Each day a reading is assigned, you will complete an entry in your reading log. That entry is designed to help you organize your thoughts for that week's class meeting. Reading log entries are due by 12:00 noon on the day of our class meeting. I will grade these entries, but I will do so on a credit/no-credit basis. Students who put forth a good faith effort to complete the assignment will receive credit.
Reading Log entries are recorded in a Google Document that you share with me, and these entries provide you with your "agenda" for class meetings - they include a summary of the reading as well as questions, comments, and quotations from the reading. They will also help you think through how that week's reading might help you develop your ideas for the final project.
Each Reading Log entry has three sections:
Summary of Reading (250 words max)
You should try to write a concise summary of the reading, and you only have 250 words to do it. If we have read an extended work, like a book or a long article, this will be challenging. But the assignment is designed to get you to think about what is most important about the reading. You will not be able to cover everything the authors say, so you should be picking out what is most important about their argument, their method, and/or whatever it is they are analyzing or producing.
Questions of Clarification (no word limit)
This is the section for asking questions about things you didn't full understand or that you'd like me or your classmates to help you with? Are there terms or concepts you didn't understand? Are there portions of the argument that are unclear to you? List these kinds of questions here.
Important Quotations and Ideas (no word limit)
This section is a space for you to record what you think are the most important quotations and ideas from the reading.
How does this reading help me with my final project? (no word limit)
As we read and discuss the work of artists and theorists, your task is to consider which ideas from that week's reading and discussion can help you think about your final project. At the beginning of the semester, you may not know what that project is, or you may even have multiple ideas. This section is designed to help you think about those ideas and consider how our readings can help you refine them. Remember that even a reading that seems completely disconnected from the medium you hope to work with or the method you hope to use can be helpful as you revise and reconsider your project. What approach does the author take, and how can you learn form it? How did they conduct their research? What terms or concepts do they develop that might help you approach your own project? Think expansively and creatively about how our readings can help you hone and sharpen your thinking about your own project.