Paper Topics for English 100 –Spring 2015

          Theme: Memoir—Adversity & Selfhood

All the writing you will be doing in this course is reading-based. This means that every essay you write will be
a response to and analysis of the reading arguing a point of view about the reading. If you write an essay that
does not mention the reading or directly examine the reading, it will be considered off topic and will receive
little to no credit. You will not be writing plot summaries. You will summarize parts of the reading to support
your argument, but summary should not take over your paper. Each paragraph should serve to prove a clear
and specific point and all paragraphs should work together to prove one unifying, thesis (opinion on the reading).
For all papers, except the midterm and final exam, you will be creating your own argument about the assigned
reading so that you are writing from a place of interest rather than duty. You cannot pass this course if you fail
to turn in one of the assigned papers.


Follow standard paper guidelines and know expectations as described in
Chapter 3: Paper Topics:
http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/3Papertopics.htm

Paper topics come in all shapes and sizes, but in general for an English class, you can expect to find the following requirements:

·         Meet stated page length requirements. Turning in papers that are under the required page length sends a message
that the assignment was not taken seriously and that a lack of time, effort, and consideration was put into the project. 

·         Adhere to due dates.  Plan ahead and break down the project into manageable stages, so you don’t cause yourself
undue stress by doing things “last minute” or by hurting your grade through missing due dates and not being able to turn
in assignments.

·         Use the stated paper formatting standards.  In an English class, the most common paper formatting approach is MLA. 
See Chapter 5 on MLA Conventions.

·         Follow the assignment.  It is essential that you follow the guidelines of the assignment or else you risk receiving little to
no credit for your work.  English classes are also teaching students how to successfully complete college-level tasks, so
take some time in the beginning to ensure you are doing what was asked.

·         Apply writing standards in your paper.  This Rhetoric walks you through the fundamental essay components, so
apply these concepts to your writing.  There is also an Essay Checklist in Chapter 4 that you can use to ensure you
have covered all the bases your instructor will be expecting in an academic paper:  

·         Seek opportunities for additional help.  Writing can be an isolating experience but it does not have to be.  Use campus
resources to help you formulate your writing plan and to get outside perspective and feedback on your writing.  You can visit
your instructor during office hours at any stage in the writing process.  You can also use the tutoring services offered in the
Learning Center: http://www.skylinecollege.edu/learningcenter/index.php.  Getting feedback is one of the most effective ways
to focus and improve your writing. 




Use the Essay Checklist to make sure you have all the necessary essay elements but here is
also a quick guide of things not to forget:
 


·        MLA formatting: on the first page, include your own title centered at the top, the course info (your name, the class, the instructor, the date)
in the top left corner and in the top right corner of each page, your last name next to the page number.  Typed, double spaced throughout,
font 12, one inch margins and be sure to meet the
page minimum (Please note: 10 pts are removed for each page the paper is under the
required minimum length and 5 pts for half a page under. Don’t go solely by word count but by actual length).
 
MLA Conventions (Rhetoric 172-176): http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/5MLA.htm 

·        Creative title: Creating a strong, clear, appealing title is an important part of any writing task.  The title is the reader’s first introduction to
your piece of writing, and first impressions matter.  Therefore, you want to create a title which pulls in your reader’s interest and makes him
or her want to keep reading.  Make your essay stand out from the others and draw in your reader.

The Writing Process (Rhetoric 153-154): http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/4Writing.htm

·        Integrating Sources: When writing about texts, you will want to include quotes and paraphrases and you want to make sure to smoothly
integrate and properly document all your sources.  Connect all quote to phrases that introduce them (don’t drop quotes) and follow quotes
with the source information in parenthesis (usually the author’s last name and the page number).  Also, follow quotes with your own analysis
explaining their significance.

Sources (Rhetoric 253-273): http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/10IntegratingSources.htm

·        Works Cited: when you are writing about a text, you will always include a Works Cited even if you are only citing the text you wrote about. 
If you did research, include all your outside sources on the Works Cited page as well.  List the sources alphabetically by author last name or
by title if there is no author.
 
MLA Conventions (Rhetoric 177-181): http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/5MLA.htm

 

·        Revising and Editing: the best writing is rewriting so before turning in an essay for a grade, use the advice on revising (making larger global
changes) and editing (making sentence level corrections) to ensure that you have submitted your best work.
Revising (Rhetoric 143-152) & Editing (Rhetoric 155-161): http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/4Writing.htm

 

·        Grading standards: every student should be striving for the ‘A’ paper so know what criteria make an excellent paper by reviewing the
English department grading standards that your instructor will be using when assessing your essay.  Use the criteria as the standard you are
using as you revise your essay.
Grading Standards (Rhetoric 197-198): http://www.smccd.edu/accounts/bellr/GradingMenu.htm





Five major papers will be written for this class:
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Paper #1 (worth 10% of grade):  2-4 pages, 500-1000 words   
Analyzing The Oracles by Pati Navalta Poblete
Draft due 2/17, Revision 2/24
MLA Title page and Works Cited required

Make your own argument about an issue or idea raised in Pati Navalta Poblete’s book The Oracles.  Do not simply summarize her story. 
Make an argument about the book that you would need to prove or convince your reader of.  Use questions like these to guide you: 
What stands out as most significant in this story and why?  What do you think your reader can learn from this story that he or she may not have
understood or appreciated before?  What do you feel is particularly important or revealing in this story?  What is the larger impact of or what
outcomes can be achieved through reading this story?  Is your topic narrow enough to fully cover in a short paper?

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Research Paper #2 (worth 10% of grade):  3-5 pages, 750-1250 words
Analyzing The Eaves of Heaven by Andrew X. Pham
Draft due 3/17, Revision 3/31
MLA Title page and Works Cited required with a minimum of ONE outside source


Make your own argument about an issue or idea raised in Andrew X. Pham’s book Eaves of Heaven
.  Do not simply summarize the story. 
Make an argument about the book that you would need to prove or convince your reader of.  Use questions like these to guide you: 
What does this book reveal about the larger themes and significance of war? Family? Colonialism? The history of Vietnam? Revolution?
U.S involvement?  What more do you want to learn or argue about the aspect of the book you are interested in?  What do you think of Pham’s
approach?  What do you want to argue in regards to what Pham has put forth on the topic? Is your topic narrow enough to fully cover in a
short paper?  What can you research further on this issue that could add to an argument that you want to make? 


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Paper #3 (worth 10% of grade): Midterm 75-minute essay exam

Analyzing In the Name of Honor by Mukhtar Mai
Thursday, April 16th between 6am and midnight (the latest you can begin the exam is 10:45pm)

Open book, timed essay exam on Mukhtar Mai’s In the Name of Honor.  In 75 minutes, you will compose an essay to a prompt about the reading
that will be given to you on the day of the exam.  You will not need to include a Works Cited or outside research.  There is no required page length
but you will want to fully answer all parts of the exam question in a focused, organized and well-developed essay using Mai’s text as the
basis of your response.


Preparing for the midterm exam:
Before taking the exam, review the advice in the Rhetoric, Chapter 11: Timed Writing (pages 274-285,
http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/11TimedWriting.htm).  The best way to prepare is to annotate your text and
take a practice 75 minute exam before the midterm.  There is a non-graded practice exam you can take in WebAccess. 
Click on the link that says:  “PRACTICE MIDTERM (75 min): non-graded writing practice.”

Take the 75-Minute Midterm Exam: Thursday, April 16th


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Collaborative Research Paper #4 (worth 20% of grade): 4-6 pages, 1000-1500 words
Analyzing Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario
Draft 5/12, Revision 5/19
MLA Title page and Works Cited required with a minimum of TWO outside sources

Choose an issue or aspect in the novel Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario, and write a collaborative research essay that puts forth an argument about
an aspect of the story asserting your interpretation of its significance.  Do not simply summarize the story.  Make an argument about the book that you
would need to prove or convince your reader of.  Use questions like these to guide you:  What do you think your reader could learn or better understand
from reading this story? What do you think of the complex character of Enrique?  Did Nazario make a good choice of a person to represent the challenges
of the migrant experience? Why do you think the author undertook this project?  What do you think of her motivations and her approaches?  What is your
opinion on the migrant experience after reading this book? Should anything be changed?  How?

 What is a collaborative paper?
Students will select a partner (or we can assign partners in class) and write the paper together in teams of two.  I've assigned this type of paper
in my classes for many years and consistently these are the strongest papers I get over the semester. Working with another person can show you
your strengths and weaknesses and help you produce an excellent paper.  As you work with a partner, is it vital that you each work collaboratively
and equally.  Also remember that you will be completing a
Collaborative Paper Evaluation on your partner and on yourself.  Also, on the essay you
turn in for a grade, you will indicate who wrote which part of the paper to ensure that the work was shared.  If you have any difficulties with your
partner, let me know immediately and we can have you write the paper separately.  I want this to be a positive experience for everyone.

Names on the Paper
You and your partner need to only upload one copy of the paper and it does not matter whose name you submit it under.  Just be sure that both of
your names are on the paper.
As this is a collaborative paper, you and your partner will write the paper together but you will indicate which body
paragraphs each was the principle writer for (each student must write a minimum of 2 pages each of the final paper). Indicate this information next
to your names on the first page. For example, the top left header will contain the following information:

                        John Ramirez (wrote paragraphs 1-4 & 7)
                        Jun Chan (wrote paragraphs 5-6 & 8-10)
                        English 100
                        21 May 2014

            And for the page numbers in the upper right corner of each page, you will hyphenate the last names of the authors, i.e. Ramirez-Chan 1



Uploading the Collaborative Partner Evaluation on 5/19 before midnight:
(1) Download the Collaborative Partner Evaluation:
     
http://www.smccd.edu/accounts/bellr/ReaderWorkshoppingCollaborativeMenu.htm
      Complete both pages: assign both you and your partner a grade on the project and then answer the questions. 
      If you did not have a partner, submit a written reflection on your experience in writing the paper to get credit.
(2) Log into WebAccess, click where it says “SUMBIT by 5/19: Collaborative Partner Evaluation” and upload the completed file.



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Paper #5 (worth 20% of grade): Final essay exam—2 ½ hours
Connecting the 4 course texts under the course theme “Memoir: Adversity & Selfhood”
Thursday, May 21st between 6am and midnight (the latest you can begin the exam is 9:30pm)

Open book, timed essay exam on The Oracles by Pati Navalta Poblete, The Eaves of Heaven by Andrew X. Pham, In the Name of Honor by Mukhtar Mai,
and
Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario.  In 2 ½ hours (150 minutes), you will compose an essay to a prompt about the reading that will be given to you
on the day of the exam.  You will not need to include a Works Cited or outside research.  There is no required page length but you will want to fully
answer all parts of the exam question in a focused, organized and well-developed essay using the assigned texts as the basis of your response.


Preparing for the final exam:
Before taking the exam, review the advice in the Rhetoric, Chapter 11: Timed Writing (pages 274-285,
http://www.skylinecollege.edu/skyenglish/11TimedWriting.htm).  The best way to prepare is to annotate the texts and take a practice 150 minute
exam before the midterm. 
You can create possible final exam questions for yourself which connect the works we have read through the course theme:
“Memoir: Adversity & Selfhood.”  Take at least one practice essay exam before the actual final exam.   There is a non-graded practice exam you can
take in WebAccess.  Click on the link that says:
             “PRACTICE FINAL EXAM (2.5 hours): non-graded writing practice.”


Taking the 2 ½ hours Final Exam: Thursday, May 21st