Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College
ENG 102, Reading Skills and Composition (6 hours, 3 credits)
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Prerequisites:
Passing the CATW and a score of 50-69 on the CUNY Reading Test. This course is NOT
for students with transfer credit for ENG 110. The course counts as 3 academic (6
billable) credits.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Reading Skills and Composition expedites students’ learning of basic reading and writing
skills needed to pass the CUNY Reading Test: comprehension of college-level texts,
vocabulary enrichment, summarizing, critical thinking, logical flow of ideas, and control
of grammar and mechanics. Simultaneously, this course further develops students’
composing and revision skills so that they will be able to produce the increasingly
complex and better-structured essays expected of students who successfully complete
ENG 110. Toward that end, students will learn how to use class discussions and
interdisciplinary readings as the bases for both expository and researched essays.
Reading and responding to interdisciplinary texts representing various rhetorical modes,
students will gain further practice in paraphrasing and summarizing, enrich their
vocabulary and improve their writing, revision, and proofreading skills. Additionally,
students will be introduced to the use of print and on-line secondary sources. Upon
completion of the course, students will be able to respond critically to a variety of texts,
integrating their own ideas with those presented in the readings. ENG 102 combines the
work that is usually done in two different courses into one semester. Thus, in order to
pass ENG 102, students must pass all components of the developmental reading course,
and of ENG 110, the first semester of college-level writing. Successful completion of this
course is equivalent to passing English 110.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
In this course, students will:
1.
acquire and apply active reading skills;
2.
3.
4.
expand their vocabulary and improve word choice;
write accurate, concise summaries and evaluations;
read and listen critically and analytically, i.e., identifying an argument’s
major assumptions and assertions, tone and attitude, and evaluating its
supporting evidence;
5. write clearly and coherently in varied academic formats (such as formal
essays, researched papers, and reports), using standard English;
6. organize ideas into an essay that has a clear thesis, logical structure, wellreasoned arguments, appropriate transitions and a meaningful conclusion;
7. formulate and connect ideas and communicate them persuasively within a
variety of contexts and for a variety of rhetorical purposes;
8. incorporate primary source material through paraphrase and direct
quotation, duly attributed with correct citation format;
9. prepare a works cited list according to MLA format;
10. demonstrate research skills using appropriate technology, including
gathering, evaluating, and synthesizing primary and secondary sources; and
11. demonstrate competency in writing a timed essay responding to a text,
including achievement of a passing score on the CUNY Assessment Test in
Writing and the Hostos English Department Final Examination.
Note: Objectives 1-6 and 11 are practiced with differing degrees of mastery at both
developmental reading and 110 levels. Objectives 7-11 are identified with English 110.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS;
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Attend all scheduled classes punctually: two latenesses will be considered an
absence. No more than four absences will be permitted;
read all assignments given by the instructor and be prepared to discuss them in
class;
be responsible for all assignments, even when absent;
complete three graded practice reading tests;
be responsible for at least three revised essays (this includes a researched essay on
the novel assigned), two in-class (not revised) graded responses to reading
selections, plus any other types of writing assigned during the semester;
be responsible for role in all collaborative work;
keep cell phones off or on beeper mode during the class period;
read the novel Bodega Dreams by Ernesto Quinones (college bookstore) by the
dates indicated on the syllabus; be responsible for all homework and activities
assigned to enhance comprehension and enjoyment of this novel;
attend two or more library workshops. One of these workshops must be on
avoiding plagiarism.
be responsible for attending the CUNY/Reading test and the English 110 test.
ASSESSMENT: Grading/Credit
Students taking ENG 102 are writing exempt. Students will take the CUNY Reading exam
the 7th week of the semester, and, if necessary, at the end of the semester. As this
course follows the ENG 110 reading curriculum, students who pass the CUNY Reading
exam AND meet the requirements for ENG 110 will be given 3 credits and a grade for
ENG 110. (Students who are transferred into ENG 110 because they pass the Reading
exam, but do not meet the other requirements for that course by semester’s end will
receive an F and have to repeat ENG 110).
Three revised essays-------------- 30%
(3-5 pp. each)
(includes researched essay 5-7 pp.)
Three reading/writing practice
tests --------------------------------30%
Final exam--------------------------15%
Annotated Bibliography------------5%
Daily Grade------------------------ 20%
In-class writing
Class Participation
Collaborative Work
Written Responses
Statement on Accommodation
It is the policy of the College to accommodate students with disabilities, pursuant to
federal and state laws. Any student with a disability who needs accommodation, for
example, in accessing print or non-print texts, test taking, viewing material, etc., should
inform the instructor at the beginning of the course. The student should also register
with the Accessibility Resource Center in the D (Savoy) Building.
Statement on Plagiarism and Cheating
Severe penalties are imposed on students found guilty of violating the College’s policy
regarding academic integrity. This policy is spelled out in the College Catalog and on the
Hostos home page. Students are expected to familiarize themselves with this policy.
Hostos Academic Learning Center
Tutorial services are available at the HALC in all subjects offered at Hostos Community
College. The Learning Center in C-596 houses three computer labs equipped with
interactive software used for mathematics practice, foreign language acquisition and
ESL preparation along with tutorial rooms. Tutors work either one-on-one or in small
groups to provide general course review and pre-exam preparation. Students are
welcome to attend the Learning Center days, evenings, and weekends including Sunday
throughout the semester and participate in intersession workshops including CAT-
W/COMPASS/CMAT examination preparation, study skills and basic
computing. http://www.hostos.cuny.edu/halc/
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Note 1: There is no required textbook for this course except for the novel. Students will
access works online or handouts will be distributed. Instructor will provide background
information about Bodega Dreams. During the final weeks of the semester, there will be
ongoing practice for the CUNY Reading Test and review for the 110 final.
Note 2: Below are some alternative titles of long works which have a readability level
similar to Bodega Dreams for English 102:
Lucy- Jamaica Kincaid
Women of Brewster Street- Gloria Naylor
My Car in Managua- Forrest Colburn
Devil in a Blue Dress- Walter Mosley
Family Installments- Edward Rivera
The House on Mango Street- Sandra Cisneros
The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven- Sherman Alexie
The Diaries of Adam and Eve- Mark Twain
Tentative Weekly Schedule
Our readings will be organized around topics such as Reality, Illusion, Dreams, Identity,
Education, Immigration, Inequality etc. These ongoing strands will allow students to
make connections to the readings as well as to develop strategies for improving
comprehension, analytical strategies, critical reading and writing skills.
WEEK 1: Introduction and Diagnostic
“The Monkey Garden” by Sandra Cisneros
(vocabulary development, comprehension, summary, supporting details)
WEEK 2: “Shame” by Dick Gregory
“Se Habla Espanol” by Tanya Barrientos
Practice test (skills emphasized week 1)
WEEK 3: “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara
(inference, irony, tone, theme)
“Poverty is not a State of Mind” by Charles Blow
(quantitative data embedded in reading material)
WEEK 4: The Great Gatsby (discussion of film/introduction to the novel)
Bodega Dreams by Ernesto Quinones pp. 1-41
(point of view, style and purpose)
(use of direct quotations and paraphrasing in writing assignments)
Practice test (cumulative skills)
Formal essay 1 (evaluation and analysis of text)
WEEK 5: Bodega Dreams: pp. 42-82
(cumulative skills)
Introduction to Research
WEEK 6: Bodega Dreams: pp. 83-213
practice test (comprehensive skills/evaluation and analysis)
Introduction to Research
Writing summaries of secondary material
WEEK 7: Practice (comprehensive skills)
CUNY Reading Test
“Ain’t I a Woman” by Sojourner Truth
WEEK 8: “I had a Boyhood Once” by Jennifer Finney Boylan
(inference, irony, tone and theme)
“Nadie la Tiene: Land, Ecology and Nationalism by Aurora Levins Morales
(parts 1-6)
2nd formal essay
WEEK 9: “Nadie la Tiene…” (parts 7-13)
“My Grandmother’s Ashtray: Why Smart People do Stupid Things” by
Laurence Gonzalez
(ongoing practice on comprehensive skills)
Incorporating secondary material into an essay (preparation for
researched essay on a topic from Bodega Dreams)
WEEK 10: “Once More to the Lake” by E,B, White
(writing activities on author’s tone, style, point of view)
practice test (comprehensive skills/analytical skills)
WEEK 11: “The Brown Wasps” by Loren Eiseley
(comprehensive skills cont.)
Preparing an Annotated Works Cited List for Bodega Dreams
Researched essay on Bodega Dreams assigned
WEEK 12: “On Christian Heroism” by Cynthia Ozick
(comprehensive skills/ writing activities on evaluation and
analysis of text)
WEEK 13: 3rd formal essay: researched essay on Bodega Dreams (to be revised)
(essay on novel returned for revision)
practice test (comprehension/analytical/critical strategies)
WEEK 14-15: Final draft of essay due
Practice for CUNY Reading test
Review for Final Exam
ENG 102: Sample essay on Bodega Dreams
Compare and contrast Chino, Sapo and Bodega’s search for identity throughout the
novel Bodega Dreams. What are the similarities and differences in how they are
each presented at the beginning and ending of the story? How similar or different
are their values at the beginning and at the end of the novel? How does the ending
of the novel reflect a newly found identity for each? What have they gained? What
have they lost? What kinds of lessons have they learned? How is their respective
search for identity central to this novel?
Suggested organization:
p.1 General introduction on the novel and statement of what the essay will focus on
p.2 Begin to focus on Chino. How is he presented at the beginning? What are his values
initially? How different are his values at the end? Has he found his identity at the end?
What has he gained? Lost? What lessons has he learned? Eg. Chino lives between two
worlds, the world of his neighborhood and the world that education is exposing him to.
p.3 Focus on Sapo. (Same questions for Sapo) (In contrast, Sapo finds his identity
exclusively in the ghetto, in his neighborhood….
p.4 Focus on Bodega (Same questions for Bodega) Bodega has tried to find his identity
by funding his neighborhoods dreams, but through the wrong means because he’s
basically a drug dealer
p. 5, 6, 7 develop the similarities and differences among these three characters in terms
of all the questions (use in-text quotes to support your points…MLA citation style)
p. 8 conclusion: How is the search for identity of these three characters central to the
novel?
ENG 102: Practice Test
Bodega Dreams
Prof. Justicia
I.
Identify and describe each of the following characters in your own words: (15
pts.- answer in the back)
1. Negra
9. Roberto Vega
2. Blanca
10.Claudia
3. Chino
11. Nene
4. Sapo
12. Alberto Salazar
5. Willie
13. Fischman
6. Nazario
14. John Vidal
7. Vera
15. Da. Ramonita
8. Pastor Vazquez
II.
Write T (True) or F (False) next to the following statements: (10 pts.)
1.______ Mr. Blessington was very friendly with the kids in his English class.
2.______ Mr. Tapia was a science teacher.
3.______ Mr. Tapia told Sapo to lie about his incident with Mr. Blessington.
4.______ Aunt Vera had married a rich, young Cuban gentleman.
5.______ Chino loved to read the Bible.
6.______ Fischman set fire to the buildings in retaliation for Salazar’s
murder.
7.______ Blanca did not believe in doing anything illegal.
8.______ Nazario shot Vera’s husband.
9.______ Negra is the one who reveals Vera’s true nature to Chino.
10._____ At the end of Part II, Chino realizes that Vera had shot Bodega.
III.
Write a brief statement where you describe or analyze the idea suggested by
the following excerpts: (25 pts- answer in the back. Use another page if
needed.)
1. “Your life meant shit from the start.” (page 4)
2. “So we hated ourselves and fought every day.” (p. 7)
3. “B’cause men that made this country, men that built this country were
men from the street…Men like me, men like you, men like Sapito there.”
(p. 25)
4. “Bodega was a lost relic from a time when all things seemed possible.
When young people cared about social change.”(p. 31)
5. “Bodega was gone and his dreams had dissolved like a wafer in water;”
(p. 205)
English 102: Sample essay on “The Brown Wasps”
Prof. Justicia
Write a well-organized, well-developed, correct essay about one of the following (at
least two pages, both sides, skipping a line). Please support your point with examples
from the text (MLA citation style):
1. Write an essay where you analyze and discuss Eiseley’s “The Brown Wasps”
using the following sentence as your guide: “We cling to a time and place
because without them man is lost, not only man but life.” Be sure to discuss all
the examples the author uses to illustrate his point and the conclusion that he
reaches at the end. In your own conclusion, discuss if you agree with his main
points about the relationship between memory and place.
2. Write an essay where you use the sentence quoted above to illustrate how this
essay can be read as the story of a boy and his father. Be sure to discuss how the
author builds up to his own story through a series of examples taken from
human and natural life. In your conclusion, discuss possible reasons for the
author choosing to give all the other examples before his own.
English 102- Sample essay on “The Lesson”
Prof. Justicia
Choose one of the following and write a well-organized, well-developed, correct essay
(at least 500 words, skipping a line): Be sure to support your points with in-text citations
(MLA style).
1. Write a brief analysis of plot, setting, characters and conflict in Toni Cade Bambara’s
The Lesson. When you describe character, focus your writing on the characters of Sylvia
and Ms. Moore. Include physical details and character traits in your analysis. You might
also consider the following questions: Why was Ms. Moore so interested in Sylvia? How
did Sylvia feel about Ms. Moore? How did she react to Ms. Moore’s “lesson” and what
do you think her reaction meant? In your conclusion, consider how all the elements,
especially characterization, work together to reinforce the story’s theme.
2. Analyze and discuss the theme of The Lesson. What is the objective of the lesson?
How is the lesson given? How valuable a lesson is it for the children involved?
How do elements like setting, character, point of view, and conflict reinforce the theme;
that is, that we live in a society where there is a lot of economic inequality and a sure
way to overcome this is through education?