ENG 246: Native
American Literature
Fall 2007
Section:
HA: W 4:00 – 6:40
p.m.
402 MOS
Professor:
Dr.
Kelli Lyon Johnson
Office Hours:
M
8:30-11:30; TW 3:00-4:00
Course Web Site: www.users.muohio.edu/johnso58
Required
Texts
Louise Erdrich, Tracks and Love Medicine
Linda Hogan, Mean Spirit
Thomas King, Green Grass, Running Water
D'Arcy McNickle, The Surrounded
Leslie Marmon Silko, Ceremony
Brian Swann (ed.), Native American Songs and Poems: An
Anthology
Texts
on Electronic Reserve
(see Schedule)
Sherman Alexie, "This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona"
Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins,
excerpts from Life among the Piutes
E. Pauline Johnson, "A Red Girl's Reasoning"
John Nicolar, excerpts from The Life and
Traditions of the Red Man
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft,
excerpts from The Sound the Stars Make
Rushing through the Sky
Leslie Marmon Silko,
"Interior and Exterior Landscapes," "Language and Literature
from a Pueblo
Indian Perspective" and "The People and the Land
ARE Inseparable"
Zitkala-Sa, "Schools
Days of an Indian Girl" and "Why I Am a Pagan"
Course Description
Survey of
published Native
American fiction, poetry, drama, and non-fiction from the
mid-nineteenth
century to the present, written by authors from a wide range of Native
nations.
Course readings, assignments, and discussions will focus especially on
the ways
Native authors represent sovereignty, landscape, history, and family in
their
writings. We will also explore the cultural and historical contexts
that
influence and are represented in the literature and emphasize an
interdisciplinary approach by including sociological, historical,
anthropological as well as literary perspectives.
Course Goals
ENG 246 explores a
particular dynamic of historical and cultural expression--literature.
In this
course, we will read literary representations by
Native people--not about
Native people--and we will examine those texts as emerging out of and
describing tribal ways of knowing.
As
part of the Miami Plan,
this course requires that students continue to develop their abilities
to think critically, understand contexts,
engage with other learners, and reflect and act. In every written
assignment and in your class participation, you will be expected to
demonstrate
your ability to think critically about
the texts we read for class and the historical and cultural conditions
in which
those texts were created.
The
literature of Native
American has responded to particular historical events; thinking
critically in
ENG 246, then, also requires that students understand
contexts. Your Study Notes will provide the opportunity to expand
the
class's understanding of contexts beyond course lectures, readings, and
discussions.
Native
Americans are not
merely a part of U.S.
history. Thousands of Native peoples from more than 500 Native nations
live on
and off reservations across the United States. Many Native
scholars insist on the
vital importance of studying Native peoples in contemporary contexts.
In order
to do explore contemporary as well as historical contexts, you will,
with your
group, investigate a present-day Native problem or issue and write a
Collaborative
Letter about your stance on that issue. Your work in groups will
strengthen
your abilities to engage with other
learners. In addition, your Study Notes will also allow you to
engage with
learners in and beyond Miami
University because
we
will post those Notes to our course web site, thus creating and
providing
knowledge for the use of other students and scholars of Native American
literature.
Finally, ENG
246 requires
students both to reflect and act.
Your written assignments, group work, and class participation will
require you
to demonstrate reflection on course
materials, and you frequently have the opportunity to make connections
among
course materials and your own experiences and knowledges. The
Collaborative Letter
is also evidence of your ability to act--to
take knowledge that you have collected and synthesized and to make out
of it
something empowering and meaningful.
Course
Grading
Analytical
Papers (2 at 15%
each)
30%
Collaborative Letter
10%
Short Writings
15%
Study Notes
15%
Participation
10%
Final Exam
20%
Grading
Scale
A+ 98-100
A
94-97
A-
90-93
B+
88-89
B
84-87
B-
80-83
C+
78-79
C
74-77
C-
70-73
D+
68-69
D
64-67
D-
60-63
F
59 and below
Course
Requirements
Class
Participation. You will
be graded on your active and positive
participation. You may choose to participate by completing homework,
engaging
in group work, and volunteering during class discussion. Your class
presentation will also be calculated into your participation grade.
You should bring the
assigned readings to every
class meeting.
Participation in these
areas will be graded on the following criteria:
A =
Regular active participation demonstrating
superior understanding and analysis of
assigned material;
willingness to engage theories, perspectives, and group members
B =
Frequent participation that demonstrates
accurate and thoughtful familiarity with
the material;
participation in group interaction
C =
Contributions are infrequent and/or
demonstrate little familiarity with the material; or contributions are
not
relevant to material being discussed
D =
In attendance but does not participate in
discussion
0 =
Not in attendance or sleeping in class
Study Notes. Throughout the course of the semester,
each student will create three
sets of Study Notes—on an historical event, a Native American nation,
and on a
Native writer. These Study Notes will emphasize key points of the topic
that
enrich our understanding of the texts, themes, and/or issues of the
course.
Study Notes will be posted on the course web site for all students to
use for
class preparation, papers, and the final exam. A detailed assignment
sheet will
be distributed during the first week of class.
Group Work. At the beginning of the semester, I
will assign students to a group
with which they will work all semester. Groups will collaborate for
in-class
assignments, small-group discussion, and a Collaborative Letter.
Papers.
Students will write two analytical essays in this course. Students will
receive
in class both written explanation and detailed descriptions of the
assignments.
All papers must conform to stated guidelines. Papers may not be
submitted
electronically because technology is not always reliable. Late papers
will be
penalized 10% each calendar day until the paper is turned in.
Short Writings. Throughout the semester, students will
write fourteen short papers,
based on readings or lectures, to be word-processed in advance and
brought to
class. Short writings are formal papers and should be revised and
formatted
according to paper guidelines. Short writing prompts are available on
the
course web site (see front of syllabus). The short assignments will be
collected at the end of each class.
The best ten scores on the
fourteen assignments will count in the calculation of the final grade.
No late
papers will be accepted. Electronic submissions will not be accepted.
Students
must be in attendance for the entire class period in order to turn in a
short
writing.
Short writing assignments
offer students the opportunity to focus their ideas and comments before
coming
to class. They provide a means for me to assess how students meet the
objectives
of the course, which are important to succeeding in college and career:
comprehension, analysis, synthesis, critical thinking, engagement.
These
assignments take the place of a system of reading quizzes and exams.
Evaluation of short
writing assignments will be based on the following guidelines (the
criteria
each week may be tailored slightly to the specifics of the individual
assignment):
10 = Demonstrates
superior familiarity with the material as well as analytical and critical thinking; points
are clearly articulated and easy to follow
8 =
Demonstrates basic familiarity with the material; points are
raised but not developed
or supported; or
provides a solid summary of material but little analysis or reflection
6 =
Demonstrates only passing familiarity with material; analysis
is absent or simplistic;
points are
poorly articulated or hard to follow; or provides only crude summary of material
5 =
Turns in assignment, but demonstrates no significant
familiarity with material or analysis of material
0 =
Does not complete assignment
Final Exam. There will be a written, in-class final
exam during the assigned
period of the week of Final Exams. A study guide will available for
students
prior to Finals week.
Student
Responsibilities
Paper
Guidelines. All papers
will be word processed and double-spaced in 12-point Times
New Roman with standard 1”- or 1 ¼”-inch margins. Students may
use either Word
or WordPerfect, but papers may not be typed on a typewriter. Students
are
expected to use MLA citation style.
Attendance. Attendance will be taken at each class
meeting. Regular attendance is
expected and required. The University’s attendance policy requires that
you
attend every class. Beyond this policy, in ENG 246 HA, the following
penalties
apply to the final grade:
|
Absence(s)
|
Deduction from
final course grade
|
|
One (1)
|
0%
|
|
Two (2)
|
5%
|
|
Three (3)
|
20%
|
|
Four (4)
|
40%
|
Individual exceptions may
be negotiated on a case-by-case basis under extraordinary circumstances.
Tardiness. You are expected to arrive before the
appointed
class hour so that we may begin class on time. Because students who
arrive late
disrupt student learning, tardiness will be penalized. Because we all
sometimes
encounter unexpected delays--traffic, phone calls, late
babysitters--everyone
will be allowed one late arrival. After that initial late arrival, I
will count
two late arrivals as an absence. Students who are late more than four
times
will fail the course.
Technology. Please turn cell phones, Blackberries,
PDAs, and pagers OFF (not to
vibrate) when you enter the classroom. Students using cell phones or
checking
messages—voice or text—during class will be asked to leave and marked
absent
for the day. Any missed work cannot be made up.
Information for
Students with Disabilities. If you have a disability or any other
special
circumstance that may have some impact on your work in this class, and
for
which you may require accommodations, please contact me early in the
semester
so that appropriate accommodations can be made in a timely manner. The
Office
of Disability Services at Hamilton,
located in Rentschler Hall, is the designated office on campus to
provide
services and accommodations to students with disabilities. For more
information, contact the Coordinator of Disability Services at
513-785-3211
(TTY/TDD accessible) or via email.
Academic Integrity. I expect my students to have respect
for their
own work and for the work of others. Academic honesty is expected and
required.
All cases of plagiarism will be referred for trial to the Department of
English, and students found guilty of academic dishonesty will fail the
course.
Miami University’s policy on academic
honesty
can be found in the Student Handbook. Students found guilty of
plagiarism also
risk a notation of Academic Dishonesty
on their permanent transcript.
Student Expectations
Students may
expect me to hold appointed office hours; to make appointments to
meet
with students outside of class if they cannot attend office hours; to
provide
detailed assignments and feedback on completed assignments; to return
student
work within seven calendar days of the assigned due date; to encourage
student
participation in all aspects of their education; to advise students on
study
habits, time management, and writing practices; and to respect and
encourage
all positive student contributions to the course.
By
remaining in this course, you are
agreeing to the terms of this syllabus.