Three Habits of Highly Successful Students

Make a commitment: This means being organized, setting aside time dedicated to studying for this class, identifying College resources that may be helpful to you, taking responsibility for your choices, and developing a work ethic. If you are having trouble in this class (you don’t understand what it seems you should), don’t just sit there, do something; you can come see me during my office hours, go to the Writing Center, ask a librarian for help, etc. You can’t expect your boss or friends or loved ones to accommodate your school work; you may need to make sacrifices, such as cutting back on TV or drinking or even work. You may find yourself having to make difficult choices, such as choosing between doing homework for this class and spending an important day with a loved one; you may decide to prioritize your loved one and not do your homework for this class. Fine, but be an adult and take responsibility for your choice.

Another important aspect of making a commitment is viewing this course not as preparation for the rest of your education/career/life, but rather, as an experience on its own. This course isn’t simply preparation for the rest of your life, it is your life. For the next fifteen weeks for ten hours a week, this is your life. Commit to that. Engage.

Accept the challenge: Accepting the challenge means being an active, rather than passive, learner. Passive learners wait receptively for information and knowledge to find its way into their brains, dutifully following directions and meekly accepting everything the textbook and I say. Active learners come to class prepared, having thought critically about what they read or what they did, and ask questions and consider possibilities other than what have been presented to them. Active learners are engaged and critical, focusing on making connections between ideas, whereas passive learners focus more on memorization of concepts.

Accept that you will be asked to do things in this class that you don’t already know how to do. (Duh—if you already knew how to do everything this class covers, you wouldn’t need to take this class.) If you refuse to accept the possibility that you will not succeed, you will not ever grow. Not in this class, not in a job, not in a relationship. I often have students drop a class after receiving their first graded assignment back and receiving a grade less than A. When they come to tell me they are dropping, they often say, “I have very high standards for myself and I cannot accept a grade lower than A.” Think about this: is dropping a course because you receive less than an A on a paper evidence of high standards or low standards?

Quit whining: Being in school is hard work. You’ll need to do lots of reading, lots of writing, and lots of thinking. You’ve made the choice to be in school. Take responsibility for your choice and don’t whine about the reading, writing, and thinking. Put your energy into the work rather than the whining.

For more tips, check out this and this.

Requesting a Letter of Recommendation

I am happy to write letters of recommendation for students and former students who have impressed me with their intellect, creativity, motivation, leadership, or ability to surmount challenges.

Writing a good letter of recommendation takes some time—time for reflection on the student being recommended, time for a bit of research to refresh my memory of grades earned and/or assignments submitted, time for drafting and revising—so I require at least two weeks notice for writing letters of recommendation.

In addition to at least two weeks notice, I will need the following from you:

1. Any official form the organization I am recommending you to wants recommenders to complete.
2. The deadline by which the letter is due.
3. The address the letter should be sent to.
4. A copy of your personal essay (if you are applying to a college or for a scholarship). I like to be able to emphasize something you’ve said in your essay in my letter.
5. Your resume, if you have one. I like to be able to refer to items in your resume if I can.
6. Information, in writing, about what you plan to major in, what your career goals are, and why you are applying to the college or job or whatever that you want me to recommend you for.
   

Please give me all of these items at once, if possible, paperclipped together or in a manila folder or attached to the same email.

I will put your letter on RRCC letterhead in a RRCC envelope and will send it via RRCC mail (unless the college/scholarship organization wants the letter in another format), so you do not need to provide envelopes or stamps.

And finally, do let me know if you were accepted to the college or were awarded the scholarship or got the job!

Fall 2007 Classes

ENG 121: Composition I (section 010—M/W 11-12:15 and section H01 (Honors)—M/W 2:30-3:45)
This class will focus on seeing the multiple possibilities within a piece of writing. The course emphasizes planning, writing, and revising compositions and shaping them for different audiences. We will explore writing topics from different perspectives or angles (what if you wrote about your spring break from your parents’ point of view, for example? Or from the perspective of the stranger on the beach who looked at you funny that one day?) Our classroom will function as a kind of laboratory or studio where class members will engage in writing and learn not only by doing but also by watching others and critiquing their progress.

ENG 122: Composition II (section 005—T/R 9:30-10:45 and section 007—T/R 11-12:15)
This course focuses on how to find, evaluate, and use sources from the Internet, the library, and beyond. Students will not write a conventional research paper; instead, they will write in a variety of different genres, from a variety of different perspectives, using a variety of different techniques. Students will learn how to manage a large research project, how to take risks in their writing, and how to defend their research and writing choices.

LIT 145: Literature, Women, & Society (section 001—T/R 1-2:15)
This class will explore how women and their unique concerns are represented in fiction, poetry, drama, and film; whether there is a female literary tradition; and whether or how gender makes a difference in literature production and consumption.


Fall classes begin August 27.
Register early and often. Tell your friends. Questions? Contact Liz Kleinfeld at liz.kleinfeld@rrcc.edu.