Long term viability for English studies will come not when we jettison the literature enterprise, but when we recognize the multiplicity of activities that come under the banner of English studies. For the purposes of the above conversation, that means ending the verb--noun battle (writing vs. literature) and using the verb--verb connection--writing and reading.
Rhet/comp classes are to Literature classes what writing classes are to reading ones. Two peas in a snuggly language pod.
And the validation? Well, that came when folks started talking about the reading/writing connection in response to my post. Felt pretty good indeed.
Maybe there's a place for my dissertation after all.
]]>I don't like being thought of as one of those namby-pamby people who want to do the bare-ass minimum, so let me make myself clear--I'm not trying to get out of writing a thorough dissertation. I just don't want to find myself padding it to make it hit some arbitrary page count. I want it to have what it needs to have in it to make it a viable, interesting, contributory document.
In other words, I seem to think that I'm writing a document that people will want to read, instead of just accepting the fact that I'm writing a document that a few people have to read in order to say that I've completed the requirements for my degree. If it's interesting and capable of sustaining further inquiry, I suppose that's a pleasant side bonus.
Vexed, I am, but soldiering on.
]]>Murray wrote a book several years ago called The Bell Curve. Many people were offended by it. I always thought he had some interesting things to say. These columns made me think a little more, as did some of the comments from readers.
I don't know whether I agree with Murray or not, but I do know that the conversation he's trying to start is one that we need to have, in some fashion, if we're ever going to make headway.
]]>I think he brings up many of the questions that I've had about the antifoundational viewpoint. I need to chew on it a bit, though, to process.
]]>And it's looking mighty fine.
Wowsa!
Ideas nascent don't necessarily want to be revealed, their soft underbellies exposed to glaring burning public view. Even though no one has ever set an eye on this blog (with the exception of the web crawlers who have visited to leave obscene calling cards), it is still in its own way public, and that seems to send shivers down my spine.
I will try, in the new year, to write more, to record more, to at least keep a record of where I'm going, of what I've done, and to begin to let some nascent thoughts out to play. And if anyone reads this (anyone human, without a hidden sex-poker-or-loan-selling agenda), I trust that you'll take all in the spirit in which it's intended.
]]>And from our good friends at Wikipedia:
History of the Graphical User Interface
Thanks to Infocult for the links.
]]>I am terrified.
I can write code. I first learned to write code in 11th grade. Way back in 1985. In BASIC. When I went to the Louisiana School my senior year, I was expected to code in PASCAL. I learned the language well enough to write flawless code on paper. I never, though, actually ran a program, because the university's VAX system terrified me.
Fast forward to 2002. I take Steve Ramsay's HC class and he teaches us Ruby. I generally get it and write a haiku generator for my final project. It is slow and consumes network resources like a very hungry hippo, but it works. The poems are less than poetic, the most logical one using the word "nigger" in a coherent sentence. But it worked, so I was happy.
I know that I'm going to have a maddening blast this summer writing these tools and then writing up my findings. But right now, at this moment, I'm scared.
If I could, I'd be attending this Text Analysis Summit in Ontario next month to prep myself mentally. Sigh. It's hard to be a poor grad student! ;-)
]]>When you are given a month to celebrate yourself, it generally means that you are considered by some not worthy of celebration. A month is a short amount of time, after all, for the public to be mildly reminded of your presence. Homage can be paid by the faithful, who know you're around anyway, and the rest of the world can just ignore you. As a black female who likes to teach poetry, I'm just not interested in the months of February, March, and April as anything other than the time when I have to dress in carefully chosen layers so as not to find myself freezing/sweating/drenched at day's end.
]]>I'm particularly in league with the commentor who questions the place of reading instruction in college education. As a culture, we assume that once we become readers there's no need to develop us as readers. We don't, however, place the same amount of trust in our ability to write.
I have maintained firmly that my job as an English teacher is to teach reading and writing. While we pay lots of lip (and red pencil) service to the writing practice, we tend to ignore reading, assuming, I think, that students will demonstrate their abilities as readers when they write.
I'm wondering now if that emphasis on writing may be contributing to plagiarism; good, active readers will always have something to say about a text. Passive readers have a harder time and may be prone to being more passive writers.
]]>I've also just discovered that Kenner wrote a series of columns for Byte magazine in the 1980's. If I'm late to the party, don't mock me; I'm dying to get to the library to check them out.
]]>Intrigued? Of course. How could I not be intrigued by the idea of having something else grading my papers? And yet...
While I'm heartened by the fact that the professor who has developed this package has his students generate a lot of writing, I'm concerned that the papers he finds that are of such "high quality" might be as cribbed as any other papers. After all, he has had no contact with student writing; the computer has.
I guess I'd need to see this in action. Too bad that this publically funded project is being farmed out to the highest bidder...in the textbook industry no less. My tax dollars at work...
The Slashdot conversation surrounding this article is quite good as well.
]]>Is this a trend we'll be seeing more of? As a former Student Affairs officer at a residential school, I have to question the legitimate purpose of this type of activity. Yes, the university should strive to maintain standards of ethical and legal behavior among students. I question, though, the implications of this type of endeavor.
The principle of in loco parentis, a foundation of student affairs policy, suggests that the school acts "in place of the parents" when dealing with students. Changes in our laws, however, have largely curtailed the way that this policy is carried out, particularly in the residential environment. Students are generally not, for example, punished for underage drinking, although they may be if the drinking occurs in the residence hall. Many schools allow for intervisitation in dormitory rooms with members of the opposite sex, a practice that 40 years ago would have been unthinkable. Recently, at the University of Georgia, campus discussion was focused on a policy under consideration that would have required the University to notify parents if their underage son or daughter was involved in two city alcohol violations. Students felt their rights as adults were being violated; parents wanted to know that they would find out if their son or daughter were in jeopardy legally and physically.
What does this have to do with file sharing? When the university makes it policy to protect students from their choices, I think they are bordering on the in loco again...and in ways that parents want them to, if for no other reason than to avoid having to bail not-so-little Johnny out of jail for his illegal activities.
I guess what I question is the suggestion in the article that the university has a responsibility to do this as the provider of the bandwith. I say, let the little thieves hang.
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