DARCY DONAHUE INTRODUCTION TO LONG WRITING ASSIGNMENT Spanish and Women’s Studies HON/WMS 101 Women Immigrants and U.S. Culture During the course of the semester, the class will have the opportunity to do a number of short writing assignments between 1 and 5 pages long. This project is designed to give them some practice in carrying out a much longer paper in collaboration with classmates. It will also give them the opportunity to carry out some research that is closely related to class material. I have found the idea of structuring the project in phrases, or “scaffolding” as Bean terms it, very useful. I imagine that it will be quite helpful to first semester, first year students to embark upon a research project and know that they are responsible for having certain parts of the project conceptualized and actually written about well before the final project itself. I have attempted to follow Bean’s advice and have them articulate their ideas in writing from the very earliest stages. Although I had initially imagined an outline as part of the first steps, thanks to Bean, I have changed that assignment to a prospectus, which requires more verbalization and coordinated conceptualizing than an outline might. While I have attempted to provide a certain amount of structure in posing five or six areas they might explore in the paper, I do not insist that they include all of these, thereby leaving room for some creativity on their part. Similarly, in the suggestions provided, I have attempted to include fairly straightforward areas for research as well as the possibility of more creative materials, as we will do throughout the semester. The paper will be 65% of the final project. The other 35% will be the oral presentation of the project during the last weeks of class. While I have not yet worked out the final grading rubric for this project, I have included on the assignment descriptions some questions which will be central in the grading process. SEQUENCED WRITING ASSIGNMENTS FOR STUDENTS Spanish and Women’s Studies HON/WMS 101 Coming to America: Women Immigrants and U.S. Culture Course Goals: To explore the experiences and contributions of women immigrants to the United States from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. In the course of this exploration, the class will acquire factual knowledge concerning the circumstances of these women’s migration from a homeland to the U.S. We will also look at the ways some of these women represent their own experiences in fiction and other cultural texts. Using gender as a primary category of analysis, we will examine their post immigration lives including: work experiences, status with regard to mainstream U.S. culture and relationship to their cultures of origin. We will also explore the ways in which women immigrants from varied cultural backgrounds represent their own experiences in literature, film and music. Throughout the semester, we will consider questions such as: Who were these women and why did they leave their cultural origins to come to a new land? How did gender affect their migration experiences? How did they perceive and represent those experiences? How were they affected by the new culture, and, equally important, how was it affected by them? This assignment: Although we will examine women from a cross-section of immigrant groups, due to time constraints, we certainly cannot include all of them. This assignment will give you and two classmates the opportunity to research and write about the situation of a group of women not discussed in class. This project will be presented in both written and an oral format. The paper should be geared to an academic audience. As such, it should demonstrate research and conclusions based upon it. In order to carry out the written project it will be necessary to:
You may choose to emphasize one of the above areas more than the others, or eliminate one altogether, based on your interests and research findings. For example, you may choose to focus on work experiences or media representations of the group you choose. The final paper must include a bibliography and should be properly documented. It should be a minimum of eighteen pages long. Each member of the team will contribute a minimum of 6 pages. The schedule for completion of the project is the following: DUE: Week 8 the names of your team members and the immigrant group you have chosen together with a brief (1 page) paragraph explaining why you selected this particular group of women. What drew you to them and what would particularly interest you in your research? Week 11 a list of at least 10 sources you have consulted in conduction your research. Week 13 a 2-3 page prospectus in which you explain the organization of your project. What aspects of this group’s experiences will you emphasize? What sources will you use to support your ideas? The more detailed this prospectus is, the easier it will be to organize the final project. Weeks 14-16 oral presentation Exam week project in its final form. Final form should include:
Grading In grading the paper I will consider the following questions: Research 1. Is the paper well researched? Are the sources appropriate and varied?
Organization 3. Is the paper well-organized? Do the parts fit together well in a coherent whole? Are there smooth transitions between sections, paragraphs and sentences? Is there an introduction and a conclusion? Do the conclusions follow logically from the information presented? Style 4. Are the ideas clearly expressed? Is the vocabulary appropriate for a research paper? Is the grammar and spelling correct?
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