jays community profile

Note from the Editor: Intro to Jay's Community Profiles - English 110

Dear IVC Community,

This past semester – Fall 2020 – challenged us all.  Learning to write during a pandemic can be a daunting challenge.   No face-to-face contact between students.   No classroom workshops.  For many of us, it was our first entry into on-line education.

But in English 110 we did it!  Through the course of the semester, we maintained contact through our Canvas discussion boards. We developed extensive Community Profiles with great purpose and focus. Students were asked the following:

• To search The Valley for someone with an interesting story to tell– their profile could come right from their  past, present, family, job, school, reading.  
• To think about how their subject would represent a larger idea.
• To combine cutting edge academic research with personal interview.

Most of my students didn't have to look very far to find  an engaging story.  Many of them stayed within their own families to document deeply personal observations of a life being lived. In submitting to Jay's Community Profiles, they opened up their lives to their classmates and let the world into their writing.   Below, I provide a list of randomly-chosen examples of themes and topics:

• Immigration struggles and separated families.
• Parenting special-needs children.
• The stigma of becoming a Single Teen Parent.

I feel the essays are valuable.  My students share a sense of empathy and compassion for their subject matter. In these times of isolation and despair, the writing brings us closer together.  

Paz,

Jay Lewenstein

Adjunct English Instructor, Imperial Valley College

English 110 Students Take the Research Plunge

     

I was happy to see the variety of topics discussed in our student community profiles.  Under normal circumstances – face-to-face classroom instruction – I provide an in-class workshop focused upon invention and research strategies.  That didn’t happen this time, nor will we see it any time soon during this Covid era.   Instead, students were asked to write about any local topic as long as they applied the research skills presented in my Canvas assignments.

• Here are some examples: Immigration Reform,  Fieldworker Rights, Police Brutality, Gender Discrimination, Teen Pregnancy, Anxiety and Depression, Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.

• To access student writing, please go to our left-hand sidebar to "Community Profiles," and CLICK on the topic of your choice.

In Jay’s Community Profiles, we strive to open a greater discussion of social and political import.   With first-hand research of an uncle’s minimum-wage job experience in the fields, for example, a student  can better address the issue of worker rights.  An interview with a former teacher can lead nicely into an insightful paper about educational reform. 

Here is our goal: to provide our own commentary, questions, interpretations, clarifications or even feelings of what we have read and heard.  In other words, we take possession of our source and establish our presence in our papers.  I want to deepen my students’ involvement in their own education.  I want to give them their voice and a larger audience.  I want them to feel more a part of this campus.  The writing here reflects the diversity of student interest and concern regarding important issues in our community.

The Tortilla Curtain: Holding Up a Mirror to Our Nature

CONGRATULATIONS to US.  

  

 This semester in conjunction with the development of our community profiles, we read T.C. Boyle's  The Tortilla Curtain.    This novel was written more than twenty years ago, but its themes and ideas resonate today.  It is about our nation's immigration controversies. It's about Race and Racism.  Sex and Sexism.  A lot of it is about Money and Hatred.  Sadly, what we read in the novel, we see in today's  headlines.

Ten pages into the novel, many of us thought we  knew  all we  needed to know about the the novel's main character Delaney Mossbacher.    He´s white, liberal, successful and a closet racist.  Arroyo Blanco. That´s where he lives.  Wouldn´t you know it?  White Canyon.   Delaney lives a charmed life, in an isolated upper class L.A. suburb with a beautiful and ambitious wife and an ADD stepson, but on  a drive to a recycling center, Delaney practically flattens a Mexican – like a tortilla? - walking along the roadside.   

Here is where Delaney's  true colors come out.  He seems like a nice guy.  He´s really passionate about saving  the planet, but when  it comes to his choice helping an illegal immigrant lying flat on his back across the pavement... Nada.

A note to my students:  Were you surprised to see Delaney transform right before your eyes? Did you feel for the plight of Candido and his young wife America?   I live in Mexicali and cross the border everyday.   I often see bits and pieces of  The Tortilla Curtain wherever I go.  Can you connect much of what you have read to what you see today?  What do you have to say about what you see taking place all around you.   Take a look to this site's sidebar for Jay's Peek Behind The Tortilla Curtain.  I give you your chance.

This We Believe: We Are All Immigrants

 

Most of my students in class have their roots in Mexico.  My  grandparents came to the U.S to escape Jewish persecution in Eastern Europe.  In The Tortilla Curtain, Delaney pushes back at his racist neighbors when they plan to build a wall around their community to keep people of color out: “Everybody’s an immigrant from somewhere,” he says.  

Especially – right now -  in the times we live in, The Tortilla Curtain was an important read for us.  Boyle wrote the story more than 20 years ago, but the racial issues he develops in the novel just may be hotter and truer today than they have ever been.  We like the way he developed the character of Delaney Mossbacher.  For the most part, Delaney  keeps his anger and racism in check.  I often share in classroom workshops he looks like a nice guy.   He loves his wife.  He takes care of his kid.  He’s smart and compassionate.  He’s passionate about saving the Earth.  He might resemble your math teacher or someone you know from the public library.  But he’s not.  

Throughout the course of the novel, Delaney has the opportunity to do something about the racism he sees blowing up all around him. It’s not just the fire that is burning.  But he does nothing.  Nada.  In many ways, his behavior reflects what is going on today in this country.  We have a president that calls Mexican immigrants RAPISTS and CRIMINALS.  We are set to deport thousands of young Mexicans who came to this country with their parents. Our reading of Delaney forces us to examine our own thoughts and opinons on race and illegal immigration.  Delaney’s hatred is not obvious, nor is it unique.  There is plenty of people like him that move in and out of our lives.  They say one thing, but they feel another.  They are dangerous. They are frightening.  THEY VOTE. 

I was happy to see many of my students research their own family immigration experience.  I felt their writing  valuable.  In their research,  they touched upon important historical an political issues regarding Imperial Valley.  In their family interviews, they drew out raw emotion. Their writing documents  the impact of social movements in their lives.  Many of them have become the first college students in their family.  In their community profiles, they give their family members a voice where previously there wasn't.

Paz,

JL

 

Jay's Interview Tips for Community Profile - See Teen Pregnancy Model

 

    

The interview may be something very new and challenging for many of my students, but I feel the process  increases their presence in their own work. It draws them deeper into their research and writing.

For the Interview Portion of the Community Profile,  I've asked my students to write a personal narrative.  Here I want them  to transform their writing into something special.  Let’s bring their writing  to life through the use of a well-developed interview.  Their profile subject, I tell them, will tell us, their readers, what really matters…

Here is what I suggest to them  for the Interview Portion of their Community Profile :

1. Start with a scene– Paint a picture of your interview for your reader.  Insert yourself into the story ( this becomes your second anecdote!)
2. Isolate on an artifact –describe something important or interesting to your profile subject.  Believe me, it’s a great way to jump-start your interview.  Your subject will not stop talking about it.
3. Incorporate dialogue –can you get your subject to respond to your research questions? Can you graft and splice quotes into your narrative?
4. Include your commentary -Through this interview, is it possible you may even be discovering things about yourself?  What is your reaction to what is being said?
5. Capture at least two important quotes –Don’t write everything down.  Look for statements that may reveal something about your subject’s character.
6. Feeling –Look for those moments when your subject lets his/her guard down and begins to open up.  Find out really matters. 

Here are some open-ended questions they might ask.  On their assignment instructions they will see these suggestions:

* You decide: You can use some of them or all of them. You can you customize the questions to fit the background of your subject.   What does your audience want to know?

a. In all of your experience with _____________________, what has most surprised you?

b. What has been the most difficult aspect of your work (or your experience)?

c. If you have had the chance to change something about how you approached ___________________________, what would it be?

d. Can you remember a significant moment in your work on ______________? Is there an experience with ___________________ that stands out in your mind?

e. What do you think is the most common misconception about _____________? Why?

f. What are the significant current trends in __________________?

g. Who or what has most influenced you? Who are your heroes?

h. If you had to summarize the most important thing you’ve learned about____________, what would it be?

g. What is the most important thing other people should know or understand?

 Here is the way their interview may look in their paper:

a.  They may use their interview in one block –Their  writing here can be considered a scene, a dialogue, a commentary.  It can be your second anecdote.  It will look great after they have  established their introductory scene, background  and question of inquiry.

b. They  may choose to cut their interview into pieces –they  just might decide to select parts of, or quotes from, the interview to insert into other areas of their paper: anecdote, scene, background, etc.

C.  I n any case, I encourage them to Stay Active– this means to maintain their involvement with the story.  Instead of copying and pasting a block quote, I suggest  they blend their  thoughts with the the thoughts of their profile subject.

When I first began teaching on the community college level, I discovered Teen Pregnancy was an important issue in the Imperial and Coachella Valleys.  I encouraged my English classes to engage in cause and effect discussions regarding WHY  the teen pregnancy rates are so high around here.  Our classroom discussions were both INTERESTING and ENGAGING.  My students showed great insight and feeling for the subject matter.  They all seemed to have a connection – friend or family member – who was a teen parent.

I often challenge my students  to share their views on our classroom discussion boards. I think I learn more from them about teen pregnancy than I do  from any of my research.  At the bottom of this post, I’ve created a link to supplementary materials and models I offer my students to use in their own community profile interviews.  I’ve also included Jay’s Sample Interview Portion. 

To see the writing and the materials, please CLICK on Jay.

This is going to be great.  You will  see.

Paz,

JL

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Tortilla Soundtrack - Students Share Musical Analysis

Above: Header for Jay's Sample Tortilla Sountrack Selection

    When you read, do you ever tap your foot? Does music ever spark an idea in your head? Can you come up with a song or an artist that blends music and literature? Joyce Carol Oates wrote one of her most enduring works of short fiction after hearing Bob Dylan on the radio.

    To celebrate our reading and writing in English 110, I’ve asked my students to select a   song for their Tortilla Curtain semester. In groups, they have analyzed an important scene from the novel. They have acted out the scene from the stage play. Now they choose a song from their own knowledge and experience to provide important meaning to our literary discussion. We call it our “Tortilla Curtain Soundtrack.”

    Not only did students select a meaningful song to represent their reading of  T.C. Boyle's The Tortilla Curtain, they analyzed the lyrics and the message of the artist. Their choices are diverse. Often they pull from Musica Latina (but they have to translate their posts!)  Many are steeped in Hip-Hop, Heavy Metal, or Golden Oldies.  First, we share our individual choices on the class Discussion Board.  This may be my favorite week of the semester, for I always seem to pick up new and exciting directions for my musical tastes.

    Above:  Student Sample Tortilla Soundtrack Selection - Estephanie Fernandez

    In the first part of the novel, author T.C. Boyle mentioned “Hotel California.” This was the scene of America's first day on the job. She's sitting up front in the fat man's car and thinking she knows this song. It's coming out of the radio. It's so strange to hear the lyrics and realize that she's earning money - the dream is real! Everything she sacrificed for is beginning to pay off. "Welcome, welcome..." Don Henley sings. That's when she feels the fat man's hand on her thigh.”

    I often hear this song along the border. Many people claim these Eagles lyrics represent The American Dream.  America wants it badly, a better life for her and her family.  All she wants is a little safety, economic stability, and overall self-sufficiency; but, sadly, she is not going to get it here.   In this novel, from the beginning to the end, she and her husband are treated like outsiders.  Their dreams don't matter. 

*  To read the Soundtrack Selections of Estephanie and herc classmates you can find links to their work in the Sidebar underneath the image of guitar-playing Joni Mitchell.

*  To see my assignment instructions, you can click on  the following link: Coyote.

* To see Jay's Tortilla Soundtrack Selection Writing Model - please click on the following link:  Crazy Train.

    I'm just sorry we didn't have the opportunity to share our songs in  class (because of our Coronavirus Shutdown).  Students present their music as individuals or in groups.  We eat pizza and watch the videos.  We all love music.   Much of the commentary that rises out of the discussions is some of the most insightful of the semester. 

    Below: Ozzie shares his thoughts for people like The Tortilla Curtain's Delaney Mossbacher.

o make a post:

"Stuff We Read": Student Book Recommendations

    You are what you read. The first week of the semester students take the time to introduce themselves through their reading. We call the assignment “Book out of My Past.” Instead of the brief mention of their hobbies and pets, they reflect upon a memorable literary experience. On our class discussion board, students post their fondest reading memories and greatest discoveries. We care less of what the book was about, but more  how this reading experience affected them. Often is the case, my students  find they are not alone in their appreciation of their selection. You might not judge a book by its cover, but here we learn what is often hidden inside of others.

    I enjoy to hit each new semester running. We may not meet in a physical classroom during this Covid era, but our classroom discussion boards encourage dialogue among and between students.  Many of my students share their appreciation of Stephen King (right). In King's memoir On Writing,  he shares this: “Writing isn't about making money, getting famous, getting dates.... or making friends. In the end, it's about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well. It's about getting up, getting well, and getting over. Getting happy, okay? Getting happy.”

    I agree.  Reading is a lot more fun when you have the opportunity to share it with others, and the more you read, the stronger a student you become. It's called engagement.  Each week we learn how to question our texts.  Assert our voice.  Share out opinions.  This I Believe:  Our past reading experiences enhance our current reading experience.

   To see sample of student first-week book recommendations, go to "Stuff We Read" in the sidebar of this website.   

Below I present a list of writing prompts to get our semester rolling:

1. What are your thoughts about reading in general.  Is it something you like to do?  Do you have time for it?  Do you have a problem with it? Do you have a secret reading routine?
2. What is the title to the "Book Out of Your Past"? The author’s name?
3. When did you read this? Where?
4. How did you find this book? Did someone recommend it? Did a teacher assign it? What did you think first when you saw the book cover?
5. What was the book about?
6. Why do you remember it?
7. Do you have a favorite part you could summarize and/or explain?
8. Would you recommend this book to someone in the class? Who? Why?
9. Did you learn something from this reading experience that changed you in any way? Do you now look at anything in your life differently? 

Each student is required to reply to at least two of his/her classmates.  I know, I know. Classes can become difficult/frustrating/boring  when students do all the listening the professor and little of the talking to their classmates.    I like this assignment.  The discussion board participation carries over to class essay assignments.  The writing brings us closer together.

Have fun, I say. See you on the discussion board.

Paz,

JL