Professor Batty English 101 Progression A Essay Prompt

Progression A
Narrative Essay: Literacy and Education
Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself ~John Deey
!f our environ"ent plays an i"portant role in shaping our identity# then the classroo" is
a$solutely an i"portant space for fostering one%s sense of self& 'his "ay $e a literal classroo" or
any space or "o"ent of learning& !t is through education that e ac(uire ideologies that shape
ho e $eco"e& Language and literacy )things that e learn in classroo"s and in a variety of
spaces* also play a significant role in for"ing our identity&
'hin+ a$out your on e,perience and history ith language# literacy# and-or education& .as
English your second or third language/ .as there a turning point in your literacy e,perience that
changed the ay you read/ 0o has learning to read $een i"portant/ .rite your on narrative
essay in hich you tell your story& 1se the assigned essays as a "odel for ho you can approach
this narrative& 'he essay needs to have a controlling idea& 'his "eans that there needs to $e so"e
point to your story&
2our narrative needs to discuss one of the assigned essays& 2ou can# for e,a"ple# use the essay
either to relate to the author%s e,perience and perspective or to sho a difference in your
e,periences and perspectives&
Assign"ent 3A: Proposal
2ou "ust decide on hat story you ill tell a$out your e,perience ith language-literacy or
education& 4u""ari5e your story and state hy e,actly this as a "eaningful e,perience that
helped shape your identity& E,plain in 677 ords# typed# 8LA for"at&
Assign"ent 6A: 4u""ary and 9hetorical Analysis
:or this assign"ent# you ill need to choose $eteen one of the assigned readings for this
progression& 'hese te,ts include:
How to Tame a Wild Tongue by loria An!ald"a
#other Tongue by Amy Tan
$oming to an Awareness of %anguage by #al&olm '
( )ust Wannna Be A*erage by #i+e ,ose
;enyon <o""ence"ent 4peech $y David :oster .allace
Professor Batty English 101 Progression A Essay Prompt
'his assign"ent has to parts to it:
Part one as+s you to su""ari5e the te,t& .hat is the argu"ent-controlling idea that the author is
"a+ing& <onsider the = .%s and 0& Who is the te,t tal+ing a$out# what is it saying )hat is
happening/*# when as it ritten )hat insight "ight this conte,t reveal*# where is the te,t
discussing )the orld/ 'he 14/# etc&*# why does the author $elieve hat he-she $elieves )hy is
the hat happening/*# and how is this happening& As+ing yourself these (uestions ill help you to
co"e to the "ain idea of the te,t&
'he second part of the assign"ent as+s you to consider ho the author "a+es his-her point& 2ou
ant to $egin to understand ho the riter led you to understand the essay>s idea ? the one you
highlighted in your su""ary& <onsider the rhetorical situation: .hat is the author>s intended
purpose in riting this essay/ .ho is the author>s audience/ .hy is he-she considering this
particular audience/ .hat genre is the author riting in/ .ho is the author of this essay/ Do
his-her $eliefs-$ias sho in this essay/ .hat +inds of rhetorical appeal or appeals is this te,t
"a+ing/ 9e"e"$er: ethos# pathos# and logos&.hat +ind of language does the author use/ !s the
style for"al# infor"al# or acade"ic/ Does the author use sarcas"/ 0u"or/
4pend a$out 377@6=7 ords su""ari5ing the controlling idea of the author& 'hen spend 677@A77
ords on the rhetorical analysis& 'his assign"ent calls for 8LA docu"entation# hich includes a
.or+s <ited page&
Assign"ent AA: 4entence Butline
'he purpose of this assign"ent is for you to $egin $rainstor"ing and organi5ing your ideas& Please
use ro"an nu"erals )!# !!# !!!# etc&* to indicate paragraphs# and letters )A# C# <# etc&* to indicate
supporting ideas& Although this is a narrative essay# it should still have a clear structure and a
purpose& 'he thesis-"ain idea "ay not necessarily $e found in the introduction# unli+e a
traditional# e,pository essay; it "ay $e found it the end of the narrative or even so"ehere in the
"iddle& 2our narrative should have a $eginning# a "iddle# and an end& As a ay to structure your
narrative# you should descri$e so"e +ind of rising action that reaches a cli"a,& 1se this outline as
an opportunity to plan and organi5e your story& <onsider here you ill give sensory details to fill
out this orld& <onsider here you "ay include dialogue& <onsider here you "ay provide
$ac+ground infor"ation& 'he outline does not necessarily have to $e ritten in co"plete
sentences# $ut it should $e clear hat you are trying to say& Butline should $e appro,i"ately one
page in length# typed# 8LA for"at&
Essay A:
Compose a narrative essay in which you describe an experience you have had with
education, language, or literacy. Explain why this event was significant and how it
contributed to the formation of your identity.
Final Draft Criteria:
1- 2ou !"# include a progression pac$et that includes all three preli"inary assign"ents
attached to the essay& %ou cannot earn higher than a D on the essay if you do not
include all three assignments in your pac$et.
6& 'opic 4election: 'he essay focuses on a specific e,perience ith education# language# or
literacy&
A& 'itle: 'he title should $e $oth creative and infor"ative&
D& 'hesis: 'he essay "ay not have an argu"ent# $ut it has a clear purpose and "ain idea& 'his
Professor Batty English 101 Progression A Essay Prompt
controlling idea "ay not necessarily $e stated in the introduction&
=& Develop"ent-4upport: !deas are fully developed and supported& 'he riter includes
sensory details and-or dialogue to $ring the story to life&
E& <ontent: 'he paper shos that the riter has thoroughly descri$ed the event and
considered the significance and i"plications of the event descri$ed&
F& Brgani5ation: 'he ideas appear in a logical order; the paper uses transitions to "ove fro"
one idea to the ne,t& 'he narrative has a $eginning# a "iddle# and an end&
G& 4pelling-Hra""ar-8echanics: 'he paper is virtually free of spelling# gra""ar# or
"echanical errors&
.- Page Length: 'he paper is at least 6@A co"plete pages long& &apers less than ' complete
pages will not earn a grade higher than a D.
37& 8LA :or"atting: 'he paper uses 8LA for"atting# including 36 point 'i"es Ne 9o"an
font# dou$le spacing# one inch "argins# etc& )4ee your hand$oo+ for a sa"ple paper&*