Syllabus for World Literature: Same People, Different Places Instructor: Mr.

Wagner Course Description: This course has been designed as a survey of some of the worlds most acclaimed authors, and the stories that they weave have in common the topic of identity. The characters in the various short stories and novels learn to cope with the struggles and to celebrate the triumphs of discovering their own individual and cultural identities. As we read through the texts over the course of the year, we may discover more similarities between ourselves and those who look, sound, and feel other. We will explore the concept of otherness and learn about the history and culture behind each of the regions and locales represented by the texts below. Learning Goals and Outcomes: In my class, there are three categories of outcomes or goals: Life Outcomes, Skill Proficiency Outcomes, and Learning Outcomes. The life outcomes are lessons and skills that each citizen of the USA and of the world needs in order to live and thrive with the myriad of other people around them. These life goals are to: Respect Yourself Respect Your Classmates Respect Learning Respect Your Teachers The skill proficiency outcomes are rooted in the California Common Core Standards for the English Language Arts classroom, and they revolve around skills related to writing, reading, listening & speaking, or language development. For example, learning what a thesis statement is and developing your skill with identifying and creating them would be a skill proficiency. A goal for the year might be to develop this proficiency to be able to identify complex theses statements that appear in places other than the introduction, as well as being able to write clear, concise, and powerful theses statements yourself. These skill proficiency outcomes are wide and varied and too numerous to list here. If you would like a copy of the standards on which they based, please see me. There will be specific goals on the board each day for you to track, as well. The learning outcomes also are based on the California Common Core Standards of the English Language Arts classroom, but they are less skill oriented and more thinking oriented. These outcomes will expand your capacity for looking at complex works of literature (both fiction and non-fiction and all genres) to find themes, patterns, literary devices, etc. and to make sense of the content for yourself. These outcomes might be also described as goals for expanding your ability to think, read, write, and act critically. I use the term learning to describe these skills because they are more general to life and learning in general and have value across all content areas, not just English Language Arts. The same skill used to look critically at the messages being presented in a advertisement for jeans might also be used to look critically at the causes for war or the results of a chemistry experiment. These goals are also too numerous to list here, but they will be on the board each day for you to track. Selected Texts: Abandon the Old in Tokyo by Yoshihiro Tatsumi Culinary Fictions: Food in South Asian Diasporic Culture by Anita Mannur To Live by Hua Lu Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe Notes from the Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan Major Assessments and Projects: Book Reviews for each text, modelled on professional examples. You will reflect on and revise at least one to publish online at a major e-bookstore or book-review site. Either: 1) a fictional narrative of a character or characters struggling with identity written from the vantage of your own cultural point of view; or 2) a biographical narrative of your own struggles with

identity or the struggles of someone close to you (ideally a family member, but a close friend may work).

A substantial persuasive essay on a theme or themes, relating to identity with significant evidence from the courses texts. You will also give a short presentation on your inferences and conclusions to the class. A collaborative blog on the various cultures and regions represented by the texts with the goal of reducing stereotypes and misconceptions by students on campus of the represented groups and regions and/or raising awareness for social or political problems faced by the people or regions represented by the texts. End-of-unit comparisons between popular or mainstream American cultural values and those represented in each of the texts in the form of expository (first semester) or persuasive essays (second semester) with textual evidence to support your claims about the other cultures. A reflective portfolio of your work throughout the year.

Frequent and Smaller Assessments: Journals/Quickwrites on themes and events in the texts. Small group/whole class discussions on themes and events in the texts. Informal oral presentations of research or writing. Various creative projects that demonstrate proficiency with skills relating to writing, reading, or speaking in English and the course objectives. Outside Reading: During each semester, you will be required to read the books that the class is reading for the course, as well as two other books of your choice. You will be assessed in some way for each of the four extra books in a manner that conforms to our schedule and our current learning objectives. Towards the beginning of the first semester, we will make time to explore the wide array of options you have to choose from in picking books to read. I will do my very best to help you find a book that you will like reading. Trust me, there are books for everyone. Be prepared to read, write, and speak each class, and most importantly, be prepared to think in class each day. Rules: I have no set list of rules. Rules will be constructed in as democratic a fashion as possible (with my possible veto as the head of state, of course) to best suit the needs of the individuals in the class. Once we have formulated our rules, you will each get a copy and be expected to abide by them or face whatever consequences the school or our class has decided. Keep in mind that there are some rules that apply across campus that you and I have no control over. Cheating being one of them. Breaking these rules will get the prescribed consequences as told to you by the deans or other administrators. Think of the schools rules as our constitution, and the rules of our classroom as our local government laws (yes, this is a lesson about democracy). Homework and Late Work: I usually do not assign significant amounts of homework because I cannot ensure that the work is being done by students or that the work will be done at all. I also prefer to be present when work that assesses your skills is being performed, so that I can monitor your progress with it and explain concepts that you may have missed. Handing in a piece of paper with writing gives me little insight into the process that you used to produce it, so homework, for me and for this class, is not very informative about your academic progress. However, there may be times where I will ask you to do class reading outside of class or to finish a writing assignment outside of class. All major projects and assignments will require a lot of out-of-class time, as well, so there is a balance to having more free time during the middle of a unit and less free time towards the end.

Plan accordingly. Do parts of larger projects when there is no homework assigned in order to meet deadlines. Homework assignments will be posted on the board. Do not expect homework instructions to always be available online. Write them down in class to make sure you have them. I have no set late work policy. Lets face it: we all forget or are lazy at times, and we come up with fantastic science fiction stories to explain why we could not possibly have done our homework or finished that blog entry. But we also experience tragedies and real illness which actually does make it difficult to impossible to finish assignments. I will make a judgment in the moment if you come to me asking for more time or to make up late work. I will most likely not give you extra time or allow you to make up late work unless you have experienced some unforeseen tragedy which I will confirm myself. Do not try to take advantage of my kindness, please. Grading: Each major assessment or project is worth 10% of your total grade. The remaining 40% is made up of the various smaller and more frequent assessments throughout the year. For most formal and summative assessments, you will be presented with a rubric. Some assessments will be graded holistically, however, and the grade will be determined by completeness, comprehensibility, and the demonstration of thought. You will always be provided with models or examples before being asked to do work and have the opportunity to ask questions or get help.