A lecture/seminar satisfying the second half of the Reading & Composition requirement, R4B offers structured and sustained practice in the processes used in reading, critical analysis, and writing. Students engage with thematically-related materials from a range of genres and media. In response, they craft short pieces leading to longer expository and/or argumentative essays. Students develop a research question, draft a research essay, gather, evaluate, and synthesize information from various sources. Elements of the research process--a proposal, an annotated bibliography, an abstract, a works cited list, etc.--are submitted with the final report in a research portfolio. Students write a minimum of 32 pages of prose.

How do we come to understand the past? Once an event recedes, we are left with an unfiltered mix of sources and perspectives, each reflecting a partial truth. In this class we will explore a major historical event of the twentieth century, the Japanese American internment, the largest violation of constitutional rights in our nation’s history. We will explore how different genres can give us different perspectives, such as films, essays, oral histories, diaries, and standard history textbooks. For the final research project, students will choose their own topic to explore from the Japanese American internment and work with primary materials found both online and at the Bancroft Library, including the Densho Digital Archive, an immensely rich collection of materials on this subject. The Internment has been increasingly invoked as a historical parallel to issues our country faces now. This current relevance makes it all the more important to understand the event itself and its historical context.

Enrollment is restricted to students who have satisfied the first half of the Reading and Composition requirement. This course satisfies the second half of the Reading and Composition requirement.

Requisites

• Previously passed an R_A course with a letter grade of C- or better. Previously passed an articulated R_A course with a letter grade of C- or better. Score a 4 on the Advanced Placement Exam in English Literature and Composition. Score a 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Exam in English Language and Composition. Score of 5, 6, or 7 on the International Baccalaureate Higher Level Examination in English.
• Students must satisfy the ELWR in order to enroll in this class.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills