Essay topic idea

I think I'm going to do my essay on the languages that we form within groups of friends and family. I hope to use Margaret Finders story about notes and June Jordans essay on black english to help me explain my topic. I mainly wanted to use those stories because it shows how there are different languages used in different cases. We may write standard english on an essay but when it comes to notes passed to friends we use things like OMG and WTF and JK to shorten words and we even speak them in those shorten forms too. Also within the family sometimes you learn different ways of talking to eachother because your with eachother all the time that you dont need to say everything to get the point across, if you know what i'm talking about. Those are just a few ideas i have so far, hopefully i'll come up with more. If you have any advice for me please give it! I need all the help I can get!. Thanks.

Essay Assignment Topic

I was thinking about doing my essay on the factors outside of school that effect and shape our personal styles of literacy. I'm probably going to get alot of help from Min-Zhan Lu's essay, and i hope that i can find some similarities in other essay's. I hope that this topic will work out, and if anyone else is thinking about doing it please tell me. Other comments would help me out a lot too.

"In the shadow of the image"

I really liked reading Stuart and Elizabeth Ewen's "In the shadow of the Image" for various reasons. At first I was very confused as to where the text was going and why both author's were just rambling on about random insidents in life. But during the last four paragraphs in the essay they explain in clear detail why they described these events and for what purpose. I liked how both author's said that when we view these "facts of our lives" separately they are soon forgotten. If they are viewed together like in this essay they show all different types of things (hope and dispair, human activity). All these personal stories come together as one to show how different people percieve things in different ways. This was a very short and to the point essay that I enjoyed.

First Paper Assignment: Literacies DUE 2/16

Hello, Hello...I know, I know. But better late than never. Here's your first paper assignment. Seeing that I did not post this until today, post your paper ideas, brainstorming, random thoughts about the paper assignment to the blog between now and next class.

Paper #1: Literacies

We’ve been discussing issues of literacy and some of the many issues around literacy. For example, Lu’s essay looked at the changing values associated with literacy before and after the Chinese revolution. Rose focused on what he called the “prose of America’s underclass” and how standardized tests influence what counts as literacy. Jordan and Delpit both examined different aspects of “skills” and “non-Standard English.” This paper asks you to explore more deeply two of the authors we have read or will read during the first unit.

We began discussing “sympathetic” readings during our last class in order to try to flesh out the complexities of the essays by June Jordan and Lisa Delpit. In this paper, you should also pay close attention to the specifics of two authors’ arguments. Your goal is to 1) provide a solid sympathetic reading of two texts; 2) discuss what you see these authors contributing to our discussions of literacy. What issues are important to consider when we are discussing literacy? Is literacy simply the ability to read and write? How are questions of literacy related to issues of power, status, and one’s culture? I am not so much interested in whether you agree or disagree with any particular author. I am interested in how well you engage the issues and provide support for your readings. It is important that you provide specific evidence to support both your sympathetic readings AND your discussion of literacy.

You do not have to focus on every detail of the texts you choose. Rather, you should focus your analysis on a specific issues concerning literacy that an author raises. We will be discussing your papers both in class and on the blogs for the next two weeks.

General Guidelines:

· 4-5 pages, double-spaced

· Cite all sources using MLA in-text citations

· Include a works-cited page

· See the general writing guidelines on the syllabus for additional information

Note Passing-Social Status?

I really disagreed with the reading on note passing being a standard of social status in America's High School. Despite Finders, findings (no pun intended) I personally dont feel that a girl writes in code to exclude other peers, but merely to exclude a teacher's understanding if the note is picked up. I did agree that the idea of note-passing is associated with the feeling of denoting power. Although ,most middle school children's denoting power is done unconciously. Also in my expirence note passing was to merely pass time. Therefore if I sent a note to someone, if they did not write back I would not keep writing because some of the time spent in class, is also used by reading notes that people have written back. In conclusion, I believe that note passing sometimes used to denote power, however is not a display of social status.

Sympathetic Jordan

June Jordan was the teacher of Willie and she was teaching her class how to write standard English instead of black English. It seem that she was in between of both language because she new that it is very important that her students learn how to write standard English, but she did not want her students to forget how to write black English. But after the tragedy that one of her students Willie Jordan when throw she along with her students came to realize that black English in this country does not matter. That no body would pay you any attention if you write black English.
The story of Willie jordan's brother is very sad and I am sure that it has happen to many families. Reginald Jordan was a young black African American who live in Brooklyn. One afternoon he was walking in the streets and two white new York policemen shot him. Willie tells us in his story that the new York Police department never give them a good reason on why Reginald was shot, they said that it was because he had taken the gun from the police officer, but the autopsy read that he was shot multiple times. June Jordan wrote to many different types of newspapers and but none of them taught that they story was good enough to write about it.

Sympathetic Reading: " Lisa Delpit"

She tried to finding a best solution to improving within Black Sociaty. At the younger age, she dreamed becoming a teacher in the Black community. She didn't know what happed to most of her black student: the ways the act, communicating.... She inveted a helfull ways to teach all her black students, because the white students adready knew how to read and write from their parents. She opened an "Sattion", where all her student could come and leared as much as they can. She used differnts ways to teach her students: toys, symbols to presents other things. She also implied by her owned experiences in the past into her station.

June Jorden Essay

In this essay Alice Walker teachers a class on Black English. I had actually heard of Black English being tought before. I never really knew how involved the class was though. The setting of rules and translations they came up with surprized me. When I heard about it I never expected there to be set rules like, "Eliminate use of the verb to be whenever possible". The class was so much more intence then I expected. As I read along in the begining I remembered thinking it would be a joke of a class. Once I started reading the rules and guidlines it started to sound like it could be chanllenging to write Black English. Later in the book one of Alice's students, Willie Jorden, who is always early to class and never absents misses class for a week. It turns out his brother Reggie was killed by the police. The class writes letters to the police all in Black English and none of the papers take them. Alice then asks Willie to write his own essay. Willie writes his essay in Standard English and is taken seriously. His essay gets published. I think this storey shows the importance of being able to write correctly and effectivly. I'm not saying that the Black English was a bad idea to learn just that in the end Willie was taken seriously when he wrote his essay in standard English.

June Jordan Essay

After reading this story, written by June Jordan, I started thinking a lot. Basically everything said in there is true. Maybe back then that type of English might have been known as Black English, I have to say almost everybody uses that language now. For example, one page 150, example 11, in Standard English, it shows the example of “We had seen that movie.” but hardly anyone especially the youth and young adults talk that way. The example given and what I hear more often is “We seen that movie.” So I guess today “Black English” is society’s oral English, and “Standard English” is the written English. Also the story with Willie Jordan is sad, wrong, and happens more often than people think. The essay that Willie wrote reflects how he feels. He states in there the excuse that the police cited for killing his brother which is Reggie, the brother of Willie, attacked one of the officers and took his gun. Even if that was true, there is no need to shoot him eight times from point blank range. The doctor that did the autopsy said that 2 bullets were shot at his head, four into his back, and two into his leg.

"Skills and Other dilemmas of a Progressive Black Educator"

When I read this essay I couldn't even decide if I thought it would be better to use the method of "fluency," or drill in the skills for students. For an all equal learning, I think now that it'd be a lot better to use both, but mainly focus on skills. As Delpit explains in this essay, the majority of black students come from neighborhoods and families that don't push their kids to learn as predominantly white and also wealthy families might push their kids to become more educated. I know that throughout my childhood up until now, education always came first, before anything! Before I could go out, before I watched my favorite TV shows, even before my family in certain ways. If I didn't understand something I did at school, my Dad would have to sit with me and help me and do the homework, and at dinners most of the discussion was what we learned today in school. So I think what Delpit was trying to say was that most black kids come from neighborhoods much different than white neighborhoods and aren't pushed as hard. It also said in the essay that black kids are fluent in their writing, they just don't acquire the skills that most white kids do. This is a touchy topic, I don't know how people are going to respond to this or if it will even be easy to discuss. I'm not sure how I even think about this whole topic. I guess we'll see what happens in class...

Lisa Delpit

The most interesting thing I found about this essay is the fact that there was a waiting list for the white children that wanted to go to this school. In most cases, it's usually the other way around. Someone else posted a blog saying that the way a child learns and how fast or slow they pick certain "skills" up, does have a lot to do with their backgrounds, their home life, and their environment. A child who grows up in a home where their parents are involved in their schoolwork and push them to excel in school, most likely will be successful. As opposed to a child who grows up in a home where the parents aren't involved, may not be as successful as the child whose parents were involved. Also, a childs environment has a lot to do with a childs learning ability. A child who grows up in a safe neighborhood that can go outside and play, may be able to focus better in a classroom environment because they know they're safe not only at school, but as home too. Her idea of an "open classroom" is a good theory because it leaves an open environment for her students and also challenges the students in way a normal classroom environment wouldn't.

Jordan Essay

Reading this essay made me think and feel a lot of different things. Most of all I felt sad especially near the end. In her essay she talks about black english which I just learned, through reading this, that it is a different language from white or standard english. As it says in Rule 2 "If it's wrong in standard english it's probably right in black english, or, at least, you're hot." June Jordan started teaching a black english course at the school she taught at not only for the language but to teach them their history. As a class they came up with rules to help with the speaking and writing of black english. It was also mentioned that spelling was not important with this language and you can see why. She met a boy named Willie Jordan who did an independent study with her on south africa. Suddenly Willie wasn't showing up for classes anymore or for their independent study. June Jordan found out that it was because his brother had been shot and killed by police. No logical reason was given by the police as to why they killed him and the press wasn't interested in it either. They were poor and had no way to bring the cops to court. The students decided to write individual letters and also a class paragraph to the police written in black english. In the end Willie Jordan himself wrote a letter written in standard english and it was published. The letterbrought tears to my eyes and really made me think about what our world is like today and what it was like then and many years ago. Race has always been a touchy subject here and I think this essay proves that we have grown since it was written but we still have similar problems today that could be changed, if we take the initiative to do so.

Lu and Rose Essays

I found it interesting how in the "From Silence to Words" essay Lu seemed to have a fear of languages. In the "Crossing Boundaries" essay Millie and the classmates have a fear or certain words when they stumble upon them on a test. Lu was afraid of mixing words or meanings up. At one point she was afraid of making a women sound weak because of the conflict she had with getting her son involved in the revolution. Lu seems to fear the word red because she was exposed to so many different uses of the word. Millie and her classmates were afraid of certain words; not because they didn't know they words, simple because they were not used to taking test. I just found it very interesting how on one side you have Lu who is afraid of knowing to many languages, on the other side Millie and her classmates are afraid because they don't know enough. They have a fear or words and taking test. Both groups are dealing with a social class problem in completly oppisite ways. Lu was singled out because of her father being a doctor and the others are singled out for being illiterate. For Lu she is seems to be tormented by being bilingual. For Millie and others like her it is almost like they are set up to fail because no one seems to believe that they are even capable of learning. They are normally treated as having a mental dissability. I like how these essays made me think. I never think about being able to read, write, or speak because it has never been a problem.

"Skills and Other Dilemmas..."

This reading really opened my eyes up to the various factors that can effect the education of an individual. The writing demonstrated how minorities may not come from a background where they are pushed to achieve their potential, like most white family's push their children. Let's face it, the way they put it is if they do not live in a great neighborhood or have lots of money, African American children will not receive the best education possible. In Delpit's writing it says numerous times that the schools should be teaching "fluency" of writing, rather, than concentrating on the "skills" of writing. Delpit felt this way because if a child is trying to express themselves and they are shot down telling them that this is wrong and this is wrong, the student may be discouraged from writing. It is just a difficult situation and even for Delpit being a Black educator, she wants everyone to excel not because of race but because they show a genuine interest.

After reading Delpit's "Skills and Other Dilemmas of a Progressive Black Educator", I have come to conclude that minorities living in poor, lower class areas do not have the opportunities that a person would have who attends a prep school or an ivy league school. Their educations are weaker than those attending these upper class schools and also their opportunities for desired courses may not be available. Students at these upper class schools have the benefit of being more educated and will most likely exceed the uneducated or less educated in the working society. This is based only upon statistics and technicalities.
A student or any individual has to understand the standards and concepts of learning and obtaining knowledge. Even though one person may come from a lower class family, they still do have equivelent opportunities as to those who come from the upper class. It doesn't neccessarily have to come from high school classrooms. When a person graduates high school and recieves his or her dimploma, they then are open to all these opportunities of obtaining a better education. It all depends on the mentality a person has and the strongness of their desire to become more educated.

Delpit's "Skills and Other Dilemmas of a Progressive Black Educator"

After reading, my understanding of the text is that minority students that live in poorer or underprivileged neighborhoods that attend their neighborhood schools alreadu get an inferior type of education. They do not recieve all of the advantages that the white kids get if they attend a charter school or an ivy league school.
Students need to know obtain certain skills to make it in life but they also need other critical thinking skills to be able to navigate once they get to those positions in life that they want to be at.

Responce to June Jordan's essay

While reading June Jordan's essay I realized that the message she's conveying to her audience is throughout her life standard's of "language" have been molded by the white race to conform others into a certain style of communication and writing. Jordan does not know why white standards of English remain "supreme and unquestioned by groups of minorities" but none the less we do control others. She decides after seening this trend amongst society that she will start a new english course that will explore an new version of the English language called "black" english. Her class was not widely accepted among people outside her class, but the students within her class benifited greatly. Her students began to make various rules and regulations for the language to be used properly in the world. After the rules were made her students began to write all types of essays using black english.

I thought that Jordan wrote this essay solely to question the authorities of "standard" english.
In a way this argument makes sence, I mean I don't know who though all the standards for writing and language. Was it our teachers, the govement, or random people? All i know is from day one Educators have constantly stressed the use of "proper" english, but Jordan points out the simple question of what makes "proper" english and why?

Lu and Rose Essay Response

Lu's childhood must have been a lot harder than that of most American children. She grew up in a country where her class was basically looked down upon. Because she came from a wealthy household and could speak English, she was seen as more of an outcast. She had to try to fit in with the working class. She also had to look at different words and thoughts from both an English and Chinese perspective.

Rose's essay addresses poor, uneducated or poorly educated people. These people are able to continue their education and better themselves. I think this essay differs from Lu's essay because in Communist China, rising above the working class was looked down upon. In the U.S., it is promoted.

Response to Lu and Rose Essays

At first I was reading the Lu essay and I didn't really understand the gravity of the situation until It said that she was growing up during the Communist Revolution of 1949. I was thinking at first that, it's a good thing to learn many languages, it definitely helps to make a person smarter and really grasp a better understanding of other cultures through language. It takes a smart and dedicated person to learn more than one language. As for Lu, I think she was struggling most with the fact of the Communist Revolution. When she spoke english, she was looked down upon. I thought it was interesting that her teacher thought of her unfavorably after she informed him that her father was a medical doctor. I didn't understand that at all.

Overall I think the Lu essay differs very much compared to the Rose Essay. In the Rose essay it is basically saying that some poor people may be illiterate or deficient when it comes to their language...but they still get through everyday life, and learn new things and understand what most people that know their language well, can understand. It relates because both Lu and Rose are confused in the classroom. They both don't understand why some information can't be told by teachers but other information can.

The First Blog

Hey everyone, my name is Krista. I'm a freshman here at Kutztown, and I live in Johnson Hall. I'm 18 years old, I think I'm kinda young compared to most people. (My birthday is in July...) I really don't like it here at Kutztown, in fact I am hoping to transfer next year but idk if that's actually going to happen because I'm lazy, and poor, and I think I just signed a lease for an apartment next year...so I'm kinda stuck here. I am hoping to soon sign up for a major, I really want to major in music. That requires an audition I think...so me being lazy is an issue again. If I don't major in music, I want to major in business and preferably management. I'm rambling and I'm sure you don't wanna know this much about me so I'm going to wrap it up here...

....and it's wrapped...

The story "From Silence to Words; Writing as a Struggle" by Min-Zhan Zu was a very interesting story. At such a young age Zu had adapted to more than one language because her parents felt the need to make her bilingual. She was taught English and she felt as if that were her families main dialect even though it was not be spoken outside of the household. Around the age of 4 Lu attended a private school where she had learned standard chinese. This is the language she was to use in the classroom. Lu would always question herself about why her teacher was never open to many things and was restricted to what she could teach. Like how she was restricted to only speaking standard chinese. This is a factor as to why Lu could never find answers to her questions. As years of schooling rolled by, Lu had come to realize and understand the american word "class." Not the understanding of being in a classroom, but understanding social and working classes. When she finally adapted and understood everything, her outlook on life was rather different because she now actually knew what it meant. After reading this story i felt bad for Lu. I didn't like the fact that she had grown up and been pushed around to do everything the way it was supposed to be. She was living in an communist area where she couldn't speak her mind without having to worry about something she said. But overall Lu had become very successful over the years and got a chance to share her story with many individuals throughout the country.

In the essay by Mike Rose, he pretty much describes how even though some people like the poor have deficiencies with language and such, they are still able to learn and gain conception of what they are doing. It is possible to change their ways as long as they strive to do so. Deficiencies do not always contradict with performance. He explained how there was problems with students and comprehension. The two essays relate to on another because each desribes how students and teachers can contradict one another. I think these stories very well fit a famous quote by Albert Einstein "It is, in fact, nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction have not yet entirely strangled the holy curiousity of inquiry." It is basically describing that how teachers and teaching methods never really answer the curiousity of question. I relate it to both of these because both Lu and Rose seem to question themseleves very much and wonder why teachers or instructors can only answer some questions but not all. And also why teachers are restricted to what can be taught or spoken about.

Lu's essay response!

I think that Lu grew up a very smart yet confussed girl. She was taught by her parents that it was okay to speak many different languages but when she was out in public she had to only speak chinese. If she was to speak english she would be looked down upon in her society. I believe that her parents in the long run believed that they were doing the best for their daugther by teaching her many languages but living in Communist China it could be difficult for a child as it was for Lu. Over all Lu stayed strong and was able to over come her battles with reading and writing and now she is able to tell her story to many people in present day America.

Lu

The story of her childhood was interesting and at the same time upsetting. At a young age she had already had to learn 2 entirely new languages. One because of her family and the other because of "new china" and there was also one for school. I think she was a very strong person to be able to continue working on each language seperately and still keep sane. Even with all her confusion and frustration she still managed to keep each seperate and thrive in all of them. What upset me the most is the fact that when dealing with her school work, mainly her report on the revolutionary family, she was torn between 2 ways of life and was attracted more to the school's opinions rather than her own families. She started to think that what she was learning at home was actually bad for her, in a way. All the confusion and seperations and learning brought her to where she is now and has made her stronger in what she pursued. Her daughter has it a little easier than she does but it is still the same basic concept of what happened to her in China.

Comments on Lu's and Rose's Essays...

Min-Zhan Lu's "From Silence to Words: Writing as Struggle" made me both upset and angry. Lu learned two languages at a very young age. Her parents stressed the ideology of Western humanistic tradition and English was the primary language spoken at home. She also spoke a Shanghai dialect with the servants in her home. At the age of four she went to a private school to begin learning Standard Chinese. This is A LOT of learning for such a young girl, and to complicate things even more, she wasn't 'allowed' to speak English outside of her home. She had to live separate language lives. I can't imagine how this would affect one's learning, having to switch from language to language all the time. It would confuse your mind when trying to read and write especially. Specifically, when she was writing her report on The Revolutionary Family, she referred to the scene in the book that 'moved' her, which she also labeled the internal conflict. Lu struggles with her own internal conflict in life and language in relation to her parents, school, and historical changes in China. Towards the end of the passage, Lu speaks about her daughter and how she 'moves with seeming ease from the conversations she hears over the dinner table to her teacher's words in the classroom.' This is probably due to the less-stressed political standings many years later that allow her daughter to not face the struggles of hiding parts of who you are.

Mike Rose was basically saying in his essay that even though people suggest that 'the poor are intellectually or linguistically deficient or, at the least, different', the learner can still have something shifted in their conception of their task and change their overall performance, especially on multiple-choice comprehension tests.

---it's getting late and i've realized that i wrote a huge amount in the past accumulation of minutes...i'm done...g'nite...---

Lu and Rose's Essays

I started off reading Lu's essay and by the time I was finished I found that it was very moving. Lu had to learn English along with her family and when she attended school she was not able to use her English knowledge, she was forced to speak in "standard chinese." Then, once a teacher spoke to her in English and Lu believed it was okay to use English, when everything changed on her one more time (forcing her to speak in Chinese once again). This angered me because when she wrote a report for school she wound up writing a completely different 2nd piece of writing because she couldn't express herself. I thought it was great cuz in the end she considered English her native language and was able to overcome her struggle with the time period in China. Lu and Rose both discussed about reading, however, Rose explained how there were problems with students and their comprehension. In "Crossing Boundaries", Rose found that on the tests that he would give the students they would not understand that they need to read the directions before beginning the tests. I guess, I'll wait to see if anyone comments or shares the same views as mine as I read the blogs.

Hey everyone...

Hey everyone! My name is Katie Renninger and I'm a freshman transfer student. Last semester I went to Shippensburg University. I'm from Bethlehem and I'm living in Bonner Hall. After reading through some of the previous blogs, it seems that people are using this in a very formal way. This could be because the professor is reading them and we want the first impression to be good. Throughout the semester, the blogs may become a little less formal. However, I don't see them getting extremely informal.

Commentary on Lu's Story

For Lu, it was the simple fact that she was living in Communist China during a time when there were certain ways of acting, talking and living. Society posted a view to say that if you are Chinese then that is all you were to speak. If any other language was spoken, it was morally wrong and unheard of.
I think that Min Zhan Lu grew up confused because when she was at home, she was taught that it was okay to speak English but in public places, she was to speak only Chinese. When I read certain parts of the story, I was upset because she had to grow up not being able to express herself freely and openly without being ridiculed.
I like the way she was able to make it through all of that and share her story today.

Anton

Hi everyone, my name is Anton Chernyak. I'm 18 years old. I was born in Russia in the city called Rostov. I moved to US in march 2004. I'm in a business major, most likely i'm gonna go for the international business. It is my second semester in Kutztown and everything is going pretty well so far. I chose Kutztown because it is a good school with a good business program, and it is also very close to home.(I live in Fleetwood, PA, 10 min. away from here)

First Post

Hey everybody. My name is Tariq Owens. I am from Philly. I'm a second semester freshman. I live in UP. I am unsure of what type of post we're suppose to make so this is all I am writing for now.

Hey everyone, my name is Renee Berthoud. I am a freshman here a Kutztown and live in Schykill Hall. I'm from Nazareth, PA, which is real close to Allentown. I did well last semester and are looking forward to another great semester. I like having the blogs informal, because it can not only let other classmates get to know me, but also the Prof. can have a better chance to understand us as a person therefore maybe having a better understanding of our writing in the classroom. I am really bad at checking my emails,voice mails and probably posting blogs. I just always seem to forget?! Well I hope everyone has a good semester.

Hi my name is Robert Anthony, but everyone calls me Bobby. I live in Schuylkill Hall. I am from a little place in Reading called Antietam. I am a Physics major which automatically makes me a Math miner. In my free time, I like to hang out with friends, listen to music and play video games. I have read many of the blogs, and from what I can tell they are very formal. I believe this is because the blogs are graded, and these will be read over by the professor. As far as the quote by Kenneth Burke, it reminded me a lot of a blog because many people can search on the internet and end up finding a blog they know nothing about. After reading previous post they can get into the conversation make comments of their own, and then get bored with it and never go back to the site again. Another situation could be that the original people who started the debate may have left due to so many new people coming in. This may have resulted in the arguments purpose being completly lost because new people coming in and not completly understanding the purpose of the beginning argument.

Formal

After the discussion in class on thursday about how people are more formal online when they know it is for something important such as it being graded. but over all i think that it should be how you want to write and how you feel at that moement in time of writing. even though this will be viewed by the teacher he will be able to get a sence of who you are through the papers we write in class and what we write on line!!!:)

Lu's essay

When i first started to read our slection of "From Silence to words: Writing as a struggle" it was unclear to me what exactly Lu's message was. After reading through the essay and scaning through it again it's obvious that language and literacy had a great effect on shaping Lu's life. She was at constant battle with herself to know what was "the right thing to say" when she was with her family or with the outside world. Her parents were obviously pushing her towards the ideals of traditional western society. At the same time everyone in the world around her was forceing her towards a society governed by marxism. Lu was constantly looking for a language to call her own, and throughout the essay she refered to her "home" language (english) as her orginal. I think that she grew up with both languages (english and standard chinese) equally and neither of them were her orginal. Other then that i found the essay to be very interesting.

After reading the essay i felt both anger and appraisal for Lu. I felt angry because Lu had to grow up scareed of what she wrote in all of her school reports. She was living in an enviroment where she could never speak her mind and feel comfortable about it. I also had appraisal for Lu because she strived though that rough time in her life and was able to come out on top.

About me

Hello my name is mark irwin and I am attending kutztown for my second year. i live off campus and i love it because i dont have to deal with R.A's or anyone telling me what to do and where i cant go. I was born and brought up in newtown P.A. I am not to good with doing projects online but i will have to get used to it for this class.
thanks Mark

On Lu's Reading

On Lu's, FromSilence to Words: Writing as Struggle"
As I began to read the selection, I was a bit hesitent as to what was being put forth. But a few paragraphs in, and I realize that in the time that she is growing up (WWII era), the world she knows around her is changing, and her parents do not want her to change with it. She learns the English Language at the same time her parents are learning it, as well as learning the new, "Working Class," or, "Standard Chinese," language she is to use when she is outside of home. Then from out of the blue, one of her teachers speaks to her in English, now she belives this is fine until her high school years when she is then shunned upon for it, also due to the part that her father is an "Imperialist Lacky." She then starts to learn that the way she was raised by her parents was "wrong," under the new government, and that she should try and reform herself into a "Working Class" citizen. But once again her parents step in and have her read books to help prevent the "communist poisoning" of her mind.

Also, I liked at many points, Lu referance to color as a source of tying different languages together. As said in this selection, " "Red" came to mean Revolution at school, "the Commies" at home, and adultery in The Scarlette Letter."

So for Lu to learn a certain language and use it primarily as her "official" language was almost impossible. Lu, having to struggle not only with the new languages she was also learning on how she had o relate each different language to every event in her life, be it a Chinese event, or an English Event. For the entire selection, I had a great feeling of honor for the writer for having accomplished this, but also a sense of remorse for her as well, for having to go through that entire experiance.

After all this is a class project

Most of the blogs seemed like the students writing them decided to keep it mostly formal. Unlike other blogs or online journals that i have read the student blogs here seem to show some concern for grammer and spelling. I credit that to this being a class project where we will be looking at the blogs of peers that we have just met not friends that we have known for a while. The blogs where the class introduced it self is really the first time we've had a chance to tell each other about our lives... other then the brief introduction we had in the actual classroom where everybody was probably thinking "oh shit what am i going to say". So with this being our first chance to get to know each other no one wants to appear the stupid student who can't spell things. Yes these blogs are very formal, but is formal bad this is a class project, we are representing good ole Kutztown?

an introduction.

Hey, my name is Byron. I suppose this is where I introduce myself. I grew up actually in Kutztown, graduating from Kutztown High School back in 2005. I'm now a business major here at Kutztown, looking to become an accountant. I have a place just off campus, so I'm forced to make the 4-5 mile commute every day which really isn't as bad as I make it sound. In my spare time I enjoy snowboarding, watching good movies, and constantly listening to music. I live under the philosophy that the harder you work in life, the harder you can play, and enjoy life. Past times include cruising the back roads of Kutztown, escaping reality, and embracing the future.

hi

My name is Kira Frech, i am 18 years old (soon to be 19... march 7th). I enjoy long walks on the beach, candle light dinners.... I am a studio arts major here at Kutztown. When i'm not living in University Place i live with my dad in Douglassville. I love to waterski and wakeboard, i have been skiing since i was about 3 years old (no lie). My dad even owned a waterski shop back in the day... that was pretty cool i got all the free ski stuff i wanted. During the summer i work as a camp counselor, its a pretty fun job. i don't really know what else to say about myself so... peace ~kira

Hey my name is Lewis Allen IV, I'm 18 years old. I was born and raised in Philadelphia. I went to University City high school. My hobbies are running trac and cross-country, playing video games, football, and hanging with my friends. I decided to come to Kutztown because i like the campus and have a few friends from home here. My major is Chemistry, one day i hope to be a Chemist. Oh ya my favorite team and Superbowl pick are the Broncos.

Hello everyone!

Hi. My name is Ashley Bohn and I am a freshman here at KU. I'm an electronic media major and I really enjoy it. I'm from Hamburg, Pennsylvania. It's a really small town that is about 20 minutes north of here. I really enjoy college life. It's a nice change from my boring small town existance. I absolutely love to write. I've been blogging for the past two years and I have to say that I have become addicted to it. I love that you can write things online for everyone to see. I also love that you can receive feedback from other people. I was pretty happy when I found out that we would be using blogs in this class. Along with writing, I also love music. I used to play guitar, but I stopped because I didn't have enough time to take lessons. I listen to a lot of music too. I also really enjoy hanging out with my friends (here and at home). I guess that's about it.

Wassup y'all

Hey everybody, my name is Cherie Harris. I am second semester freshman. My major is Social Work.
I am from Philly, PA. I'm a cool and laid back girl, so if you want a new friend, just let me know. I live in Lehigh Hall.
As far as the "tone" of the writing of these blogs, they seem to be really formal. Everyone is trying to make it sound perfect and correct. I've never seen a blog that is formal like this one. I think as time goes on and everyone gets to know each other more, we will loosen up.

Hey everyone

Hi my name is Yani I am currently a Kutztown university student this is my second semester as a freshmen student. I was born in El Salvador, I was raced in California and at the age of 13 my mother decided to move my brothers and I to Reading PA. When I first move here I hated this state, but I begging to like it ones I meet some people. Know I don't regret it that much because I meet my three best friends one which is about to give birth to my nephew. Let me see what else would people like to know about me. I live in old main I have two roommates they are both very cool, we don't have any problems with each other, so far. My favorite color is baby blue, my birthday is November 8, I am currently 19 years old. I am a Scorpio. I like to play volleyball, and soccer.

FORMAL

After reading some of the posts I've noticed that most of them are formal. While there are a few who were a little less formal in their writing and spelling and slang usage, most were very particular about how and what they were writing. I think the reason for this formal writing is because this is for a class and a professor is actually going to read the posts. I think over time people might start to slack on the formal writing and decide to write more informally for conveniance and time matters. I believe it depends ultimately on the person who is typing/writing, if they are usually a formal person in life, they will be a formal writer even on a blog and if they are more informal in life they will be informal in writing on a blog. Just a theory.

Wassup

Hey everyone, my name is Steven Perez and I am currently a second semester freshman. I am 19 years old and I am the first of my family to go to college. My sister should be joining me next semester here at KU. I am pyschology major, but I'm still not 110% sure of what I want to do yet. I live in Lancaster, PA. I went to school in Hershey, PA at a small school called the Milton Hershey School. I went there for six LONG years lol. It was worth it though. I gained a lot of knowledge and learned very valuable lessons from that institution. I am currently residing in D-Block or Deatrick. I am planning on playing football this spring, so I am excited about that. Hopefully we can have a hype crowd:)

Hello everyone,
My name is Erika Collins. I am 18, and I am a second semester freshman.
I major in Political Science, with a minor in Dance. I am currently living in Philadelphia.
I enjoy just hanging out, dancing and relaxing with my friends. I am looking forward to this semester and making new friends. I live in Old Main so if you would like to just hang out I am always available.

formal postings

Well, after reading some of these posts, I found that most of them seem to be very formally written. Most blogs that I’ve seen are not formal. They usually use slang that wouldn’t be acceptable in professional writings. For example instead of you, people will write u. another example is instead of through, people would write thru. I guess I didn’t really see any of that here because this is a blog that deals with a classroom and is for a grade.

Remon

Hello. My name is Remon Badros. I am currently 18 years old. I was born in Cairo, Egypt, and lived there for 9 years. I came to the US on Christmas day of 1996. I'm a freshman here at Kutztown University. I'm currently attending my second semester. I reside in Bonner Hall. I came to Kutztown because it was close to home, also my older brother goes here and he told me that they have a good business program. As you probably figured out, I'm studying Business, with a management concentration. I came into college trying to pursue a career as a sports agent, but a couple months ago, I got involved with a business development team that will help me accomplish my goals. One of my goals is to retire at the age of 21, which means I'm going to graduate college without having the need to work a day in my life. Some might think that is impossible, but with this team its not. They have mentored thousands and they became very successful. My person mentor actually got involved with this team at the age of 19, now he's 21 and will retire in April. He was actually mentored by a guy who started at 23, retired at 26, and now a millionaire at the age of 28. So I'm really excited for my future.

formal or informal?

It is 12:13 AM and after reading the few posts that are up already, it is clear that most of them are formally written. One might assume that because we're interacting through the internet, we would immediately use our different forms of internet slang. Although, present a professor and a graded assignment, and everyone talks proper, using correct spelling and punctuation, haha. Each individual's blog is also written formally AND informally. The "get-to-know-your-peers" posts are informal and the way each person expressed them was formal.

In response to Burke's quote; everyone can relate to it. I personally love any description that starts out with 'Imagine...'. Right after you read that, you kind of look into the back of your head and completely visualize whatever is written after that. His quote's literal meaning is so easy to relate to for people because everyone has walked into a conversation and been lost but after a amount of time, they are able to "get in on it" and be a part of what's going on. Burke's underlying meaning is about life. Each of us come into the world, unknowing what was before us until we are educated on it and most likely we will leave something behind for the next people to be informed about and make their own changes and so on and so on. Mahoney's ENG023 Blog is our "parlor" and each one of us are members of the conversation...just leaving our mark for the next.

'tis I...

Hello to my fellow classmates, teachers, and anyone across the world that stumbles across Mahoney's ENG 023 Blog. From the time of birth, I was given the name Logan Graye Baker. I'm a freshmen this year at Kutztown as an undeclared major but transitioning into Electronic Media. I currently reside in University Place 211...it's the farthest room from the entrance. I'm originally from Hershey, PA; I'm sure most of you have taken a family vacation or two to Hersheypark, haha. I'm a very laid back person, driven by mood and energy of those surrounding me. In my spare time, I enjoy snowboarding, skateboarding, laughing, listening to all types of music and of course, steady forms of relaxation. I'm fairly new to the blog-world but I think it's awesome that we get to partake in this electronic interaction as part of a class. Professor Mahoney seems to be a truly cool dude and I'm looking forward to this semester with everyone. Well, that's all I can blah-blog for now, goodnight to ya'll.

About Me!!

Hey everyone!! my name is Lauren and i am really new to this whole blog thing but we'll see how it works out. But any way i guess i should tell you about myself. I am from Landenberg Pa, a really small place in the corner of Chester county. I am currently a crafts major here at KU but that could always change. So i don't have much mor to tell ya so i hope that this semester is a good one!! :) see you all later!

All About Me....

Hey everybody! My name is Jaimie Zellers. I'm a freshman here at KU and I live in Old Main. I'm 18 (19 on February 27th) and I am a music major. I'm from Whitehall and go home every weekend to work at Giant. My goal is to become a singer/songwriter/pianist. I've had 9 years of piano lessons, 2 years of voice lessons and used to write songs. I'm not a sports person, but I do like soccer. I was a chearleader for 7 years and in my 7th year I broke my arm badly at gymnastics and had to get pins and plates put into my arm ( I have the scars to prove it). When high school came around I became a singer instead and auditioned and got into my high schools Chorale. I was in the chorale for 4 years and we had some great oppurtunities which include singing in the White House, at the State Capital in Harrisburg and in the Candlelight Prosessional in Disney. I was also in band for 3 years, percussion ensemble for 2 years, pop group for 2 years and all 4 of my high schools musicals. Music is the biggest part of my life. I live in a house of 7 with my mom, dad, nana, grampa, aunt, and brother (22). I'd tell you my whole family story but I'm sure you don't want to hear it, it's a bit crazy. I hope that this class is as fun as it looks like it will be. From what I've seen so far Dr. Mahoney seems like a very nice, fun, and intelligent professor. Well, I think I've taken up enough space, if you want to know more you're welcomed to ask. Good Luck everyone, see you all in class.

formal or informal?

After reading several of these blogs, I have come to conclude that a vast majority of them are very formally written. I honestly was not surprised due to the fact that these entries are graded assignments, and no student would desire poor grades. I did determine that some peoples writing credentials are stronger than others, but all are still portrayed quite modestly. I do understand why some people are suprised that these entries are formally written because usally people posting blogs have tendenacy to use slang terms, inproper grammar, etc. The Kenneth Burke quote about the parlor was very intriguing and very easy to understand because it was so descriptive and strongly detailed. The situation that was expressed in this quote can very much relate to my life because i have been in that situation before. Once an understaning of what is being discussed is aquired, it is much easier to become engaged in the conversation. Im sure that many individuals other than myself have been in the same or similar situation before, and can have this quote by Kenneth Burke be related to them as well.

Blogs informal or formal?

For the most part the blogs seemed to be formal, although, there were a few that were informal. I was surprised by this because I would have thought that the blogs would be informal because it is just they way that most people type to express themselves on the computer (using slang, etc) As for the quote by Kenneth Burke, I completely understood it. This quote made me feel like I was there in the parlor because it was so descriptive. I was able to relate with it because there has been several times that I have walked in when people were having a conversation and wondered whether I should try to listen and get involved, or walk away because I have no idea what they are talking about. I'm sure everyone can relate to this quote as well as I can.

about me. . .

My name is Chris Holland and I am a freshman here at Kutztown Univeristy. I am originally from a little town in the Poconos and I love it. I'm a professional writing major and am planning on picking up a minor in anthropology. I love the study of culture and everything about the world, so it should be interesting. I am currently residing in rothermel hall and live in a suite with only one roomate. When not doing work or studying, I enjoy spending my time playing my guitar and singing. I have been playing for almost 7 years now and took private singing lessons for a little more than 2 years. I write my own music and am very ambitious about releasing a 6 or 7 track album within the next year or two. If I had to specify a genre for my music i would have to label it acoustic/indie. I also play a few other instruments such as the mandolin, the bass, and a little bit of drums and piano. As you can tell, music is my life. Besides the whole music thing other interests of mine consist of reading books, snowboarding, golf, and hanging out with my friends. I have a very relaxed and laid back personality, and can get along with just about anybody. I am fully content with my life and my every day rituals, and I couldn't ask for anything better.

About Me

Hey everyone! I hope everyone's semester is starting off okay! My name is Jen Bergen. I am a freshmen, but technically I am a sophmore because I have 24 credits from last semester alone. (Its kind of a weird situation) lol I am majoring in clinical psychology and spanish. I commute to Kutztown everyday...I hate commuting. I do not do any sports at KU because I have a bad back from a car accident. But, I used to do gymnastics and cheerleading if that counts. I work at Red Robin as a waitress, server, and a trainer (I basically can do everything but cook and bartend but I want to start bartending) I don't know what else to say about myself so I guess I will talk to you all in class.

For the most part the students that have blogged on this site are really formal. This was a surprize to me at first, because most people that talk online or use the internet are very informal. I also remembered that this is a grade for the class so maybe that influenced them to talk more formally. After looking at Burke's quote in class I think that most people can relate to that situation in which you enter a conversation late and it takes you awhile to catch on. I personally have had that happen a couple times. I also think that Burke sums up the fact that life is an ongoing process and continues regardless of our passing.

about myself....

Hey everyone, my name is Nick Bupp and I am a freashman here at Kutztown University. I'm majoring in Electronic Media and am involved in the campus television station Newsbreak. My hobbies are skiing, soccer, golf, and relaxing with friends. I live in University Place, dont ask me how I got to live here I'm just lucky i guess. I love to play guitar and sing from time to time, but I'm still learning so im not the best. Right now i dont have a job, and i dont play any sports for the university, but i love to make a golf team up here some day. I'm a really shy person at first, but once you get to know me I'm fun to be around. Other than that I think this is going to be a good class, from what i can tell Professor Mahoney seems really cool.

Everyone that has posted on this blog, seems to keep a formal style of writing, which is odd for blogging, but in the case that it is for this class, i guess it is right...? But anyways, my feelings on Burke's, "enter the parlor," I can actually put myself in that situation, honestly I've been in that situation many of times. It is awkward at first, but once you do hear a part of the subject being discussed, and get a feel for the "tenor" of the subject, you are in most cases able to comment on it.

intro of myself...?

Well, I'm Ian Marcheskie, I attend Kutztown University, obviously. I am Chemistry major, possibly minoring in Secondary Education, unsure at the present time though. I live in Beck, for those who know where that is, I am a vry outgoiing kind of guy. I am extremely into music, especially the hardcore, metal, post-hardcore scene. My feelings towards this class are actually pretty high, Professor Moahoney seems like, well from my first opinion, a very intelectual but cool guy. In my first semesterhear at KU, I was on the football team, until I quit due to personal conflicts with myself and the coaches, but sonce that coach was fired, thank bloody hell, I may possibly rejoin the team. I'm an okay guy, I may look intimidatin at times, but once you get to know me, I am quite the character. I am the vocalist (sing and scream) for OneCarFuneral, a local hardcore experimental act here at KU, I also work at Shorty's, the local nightclub/bar, and yeah that's about it.

Welcome to Mahoney's Spring 2006 Composition Course!

Welcome to the blog for my spring 2006 College Composition class. We will use this blog as a space to reflect on our class readings, brainstorm ideas for papers, respond to each other's work, and to consider how writing for a public audience poses different challenges than those posed by writing solely for a college course.

As you can see, this blog is a continuation of the work students did in my fall 2005 course. In a sense, these posts form part of the "conversation" you will be taking part in this semester. In order to get acquainted with using our blog, I want you to introduce yourself to your fellow classmates (and the on-line world!).

Your assignment for the next class is to begin posting to our class blog. Since many of you may be new to blogging, we’ll keep it simple. I would like you to read some of the posts on the blog. Reread the quote by Kenneth Burke below. After you get a chance to read some of the posts previous students have made to the blog, write a short post of your own describing the “tone” of the discussion. That is, how do students seem to use the blog? How do they engage each other? How would you describe the form of their writing? Is it formal? Informal? Since blogs display conversations chronologically, try looking at the earliest posts firsts. You can do this by going to “Archives” section and click “September 2005.” Start from the bottom and work your way up. Or, if you choose, pick another point in the discussion to “enter the parlor.” All I am asking for at this point is for you to get used to posting your responses to the blog. I would also like you to comment on at least one post by another student. We will be looking at your postings in class on Thursday.

Imagine that you enter a parlor. You come late. When you arrive, others have long preceded you, and they are engaged in a heated discussion, a discussion too heated for them to pause and tell you exactly what it is about. In fact, the discussion had already begun long before any of them got there, so that no one present is qualified to retrace for you all the steps that had gone before. You listen for a while, until you decide that you have caught the tenor of the argument, then you put in your oar. Someone answers; you answer him [or her]; another comes to your defense; another aligns himself [or herself] against you, to either the embarrassment of gratification of your opponent, depending upon the quality of your ally’s assistance. However, the discussion is interminable. The hour grows late, you must depart. And you do depart, with the discussion still vigorously in progress (Burke, The Philosophy of Literary Form: Studies in Symbolic Action, 110-111, brackets mine).