Reading Journal Gee

Nadia Sumlar

 

Title of Article + Proper MLA Citation for Works Cited page  What is Literacy? by James Gee 

 

Gee, James. What is Literacy? Chapter. 18-23. Print.
 
Summarize the article — include your reaction, thoughts, anything to help you remember its claims. 100 to 150 words  This chapter was very interesting to read because it drew up many questions for me. This chapter takes on a journey on how James Gee defines literacy. He goes from defining discourses to defining learning and acquisitions to defining intimates.  It was interesting to read his views on learning and acquiring because it was the most I could relate to. I understood the difference between the two rather than all the discourse talk. I understood the discourses talk to an extent; when it got to primary and secondary discourses, I started to lose my track of mind. He then ends it off to what he thinks literacy means, and once I fully understand what discourses mean, I can really appreciate what his definition states.  
Define new terms and concepts by quoting or paraphrasing the original author. 

 

 Acquisitions- “is a process of acquiring something subconsciously, by exposures to models and a process of trial and error, without a process of formal teaching.” 

 

Disclosures- “a socially accepted association among ways of using languages, of thinking, and of acting that can be used to identify oneself as a member of socially meaningful group or “social network”” 
How does this reading connect to other articles from class and/or your own research? 

  

 I honestly cannot connect it to anything that I have read.  
Based on the reading, craft one question to act as a springboard for class discussion.  How would you define literacy, acquisition, and/or learning? 

 

Peer Resume

Nadia Sumlar

My name is Nadia Sumlar, and I am a freshmen at Ole Miss and in the FASTrack program. My strengths in writing really involves grammatical errors as far as commas; I was an editor for my school newspaper, so I am pretty good at that. What I would like to improve in writing are other grammatical errors that I do not see and sentence structure, where should I place sentences. I want as much feedback as I can get, because literary writing is not my strong suit, so I would like to get better at it. Even if my peer tells me my whole paper is trash, that will help me fix my mistakes and improve. I am a Ravenpuff, but I would like to say I fall more into the Ravenclaw house. My preferred email is my school email: nlsumlar@go.olemiss.edu. I am not choosing the Grade A option.

Reading Journal for Brandt

Nadia Sumlar

 

Title of Article + Proper MLA Citation for Works Cited page  Sponsors of Literacy 

 

Brandt, Deborah. Sponsors of Literacy. Essay. 166-172. Print
 
Summarize the article — include your reaction, thoughts, anything to help you remember its claims. 100 to 150 words   This article explains how a sponsor of literacy works. She explains that sponsors of literacy are agents who “enable, support, teach, model, as well as recruit, regulate, suppress, or withhold literacy—and gain advantage by it in some way.”(166). It was kind of difficult for me to read this essay, because it was a lot to comprehend; reading comprehension is not my strong suit. However, what I got from it was, as a student, I improved my writing abilities over the years thanks to my teachers. Whenever I talk about my writing improvements, I always thank my school newspaper sponsors; that is giving them their credibility. 
Define new terms and concepts by quoting or paraphrasing the original author. 

 

  Implications- a conclusion that can be drawn; “A final section addresses implications for the teaching of writing.” (167); I connected conclusion and final together. 
How does this reading connect to other articles from class and/or your own research? 

  

  If I am honest, I cannot connect this to anything that I have read or researched myself. I can only connect it to giving my teachers credibility. 
Based on the reading, craft one question to act as a springboard for class discussion.  Who was your literary sponsor? 

 

Twitter Thread

Nadia Sumlar

After reading this twitter thread, I immediately went back to when I was younger and wished I was a different race. I went to a predominately white school, and I mostly saw white kids who hung out with other white kids. I thought back then  “what if I was white?” Even in high school, the black kids did not want to hang out with me, because I acted too white; I was too bourgie. When I drew pictures of myself, I used a lighter shade of brown, gave myself straight hair, and a “white” name. I thought it was the only way to fit in. But as I grew older, I really appreciated my race. When movies like Black Panther and Black is King came out, I saw how beautiful, powerful, and blessed us black people are. There are going to be moments where I think “would my life be easier if I was white”, but I could not be more proud to be black.

Elbow Reflection

Nadia Sumlar
Title of Article + Proper MLA Citation for Works Cited page  Inviting the Mother Tongue: Beyond “Mistakes,” “Bad English,” and “Wrong Language”  

Elbow, Peter. “Inviting the Mother Tongue: Beyond “Mistakes,” “Bad English,” and “Wrong Language”. Article. 359-365. Print. 
Summarize the article — include your reaction, thoughts, anything to help you remember its claims. 100 to 150 words  This is article is about how students feel they have to conform to Standard Written English (SWE) in order to achieve in their writing class even though it is not their mother tongue. I was really into reading this article, because it was honestly reading every thought I had in my head when it came to writing. I do not have “perfect English”, and I remember from African-American people I would receive the comment: “I speak well for a black girl”.  I would also receive comments like: “You go to a predominately white school; you have to speak like them.” Comments like this or critiques from your English really tears down your self-confidence as far as your language. It makes you feel like you are stupid if you do not speak “correct” English. 
Define new terms and concepts by quoting or paraphrasing the original author. 

 

  Acquiesce- “to give in” 

 

 
How does this reading connect to other articles from class and/or your own research? 

  

  This article connects to my own research. I have seen articles of scholarship winners and their essays and compared them to black applicants of the scholarship. The essay of the winner sounds more politically correct, has correct grammar, and sounds more polished. More benefits are given to those who sound “educated” or who follows SWE. 
Based on the reading, craft one question to act as a springboard for class discussion.   Has your mother tongue taken away benefits and opportunities for you? 

“FASTrack/Writ 101 Round Table”

Nadia Sumlar

A piece of advice I would prove useful is to ask questions. It is okay to ask a million questions until you understand the material you’re given. I understand that as young adults we have huge egos and pride, and we do not have to ask for help. But it is okay to ask for help, because if you don’t, you’ll be stuck behind. Which leads me to my next piece of advice which is to go at your own pace. I believe a pro of online courses is that you are not pressured to “keep up with the class” or have a feeling you are three steps behind everyone else. You are able to go at your own pace so you can really grasp the concept of the material.

I am most excited to meet new people. From where I am from, everyone is generally the same or act the same way, so I am excited to just meet different people. I am least excited about online courses just because I am a visual learner. However, I took online courses before, so I can adapt to this and still come out on top.

Advice I would give to seniors is that senior-itis is a real thing. It is very easy to get distracted during this time, because you are on a high for graduation and prom and any other senior perks. But it is very important to stay focused while still enjoying your senior year otherwise you will get behind.

Unit Reflections

Nadia Sumlar

For each major essay assignment, you will complete a long-form reflection about your experience writing the paper. Your teacher will provide specific instructions for these reflections.

Weekly Reflections

Nadia Sumlar

Weekly Reflections are longer, more thoughtful posts that you will complete about every week of the semester. Topics for these posts will vary by instructor, but they will usually be completed outside of class and have a specific word-count requirement.

Daily Writes

Nadia Sumlar

These are 5 minute or less quick writes that we’ll complete in class most days. This will also include any in-class writing about the readings that we do. If you don’t bring your tablet/laptop to class every day or if you prefer writing on paper during class, you’ll need to type up and post these after class.