Lesson Plan Über Alles

Addiction Essays for Critical Thinking Class

The Science of Choice in Addiction

The Irrationality of Alcoholics Anonymous

Debunking Alcohol Anonymous

AA Can be Violence-Prone

Overview of AA Critique

AA’s all-or-nothing approach made J.G. feel like a defeated misfit. In part, AA was alienating for J.G. because he had no faith in God when AA emphasizes surrendering to a Higher Power.

AA told J.G. he had no other treatment options: “Either embrace AA or die.”

J.G. eventually left AA and found effective treatment elsewhere.

AA’s claims of success are less than other studies’ findings. Some claims for AA are as high as 75%.

However, Harvard’s Lance Dodes arrives at a success rate of 5-8%.

According to The Handbook of Alcoholism Treatment Approaches, AA is ranked 38 out of 48 methods.

Alcoholics suffer high rates of mental health problems. AA is not equipped to address these.

AA truisms and wisdom have become culture’s sacred cow. You’re not allowed to criticize AA without being branded an insensitive lout who is “killing people” by discouraging them from joining AA.

This is an emotional, not a rational or critical thinking approach to disagreement.

The AA dogma that you must “hit rock bottom” before you really seek recovery is a dangerous message, according to many addiction treatment professionals. It would be like telling a 250-pound man to gain even more weight, soaring to 650 pounds, before he “got serious” about losing weight. By that time, he might be dead.

AA is criticized for it’s “one size fits all” approach, what is also called the Procrustean method.

AA offers either/or fallacy or false binary equations: Either you are an alcoholic or you are not. However, many addiction specialists claim that alcohol addiction exists on a spectrum.

A lot of medical professionals force their patients to use AA at the exclusion of other treatments. Some AA environments are dangerous and abusive, especially toward women, according to a report in Pro Publica.

Finland is effectively using United States neuroscientist John David Sinclair medical approach, which focuses on blocking dopamine during alcohol ingestion with the use of an opioid antagonist naltrexone.

Blocking dopamine in the brain through drugs is considered by many a scientifically proven treatment. In contrast, AA uses a non-scientific approach: You must undergo a spiritual makeover, come clean, be honest, makes amends with others, and experience a spiritual rebirth to stay away from addictive behavior. This belief is a sacred cow, but it’s not science.

In critical thinking, we must have credible evidence to support our claims. Is AA using credible evidence to support its claim that AA is the only way to treat addiction?

Counterarguments:

We all know family and friends who’d be dead if it weren’t for AA. They must be doing something right.

There is something to be said about changing one’s spiritual orientation, rather than using drugs, to free oneself from addictive behavior.

AA has a track record of providing a support group for people who can’t deal with their addiction on their own.

Quiz Options for 1A Blue Book Exam

Choose One:

A. Develop a thesis that explains Debra Dickerson's claim from "The Great White Way" that on one hand race is America's obsession while on the other hand race does not really exist except as a phony "arbitrary system for establishing hierarchy and privilege." Support your thesis with 4 paragraphs. Please double-space. 

B. Develop a thesis that explains the causes of Caroline Knapp's anorexia in her essay "Add Cake, Subtract Self-Esteem." Support your thesis with 4 paragraphs. Please double-space. 

1C Writing Options for Essay #4 Spring 2017

Essay #4 Options Due May 16

Writing Assignment Option #1

Develop a thesis that explains how Ursula Le Guin’s short story “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” (should be online) is an allegory of the moral challenges we face as we are drugged by privilege leaving us indifferent about the sufferings of The Other. Successful essays will connect the allegory to modern day social injustices such as the inhumane working conditions of migrant workers or the incarceration system, to name a couple.

Explanation

The privileged position themselves to sacrifice a group to perpetuate the privileged group's power. The privileged, like the leaders in Le Guin's short story, rationalize their exploitation of the sacrificed group by making utilitarian pronouncements such as "sacrificing a few for the greater good." 

The poor are used as a resource in our society. They pay for municipal violations, they pay higher fees for cars, house, interest payments. There is an entire industry based on exploiting the poor. For example, there are check cashing agencies in poor neighborhoods that take a huge percentage out of the check before handing over the cash. 

Small children work in sweat shops all over the world. They don't have a childhood. They don't see their parents. They are slaves. However, they are in demand because they allow American consumers to buy clothes for cheap. Thus these small children are sacrificed for our consumer pleasures. 

The same can be said with agriculture. People work in substandard working conditions so we, the consumer, can buy affordable produce. 

The same can be said of the restaurant industry. People are exploited so we, the hungry diner, can "eat out on the cheap."

Perhaps the worst sacrifice is made in the industrial prison complex where poor people of color are the primary source of income for this industry. 

Theme of Denial

We are all upset by injustice, but we can inure ourselves to cruelty and injustice through denial or willed ignorance.

We rationalize:

"Someone's gotta clean those toilets."

"Someone's gotta pick cheap produce so I can feed my family."

"I'm sad that cows cry before they get slaughtered, but dang that double cheeseburger with goat cheese, bacon, onion rings and sopping with tangy chipotle mayonnaise is delicious."

"I know my peanut butter has cockroach pieces and rat hair in it, but what are you going to do?"

 

To use the above John Oliver video in a comparison with the Ursula Le Guin short story, you might consider the following parallels of moral shortcomings:

denial

compartmentalization

desensitization to cruelty

confusing majority rule with moral order

confusing status quo with moral order

preferring self-interest and pleasure over moral duty to others as a Faustian Bargain (deal with the devil)

 

Study Questions

One. What is the role of Dionysian ecstasy in the story? 

The "clamor of bells," dancing, and celebration is about being grateful, but to surrender to one's praise of happiness one must forget about the dark side, the tiger's claw beneath the velvet carpet. 

To be happy requires compartmentalization, having your happy "pocket" and keeping your sad "pocket" hidden. 

American slave owners committed heinous acts against their slaves before coming home to pray with their families, read bedtime stories to their children, and smile piously to Jesus before sleeping with a saint-like grin, only to wake up in the morning and start their acts of abomination all over again. 

These slave owners are compartmentalizing. Their left hand commits evil and their right hand, unaware of what the left hand is doing, prays with piety to its white Jesus. 

We cannot be happy in heaven if were conscious of those suffering in hell. 

How do we enjoy our juicy medium-rare steak when we know that the cow whose butchered cuts we're savoring trembled with terror, cried out, and let out explosive diarrhea before being cut into hundreds of pieces? 

How do we enjoy an expensive dinner at a fancy restaurant when we know every 5 seconds a baby somewhere in the world dies of starvation? 

How do we enjoy our recently purchased clothes when we know they were made from child slaves?

Speaking of slaves, the American economy boomed when slavery in the south was at its peak. The cotton industry fed the American economic machine, causing white Americans to shout with joy, "Cotton is king!" All the while, every sort of abomination was committed against the slaves. How could the white people be so happy when they knew another group of people was suffering with such unspeakable torment? 

The short answer: compartmentalization. 

And this leads us to one of the story's major themes: Compartmentalization is a moral abomination. 

The collective joy in the opening paragraph is the joy resulting from a collective delusion, a shared psychosis. To partake in such a psychosis destroys the moral order. 

Two. What kind of society is Omelas?

We know they are not simple. They are smart.

They do not own slaves. 

They are not ruled by a monarchy. 

They were happy yet intelligent. 

However, they had succumbed to the "banality of evil," the notion that evil exists in our every day lives without drama or spectacle. Rather, evil exists insidiously and we become numb and inured (accustomed) to it. 

We pen up livestock, torture and abuse millions of pigs, cows, and chickens, and gnash our teeth into these slaughtered meats while laughing and slapping our thighs in chicken wing bars. 

This society exhibits other moral failures with its "If you can't lick 'em, join 'em" philosophy. They are conformists. Everyone tows the line and does their share. Conformity to an evil order makes us evil. But we haven't seen the evil in the story yet. 

We also know that they have kept their desires (concupiscence) in check. They are neither peasants nor technophiles always wanting the newest smartphone. They are in the middle. They want comfort and luxury, but not in excess. 

Omelas is a society that has mastered compartmentalization to the point that they have eradicated guilt. 

They take a dreamy drug called drooz that gives them "dreamy languor." We are assured that it is not habit forming. 

Three. What is the allegory of the boy locked up in a cellar?

The boy could represent any exploited group, including the poor. 

The boy reminds me of a calf waiting to be turned into veal. 

Or the service industry serving the expensive appetites of the booming tech industry in San Francisco as explored in "Dinner, Disrupted" by Daniel Duane. 

I am reminded of girls in India who are forced by their families to be surrogate mothers for a few thousand dollars. 

I am reminded of the babies sold in the surrogacy industry who are later victims of human trafficking. 

The people of Omelas have made peace with the suffering boy as a bargain for their happiness. They have sold their souls to the devil, so to speak. They live in a dystopia, a sort of hell on earth. 

The children initially disgusted by seeing the suffering child begin to accept its suffering. They see the child as subhuman and incapable of achieving happiness anyway. This reminds me of academics who speak of "the underclass," so well articulated in Bell Hooks' essay. 

A "good" white person (living in accordance with the laws of the land regardless of how racist) during times of slavery would not want to live in a nice house, attend a nice school, attend beautiful cultural events, and enjoy the progress of technology if all these things were built on the blood, sweat, and tears of slavery. 

Morality cannot exist with compartmentalization. To have morality is to be spiritual and to be spiritual begins with seeing the human race as a unified whole. 

We are only as good as we treat the least fortunate and most exploited among us. 

 

Writing Option #2 

Defend, refute, or complicate Bloom's assertion in "Against Empathy" that empathy, contrary to popular opinion, is not a virtue in the face of evidence that empathy is a form of "irrational compassion" that can be destructive and inimical to human affairs. 

Sources:

"Empathy: Overrated?"

"Why Paul Bloom Is Wrong About Empathy and Morality"

"I Could Say That Paul Bloom Is a Callous Idiot, But I Empathize With Him"

Suggested Outline

Paragraph 1 is your introduction, a summary of Bloom's points. 

Paragraph 2 is your agreement or disagreement with Bloom, your thesis.

Paragraphs 3-6 are your supporting paragraphs.

Paragraph 7 is your counterargument-rebuttal section.

Paragraph 8 is your conclusion, a restatement of your thesis. 

Writing Option #3

Support, refute, or complicate Malcolm Gladwell's claim that expensive universities are immoral to serve gourmet food to their students because the cost excludes financially challenged students from attending these universities. 

Sources

Morality of Food Choices in Malcolm Gladwell's Podcast;

Malcolm Gladwell's Food Fight

Bowdoin's Defense Against Gladwell

Mother Jones Challenges Gladwell

Gladwell's Food Fight podcast on YouTube

Defense of Gladwell.

Writing Option #4

Support, refute, or complicate the claim that the disease model of addiction can be harmful to some addicts who would benefit more from a habit or conditioning model of addiction. 

Sources

"Addiction is not a disease"

 Addiction is not a disease" reviewed by Laura Miller 

"Is Addiction a Habit or a Disease?" by Zachary Siegel

 "Addiction is a Disease and Needs to be Treated as Such"by David Sack.

See Ed Kressy’s autobiographical essay.

 

Writing Option #5 

Support or refute the argument that there is no valid defense of the Anti-Vaxxer position. You can consult the following:

"Why Vaccination Refusal Is a White Privilege Problem"

"Anti-Vaxxers: Enjoying the Privilege of Putting Everyone at Risk"

"What Everyone Gets Wrong About Anti-Vaccine Parents"

"Kid Vaccination Drama"

"We Seem to be More Frightened Than We've Ever Been"

"How to Change an Anti-Vaxxer's Mind" 

Sample Thesis

While many parents are well intentioned and fearful of vaccines as they are mired in a sea of overwhelming alarmist information, their decision to deny their children vaccines is misguided, at best, and morally repugnant, more likely, when we consider their refusal to acknowledge real science and empirical evidence, their reliance on logical fallacies and quack pseudo-science, their narcissistic conspiracy mentality, and, most of all, their decision to exact a potentially fatal pestilence upon our children.  

Sample Outline

Paragraph 1: In your introduction explain the justifications used for the anti-vaxxer movement.

Paragraph 2: Refute or defend those justifications in your thesis.

Paragraphs 3-6 are your supporting paragraphs.

Paragraph 7 is your counterargument-rebuttal section. 

Paragraph 8 is your conclusion, a restatement of your thesis. 

Group Activity

Get into groups of 4 or 5 and ask the following 3 questions:

One. Do you have an emotional response to parents who don't vaccinate their children?

Two. Are parents who don't vaccinate their children getting a "bad rap"? Explain. 

Three. How could you incorporate these two questions into an introduction for your essay?

Writing Option #6

Support, refute, or complicate Tom James' claim that the promises of legal pot have not been fulfilled by incompetence, corruption, and confusion. 

Sources

The Failed Promise of Legal Pot 

Life with Legal Weed

 

 

McMahon English 1C Critical Thinking Syllabus Fall 2017

McMahon English 1C Critical Thinking Syllabus Fall 2017

Email: [email protected] 

Office: H121P; extension 5673  

Office Hours: M and W: 2:45-3:45 and 5:30-6; T and TH 12:15-1 and 3:30-4:15  

Students with Disabilities: 

If you have a documented disability and wish to discuss academic accommodations, please contact me as soon as possible.  

Course Catalog Description:        

This course focuses on the development of critical thinking skills. Students will apply these skills to the analysis of written arguments in various forms and genres, both classic and contemporary, and to the writing of effective persuasive essays. Students will learn to evaluate and interpret data, to recognize assumptions, to distinguish facts from opinions, to identify and avoid logical fallacies, to employ deductive and inductive reasoning, and to effectively assert and support argumentative claims. 

Course Objectives: 

One. Evaluate arguments in terms of bias, credibility, and relevance.

Two. Assess an argument's claims by examining assumptions, by differentiating between facts and inferences, by recognizing errors in logic, by analyzing support, and by identifying both explicit and implied conclusions.

Three. Recognize and assess argumentative claims embedded in literary works, advertisements, political tracts, and presentations in other media.

Four. Express critical viewpoints and develop original arguments in response to social, political, and philosophical issues and/or to works of literature and literary theory.

Five. Demonstrate the ability to evaluate electronic sources and databases, to incorporate research from on-line and print media, and to compose unified, coherent, fully supported argumentative essays that advance their claims by integrating primary and secondary sources, and by employing the tools of critical interpretation, evaluation, and analysis.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of this course, students will:

One. Compose an argumentative essay that shows an ability to support a claim using analysis, elements of argumentation, and integration of primary and secondary sources.

Two. Identify and assess bias, credibility, and relevance in their own arguments and in the arguments of others, including primary and secondary outside sources.

Three. Write an essay that is correct in MLA format, paragraph composition, sentence structure, grammar, spelling, and usage. 

Essay Requirements (based on 6,000 words): 

English 1C SLO-aligned Assignment (Updated for Fall 2016)

The assignment designed using these criteria will be used to assess the course SLOs and should be assigned as a later (or last) essay.

Students will write a 4-5 page essay, not including Works Cited page, which is also required (but does not count towards length requirement.  In the essay, the students will do the following:

One. Express critical viewpoints and develop original thesis-driven arguments in response to social, political, and philosophical issues and/or to works of literature and literary theory.  This argumentative essay will be well organized, demonstrate an ability to support a claim using analysis and elements of argumentation, and integrate primary and secondary sources.

Two. Use at least three sources and not over-rely on one secondary source for most of the information.  The students should use multiple sources and synthesize the information found in them.

Three. Address issues of bias, credibility, and relevance in primary and secondary sources.

Four. Demonstrate understanding of analytical methods and structural concepts such as inductive and deductive reasoning, cause and effect, logos, ethos, and pathos, and the recognition of formal and informal fallacies in language and thought.

Five. Use MLA format for the document, in-text citations, and Works Cited page.

Six. Integrate quotations and paraphrases using signal phrases and analysis or commentary.

Seven. Sustain the argument, use transitions effectively, and use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation. 

Course Catalog Description:         

This course focuses on the development of critical thinking skills.  Students will apply these skills to the analysis of written arguments in various forms and genres, both classic and contemporary, and to the writing of effective persuasive essays.  Students will learn to evaluate and interpret data, to recognize assumptions, to distinguish facts from opinions, to identify and avoid logical fallacies, to employ deductive and inductive reasoning, and to effectively assert and support argumentative claims. 

English 1C Grammar Policy and Grading

Students in English 1C are expected to write clear, college-level essays with logical paragraph composition and sentence structure as well as correct grammar, spelling, word usage, and punctuation. If you feel you cannot be successful in this class due to struggles with grammar or other elements of essay composition, please see the instructor as early as possible to discuss resources and strategies for your improvement.

  

Policy on Plagiarism   

Any attempt to commit fraud, misrepresenting someone else’s writing as your own, including turning in essays from previous semesters, will result in an automatic F grade, zero points, which mathematically, will disqualify you from earning a grade higher than a C for the semester. You will not be allowed to rewrite for a higher grade and because of the breach of trust it will be preferred that you drop the class. I will use turnitin to investigate plagiarism.  

Each essay must be submitted to www.turnitin.com where it will be checked for illegal copying/plagiarism.

 I cannot give credit for an essay that is not submitted to this site by the deadline.   

The process is very simple; if you need help, detailed instructions are available at http://turnitin.com/en_us/training/student-training/student-quickstart-guide 

You will need two pieces of information to use the site:  

Class ID and Enrollment Password, which I’ll give you first week of class. 

Late Essays Are Deducted a Full Letter Grade 

You cannot turn in a late paper more than a week after the due date.

You Cannot “Ride” the Class: You cannot miss over 10 percent of the classes while

not keeping up with the assignments because you are not fulfilling the Student Learning Outcomes. Therefore, you will have to be dropped if you are “riding” the class.  

Attendance and Class Participation

Deductions of 50 for more than 4 absences (two tardies equal one absence). Repeated use of smart phone in class or leaving class repeatedly to "take a call" counts as a tardy.

More than 5 absences is a loss of 100 points. These rules are designed so that we will be complaint with Title 5 Contact Hour Laws prescribed by the State of California.

Tardies:

It’s reasonable to be late a couple of times a semester, but some students consistently show up late to class, and this distraction compromises the learning environment significantly. Therefore, starting on the fourth tardy, 50 points must be deducted from total grade and another 25 points must be deducted for every tardy after that. Being on your smartphone in class is equivalent to being tardy.

Books and Materials You Need for This Class:

One. Deep Work by Cal Newport

Two. Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked by Adam Alter

Three. Contemporary & Classic Arguments 2^nd edition, edited by Sylvan Barnet

Four. Lower Ed: The Troubling Rise of For-Profit Colleges in the New Economy by Tressie McMillan Cottom

Two Large Blue Books for In-Class Essay Exams

 

Grading

Four Typed 1,000-word essays with 3 sources for 150 points each.

Fifth Capstone 1,000-word essay with 3 sources for 200 points.

Two Blue Book In-Class Essays of 500-word length for 100 points each.

 

Grand Point Total: 1,000

Grand Total of Words Written: 6,000

 

All 5 Typed Essays Need 3 credible sources to be used for in-text parenthetical citation and MLA formatted Works Cited page.

All five typed essays are 1,000 word typed and double-spaced.  

Essay Assignment #1 for Cal Newport’s Deep Work

Support, refute, or complicate the argument that Deep Work as defined by Cal Newport is an effective antidote to the spiritual and intellectual malaise of Casual Nihilism, the attention-fragmented zombie state of constantly being on one’s smartphone. Be sure to have 3 sources in your Works Cited page. Deep Work counts as one of your sources.

Essay Assignment #2 for Irresistible by Adam Alter

Support, refute, or complicate the argument that Adam Alter makes a convincing case that much of the technology mentioned in his book is not designed for consumer benefit but rather for the technocrats’ benefit by degrading the consumers into helpless addicts.

Essay Assignment #3 Options from Contemporary & Classic Arguments in which you will use the Toulmin Argument

Option One: Support, refute, or complicate the argument that Garrett Hardin’s analogy in “Lifeboat Ethics” makes an effective argument against traditional liberal approaches to helping the poor.

Option Two: Support, refute, or complicate Harlan Coben’s argument in “The Undercover Parent” that parents are morally compelled to breach their children’s computer privacy for the sake of protecting their children.

Option Three: Addressing Alfred Edmond’s “Why Asking for a Job Applicant’s Facebook Password is Fair Game,” support, refute, or complicate the argument that prospective employees are morally obligated to give up their social media information to potential employers.

Option Four. In the context of Peter Singer’s “Animal Liberation,” support, refute, or complicate that humans are morally compelled to eat a vegan diet.

Option Five. In the context of James Q. Wilson’s “Just Take Away Their Guns,” support, refute, or complicate the argument that anti-gun legislation is both ineffective and morally wrong.

Option Six. In the context of Charles Lawrence’s “On Racist Speech,” support, refute, or complicate the assertion that there are conditions that obligate us to censor speech so that there is no such thing as “free speech” as is commonly accepted.

Option Seven. In the context of the essays in Chapter 4, support, defend, or complicate the argument that in the New Economy college is an overrated and overpriced product that should cause many prospective college students to ponder more viable alternatives to building a strong career.

Essay #4 Options from Contemporary & Classic Arguments in which you will use the Toulmin Argument

Option One. In the context of the essays in Chapter 5, support, refute, or complicate the argument that the death penalty is a moral abomination that must be abolished.

Option Two. In the context of the essays in Chapter 6, support, refute, or complicate the argument that the best approach to the drug crisis in America is to legalize drugs.

Option Three. In the context of the essays in Chapter 7, support, refute, or complicate the argument that the psychological problems that ensue from Facebook use are so virulent that one should be persuaded to delete his or her Facebook account.

Option Four. In the context of the essays in Chapter 8, support, refute, or complicate the argument that we lack the adequate moral adaptation to accommodate the crises born from rapid bio-technological advances.

Option Five. In the context of the essays in Chapter 9, develop an argumentative thesis for a safe, moral, and just immigration policy.

Essay #5, Your Capstone Essay, from Lower Ed by Tressie McMillan Cottom

Support, refute, or complicate the argument that for-profit schools are so larded with deception, lies, and liabilities for the prospective student that these quasi-educational institutions must either be severely regulated or abolished altogether.

Reading and Writing Schedule

August 29 Introduction, Informed Opinion Vs. All Others

August 31 Deep Work 1-50

September 5 Deep Work 51-150

September 7 Deep Work 151-end

September 12 Essay 1 Due; Introduction to Casual Nihilism; Nosedive

September 14 Irresistible 1-50

September 19 Irresistible 51-100

September 21 Irresistible 101-150

September 26 Irresistible 151-end

September 28 Peer Edit; bring typed first draft so you don’t lose 20 points.

October 2 Essay 2 Due; Chapter 12 “Lifeboat Ethics”

October 5 Chapter 3 “The Under Cover Parent,” “Why Asking for a Job Applicant’s Facebook Password Is Fair Game”

October 10 Chapter 12 “Animal Liberation”

October 12 Chapter 3 “On Racist Speech,” “Military Women in Combat”

October 17 Chapter 3 “Just Take Away Their Guns”

October 19 Chapter 4 and the College Debate

October 24 Essay 3 Due; Chapter 5 Death Penalty Debate

October 26 Chapter 6 Legalizing Drugs Debate

October 31 Chapters 7 Alleged Toxicity of Facebook

November 2 Chapter 8 Genetic Modification Debate

November 7 Chapter 9 Immigration Debate

November 9 Chapter 11 Student Loan Debate

November 14 Essay 4 Due; Lower Ed 1-50 and For-Profit Video

November 16 Lower Ed 51-100

November 21 Lower Ed 101-150

November 23 Holiday

November 28 Lower Ed 151-200

November 30 Blue Book Exam #1

December 5 Lower Ed 201-end; counterarguments

December 7 Peer Edit

December 12 Essay 5 Due; Blue Book Exam Part 1 Based on Contemporary and Classic Arguments

December 14 Blue Book Exam Part 2

Peer Edit for Typed Essay (First Draft)

 

First Page

 

1. Do you have a salient, distinctive title that is relevant to your topic and thesis?
2. Do you have your name, instructor’s name, the course, and date (in that order) at the top left?

 

Format

 

1. Are you using 12-point font with Times New Roman?
2. Are your lines double-spaced?
3. Is your font color black?
4. Do you make sure there are no extra spaces between paragraphs (some students erroneously use 4 spaces between paragraphs)
5. Do you use 1-inch margins?
6. Do you use block format for quotes of 4 or more lines in which you indent another inch from the left margin?

Introduction

1. Does your introduction have a compelling hook using an anecdote, a troubling current event, a startling statistic, etc.?
2. Do you avoid pat phrases or clichés? For example, “In today’s society . . .” or “In today’s modern world . . .” or “Since the Dawn of Man . . .”

Thesis

1. Do you have a thesis that articulates your main purpose in clear, specific language?
2. Is your thesis sophisticated in that it makes an assertion that goes beyond the obvious and self-evident?
3. Is your thesis debatable?
4. Do you address your opponents with a concession clause? (While opponents of my proposal to raise the minimum wage to $22 an hour make some compelling points, their argument collapses when we consider _____________, _______________, __________________, and ________________. )
5. Does your thesis have explicit or implicit mapping components that outline the body paragraphs of your essay?

 

Questions from Your Reader (write on a separate page so you’ll have more room to write)

One. What’s most compelling about the essay so far?

Two. What is most needed for improvement so far?

Three. Something I would like the writer to explain more is . . .

Four. One last comment would be . . .

Five. What is the writer’s thesis?

Six. On a scale of 1-10, how compelling is the thesis and what could make it more compelling?

Seven. On a scale of 1-10, how effective is the title? Could it be improved? How?

Eight. Does the writer have well developed paragraphs with clear topic sentences?

Nine. Does the writer use a diversity of paragraph transitions?

Ten. Does the writer use diverse and appropriate signal phrases?

English 1A Syllabus for McMahon’s Fall 2017

English 1A Syllabus for McMahon’s Fall 2017

Office H121P; Phone Extension: 5673

Office Hours: Mon and Wed: 2:30-3:45; Tues and Thurs: 12:15-1 and 3:30-4:15

Email: [email protected]   

Course Catalog Description:  

This course is designed to strengthen the students’ ability to read with understanding and discernment, to discuss assigned readings intelligently, and to write clearly. Emphasis will be on writing essays in which each paragraph relates to a controlling idea, has an introduction and a conclusion, and contains primary and secondary support. College-level reading material will be assigned to provide the stimulus for class discussion and writing assignments, including a required research paper.  

Course Objectives:  

One. Recognize and revise sentence-level grammar and usage errors.

Two. Read and apply critical-thinking skills to numerous published articles and to college-level, book-length works for the purpose of writing and discussion.

Three. Apply appropriate strategies in the writing process including prewriting, composing, revising, and editing techniques.

Four. Compose multi-paragraph, thesis-driven essays with logical and appropriate supporting ideas, and with unity and coherence.

Five. Demonstrate ability to locate and utilize a variety of academic databases, peer-reviewed journals, and scholarly websites.

Six. Utilize MLA guidelines to format essays, cite sources in the texts of essays, and compile Works Cited lists. 

Student Learning Outcomes: 

Upon completion of this course, students will: 

1. Complete a research-based essay that has been written out of class and undergone revision. It should demonstrate the student’s ability to thoughtfully support a single thesis using analysis and synthesis. 
2. Integrate multiple sources, including a book-length work and a variety of academic databases, peer-reviewed journals, and scholarly websites. Citations must be in MLA format and include a Works Cited page. 
3. Demonstrate logical paragraph composition and sentence structure. The essay should have correct grammar, spelling, and word use.

Students with Disabilities:  

It is the policy of the El Camino Community College District to encourage full inclusion of people with disabilities in all programs and services.  Students with disabilities who believe they may need accommodations in this class should contact the campus Special Resource Center (310) 660-3295, as soon as possible.  This will ensure that students are able to fully participate.     

Academic Honesty and Plagiarism:  

El Camino College places a high value on the integrity of its student scholars.  When an instructor determines that there is evidence of dishonesty in any academic work (including, but not limited to cheating, plagiarism, or theft of exam materials), disciplinary action appropriate to the misconduct as defined in BP 5500 may be taken.  A failing grade on an assignment in which academic dishonesty has occurred and suspension from class are among the disciplinary actions for academic dishonesty (AP 5520).  Students with any questions about the Academic Honesty or discipline policies are encouraged to speak with their instructor in advance. 

Attendance Policy: Students are expected to attend their classes regularly. Students who miss the first class meeting or who are not in regular attendance during the add period for the class may be dropped by the instructor. Students whose absences from a class exceed 10% of the scheduled class meeting times may be dropped by the instructor. However, students are responsible for dropping a class within the deadlines published in the class schedule. Students who stop attending but do not drop may receive a failing grade.  

Student Resources:

• Reading Success Center (East Library Basement E-36)
  Software and tutors are available for vocabulary development & reading comprehension.  
• Library Media Technology Center - LMTC (East Library Basement)
  Computers are available for free use. Bring your student ID # & flash drive.  There’s a charge for printing.  
• Writing Center (H122)
  Computers are available for free use. Free tutoring is available for writing assignments, grammar, and vocabulary.  Bring your student ID & flash drive to save work.  Printing is NOT available.  
• Learning Resource Center - LRC (West Wing of the Library, 2^nd floor)
  The LRC Tutorial Program offers free drop-in tutoring.  For the tutoring schedule, go to www.elcamino.edu/library/lrc/tutoring .The LRC also offers individualized computer adaptive programs to help build your reading comprehension skills.    
• Student Health Center (Next to the Pool)
  The Health Center offers free medical and psychological services as well as free workshops on topics like “test anxiety.” Low cost medical testing is also available. 
• Special Resource Center – SRC (Southwest Wing of Student Services Building)

The SRC provides free disability services, including interpreters, testing accommodations, counseling, and adaptive computer technology. 

Books and Materials You Need to Buy for This Class

Cooked by Jeff Henderson

Acting Out Culture, 3^rd Edition, edited by James Miller

Rules for Writers, 8^th Edition by Diana Hacker

2 Blue Books for in-class writing exams

 

Total Words Written in Semester: 8,000; Total Points: 1,000

One. First four 1,400-word essays are 150 points each.

Two. Final Capstone Essay: 1,400-word essay is 200 points.

Three. The final essay, Number 5, is 200 points and needs a completed typed draft for peer edit due the class before the final draft is due. This completed draft must be completed on Peer Edit day or student loses 20 points on Final Capstone essay.

Four. In-Class Reading Exams are 500 words for 100 points each.

Total Points: 1,000 (A is 900-100; B is 800-899; C is 700-799; D is 600 to 699)

Essay #1 Options with 3 sources Due 9/18

One. Apply the wisdom of Arthur C. Brooks’ essay “Love People, Not Pleasure” to develop a thesis that analyzes the personal transformation of Jeff Henderson rendered in his memoir Cooked.

Suggested Outline:

Paragraph 1: Summarize Brooks’ essay in 250 words.

Paragraph 2: Summarize Henderson’s memoir in 250 words.

Paragraph 3: Your thesis that shows how Henderson’s transformation illustrated Brooks’ ideas: 150 words. (650 subtotal)

Paragraphs 4-8 will support your thesis with 150 words each for 750 words and 1,400 subtotal.

Paragraph 9, your conclusion, will restate your thesis in dramatic form.

Two. A wise man once said that when we think we're rising in life, we're really falling and when we think we're falling, we're really rising. In a 6-page essay, apply this wisdom, in all of its psychological complexity, to Jeff Henderson's journey and compare to someone from a personal interview.  Use blog, book, and personal interview for your sixth page, your Works Cited page.

Suggested Outline:

Paragraph 1: Write a narrative of someone who thought he or she was rising but was actually falling in 200 words.

Paragraph 2: Summarize Henderson’s memoir in 200 words.

Paragraph 3: Your thesis analyzes how Henderson’s memoir is an illustration of the wise man’s adage with 5 mapping components. 150 words, 550 subtotal.

Paragraphs 4-8 will support your thesis with 150 words for 750 words and 1,300 subtotal.

Conclusion, a dramatic restatement of your thesis for 100 words for 1,400 words. 

 

Essay #2 Options with 3 Sources for Works Cited Due 10/9

One. In an essay of appropriate length, defend, refute, or complicate Cal Newport’s argument from his book excerpt (available online) from So Good They Can't Ignore You that the Passion Hypothesis is dangerous and should be replaced by the craftsman mindset.

Use 3 sources for your Works Cited page.

Suggested Essay Structure:

Paragraph 1: Summarize Newport's argument in 250 words. 

Paragraph 2: Explain how you've been pursuing your career goals before reading Newport's book. Then explain how his book affects the way you might re-think your strategy and approach to your career plans. 250 words. 

Paragraph 3: Your thesis: Example: "Cal Newport's argument that should should shun the Passion Hypothesis and replace it with a craftsman's mindset is convincing (is not convincing) because ______________, ______________, _________________, and ______________________. 150 words (subtotal 650 words)

Paragraphs 4-7 are your supporting paragraphs (150 each for 600; subtotal is 1,250)

Paragraph 8: Counterargument-Rebuttal Paragraph in which you anticipate how your opponents will oppose your thesis and your rebuttal to their counterargument. (150 words for subtotal of 1,400 words)

Paragraph 9: Conclusion: Dramatic reiteration of your thesis. (100 words for grand total of 1,500 words).

Two. Sherry Turkle’s “The Flight from Conversation” and Curtis Silver’s “The Quagmire of Social Media Friendships” (444) allege certain pathologies result from social media. These pathologies include an empathy deficit, depression, narcissism, shortened attention span, online shaming, lost conversation skills, and even altered brain development. In an argumentative essay, support, refute, or complicate the assertion from Sherry Turkle’s “The Flight from Conversation” (online essay) that social media is harmful for our social, cultural and intellectual development.

Sample Outline

Paragraph 1 Summarize the pathologies explained in Turkle's and Silver's essays. 

Paragraph 2: Write a profile of a person you know who is squandering his or life on social media while becoming afflicted with a myriad of social pathologies. 

Paragraph 3: Write an argumentative thesis that either attributes these pathologies to social media, as is claimed in Turkle's essay, or argue that social media is not the culprit. 

Paragraphs 4-7: Support your thesis with these body paragraphs.

Paragraph 8: Anticipate how your opponents would disagree with you (counterargument) and show why your opponents are wrong (rebuttal). 

Typical counterargument goes like this: "My opponents claim that I am wrong because of _________; however, their claim fails to address ___________." Or, "My opponents will take issue with __________; however, their opposition is clearly misguided when we consider _______________."

Paragraph 9: Conclusion, a restatement of your thesis with powerful emotion (pathos). 

Essay #3 Options with 3 Sources Due 10/30

One. Refute, support, or complicate Asma’s assertion that green guilt is not only a relative to religious guilt but speaks to our drive to sacrifice self-indulgence for the drive of altruistic self-preservation and social reciprocity.

Two. Develop a thesis that supports, refutes, or complicates the assertion Debra J. Dickerson, who wrote the “The Great White Way,” would find Michael Eric Dyson's essay "Understanding Black Patriotism" a complement to Dickerson's ideas about race, power, and hierarchy.

Three. Support, refute, or complicate Debra J. Dickerson's argument that race in America is more of a social fantasy than a reflection of objective reality. 

Four. Show how the Jordan Peele movie Get Out builds on Debra J. Dickerson's argument that race in America is a cruel invention designed to create a hierarchy of power, one that can be seen in all its horror in post-Obama America. For sources, see NYT review , The Guardian review, and the Variety review. 

Five. Develop a thesis that analyzes the human inclination for staying within the tribe of sameness as explained in David Brooks’ “People Like Us” (very popular with students). 

Six. Support, refute, or complicate Nicholas Kristof’s assertion that slashing food stamps is morally indefensible.

Seven. Addressing at least one essay we've covered in class (“The Wages of Sin” and “Eat Cake, Subtract Self-Esteem), support, refute, or complicate the argument that overeating, anorexia, and other eating disorders are not the result of a disease but are habits of individual circumstance and economics.

Eight. Support, refute, or complicate the argument that feminist-political explanations for anorexia, as evident in Caroline Knapp's essay, are a ruse that hide the disease's real causes. 

Nine. In the context of “Our Baby, Her Womb,” support, defend, or complicate the argument that surrogate motherhood is a moral abomination.

Essay #4 Options with 3 Sources for Works Cited Due 11-20

One. Support, defend, or complicate the assertion that the unstoppable presence of trolls on Twitter has made being on Twitter, for many, an exercise so embedded in futility that deleting one's Twitter account is probably the best option. Consult Lindy West's "I've Left Twitter," Joel Stein's "How Trolls Are Ruining the Internet," Kathy Sierra's "Why the Trolls Will Always Win," Andrew Marantz's and "The Shameful Trolling of Leslie Jones." You can also consult the online essay “The Unsafety Net.”

Two. In the context of “The Flip Side of the Internet” and “The Evolution of Shaming,” develop a cause and effect thesis about the frenzy of shame that is evident in the age of social media.

Three. Comparing “Faces in the Mirror” and “The Flip Side of the Internet,” develop a thesis that analyzes the confluence of narcissism and celebrity worship.

Four. In the context of “Unspeakable Conversations,” defend, refute, or complicate Peter Singer’s position that there are moral grounds for infanticide or “mercy killings.” 

Five. Develop a thesis that defends, refutes, or complicates Paul Bloom’s assertion that simple-minded notions of empathy are actually dangerous and diminish us as human beings.

Six. Develop a thesis that defends, refutes, or complicates the argument that the NFL is a moral abomination that must be boycotted.

Seven. Develop a thesis that defends, refutes, or complicates the argument that mass incarceration is “The New Jim Crow.”

Essay #5 Options: Capstone Essay with 5 Sources for Works Cited Due 12/11.

One. Support, refute, or complicate Alfie Kohn’s assertion from “Degrading to De-grading” that grading is an inferior education tool that all conscientious teachers should abandon.

Two. Support, refute, or complicate the inferred lesson from bell hooks’ essay, “Learning in the Shadow of Race and Class” that upward mobility requires a betrayal of one’s economic class and even family.

Three. In the context of one or more essays we’ve read about standardized testing, support, refute, or complicate the assertion that standardized testing is a money-making canard sodden with incompetence, corruption, and moral bankruptcy, and therefore must be abolished.

Four. Support, refute, or complicate the argument that “Against School” and any other essays we’ve covered persuasively evidence that American education is more about protecting private business interests, maintaining class bias, and asserting mass control than it is about promoting real empowerment such as critical thinking, independence, and freedom. 

Five. In the context of John Taylor Gatto’s “Against School,” support, refute, or complicate the argument that that American education is more about protecting private business interests, maintaining class bias, and asserting mass control than it is about promoting real empowerment such as critical thinking, independence, and freedom. 

Six. Bell Hooks sees the self-destruction from extreme self-abasement on one hand and extreme privilege on the other. She is on a quest for a healthy middle ground. These components of toxic self-abasement and toxic privilege, and the sick symbiotic relationship between the rich and poor, are evident in Hooks' essay, "Learning in the Shadow of Race and Class" (287). Toxic abasement and the sick symbiotic relationship between the rich and the poor are also evident in "The Consequences--Undoing Sanity" (342), "How the Poor Are Made to Pay for Their Poverty," and Linda Tirado's online essay "Why I Make Terrible Decisions." Develop a thesis that compares the toxic symbiotic relationship between the rich and the poor in the aforementioned essays and show that human redemption is from a sense of healthy, well-balanced privilege that doesn't exclude social conscience. (This prompt has the thesis embedded in it.) 

Seven. Addressing Cathy Young's online essay "Linda Tirado's Poverty Tale: Not Quite Fake, Far from Accurate," develop an argumentative thesis that addresses the charge that Tirado is guilty of committing a "poverty hoax." 

Your guidelines for your Final Research Paper are as follows: 

This research paper should present a thesis that is specific, manageable, provable, and contestable—in other words, the thesis should offer a clear position, stand, or opinion that will be proven with research.   

You should analyze and prove your thesis using examples and quotes from a variety of sources.   

You need to research and cite from at least five sources.  You must use at least 3 different types of sources.     

At least one source must be from an ECC library database.    

At least one source must be a book, anthology or textbook.    

At least one source must be from a credible website, appropriate for academic use.  

The paper should not over-rely on one main source for most of the information. Rather, it should use multiple sources and synthesize the information found in them. 

This paper will be approximately 5-7 pages in length, not including the Works Cited page, which is also required.  This means at least 5 full pages of text.  The Works Cited page does NOT count towards length requirement.     

You must use MLA format for the document, in-text citations, and Works Cited page.   

You must integrate quotations and paraphrases using signal phrases and analysis or commentary.  

You must sustain your argument, use transitions effectively, and use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation. 

Your paper must be logically organized and focused.   

Late papers reduced a full grade. No late papers accepted a week past due date.  

Peer Edit

You must do a peer edit. You must show up to class on peer edit day with a completed typed draft for 20 points.

You Can’t “Ride” the Class

If you’re “riding” the class, that is missing more than 10% of classes and not keeping up with assignments, you can’t fulfill the Student Learning Outcomes, and you will be dropped.

You Must Use turnitin to submit essay and bring hard copy on due date

Each essay must be submitted to www.turnitin.com where it will be checked for illegal copying/plagiarism. I cannot give credit for an essay that is not submitted to this site by the deadline.   

The process is very simple; if you need help, detailed instructions are available at http://turnitin.com/en_us/training/student-training/student-quickstart-guide   

You will need two pieces of information to use the site: 

Class ID and Enrollment Password, which I will give you first week of class

Classroom Decorum: No smart phones can be used in class. If you’re on your smart phone and I see you, you get a warning the first time. Second time, you must leave the class and lose 25 points. Third time, you must leave the class and lose 50 points.  The above also applies to talking and doing homework from other classes. 

Tardies: It’s reasonable to be late a couple of times a semester, but some students consistently show up late to class, and this distraction compromises the learning environment significantly. Therefore, starting on the fourth tardy, 50 points must be deducted from total grade and another 25 points must be deducted for every tardy after that.

Reading and Writing Schedule

August 28 Introduction; syllabus, writing assignments, grading rubric

August 30 Cooked 1-50; comma splices

September 4 Holiday

September 6 Cooked 51-100; signal phrases, sentence fragments

September 11 Cooked 101-end; parallelism

September 13 In-Class Blue Book Essay Exam #1 for 100 points

September 18 Cooked Essay #1 Due; Cal Newport So Good They Can’t Ignore You

September 20 Can Newport continued; dangling modifiers

September 25 “Flight from Conversation”; writing introductions

September 27 "Quagmire of Social Media Relationships"  444 and "Exploring Facebook Depression"

October 2 "Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?", "Facebook Isn't Making Us Lonely," "How Facebook Makes Us Unhappy"

October 4 ; "I, Narcissist--Vanity, Social Media, and the Human Condition"; signal phrase review

October 9 Essay 2 Due; “Green Guilt” (25); sentence variety

October 11 “The Great White Way” (68); “Understanding Black Patriotism (52)

October 16 “People Like Us” (62)

October 18 “Prudence or Cruelty” (172); counterargument templates

October 23 “The Wages of Sin” (181), “Add Cake, Subtract Self-Esteem” (188)

October 25 “Our Baby, Her Womb” (418)

October 30 Essay 3 Due; Should We Delete Our Twitter Accounts?

November 1 “The Faces in the Mirror” (31), “The Flip Side of Internet Fame” (90)

November 6 “Unspeakable Conversations” (96)

November 8 Online essays about empathy and boycotting the NFL

November 13 Online essays about reparations debate

November 15 Online essays about mass incarceration and “The New Jim Crow,” including “The Caging of America”

November 20 Essay 4 Due; “From Degrading to De-Grading” (238)

November 22 “Learning in the Shadow of Race and Class” (287), “Against School” (271)

November 27 “Everything You’ve Heard About Failing Schools Is Wrong” (252), online essay "Why Poor Schools Can't Win at Standardized Testing"; John Oliver video

November 29 “The Consequences—Undoing Sanity” (342), “Fifteen Years on the Bottom Rung” (353), online essay: Linda Tirado's "This Is Why Poor People's Bad Decisions Make Perfect Sense"; Cathy Young's "Linda Tirado's Poverty Tale: Not Quite Fake, Far from Accurate"

December 4 “How the Poor Are Made to Pay for Their Poverty,” write preliminary thesis in class

December 6 Peer Edit: Bring your typed completed first draft to class.

December 11 Essay 5 Due; Blue Book Exam Part 1

December 12 Blue Book Exam Part 2