor in Writing and Rhetoric.
Available for graduate credit. Graduate students who would like this course to count towards their graduate
program will complete an individualized assignment in addition to the assignments listed below.
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Required Texts (available at the Matador Bookstore and also on reserve at the Oviatt Library):
In addition, we’ll be watching the film Precious, and I will post readings on Moodle. If you don’t have a laptop, you’ll need to print
out these readings, as well as drafts of your colleagues’ assignments.
Grade Distribution
Literacy Autoethnography:
20%
Collaborative Presentation:
20%
Web Manifesto:
20%
Ethnography:
30%
Other Assignments:
10%
I expect you to turn in all assignments on time and will lower your grade for an assignment by one letter grade for each week or part
of a week that you turn it in late without prior permission from me. Given the interactive and collaborative nature of the class, I
expect you to attend and participate actively in all class meetings. You get four “free’ emergency absences. If you miss more than
four class meetings, I will lower your final course grade by 1/3 grade for each additional absence. Each tardy (arriving late or leaving
class early) counts as half an absence. I will also mark you tardy if you are not prepared for class.
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
9793-96% 90-92% 87-89% 83-86% 80-82& 77-79% 73-76% 70-72% 67-69% 63-66% 60-62% 0-59%
100%
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Literacy Autoethnography
Prompts For Major Assignments
Develop an individual video or written autoethnography that traces your own relationship to writing,
language, and literacy. Since literacy is such a large area of inquiry, you will need to focus on some
specific aspect of the topic. Your literacy autoethnography needs to be critical and reflective, and not
just a simple narrative. Use Voices of the Self, Precious (the book and film), and your readings in
Literacy: A Critical Sourcebook as models, inspirations, and guides. You are welcome to refer to these
or other texts you have read/seen. If you do refer to other texts, be sure to include a Works Cited. A
written autoethnography should be 1000-1500 words long, should be posted on Moodle as a Word or
PDF attachment, and may include images, links, and other digital materials. A video autoethnography
will be 5-10 minutes long and you’ll post it on YouTube with a link on Moodle. You’ll get feedback
from colleagues on a draft of your literacy autoethnography.
Collaborative Presentation
With your group members, give an interactive presentation on an assigned article on one of six cutting
edge topics in the fields of literacy and rhetoric: disability studies, queer rhetorics, feminist rhetorics,
hip-hop literacies, visual literacy, and digital literacy. Your presentation should include an overview of
your article (remember that other class members will not have not read it) and an interactive
component where you engage the class with your article or the issues raised in it. Connect your article
to the other readings and to issues around literacy and rhetoric that we have discussed. You may also
raise questions or concerns about your article and talk about what you thought was particularly
important, interesting, or problematic about it. Your presentation (including the interactive component)
should last 15-20 minutes. All group members need to be active participants in this project, though all
don’t need to speak during the presentation. All group members earn the same score for the
presentation unless someone fails to do their fair share of the work. Your score will be based on how
well you and your group members collaborate, the effectiveness of your presentation of your assigned
article, the quality of the interactive component of the presentation, and your ability to follow the
presentation time limit. It’s important that you and your group members rehearse your presentation
beforehand.
Web Manifesto
Individually or in collaboration with one or more other class members, create a website as your
“literacy manifesto for social change.” Use google, wix.com, weebly.com, or freewebs.com or another
website that allows you to create web pages, or create a website on the CSUN server. Your goal is to
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come up with a list of demands or statement of principles that summarizes your views about the role
that literacy does/can/should play in social change and how change should be effected. You may not
be able to cover every aspect of this topic in a short manifesto—it’s ok to focus on a particular issue
that interests you. Your manifesto should be informed by the readings you have done from Part 7 of
Literacy, and should demonstrate your knowledge of and engagement with the political implications of
debates about literacy. But don’t just repeat what others have said on the topic—use their ideas as
springboards for your own. Since this is a manifesto, you are welcome to use a tone and style that
eschews conventions of academic decorum. Your website should include at least 500 of your own
original words, as well as images and external links, and at least two linked web pages that you have
created. If you use other sources, be sure to cite them. I will grade your web manifesto on the quality
of your ideas, the quality of your writing, and your effective use of visual and digital rhetoric
(including the visual appeal of your website). You’ll post a link to your home page on Moodle.
Ethnography
Individually or in collaboration with one or more other class members develop a scholarly video (15-30
minutes) or written (2000-2500 words) ethnography that chronicles a particular set of literacy practices
of a specific person or group of people. Use the ethnographies we read in Literacy: A Critical
Sourcebook as models. You need to conduct your own original field research. In your ethnography
you want to present a careful chronicling and thoughtful analysis of your topic and come to some
conclusions about it. Since you are joining a community of literacy studies scholars, you also need to
situate your ethnography in the field of literacy studies and in relation to the work of other scholars by
citing at least five scholarly sources in your ethnography. Conclude your video or written ethnography
with a list of Works Cited. You’ll get feedback on a draft of your work from colleagues. You’ll post
your final written ethnography as a Word or PDF attachment on Moodle, and are welcome to include
links, images, and other digital materials. Video ethnographies will be posted on YouTube (with links
on Moodle).
Other Assignments
These include in-class writings, responses to readings, drafts of assignments, and participation in peer
workshops. I grade these assignments on a credit/no credit basis. In class we will discuss criteria for
earning credit for these assignments. You must post an assignment on time in order to earn credit for
it. In some cases I may give you permission to revise an assignment in order to earn credit for it.
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Course Policies:
Please see me early in the semester if you have a documented disability, so that we can discuss what accommodations,
Disability
if any, I might make to help you to succeed in this class.
Issues
Email
Protocol
I acknowledge all email messages within 48 hours. If you email me but don’t get a response, I haven’t received your
email. Feel free to email me concerning any questions you have about the course or about your work. Do not email
your papers to me for feedback; I’d be happy to discuss your papers/revisions/revision ideas with you in person. It’s
important to practice composing professional emails: be sure that your emails to me include appropriate subject lines,
salutations, and closes.
Citation of
Sources
Plagiarism is a contested and context-specific topic. We will discuss effective ways of using sources and issues around
plagiarism in class.
Recording
of Classes
I don’t permit audio, video, or cell phone recording of class sessions.
Thanks to Irene Clark and Aneil Rallin for assisting me with this syllabus.
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Tentative Schedule
Date:
T 8/28/12
R 8/30/12
T 9/4/12
R 9/6/12
T 9/11/12
R 9/13/12
T 9/18/12
R 9/20/12
T 9/25/12
In-Class Activities:
 introduction to the course
 discuss syllabus
 watch and discuss literacy autoethnography video
 introduction to Push
 discuss reading
 class member introductions
 discuss reading
 introduction to rhetoric
 assign literacy autoethnography
 discuss reading
 discuss readings and the rhetoric of 9/11
 discuss reading
 work on literacy autoethnography
 discuss reading
 work on literacy autoethnography
 discuss reading
 work on literacy autoethnography
 discuss reading
 work on literacy autoethnography
Homework:
 read Push, Chapter I

read Push, Chapter II-end


read Appeals in Modern Rhetoric, Preface and
Chapters 1-3
read selected texts on 9/11 (on Moodle)


read Literacy, Chapter 29
read Literacy, Chapter 32

read Voices of the Self, Chapters 1-5

read Voices of the Self, Chapters 6-end

post a complete draft of your literacy
autoethnography or a link to a complete draft of your
literacy autoethnography on Moodle by noon on
9/27/12
bring your laptop to class
work on revising your literacy autoethnography
R 9/27/12

peer workshops
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T 10/2/12
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watch Precious (part I)

R 10/4/12

watch Precious (part II)

post your revised literacy autoethnography or a link
to your revised literacy autoethnography on Moodle
by noon on 10/4/12
read Literacy, Introduction
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T 10/9/12
R 10/11/12
T 10/16/12
R 10/18/12
T 10/23/12
R 10/25/12
T 10/30/12
R 11/1/12
T 11/6/12
R 11/8/12
T 11/13/12
R 11/15/12
T 11/20/12
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discuss film
discuss reading
assign collaborative presentations
mid-semester evaluations of the course
no class meeting—meet with your group
members
discuss reading
discuss mid-semester evaluations
meet with group members
prepare for presentations
collaborative presentations
collaborative presentations
presentation debriefing
discuss readings
assign web manifestos
discuss readings
discuss sample manifestos
work on web manifestos
discuss web manifestos
assign ethnography
discuss reading
discuss use of scholarly sources
discuss reading
work on ethnography
discuss reading
work on ethnography

read your assigned presentation text (on Moodle)

read Appeals in Modern Rhetoric, Chapters 6-8

work on your presentation

work on your presentation
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read Literacy, Chapters 34-36
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read Literacy, Chapters 37-38
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work on your web manifesto
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
post a link to your web manifesto on Moodle by noon
on 11/8/12
bring your laptop to class
read Literacy, Chapters 24-25,
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read Literacy, Chapters 15, 16, 20
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read Literacy, Chapters 21, 23, 26, 27

read Appeals in Modern Rhetoric, Chapters 4-5
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R 11/22/12
T 11/27/12
R 11/29/12
T 12/4/12
R 12/6/12
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discuss reading
work on ethnography
discuss reading
work on ethnography
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peer workshops
course synthesis/rupture
connecting literacy and rhetoric to your major
party?

read Appeals in Modern Rhetoric, Chapters 9-10

post a complete draft of your ethnography or a link to
a complete draft of your ethnography on Moodle by
noon on 12/4/12
bring your laptop to class
work on revising your ethnography
post your revised ethnography or a link to your
revised ethnography on Moodle by noon on 12/11/12
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