First: from the syllabus...
***Blog Entries
The main way you will demonstrate your consistent, ongoing
engagement with the material of this course is through weekly blog entries. Each week, you will be required to write a 300- to 500-word
post that utilizes our recent materials in some way. Regardless of the approach
you take, you must cite by page number at least one reading from the course so
far. You also must make clear what you think the significance of your
observations is. Each post should do one of the following:
1.
Raise a question about a reading or film in
relation to our ongoing analysis of “the supernatural” and “religion,” then
attempt to answer it.
2.
Respond to a classmate’s post from a previous week,
using one or more readings or films to add to the discussion of that question.
3.
Write a post that directs our attention to an
outside reading that you’ve encountered, summarize its findings and
perspective, and then explain its connection to course concepts or questions.
4.
Occasionally I will give a specific prompt for
you to respond to or an activity to conduct on the blog. If so, I’ll let you
know at the beginning of the week.
Blog entries must be posted each week by Friday at 11:59pm
unless stated differently in the schedule below.***
By the end of term you'll have written (at least) 15 blog posts. Each will be graded on a 1 to 5 scale, according to the following criteria:
A post that earns a 5 has
1) raised a question about our shared material,
2) offered a plausible answer to that questions, based on
3) evidence from our readings or films, cited appropriately, and
4) explores concretely and creatively the significance of your observations, in order to
5) connect with other aspects of our study of religion and popular culture, with other classmates' reflections and questions on the blog, or with content and experiences "out there" in the larger world.
In other words...
5/5 = Fantastic! You’ve given evidence from the reading/film, explained clearly what you
think it means, and offered some truly original thoughts on a critical piece of
our shared content. You may have even connected ideas across different films/readings
in a thoughtful, convincing way. It’s a significant, well-written contribution
to our collective understanding of the material.
4/5 = Really well done. You’ve connected your thoughts to a specific part of the reading/film, and you’ve shown
clearly that you can pull meaning out of what we watch together. Your interpretation
makes sense, and you’ve done more than just summarize in your own words. You’ve
clearly begun to follow up on the implications
of what the author or filmmaker has presented to us. Perhaps though you could say more about its significance. Generally well written and organized, this is high quality work and you’re on the
right track.
3/5 = Satisfactory. You’ve written
something that appropriate responds to the question or prompt and demonstrates
that you have some good ideas about what our film might mean. You might not
have quoted a reading, but I can tell you’re thinking about the concepts they
present. Your overall understanding of the reading/film or the appropriate concepts/methods isn’t quite coming through. That’s what class discussion is for – don’t get discouraged. It’s
possible you’ve got one good idea that just needs more clarity and development.
It’s also possible that you have mostly just summarized plot or restated what an
author says. Summarizing ideas is a good start, but it is only the beginning. You could be on the verge of some really penetrating insights, but it needs a little more time to develop. Some work on the clarity of your writing might help, or perhaps you need to spend a little more time explaining the implications of what you’re saying.
1/5 or 2/5 = You haven’t
really completed the assignment. Either it’s too short, or you haven’t answered
the question I asked. There may be significant problems with your writing. You
may have just put it off too long and not had time to do well. I encourage you
to work harder and give these little essays they time and attention they
deserve. It’ll help you in the long run (in this class and beyond!).
I will reply to some posts directly on the blog, but not to all. Some weeks I will post, but not all the time. I want this to be a space where you engage with each other (the classroom often being more of a question-and-answer space than a true dialogue).
I hope that what I've posted here serves as clear guidelines without stifling your creativity. I want to give you some structure and some clarity, but I also want you to make it your own. Remember that unless I put up a specific prompt, the post is open to where our work recently is taking you!
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!
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