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2009 IW, Interactive Writing

Interactive Writing II Session #13: January 8th, 2010

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  1. Important announcement: the makeup class on January 19th has been canceled. Instead there will be class as usual on Friday, January 15th.
  2. Returned reports (“Comparison between ‘Little Plum‘ and (your chosen Japanese story)“
  3. What does “compare” mean?  Compare – requires an answer that sets items side by side and shows their similarities and differences. A balanced (fair, objective) answer is expected.
  4. A fair comparison. Is comparing a novel with a picture book a fair comparison? Is comparing a novel with a movie a fair comparison? Is comparing a novel with a cartoon or manga a fair comparison?
    1. If you make an unfair comparison, you will draw false conclusions (as some of you did).
  5. Review of the criteria I use to evaluate your writing
    1. conventions of writing: sentence and paragraph structurepunctuation, etc.
    2. Vocabulary: rich, precise, correctly used.
    3. Grammar: basic and advanced structures, word order
    4. Organization: logically organized, correct use of paragraphs
    5. Originality: have you used your own words? Do you have interesting ideas or approaches?
    6. Academic writing:
      1. formal register:
        1. avoid “I”; your writing should be impersonal and objective;
        2. avoid contractions like “don’t”;
        3. instead of “And”, use “Moreover” or “In addition”.
        4. instead of “But”, use “However,”
        5. instead of “So”, use “Therefore,”
        6. be precise in your use of words
      2. citations (“according to ….”, (Krashen, 2003), etc.
      3. references / bibliography, including websites (give the name of the website as well as the URL, e.g. “Research, Reading & Writing http://sheffnersweb.net/blogs/classblogs/dwc/ and the date visited
      4. opposing arguments (both sides of an issue)
      5. logical thinking
  6. Quiz on Little Plum (we will finish this next class).
    1. Why did Belinda climb the ilex tree?
    2. Who saw “Little Plum” first?
    3. Who does Little Plum belong to?
    4. Who named Little Plum?
    5. What was the first “present” that Belinda asked Nona to make for Little Plum?
    6. What did Belinda use to get across to Gem’s window?
    7. What was written in the first letter Belinda wrote to Gem (not the one where she said sorry for crashing into Gem while roller-skating, but the one she wrote when she gave Gem her first “present”)?
    8. What did Gem write in reply?
    9. What did Gem do with Belinda’s first “present”?
    10. What was Belinda’s second “present”?
    11. What was Belinda’s message with her second present?
    12. What did Gem do with the second present, and what message did she write?
    13. What was Belinda’s third present to Gem, and what message did she send with it?
    14. What was Gem’s response? (What was her message and what did she do?)
    15. What was Belinda’s fourth present, and what message did she send with it?
    16. What was Gem’s response? (What did she do and what was her message?)
    17. What was Belinda’s fifth present and message?
    18. What was Gem’s response?
    19. What did Belinda do next?
    20. Who won the fight?
    21. Who helped Belinda safely off the ladder and how?
    22. Was Belinda punished? How? Why?
    23. Do you think Belinda should have been punished? How would you punish Belinda?
    24. Why did Belinda ask Mr. Twilfit for advice?
    25. What was Mr. Twilfit’s advice?
    26. When is the Japanese Festival of Dolls?
    27. Who was the surprise guest at the Doll’s Festival?
    28. What did Gem think of Belinda’s messages?
    29. What will Belinda teach Gem
    30. What will Gem let Belinda do?
  7. Details of the final exam:
    1. There will be 2 questions:
      1. a choice of 1 of 3 topics for a paper
      2. some questions about the story of “Little Plum”.
      3. You can bring anything into the exam room.
      4. You will need to prepare your paper before the day of the exam, and bring suitable materials.
  8. Homework:
    • Re-write your essay comparing Rumer Godden‘s novel for children Little Plum with a Japanese children’s story. You must
      1. write the full references for the two books you use (using the MLA style)
      2. make a fair comparison (i.e. compare a novel with a novel, not with a movie or a cartoon)
      3. use a formal, academic register (do not use slang, do not use contractions like “don’t”, etc)
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2009 RinE, Research in English

Research in English II Session #11: December 11th, 2009

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  1. Report #2 presentations by
    1. Ms. Tanishima  on Foreign (Imported) Animals in Australia
    2. Ms. Tanaka on World War II
    3. Ms. Takeda on Royal Flying Doctor Service
    4. Ms. Chigira on Multiculturalism
    5. Ms. Kobori on Aborigine Culture (focussing on the didgeridoo)
    6. Ms. Ominami on White Australia Policy
    7. Ms. Kobayashi on Japanese in Australia
    8. Ms. Kawamura on Royal Flying Doctor Service
    9. Ms. Ho on Immigration Species and Mongoose
    10. Ms. Murai on White Australia Policy
    11. Ms. Kuranaga on Flying Doctor Service and Medical Services
    12. Ms. Minamide on Multiculturalism
  2. Some comments on the presentations:
    • What is the difference between “multicultural society” and “multiculturalism“? What does “-ism” mean? Multicultural society is a state of affairs or an actual situation; multiculturalism is a government or state policy.
    • There is a big debate about multiculturalism in Britain right now. The government of Britain has had a policy of multiculturalism for a long time, but some people say it has gone too far. For example, on October 28th, 2009, Melanie Phillips, a British journalist writing in the Daily Mail wrote an article entitled, The outrageous truth slips out: Labour cynically plotted to transform the entire make-up of Britain without telling us. The key points are below.
    • “unintended consequences“. Human history has many examples of unintended consequences. The introduction of the rabbit into Australia is one example. The original settlers who brought rabbits with them to hunt and eat never thought that the rabbits would become such a huge problem in the future. The introduction of the mongoose in Okinawa is another example.
  3. Here are some key points from a recent article in a British newspaper (The Daily Mail) in which journalist Melanie Phillips argues that multiculturalism has been a deliberate policy of the British government to destroy the British identity.
    • In its 1997 election manifesto, Labour [Tony Blair‘s government] promised ‘firm control over immigration’
    • a landmark speech in September 2000 by the then immigration minister, Barbara Roche, … called for a loosening of immigration controls
    • For years, …the number of immigrants to Britain shot up apparently uncontrollably
    • the purpose of the policy … was to open up the UK to mass immigration
    • Some 2.3 million migrants have been added to the population since 2001. Since 1997, the number of work permits has quadrupled to 120,000 a year.
    • Unless policies change, over the next 25 years some seven million more will be added to Britain’s population, a rate of growth three times as fast as took place in the Eighties.
    • The Government’s ‘driving political purpose’, wrote Neather, was ‘to make the UK truly multicultural’.
    • Melanie Phillips writes: “It was therefore a politically motivated attempt by ministers to transform the fundamental make-up and identity of this country. It was done to destroy the right of the British people to live in a society defined by a common history, religion, law, language and traditions.   It was done to destroy for ever what it means to be culturally British and to put another ‘multicultural’ identity in its place. And it was done without telling or asking the British people whether they wanted their country and their culture to be transformed in this way.”
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