Why Mrs. Greene Should Let Us Have Friday Off...

OK, so here's the deal. We're far enough ahead that we could potentially take off on Friday. But, I've got my doubts. For one thing, people aren't asking many questions about the MGRP. That tells me that I've either done a fantastic job as a teacher of explaining it to you, or you have no idea what you're doing. The latter makes me fear that you need more in-class time to prepare. Also looming large in my mind is the fact that I'm afraid that half or more of you won't even bother to show up on the Monday after Spring Break. Wouldn't it make more sense to cancel that class instead, considering most of you have tests on Friday anyway? Maybe I should make you act like responsible adults and come both Friday and Monday. After all, in "the real world" you'd get in trouble if you left for your vacation early and you came back from it late. Maybe this is a good "life lesson" opportunity. Isn't that what college is supposed to be about as well? I don't know. I might cancel class because I like you. But I don't know if I like you that much...
-- JG

Imagine, a five year old all hopped up on caffeine and sugar, then
trying to get them to sit down in class and actually pay attention. This
is exactly what a college student is like the Friday before spring
break. The student is not listening, usually either zoning out thinking
about their spring break plans, or fidgeting around tapping their pencil
just really anxious to leave. The one thing they are listening for is
the famous “see you all after spring break” line that all teachers seem
to say. This is when they know they are released. During this day no
advances in work were made due to this one extra day because mentally
the students weren’t even there. Not to mention that all information
will be lost one way or another during spring break anyway. So in all
class on Friday, if we have it, will be like we didn’t even have it at
all.

-- Purtell

I feel if we were to have class on Friday that most people would be exhuasted from the rush of work due before break and the amount of tests scheduled, which i have many of myself. Everyone im sure is anxious to be on their way home and is anticipating a week of relaxation. My partner and i have been able to grasp a good idea of how our paper is to be completed, especially from the examples you have given in class. The monday after break would be nice to have off as well because since class is so early and people will be traveling on sunday back to school, im sure most of us will be tired. Instead of getting up early and discussing our paper with our partner in class, we could arrange a time later on in the day to get together and go over our paper before peer review when we are more rested. If we have any questions we could email you as well.
-- Johnson

Why Do You Think The English Dept. Makes Students Write The Multi-Genre Research Paper?

The MGRP is a good way to get students to explore every aspect of a certain scenario. It seems like a great deal of work for one person, but when split between two people is rather reasonable. The MGRP also seems like a good teamwork exercise to prepare a student for the workplace because, as you know, it’s not always a walk in the park. It seems to be able to bring depth to the reader’s, as well as the writer’s, knowledge of the given subject.
-- Loring

I think that English Department makes us write the MGRP because it is so different than all the other papers that we already had to write this year. This paper is not a typical paper because it does not require us to write a persuasive paper. It is an objective paper that allows us to use our creative side.

-- McCullough

The department wants to have students form a broad objective question
and research for more details over several genres. It forces students
to look at multiple perspectives on a single subject. This paper is
designed to let the students research a topic of their choice so that
it is interesting to write, as well as read. I think this is a great
paper because if researched and written well, a lot of interesting
points and observations could be made that wouldn't normally be
noticed.

-- Shupe

The MGRP is a type of paper that not many of us has ever written, let
along even heard of. This unfamiliarity brings up the burning question,
"Why does the English Department make us do the MGRP?" Well for one, it
is probably meant to set us up for English 102 which we will all have to
take at some point in our college career. English 102 is a class based
around the research paper, so I guess the Department thinks that if we
get exposed to it before we actually enter the class then we might have
an easier time. Another reason is to give us a break from writing
boring old papers. The MGRP seems like a paper that is going to let us
be creative and have fun, or have as much fun as we can while writing a
paper.
--Edwards

So...Did Anything Surprising Happen?

I was most surprised with how much information I received
from the interview. I asked about fifteen questions and had plenty to
write about in my paper. I thought the paper was easy to write
because I had all the information I needed in my transcript. I was
also surprised how hard it was to set up a meeting with the person I
was interviewing. I thought I would be able to meet with him any time
I wanted, but it came down to the last minute. The last thing that
surprised me was the responses I got to some of my questions. I
thought the person I was interviewing would give short simple
answers. He gave very detailed answers and was not afraid to open
up. The interview paper was not as bad as I thought it would be.
-- Devan

For my interview, I chose my sociology teacher here at WVU, Daniel
Brewster. I interviewed him on how society can make a country how it
is. I made this point by discussing the genocide occuring in Africa
with him, because he is very knowledgable of the events occuring over
there. What my paper was about was why no other countries were
helping the people of AFrica, and how it relates to sociology. The
interview was very insightful. First, I had to research the events in
Africa, which I found to be greatly disturbing. Second, Brewster
taught me to notice the sociological aspects of why America wasn't
helping Africa. I couldn't beleive some things that he said because
they make sense, but you never want to hear them because it makes
America arrogant and unmoral. Overall, he opened my eyes to how a
society transforms how the country acts.
-Tanya

I was very suprised to find out the reasons why my friend smokes,
and the amount of money that he spent on smoking a week. I was also very
interested to find out his view towards smoking, and how other people
felt about him smoking. And finally i was shocked to learn that smokig
had not really affected him at all. He is still able to do everything
that he had been able to do before he started smoking.
-- Anonymous

Gender -- Nature or Nurture?

Is it nature or nurture that causes a child to develope socially? This blog has to deal with the short write we did in class on whether it is nature or nurture that made that little girl want to play with dolls and baby the fire truck. No one makes a little girl play with dolls. I understand that she may only play with the toys that are presented to her, and her parents have all the say in what type of toys she gets, but saying that gender roles are the only reason girls play with dolls and boys play with trucks is an extremely close minded statement. A not so long time ago people thought it was weird for a girl to play with mud, worms, and little boys, but now a days it seems to just be kids being kids. I believe that nurture has alot to do with how a kid grows up and how they will act, but to insist that this is the only factor in development is rediculus. Nature has to have something to do with how someone grows up. Not only does it determine a persons height, hair color, and all other physical traits, I dont see why it wouldnt have and effect on a persons personality. If someone is depressed, and it is due to a mental illness, that is due to nature. No one socially distorted that person to make their brain release the chemicals that cause depression. Before i piss too many people off, i will stop with my own close minded opinon just to see what type of hate mail i get after this blog entry.
--Comstock

If You Could Interview Anybody In The World, Who Would It Be?

If I could interview anyone in the world it would have to be Edward Norton. He is such an amazing actor and i'm sure has an interesting web to weave. Just to be able to listen to the experiences he has had and the places he has gotten to see due to his career would be phenomenal. Also to listen to how he prepares for certain roles. Who or what did he observe in order to get into character for American History X. That is such an infomrative film about contemporary society, yet it's hard to believe that anyone can be filled with such hate. He managed to pull it off with flying colors. Another question I would have for him would be who is his favorite actor to work with, or who he considered the most intimidating before he began filming. Finally I would want to ask if he feels that his life is fulfilled? Is this what he planned for himself, what changed? If not, what did he want to do with his life? -Irving

There are a lot of people I would like to interview. Some names that come to mind are Larry David, Hitler, and MLK, but none of them would compare to an interview with Jesus. Jesus is arguably one of the most influential people of all time. I would want to interview him because he a different person than you and me. He was a man without sin and was the son of God. Being a Christian, there are many uncertain facts about God, Heaven, and the Bible. In my interview, I would ask Jesus to clarify his message and to clear up all the controversy over him. An example is the Trinity, which is something that was never really explained in the Bible other than that God exists as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The questions to ask Jesus would be endless. -Kang

Evaluation Vs. Letter Grades

I feel the the grading system for the major papers we are to write is a fair system. The check system however i never really liked because it is not specific enough to tell the writer what he did or did not do correct. I feel that the grading system overall in English is perfect because writing is all about progression and if people are bad writers at the beginning, their english background may not have been as good as others. The system that is in place with the english classes is great i feel and i think other subjects should look towards progression throughout the course because that is what education is all about!-O'Neill

The comments on the paper are very helpful. How else are we going to know what a teacher likes and dislikes in a paper if he or she does not tell us? However, I am still partial to the letter grade. It is a clear cut way to let us know how we do on our work. You can judge your own paper based on the comments received, but how do you really know? A teacher may like the paper the first time around, but may find something different the next time. If there are not standards for grading made, how do us as students know whether the teacher takes off the same points for the same mistake on two different papers? The check system is a mix between the two. We at least know for a fact that we are getting a good grade when we receive a check plus. Also, it is pretty self-explanatory if you get a check or a check minus. You either did an ok job or a crappy one. -- Cunningham

A Comment On Culture

I felt a number of different things come out of the Bordo article. Firstly, I think her views on what "the perfect body" should look like, are very profound. Our society is collapsing because a picture is painted for women that if you aren't 5'9", 125 lbs., you're fat. That's not the way it should be. People are developing eating disorders and anxiety issues trying to fit the mold that's, if anything, completely ridiculous. The same thing for men. I personally think that big, huge muscle men are an absolute turn off, but there are ads and constant commercials about how boys need to be fit and look a certain way so that girls will like them. Eventually, I hope that this mold will break. It's stopping people from being happy because they constantly feel inferior to the "Barbie and Ken" dolls that are walking around us today. It's an epidemic and if it doesn't stop, people are going to keep developing major problems.

-- Sizemore