CRM—Teaching Resources Nickole Brown’s Syllabus Fall 2010 Bellarmine Univ. The past is a rich resource on which to draw in order to make decisions for the future, but it does not dictate our choices. —Nelson Mandela The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line. —W. E. B. DuBois, 1903 Violence is black children going to school for twelve years and receiving six years’ worth of education. —Julian Bond ICD 101-KM: Freshman Seminar The Civil Rights Movement: A History in Poems Fall Semester, 2010 Class Meets Wednesdays, 6:00-8:30 p.m., SC, # 232 (School of Communication, formerly BAC) Professor Nickole Brown, M.F.A. Office: Alumni Hall, #203 Phone Number: 502-767-2867 E-mail: [email protected]Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday, 5:00-6:00 p.m. & by appointment _____________________________________________________________ Course Description
Transcript
CRM—Teaching Resources
Nickole Brown’s Syllabus Fall 2010 Bellarmine Univ.
The past is a rich resource on which to draw in order to make decisions for the future,but it does not dictate our choices.—Nelson Mandela
The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the colorline.—W. E. B. DuBois, 1903
Violence is black children going to school for twelve years and receiving six years’ worth of education.—Julian Bond
ICD 101-KM: Freshman SeminarThe Civil Rights Movement: A History in PoemsFall Semester, 2010
Class Meets Wednesdays, 6:00-8:30 p.m., SC, # 232(School of Communication, formerly BAC)
Professor Nickole Brown, M.F.A. Office: Alumni Hall, #203Phone Number: 502-767-2867E-mail: [email protected] Hours: Monday & Wednesday, 5:00-6:00 p.m. & by
A look at black experience in America, told through the voices of poets, fiction writers, and philosophers. Concentrating on the history of Civil Rights movement, this seminar will examine the trials and triumphs of this history with a focus on the challenges still to be faced in modern day society. We will explore the personal details of events through literature, but in dialogue with coverage of the time period, specificallyas depicted in documentary footage and historical texts. Readings will focus mainly on writers such as Langston Hughes, Richard Wright, Eudora Welty, Gwendolyn Brooks, Flannery O’Connor, AudreLorde, Lucille Clifton, Rita Dove, Patricia Smith, and others.
The Freshman Seminar courses are designed to engage students, atthe very start of their university careers, in serious academic inquiry with an interdisciplinary focus. With the content framework of investigating a significant topic or issue, the primary focus of Freshman Seminar courses is to help students begin to achieve a set of skills/abilities required for success at the university level and beyond. The topics of Freshman Seminar are set by the individual instructors and reflect a widerange of interdisciplinary concerns. Students are required to practice both critical and creative approaches to the individualseminar topic and to develop essential university-level abilities in oral and written communication.
_____________________________________________________________Required Texts and Resources
*The Civil Rights Reader: American Literature from Jim Crow to Reconcilation, edited by Julie Buckner Armstrong
*Eyes on the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Years 1954-1965, by Juan Williams
*Blood Dazzler: Poems, by Patricia Smith
*You’ll also be reading various poems and critical essays that I’ll provide links to, or PDF copies of.
*The Internet: some of your assigned reading will be online. We’ll also be listening to literary readings online, as well as watching web-based video and news clips. Make sure you have regular, dependable Internet access with audio, either at home or through the library or student computer labs.
Also recommended:
*Every Shut Eye Ain’t Asleep: An Anthology of Poetry By African Americans Since 1945, edited by Michael Harper & Anthony Walton
*The Longman Handbook for Writers & Readers, by Chris Anson (a comprehensive reference to grammar, writing, research, and documentation)
Students will be graded upon the timely completion and quality of five writing assignments, one ten-minute presentation, and a final research paper.
Classroom participation is vital, and no student will be judged on the basis of his/her opinion. The classroom should be a safeplace for open and honest conversation about topics covered in this class, and while all students will be expected to express their feelings about our given readings, it is important that each student differentiate reason from emotional responses, meaning that objective thought is encouraged.A proposition is generally considered to be objectively true when its conditions are “mind-independent.” Put another way, objective truths are those which are discovered rather than assumed or given.This
discovery should be made from readings, both assigned and independently chosen.
In addition, all students are expected to read with an active mind and to bring the energy and thoughts about their reading into the classroom. _____________________________________________________________Attendance Policy
Attendance is required. It will be difficult for you to pass this course with more than two unexcused absences (two weeks of class.) Your grade will be dropped by a letter grade for each day after those two that you are absent, therefore six absences will result in a failing grade. (If you have an A in the class and miss four classes, you will receive a C.) I don’t distinguish between excused and unexcused absences (this includes university-sponsored and sports-related absences), so please take care in missing class. Chronic tardiness also counts as an absence or absences. If you miss class, it is yourresponsibility to get the reading assignments for the following week from your fellow classmates and make up missed work. If your assigned work is late, you are allowed until 6:00 p.m. the following day (Thursday) to e-mail it to me with the understanding that there will be a late penalty. Anything turned in after this time will not be considered for a grade unless you have a documented medical or emergency excuse.
The University requires students who will be absent from class while representing the University to inform their instructors intwo steps. During the first week of the course, students must meet with each instructor to discuss the attendance policy and arrangements for absences related to University-sponsored events. Second, students must provide the instructor with a signed Student Absentee Notification Form, available via the student portal on the University intranet, at the earliest possible opportunity, but not later than the week prior to the
anticipated absence. The Student Absentee Notification From does not serve as an excused absence from class. Your instructor has the final say about excused and unexcused absences and it is the student’s responsibility to know and abide by the instructor’s policy.
I strongly endorse and will follow the academic honesty policy as published in the 2009-11Course Catalog and in the 2010-11Student Handbook. Both documents are available online via mybellarmine.edu. Students and faculty must be fully aware of what constitutes academic dishonesty; claims of ignorance cannotbe used to justify or rationalize dishonest acts. Academic dishonesty can take a number of forms, including but not limitedto cheating, plagiarism, fabrication, aiding and abetting, multiple submissions, obtaining unfair advantage, and unauthorized access to academic or administrative systems. Definitions of each of these forms of academic dishonesty are provided in the academic honesty section of the Student Handbook. All confirmed incidents of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, and sanctions will be imposed as dictated by the policy. Penalties range from failing an assignment or course to dismissal from the University, depending, in part, on the student’s previous record of academic dishonesty. On the second offense during a student’s academic career, the student will be immediately suspended for the semester in which the most recent offense took place. On the third offense, the student will be dismissed from the University. _____________________________________________________________Academic Resource Center (ARC)
Bellarmine University is committed to providing services and programs that assist all students in further developing their
learning and study skills and in reaching their academic goals. Students needing or wanting additional and/or specialized assistance related to study techniques, writing, time management, tutoring, test-taking strategies, etc., should seek out the resources of the ARC, located on the A-level of the W. L. Lyons Brown Library. Call (502) 272-8071 for more information.
Students with disabilities who require accommodations (academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids or services) for this course must contact the Disability Services Coordinator. Please do not request accommodations directly from the professor. The disability Services Coordinator is located in the Counseling Center (2120 Newburg Road), phone number 272-8480. _____________________________________________________________Learning Outcomes and Assessment Strategies
A successful student will demonstrate—through reflection papers,class discussion, a research paper, and an in-class presentation—a reading and understanding of the history of sexual orientation in the United States from the Victorian era to contemporary times.
A variety of teaching methods will be used in this course. The primary approach will be class discussion. Students will be expected to have read assigned material, to have responded to itin written form, and come prepared to discuss. Critical attention to films shown in class, as well as respect for the opinions of everyone in the group, is essential. As a result of reading and analyzing texts, participating students will increase their artistic, historical, and literary comprehension,especially understanding how the arts interpret, explore, reflect, challenge, and shape social values, as well as develop
and articulate responses to aesthetic experiences; thinking skills, especially analyzing thinking processes, including how your experiences, feelings, ideas and intuition affect thinking;and communication skills, especially writing and speaking with clarity, grace, and thoughtfulness, as well as reading and listening with understanding and insight.
(Please see chart on following page for a breakdown of specific learning objectives.) Course Objectives
Learning Objective General Ed Objective(s) IDC Skill(s)Assessment(s)
Students will learn to think critically and express themselves in an informed, objective manner Critical thinking skills;Facility in oral and written communication;Knowledge of philosophical approaches vital to an understanding of ultimate truth, the natureof the self, and a good life; Knowledge of Christian theology and its ongoing dialogue with other religious and intellectual traditions;Familiarity with principles and practices in the social sciences. Writing, Reading, Speaking, Seminar Skills, Technology Skills, Research and Information Literacy Skills, Reflection
Classroom participation & discussion, Reflection papers, In-class presentation of paper, Final research paperStudents will develop aesthetic understanding by interpreting poems and literature Familiarity with forms and creative processes in literature and the arts;Facility in oral and written communication.
Writing, Reading, Speaking, Reflection
Classroom participation & discussion, Reflection papers, In-class presentation of paper, Final research paperStudents will develop an historical understanding by analyzing poems, and appreciate the value of the creative imagination and how it both reflects and shapes events and historical memory
Critical thinking skills;Facility in oral and written communication;Understanding of the historical development of the modern world;Familiarity with principles and practices in the social sciences;Quantitative reasoning using graphical and symbolic representations.
Writing, Reading, Speaking, Technology Skills, Research and Information Literacy Skills, Reflection
Classroom participation & discussion, Reflection papers, In-class presentation of paper, Final research paperStudents will gain a compassionate understanding of various minorities and classes within the United States and understand how attitudes towards them plays a part in their existence
Critical thinking skills;Facility in oral and written communication;Knowledge of philosophical approaches vital to an understanding of ultimate truth, the natureof the self, and a good life; Knowledge of Christian theology and its ongoing dialogue with other religious and intellectualtraditions;Understanding of the historical development of the modern world;Comparative understanding of the world’s peoples, place, and cultures;Quantitative reasoning using graphical and symbolic representations. Writing, Reading, Speaking, Technology Skills,
Research and Information Literacy Skills, Reflection, Catholic Perspective on Social Issues
Classroom participation & discussion, Reflection papers, In-class presentation of paper, Final research paper
_____________________________________________________________Tentative Schedule of Assignments & Activities
Reading assignments for the following week are made at the end of each class. This schedule is subject to change per the instructor’s digression.
August 25: First day of class—syllabus distribution
September 1: A History of Segregation& The Beginnings of the Civil Rights Movement
-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize: Chapter One&The Civil Rights Reader
-Census assignment due -Discussion about reading and understanding poetry&
literature in the context of history
September 8: Racism 101-Discussion of assigned reading from The Civil Rights
Reader-Memorization due for Langston Hughes’ poem “Harlem”-In-class viewing of 1961 film, A Raisin In The Sun-Online plagiarism tutorial due (required of all
Freshmen)
September 15: Awakenings—Emmett Till
-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize: Chapter Two
-Writing assignment#1 generated from The Civil Rights Reader
-Begin to track map assignment in-class-Each student to select author for thesis focus
September 22:Mobilization, Desegregation,& Boycotts—Montgomery, Alabama
-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize: Chapter Three
-Writing assignment #2 generated from The Civil Rights Reader
-In-class viewing of the film, The Long Walk Home
September 29: The Power & Price of Civil Disobedience—Little Rock
-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize: Chapter Four&The Civil Rights Reader
-Tour of Louisville assignment due-Bibliography for research paper due (minimum 3
scholarly and 2 literary sources).
October 6: The Power & Price of Civil Disobedience—SNCC & The Freedom Rides
-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize: Chapter Five
-Writing assignment #3 generated from The Civil Rights Reader
October 13: The Power & Price of Civil Disobedience—Albany &Birmingham
-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize: Chapter Six&The Civil Rights Reader
October 20: Mississippi—Now & Then
-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize: Chapter Seven&The Civil Rights Reader
-First three introductory pages(900 words) of research paper due with clear statement of thesis.
October 27: Two Marches on Washington—1963 & 1968-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize:
Interlude-All to schedule one-on-one individual student-teacher conference (15-20 minute).
November 3: No class—individual conferences
November 10: The Black Arts Movement, Malcolm X, and The Black Panthers
-Writing assignment #4 generated from The Civil Rights Reader
November 17:The Bridge To Freedom-Quiz & discussion of readings from Eyes on The Prize:
Chapter Eight&The Civil Rights Reader-Final Research Paper Due: NO extensions granted
November 24: No Class—Thanksgiving Holiday
December 1: Hurricane Katrina-Writing assignment #5 due for Patricia Smith’s Blood
Dazzler
December 8, 6:30-9:30 p.m.: Final Student Presentations (starts at 6:30 p.m.)
-In-class essay question& map test-Any extra credit work due
_____________________________________________________________Details on Assignments
*Tentative due dates for assignments are listed in the schedule above. Please bring all written assignments with you to class; do not e-mail it to instructor. Should you miss class, make sure to e-mail paper to instructor by 6:00 p.m., the day of missed class, before class begins. Anything sent to instructor afterthis time will be dropped one letter grade; late papers will not be accepted after 6:00 p.m. the following day.
QuizzesIn-class quizzes will regularly be given on assigned reading. You must be present in class to take these quizzes, and there isno opportunity to make up for missed quizzes.
Writing Assignments*Fiveinformal but thoughtful papers, written in response to a prompt given for reading assignments. Informal does not mean you should not mind concerns of grammar, punctuation, or spelling, but it does mean that you can approach the paper from a personal point of view, reacting directly to your readings in a creative, open, and honest way.*Each reflection paper should be at least two (600 words) and nolonger than four pages typed, 12-point font, double-spaced, maximum 1” margins.*Write your name, as well as the title and author of reading, atthe top of the first page*Number your pages*Staple all pages together
Research Paper*A formal, thesis-driven research paper is dueNovember 17. *This paper should concentrate on one author of your choice selected from The Civil Rights Reader. Author should be chosen early in the semester (September 15) to allow for ample time to read at least one additional work by them and to learn about their life and approach to their writing.
*Paper should reflect a deep understanding of the author’s background, publications, and philosophies, but take care not towrite a report simply recounting straightforward biographical information. This is a thesis paper, which means you will need a debatable topic that explores the answers to questions you want to explore. The crux of this research should focus on how your author’swriting depicts the history and experience of beingblack in America. The best papers start with questions you haveof author and mines their work for answers. How, for example, does your author’s work deal with racism? And what force did his/her voice have in the Civil Rights Movement? Is there a particular way that your author suggests society deal with the problems of racism? Is there a root cause of racism that is explored in his/her work? *While our writing assignments will be personal reflections and responses, your research paper should be objective, approaching the chosen topic from a place of reason and research.*An IDC evaluation rubric will be distributed for class and usedfor grading the final paper.
Length:*Paper should be seven (2,000 words) to tenpages typed, 12-pointfont, double-spaced, 1” margins.
Bibliography:*Paper to be written throughout the semester. Take care not to wait until November to begin on your paper—it will require significant research and reading on your part, and this assignment is the cornerstone of your work in this course. There is a reason why deadlines are set as early as September tobegin this process!*Minimum of three scholarly resources listed in MLA style. It is recommended that one of these sources be a biography of the author and the other source be a book or critical essay that helps to put the poet’s work into a literary and/or historical context. Essays written by the author about his/her own work arehighly recommended as a third source.
*Minimum of two literary sources from one featured author listedin MLA style. The first source will, of course, be The Civil Rights Reader. The second source should be another creative work written by the author, either a collection of poems, a collection of stories, or a novel. Autobiographies would count as a scholarly source.*Website or film sourcesis acceptable in addition to five book sources, but Wikipedia is forbidden.
Grammar and control of language:*Reading from The Longman Handbook encouraged to review tenets of college-level writing.*A grade will be given on all the draft of the first three pagesdue on October 20. For anyone receiving a C (74%) or less, you will be required to bring your paper to the ARC for final revisions. A signature will be required.
Final Presentation.*A final 10-minute oral presentation of thesis topic and research findings will serve as your final exam for this class.*Power-point required with direct citation quotes and visuals. *Make sure to know your material well so that you don’t have to rely on your notes and are able to make eye contact with your peers.*Engage with listeners in the room and be prepared to answer questions that may arise from your presentation.
Class participation. Because this is a discussion-based course, this class relies on dialogue; therefore, you will be required to attend class on time and participate verbally.
A note about content.Please know that some of the material covered for this class maytake you out of your comfort zone in terms of content, politicalview, and belief. Reading materials and film may be explicit orprofane, and all students are expected to discuss their content in a mature, intelligent way.
Opportunities for Extra Credit.
1. Interview someone within the community who has a clear memoryof the Civil Rights era. (600 word minimum)3. Attend an African-American event off-campus. A list of possible events will be provided upon request.
_____________________________________________________________Course Requirements and Grading Scale
Grades are generally assigned according to strength of writing and quality of though. Late work will be accepted only with permission from me. Class participation is strongly encouraged.
Grade BreakdownClassroom participation & discussion 25%(in-class quizzes will count for 10%)Reflection papers (five total) 30% (6% each) Final research paper 25%Final presentation 10%Additional assignments 10%
Extra Credit: additional reflection papers 5% each (maximum of 3accepted)
Total final points are assigned to letter grades as follows:
-All cell phones must be turned to the silent (not vibrate) setting before class begins.
-Laptop computers should be closed and/or OFF during class. If it is necessary for you to take notes on a computer, please talkto instructor for permission.
-Absolutely no text messaging in class. This includes connecting to Facebook or any other social networking sites.
-This class is a safe space, where all students should be able to speak freely and frankly. Disagreement between students (andbetween students and instructor) are permissible, but be respectful.
-Feel free to approach the instructor with any concerns you might have about assignments, classroom discussion, or any otherpertinent topics.
In-class contacts to use in case of absence to get assignments for following week:
1.2.3.This syllabus and/or the course schedule may need to be altered owing to unforeseen circumstances.
-----------------------------------------------------------------Original Message-----From: Story Matkin-Rawn [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Tuesday, April 21, 2009 8:11 PMTo: [email protected]: RE: Civil rights movement course materials
Dear Ira,
I'm sorry, but I cannot recommend one part of Eyes on the Prize above others. I actually planned to show different segments over the years because I love the whole series so much :) When I took a civil rights class, we actually watched the entire series, but that was a residential campus and since we lived there, we thought nothing of going to watch movies every Thursday at 7 p.m.
Other great movies are Bill Cosby's Lost, Stolen, and Strayed. This was militant 1970 Bill Cosby. It does the same job as Riggs's Ethnic Notions, but manages to seem less dated despite Cosby's black power-looking leather jacket. It's much harder tofind, though, so I'm using Ethnic Notions until I can locate a copy for UCA.
Fundi: The Story of Ella Baker (1981) had a big impact on me when I was a student. Freedom on My Mind. Directed by Connie Field and Marilyn Mumford (1994) is good. So is Spike Lee's
Four Little Girls. Beyond that, I can't really think of any more documentaries at the moment.
Yes -- I think Anne Braden's work would be great to teach with. I haven't read Vincent Harding, sorry to say. I'll put that on my reading list. And Dittmer's Local People is fantastic. It teaches about the sophistication of the white opposition even better than Payne, which is a good counterbalance to the Hollywood portrait of white supremacy as a stupid sheriff stuff.Craig's Change is Gonna Come uses black music to teach about race politics in the 1970s and 1980s. It's lively and students feel a sense of authority when they talk about music which really helps with classroom discussion. If it weren't so long, I would have used Jeff Chang's Can't Stop Won't Stop, which doesa dandy job of illustrating via hip hop both the urban crisis ofthe 1980s and 1990s and the rise of "drug" gangs to replace political gangs (like the Young Lords) during Urban Renewal and the War on Drugs. But the other three books were already as bigas the bible, so I had to stop somewhere.
Other than this, I haven't much to offer in the way of an introduction. I haven't started to write my CRM lectures yet, and probably won't until this semester finishes on May 4th. Youdo, though, have a copy of the black press project. It's on page 7 of the course application that I sent. I look forward toreading the your articles! Keep in touch. I'm sure I'll have advice to ask of you, too, once my mind isn't locked on grading final papers.
Best,Story
------------------------------From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Claire WhitlingerSent: Monday, April 04, 2011 4:10 PMTo: Ira GrupperSubject: Civil Rights Course
Hi Ira,
Great talking to you today. Here is a list of the resources I mentioned today, plus a few more:
Race: The Power of an Illusion; episode 2 "The Story We Tell":This three mini series is a great introduction to race in America. I think you'll find episode two particularlyhelpful for introducing students to the origins of slavery. Here's the online link (http://www.pbs.org/race/000_General/000_00-Home.htm) but you can get it at most university libraries.
Racism: A Brief Introduction by George Fredrickson: This is a fantastic book! It is a comparison of antisemitism in Germany, and racism in South Africa and the United States. It covers a lot of material but is still incredibly approachable (http://www.amazon.com/Racism-History-George-M-Fredrickson/dp/0691116520/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1301946047&sr=8-2).
Eyes Off the Prize: The United Nations and the African American Struggle for Human Rights, 1944-1955 by Carol Anderson: The first couple chapters in this book are a great introduction to the early civil rights (really Human Rights movement). It also deals with the impact of WWII and the Cold War on the movement
Freedom Summer by Doug McAdam: One of the best books on SNCC I've read, in particular, because it discusses how Freedom Summer laid the foundation for later movements (Women's Movement and Anti-War Movement) (http://www.amazon.com/Freedom-Summer-Doug-McAdam/dp/0195064720).
The Dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance - A NewHistory of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power by Danielle McGuire: I haven't read this one, but I've only heard good things. This book led to the Alabama legislature's apology for its mishandling of rape cases. The story broke just a few weeks ago.
Matt Lassiter: Matt is a professor of history at Michigan and does a lot of work on the urban South. Here is one of his syllabi, but the only section that I thought would be relevant is the section on the "long civil rights movement" (http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mlassite/syllabus688.html).
Stephen Berrey: Stephen would also be a good contact. He works on twentieth century racial violence in Mississippi
