What My Course for Under-Prepared Students Would Look Like

The course would start right away with a community building or meet and greet exercise so the students would start to get to know each other.  I would also use group work and whole class discussions throughout the class to assist students who feel more comfortable talking in small groups as well as those who like to speak to everyone.  This will help with generating ideas as well as critical thinking.  I would like to have students read and write cultural narrative/essays in the beginning of class because I think people like to explain their culture to others.  With a student population of international students, generation 1.5 and other diverse backgrounds this will also help community building.  The students could also revisit the cultural essays that they have written later in the semester and do revisions once they have developed more skills and understand their writing processes.

I would include pre-reading lessons like reading the title of an essay, author biography and first paragraph to help students make assumptions about what they are going to read.  As well as analyze any images that may accompany the text.  This will help the students pinpoint arguments and main points.  I would also want to facilitate active reading in my students by having a lesson on making annotations as they read in the margins of the text.  Reminding students to underline main points or what they feel is important, writing question marks on passages where they have questions and jotting down emotions or feelings they have as they read.  I would teach pre-writing heuristic techniques like brainstorming/listing, freewriting and clustering to help students get started with their writing.   I would also lecture on writing thesis statements and structuring essays.  

I would want to incorporate technology into the class by showing students how they can use their cell phones for brainstorming or to jot down ideas.  I would use blogs so students would be writing often.  I believe the more the student writes the easier it will be for them to get started.  I also liked an activity we did in English 700 where you draw your writing process.  I think this exercise helps the student visualize how they write and what works for them.  Of course I would not introduce this until later in the semester when students have a feeling of what writing processes are.

I like the idea of introducing students to different types of reading and writing so along with cultural narratives I would also have them read essays on controversial issues, magazine articles and short stories.  I would possibly even have the students write a movie review and if time is permitting I would have them tackle a short novel.  The goal being to introduce them to readings and writings similar to what they may experience in other courses.

I would also have students do peer editing of each others papers, but I would do it a little different by allowing the students to take their partners papers home and work on it rather than having them feel rushed to read and review on the spot.  Then after they have had time they can come back and discuss their thoughts with their partner.

At the end of the class I would have the students write a reflection of the class. How do they feel they have improved in their reading and writing?  What do they feel they have learned? How are their thoughts and feelings about writing different then at the start of the course?  Do they feel more prepared for writing they will have to do in other classes? What else would they have like to get out of a reading and writing course like this one?