Texts and Technology in History
ENC 6801-W61
Dr. Saper, Professor
Module 1: What Happens to the Book?
Included in this module: Goals; Assignment; Due Dates; Links to Web-site; Assessments; and Grading Rubric. Read this entire module before starting the assignment or asking any questions about the assignment.
Goals:
Students learn about the history of books in relation to technological change. They learn about not what will replace the book, but how the book, as a form, has a rich potential. Finally, they speculate on how this alternative book tradition might impact the production of scholarship, dissertations, technical communications, and more.
These goals correspond to the overall goals of the course: to learn about the history of texts and technology.
Assignment:
Students will learn about the major historical modes of communication and cultural memory:
1. Read the anthology edited by Rothenberg and Clay. The following pages: 7-50; 54-80; 103; 178-186; 201-203; 217-222; 228-249; 251-257; 319-334; 375-389; 423-431; 497-519.
2. Take notes [self-consciously thinking about note taking in terms of the experiments described in the anthology].
3. Make lists of names, artworks, details, and other information. Create an addendum to your existing time-line. Insert examples drawn from the anthology on the book form.
4. Speculate on how these experiments might impact scholarship or technical communications. Think about the requirements for a dissertation. Think of advantages to these experimental forms [even for technical manuals]. Describe a few of the experiments that you liked for whatever reasons. Think about issues like reading, machines, composition, etc. – discussed in the anthology – and describe how these books de-familiarize our thinking about these terms. Describe how these aspects of books might also change our thinking about books.
5. Look at your notes, find patterns, and add your own speculations and thoughts.
6. Write a 1250 word essay that summarizes arguments. Please include at least one detail, argument, or book discussed from each chapter assigned from the anthology.
7. Finally, either describe or actually build [digitally in the computer or built material that you photograph] an example of an experimental book of your own – that expresses the lessons learned in this texts in history course.
Due Dates:
Post your essay by Thursday, December 4, 2008. This will give you an opportunity to ask questions about the assignment and make revisions. No late projects accepted, no exceptions.
Where: Post the finished assignment to the blog, but post a draft to a discussion on the course site. Since everyone gets credit for helping (and you can help more than one of your peers each assignment) you will find someone to give you suggestions for improvement. If you cannot offer any suggestions, then you might want to consider an alternative to academia.
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Assessments:
Content: Do the materials include the following:
A. full name of author and helper(s)
C. at least 1 definition, argument, or story from each chapter assigned from the Rothenberg & Clay anthology (please do not plagiarize).
D. use Rothenberg & Clay anthology to design your own alternative book.
Form: Did the student include the following technical aspects?
A. correct grammar, style, and typographical care
B. student’s name
C. a good faith attempt at designing [or actually building] an alternative book-form that relates in some way to this course.
Grader will study the materials (including the design).
1. Does this material present a clear representation of the student's thinking about each of the chapters assigned in Rothenberg and Clay?
2. Did the student have interesting insights about these books, examples, and chapter arguments?
3. Were the insights illuminated in the essay, addendum to the time-line, and the description/building of the alternative book?
4. Are the materials interesting, unique, expressive, and informative?
Grading Rubric:
Passing Grade (in the D range): fulfilled number one in the assessment.
Adequate Grade (in the C range): fulfilled one and two in the assessment.
Good Grade (in the B range): fulfilled numbers one through three in the assessment.
Excellent Grade (in the A range): fulfilled all of the four criteria in the assessment.
