Queensborough Community College (QCC) CUNY Language Immersion Program (CLIP) Spring 2013 January 28th May 31st

st Utopia/Dystopia: A Look at Civilization and ~isms

Course Title/Number: CUNY Language Immersion Program (CLIP) Level 3 EVENING Class Meetings: Monday Friday 5:00 PM 10:00 PM Room 1 Teacher: Paul E. Shively Email: clip.shively@gmail.com or pshively@qcc.cuny.edu Office Hours: Monday Friday 4:30 PM 5:00 PM Room 2

General Course Description

This class is an intensive language immersion course aimed at dramatically improving your English reading, writing, speaking and listening skills. The goal is to prepare you to succeed in the college classroom environment. Since language serves to convey meaning, improving your academic English skills above all requires improving your critical thinking abilities. The core focus of this class will be on reading, writing, and speaking critically.

Course Objectives
Theme Objectives
This course is entitled Utopia/Dystopia A Look at Civilization and ~Isms. As mentioned in the course description, the objective of CLIP is to develop your critical thinking skills and thus, we are going to evolve our thinking with this theme. Check out and discuss the following definitions from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary online (www.webster.com & www.learnersdictionary.com): Utopia A place of ideal perfection especially in laws, government, and social conditions. or An imaginary place in which the government, laws, and social conditions are perfect. The same dictionary offers the following definitions of Dystopia: Dystopia An imaginary place where people lead dehumanized and often fearful lives. or An imaginary place where people are unhappy and usually afraid because they are not treated fairly. These definitions open our discussion to the elements listed below.

Introduction to Theme Objective

Utopia/Dystopia Creating a Perfect Society Keeping in mind the definitions of Utopia and Dystopia discussed, we understand that every human is born into a culture and society they did not choose. Perhaps as a result, people throughout history have wondered what would happen if we could break free from the traditions around us and reinvent our society. Are humans wise enough to create a utopia, a perfect society? Or will human ignorance and weakness result in the opposite, a dystopia? What kind of society would

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you create if you had the chance? What can we learn from the Civilizations before us and apply to the society of the future? These are some of the questions well explore in this class.

Historical Contexts: What Can We Learn from the Past?

Hunter/Gatherers, Conquests, and Imperialism How did our societies, as we know them today, come to be? How have some societies become more advantaged than others? In this class we will use Jared Diamonds Guns, Germs, and Steel: the Fates of Human Societies to understand the answers to these questions and then relate them to the ultimate necessities of human evolution and the creation of Utopia. The Interwar Era The late 19th to early 20th centuries was a time of unprecedented peace, technological and social progress, economic growth and optimism about humanitys ability to improve society. Not surprisingly, many utopian works were written during this period. The Grand Illusion, a worldwide best-seller written in 1909, even predicted that the interdependence of modern economies made war impossible. Hidden beneath the prosperity and optimism of this period were inequalities of ethnicity, class and gender. Most of the world was controlled by a small number of rich white men who governed imperial Great Powers such as England, France, Germany, Russia and the United States. Poor and working class people, non-whites and women were often excluded from power. Five years after The Grand Illusion was published, World War I began; by the time it was over, 37 million people had been killed or wounded, several empires had been destroyed, and many people around the world had lost faith in the old way of life. The next few decades was a period of great hope and great tragedy as previously hidden conflicts came to the surface and people around the world tried to reinvent society through revolution, reform and cultural change. In this class, well study both the real life social changes and two utopian and dystopian works of fiction from this period, Gilmans Herland and Hiltons Lost Horizon.i The Postwar Era After the destruction and chaos of World War II, the optimism of the Interwar Period had faded into Nihilism and a separation of worldly ideologies, pitting western society against eastern society. Each side had a view of what a perfect society should be. In the east, the Soviet Union and eastern European countries continued or were developed as government centered Communist states; whereas in the west, the United States and western European countries continued or were developed as Capitalist/Democratic states. In this class we will understand the differences between these worldly ideologies through Orwells Animal Farm.

Modern Terms Related to Utopia

What is Civilization? Through the historical contexts discussed above the term Civilization has been created to represent societies that are well organized and developed. The term civilized often refers to people who are polite and behave in a way that is accordance to the rules of society. Therefore, we must ask ourselves in this class, what does it mean to be civilized and how does this term relate to the concept of the civilization? To further our understanding of how civilizations have evolved and what they have required to prosper, we will refer to Lost Horizon and Herland as well as use the computer game Civilization III by Sid Meier. ~Isms Ism is a suffix used to relate to a belief. For example, Buddhism refers the belief of Gautama Buddhas teachings. In this class, we will discuss the isms of the world and how they relate to humanitys struggles to create a perfect society.

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Language Objectives You will also learn quite a bit about language. Our objectives for this course will include (but are not limited to) the following topics: - The Tenses and Aspects of English - Parts of Speech - Sentence, Paragraph, and Essay Structure - Clauses and Complex Sentence Structures - Learning Academic Vocabulary - Error Correction and Analysis

Writing, Essays and Portfolios:

This class will place a special focus on improving your academic reading and writing skills. You will write eight essays for the course, and most essays will have a special writing focus (paragraphs, supporting details, etc.). You will write three drafts of each essay. All of your essays will be published to your online portfolio, a website you will create at www.weebly.com. The Essay Process: Your *first draft* will be handwritten in class for ninety minutes. At the end of the ninety minutes, you must give your essay to the teacher, who will quickly evaluate your work to see if you are utilizing your time effectively. After you are given back the handwritten draft, you will type it into Microsoft Word in the computer lab. Once you have typed it into Word, copy and paste it to your website on Weebly and publish it for review. Your *second draft* will be edited for organization and clarity in the computer lab. The teacher will review your work from the first draft and send you an email with the changes that you need to make. After it is published in succession with your first draft, your second draft will then be self-edited or peer-edited with a guided worksheet for grammar given to you by the teacher (or possibly with the teacher in the computer lab). Finally, you will type a *final draft* of your work in the computer lab, editing the self or peer revisions from the second draft. Once you are finished with all editing, publish the final draft to your website in succession with your previous two drafts. Each draft will be posted to your online portfolio (a website) that you will create at www.weebly.com. The goal of writing multiple drafts is to teach you to notice and correct your own errors (rather than making the same errors again and again and waiting for the teacher to correct them!). To learn from your writing, you must take the time to carefully read and reread each draft of your essay and make sure that you understand how to correct each mistake. If you simply write your essays as quickly as possible, you will not learn how to improve your writing. In the space below, create a flow chart of the process explained above:

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Reading
In this course you will read the three novels listed under Required Readings as well as other supplemental material including an expository text. The novels must be purchased at the QCC Bookstore. The other materials will be given to you by the teacher. I know that most of us get tired of reading, may not like to read, find it too difficult, or find many excuses NOT to read (e.g. work, going out with friends, feeling tired, etc. I have heard them all!). **We must understand that reading is the most important thing we can do to advance our critical thinking skills and improve our writing.** As your teacher, I cannot force you to read and you are responsible for your OWN work and improvement; however, as your teacher, it is my job to CHALLENGE you to read more and to read for more details/comprehension. Before you read a chapter, we will do activities in class to help you focus on your reading. After you read the chapter, you will be challenged with a six question, multiple choice, eight-minute quiz at the beginning of class. You may use the book to answer the questions. The quiz allows me to see if you have read the material and to gauge what you have understood. After the quiz, we will do a multitude of activities to learn more about the text in class.

Required Readings
The following books must be purchased in the QCC Bookstore. Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. Herland. Dover Publications. ISBN: 0-486-40429-3 Hilton, James. Lost Horizon. First Perennial Edition. ISBN: 978-0-06-059452-7 Orwell, George. Animal Farm. Signet. ISBN: 978-0-451-52634-2

Additional Readings The following books do not need to be purchased. The instructor will give them to you or photocopy sections for you. Azar, Betty. Understanding and Using English Grammar. Pearson. ISBN: 978-0-13-235336-6 Benz, Cheryl. College Reading 4: English for Academic Success. Heinle. ISBN: 978-0-618-23023-5 Bunting, John; Diniz, Luciana; Reppen, Randi. Grammar and Beyond 4. Cambridge. ISBN: 978-0-521-14301-1 Diamond, Jared Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies. W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN: 978-0-393-31755-8
Kamhi, Paul. Getting it Right: An Editing Text for ESL/EFL Students. Kendall Hunt. ISBN: 978-0-7575-6628-8 Langan, John. Clear Thinking and Writing. Townsend Press. ISBN: 978-1591941873 Murphy, Raymond. Grammar in Use: Intermediate. Cambridge. ISBN: 0-521-62597-1 Oshima, Alice; Hogue, Ann. Writing Academic English. Peason Longman. ISBN: 0-13-152359-7 Rochford, Regina A., The Keys to the CAAW. Kendall Hunt. ISBN: 978-0-7575-8277-6 Rochford, Regina A. Test Taking Tips for the ACT Reading Compass Exam and Practice Reading Passages. Pearson. ISBN: 5978-0-558-28772-6

Assessment
You will be given the following formal assessments (tests): CLIP Assessment As you have already done once before beginning class, you will again take the Michigan test for listening, grammar, vocabulary, and reading comprehension as well as write the CLIP essay at the end of the semester.

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This assessment allows us to view your progress from the beginning to the end of the semester as well as determine your placement for future CLIP courses. Midterm Exam You will be given a Midterm Exam before Spring Break, challenging you to exhibit what you have learned up to that point in the semester. Final Project Your final project will consist of a project where you must use what you have learned from this class to construct your own Utopia. Please refer to the calendar for assessments.

Notes
Your note-taking abilities will be crucial to your success in college. Every day you should bring a 3-ring binder to organize the materials given to you by your teacher. I will give you many handouts, and if you lose them I have no extra copies for you. You will also need a notebook for vocabulary, dictations, and notes.

Required Materials
You will need to buy the following materials and bring them to class every day: A Three Ring Binder A Three Subject Notebook Pens/Pencils A Flash Drive Please use one and attach it to your keys so that you will never lose it! All books and handouts provided to you by the instructor.

Independent Studies/Assignments Throughout the semester, we will have two Independent Assignments. In other words, you will be given an assignment for a day when we would otherwise be in class. The assignment counts as your attendance for the class. The assignment will be emailed to you and published to the website at www.cliplevel3.weebly.com by noon on the day of the assignment. You must complete the assignment and publish it to your website by 10 p.m. that evening to receive attendance for that days class. Each Independent Assignment counts towards your final grade. Please take them seriously and remember that you DO NOT have these days off!

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Student Responsibilities
Please check the space before each policy to indicate that you understand and agree to uphold each responsibility. ___Participation: You are required to actively participate in all classroom activities, to complete all homework and inclass assignments on time, and to maintain your portfolio, binder and notebook. ___English: Classes are English only. If you speak a language that is not English, you will be asked to write a contract to the teacher. (e.g. fifty times: I promise I will only use English in Pauls English class.) ___Electronic Devices: Cell phones and other devices must be turned off. If you have a young child, you may request special permission to keep your cell phone on mute. Electronic dictionaries are not allowed in this class. You may only take the CAT-W with a paper dictionary (either monolingual or bilingual), and it would be best for you to buy your own dictionary for practice in this class and subsequent use during your exam. The official CLIP policy at QCC is 1.) If your phone is visible, you receive a warning. 2.) If your phone is visible again, you go home. ___Attendance: Chronic absence and lateness will not be tolerated. If you are late three times, it is equal to one absence. If you accumulate more than five absences in one semester you will either be placed on probation or expelled from the program at the discretion of the instructor and director. If you leave early or return late from break you will be marked as late. If you miss a class, you are required to contact another student to find out what assignments were given that day, and to complete those assignments on time. ___Cleanliness: You will clean up any garbage you produce and return any materials you use to their proper place by the end of class. ___Respect: You will treat your teacher and fellow students with respect. You will not insult anyone, scream, whine or behave in an immature or disruptive manner. ___Personal Belongings: Your iPods, cell phones, wallets, and anything you own are your individual responsibility. You must be vigilant about your things. THINGS HAVE BEEN STOLEN FROM OUR BUILDING AND EVEN THIS CLASSROOM BEFORE. No matter how honest you are, or think the world is, these things will be taken if left without supervision. Occasionally, I will lock the door if we leave the vicinity of the building; however during lab time I will NOT lock the door and you must decide whether or not to take your bag with you or not. Your things are not the teachers responsibility or the responsibility of anyone at CLIP other than yourself.
**Failure to abide by these responsibilities will result in academic probation and/or expulsion.**

Schedule
There are at least eleven elements that will be included in the schedule, varying from ten minutes a day to 90. Read on: Free-writing: Occasionally, I will try to wake up your brain with some free-writing for ten minutes. There are rules to free-writing. (1) No stopping In other words, everything in your head goes straight to your arm, your hand, your pen, and then the paper. It is forcing you to continually think in English about the topic I have given you. (2) No erasing/Dont worry about mistakes This rule goes with the first rule of not stopping, dont erase anything and dont stop for mistakes. Grammar: We will have sessions in class devoted to learning grammar. We will use selections from text books that are and are not related to our theme. Because this is a level 3 course, we will study more complex grammar so that it will reflect better in your writing and thinking. Vocabulary: Often, vocabulary will focus on new words from our readings. There are a variety of activities that focus on vocabulary including mix and match, or even competitions. Dictation: A dictation is where you write down what someone else is speaking. Sometimes the teacher will conduct this activity, and other times you will do dictations as a group activity. Lecture and Note-taking: If you want to be a good student, you will have to learn good note-taking skills. The better notes you can take, the better your grade will likely be. As part of your college knowledge, you will learn how to take

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notes. Additionally, I will choose a topic and lecture on it for about 45 minutes (a typical college class time). After the individual lecture, I will give you a short quiz, where you can use the notes you have taken. If you take good notes during the lecture, you should pass the quiz. Reading Comprehension/Discussion: We will read three novels and other materials during this course, for which we will need to take the time to comprehend our readings. At the beginning of these roughly ninety minute sessions, we will take a short timed quiz. After the quiz, activities will vary from paraphrasing activities, comprehension question answering, discussion questions, and debates. Writing/Essays: A few times a week we will work on our writing for a good sixty to ninety minutes. These sessions will include understanding point and support; error correction/analysis; sentence, paragraph, and essay organization/clarity; individual and peer review; as well as writing formal essays. Your formal essays will be written in class and then typed in the computer lab. Other than formal essays, you will also be responsible for summary, discussion, and reaction writings. Computer Lab: Every day for 60 to 90 minutes we will have time in the computer lab. During this time you will complete individual and group assignments given to you by the teacher including: Typing your essays, researching group/individual projects, and creating Power Point projects for presentations. Project Time: You will be given time in class to work on group/individual projects. Typically you will be given a worksheet to organize your projects and the teacher will bounce from group to group to discuss your findings. College Knowledge Activities: Each week we will do activities that teach you about college life and what to expect as a student. For example, we will have a tour of the library, as well as college hours which are meetings with Admissions, Financial Aid, Students with Disabilities Services etc. Potentially we will also role play situations where a student must talk to a professor about a situation such as a bad grade received, etc. **Breaks** You will be given a 30 minute break every day when the professor decides it is an appropriate time. DO NOT ask when it will be. He will let you know! Additionally, you may go to the bathroom whenever you need to and you do not need to ask the professor; however, it is a privilege to be used at your discretion. It is NOT a time to use your cell-phone in the hallway/bathroom or go outside and smoke a cigarette. If the professor catches you abusing this privilege, it will be revoked for the future and you will be required to ask permission in the future. Additionally, he will ask you to go home for the day.

Important Dates I will give you a calendar separate from the syllabus to which you can refer for all dates. The most important dates regarding whether we have class or not are listed below: Monday, January 28, 2013 FIRST DAY OF CLASSES Tuesday, February 12, 2013 NO CLASS Monday, February 18, 2013 NO CLASS Saturday, March 23 to Tuesday, April 2, 2013 NO CLASSES **SPRING BREAK** Wednesday, April 3, 2013 Classes Resume Monday, May 27, 2013 NO CLASS Friday, May 31, 2013 LAST DAY OF CLASSES CLOSING CEREMONY

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Grades / Portfolio Checklist:

___/12.5 ___/12.5 ___/12.5 ___/12.5 ___/12.5 ___/12.5 ___/12.5 ___/12.5 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/25 ___/50 ___/50 ___/50 ___/500 Essay 1 Essay 2 Essay 3 Essay 4 Essay 5 Essay 6 Essay 7 Essay 8 Independent Assignment 1 Independent Assignment 2 Lost Horizon Quizzes Animal Farm Quizzes Herland Quizzes Guns, Germs, and Steel Quizzes Group Project 1 Group Project 2 Group Project 3 Group Project 4 Midterm Grade Final Project (Individual) My Utopia Class Participation / Homework Assignments / Civilization Journal FINAL GRADE (Total from above)

450-500 400-449 350-399 300-349 0-299 Students to Contact in Case of Absence:

A B C D F

1. Name: _____________________________________________________________________ Telephone:________________________ Email:______________________________________ 2. Name: _____________________________________________________________________ Telephone:________________________ Email:______________________________________

i

The beginning of Theme Objectives and Interwar Period sections were adapted from Erik Stowerss original course description for his level 3 CLIP course at BMCC.

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