Blogging Standards and Practices

Online discussion fulfills several key criteria for the class: to create opportunities for student-driven discussion and interrogation of texts and ideas; to create a way for us to connect the individual texts to larger themes related to the course; to create an environment where students can try out ideas that can lead to paper topics, or form parts of larger arguments and discussion in more formal writing assignments.The use of online discussion is congruent with the overall mission of classroom discussion and close reading as outlined in Pomona College English Department’s “Protocol.” Learning  takes place not only in the classroom, but in reflection and thought, and in dialog with others.

Expectations for Students
We are all participants in the course; the class cannot function without the participation of all members. Online writing and discussion makes up about 50 points or 10 percent of the overall grade. In order to receive full credit for participation, students must:

  • demonstrate engagement with the texts in both their written posts and comments on the posts of others. “Engagement” can mean questioning, critiquing or otherwise interrogating the text in a thoughtful and generally productive way. We asks questions of language and literature not always to find answers, but to generate more and better questions.
  • Participate on a regular an ongoing basis. Students should average at least one post or comment per week throughout the semester to be considered eligible for full participation points. Think of these posts as the equivalent of weekly reaction papers that are often assigned in other classes – except that they are online, public and interactive.
  • Observe the norms and community standards of online and in-class interaction. Disagreement is in no way discouraged – agreement is not the goal. Meaning is created by differences, and that is what makes the study of language worthwhile to begin with. But no form of discourtesy or inappropriate discourse will be tolerated.
  • Have fun with it.

Posts and comments will not be held to the same standards of grammar, usage, and mechanics as more formal written work such as essays.