Core Paper #2 Assignment
Read “Put Your Bodies Upon the Wheel”
Choose from articles on Student Activism (in Bibliographies) to supplement your readings.
Write an assessment of Student Activism (about 6 pages) using these combined materials.
You must combine the readings with outside sources to make your POV. One way is to look at the bibliographies and find the articles. And/Or find material from CQ Researcher. And do some recent searching for articles in the current databases. You are only to write one paper. I thought the article tracking the civil rights movement to black power was of particular interest as it parallels other “peace to violence” movements of the time period. The other article “Put Your Bodies Upon the Wheel” is more of a summary article and has more of a political (conservative) slant to it.
The general focus should be on when and where is activism appropriate and at what lengths. Examples should be drawn from your readings (inc. either or both of the Classes texts) and your observations of the societal outcomes. We will have reviewed issues like dissent, the Constitution, campus unrest, free speech, and political activism.
Another general framework for us is the appropriate response by the University to these concerns mentioned and whether these concerns should be addressed in the curriculum as well as the “space” afforded students in campus life.
What should school prepare students for is another issue we have written about. A further possible topic is whether grades are/were an artificial power over students or were instead an honest appraisal of a students efforts.
How democratic can learning be? In a larger sense, should a society always have a tangible reward system in place? Certain professors said by removing the grade certain communications restrictions between prof and students eased and as a result “learning” or the quality of learning increased. Other profs said “you get only as good as you give.”
