IS 101: IS 101 Coursepack

172 Pages·1.725 MB·English

by  Lindsey Leonard

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section 1 – PRELUDE
1 Wartburg Mission, Statement on Vocation, Statement on Diversity & Inclusion,
Common Learning Outcomes
3 A Guide to Critical Reading – Rebecca Blair
7 Sample Citations
9 Registration and Advising FAQs
13 Academic Deadlines
15 Time Management Grid
17 Note Taking Tips
21 Test Taking Tips
23 Political Choices and Educational Goals – Joel Westheimer and Joseph Kahne
29 Prayer Is Not Enough – Dalai Lama
31 Finnegas – Paul Kingsnorth
37 Danger of a Single Story – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Section 2 - LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE
43 Excerpt from Leadership Can Be Taught – Sharon Dolaz-Parks
47 Knowing Yourself – Warren Bennis
57 Rumbling with Vulnerability – Brené Brown
71 A Tough Mind and a Tender Heart – Martin Luther King, Jr
77 Crucible Moments – Craig, George, Snook
87 Still I Rise – Maya Angelou
Section 3 – LIBERAL LEARNING
89 Only Connect – William Cronon
97 Earthly Use of Liberal Education – A. Bartlett Giamatti
101 The Allegory of the Cave – Plato
107 On Education and E.T. – Peter Kreeft
113 The Banking Concept of Education – Paulo Freire
Section 4 – FAITH AND LEARNING
119 Faith Machine – Jackson Reynolds
125 The Lutheran College/University: Two Models – Thomas Christenson
133 Identity Politics – Eboo Patel
147 Unholier Than Thou – Chris Stedman
161 Thanks ELCA! – Nadia Bolz-Weber
167 Acknowledgements

MISSION STATEMENT
Wartburg College is dedicated to challenging and nurturing students for lives of leadership and
service as a spirited expression of their faith and learning.

STATEMENT ON VOCATION
Wartburg College helps students discover and claim their callings—connecting their learning
with faith and values, their understanding of themselves and their gifts, their perspective on life
and the future, and the opportunities for participating in church, community, and the larger
society in purposeful and meaningful ways.

STATEMENT ON DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
The Wartburg College community is committed to creating and maintaining a mutually
respectful environment that recognizes and celebrates diversity among all students, faculty, and
staff. Wartburg values human differences as an asset; works to sustain a culture that reflects the
interests, contributions, and perspectives of members of diverse groups; and delivers educational
programming to meet the needs of diverse audiences. We also seek to instill those values,
understandings, and skills to encourage leadership and service in a global multicultural society.
Wartburg College does not discriminate on the basis of race, age, genetics, sex, creed, color,
national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability in employment,
programs, or benefits.

COMMON LEARNING OUTCOMES
Wartburg College is a learning community built upon an integrative curriculum, a rich variety of
learning-focused co-curricular activities, and intentional opportunities for reflection and
discussion.

Broad and Integrative Knowledge Ethics and Engagement
Students will demonstrate breadth of Students will articulate the ways in which
knowledge and the ability to make faith and ethics inform their decisions,
connections across a range of disciplines. actions, and engagement as community
Deep and Distinctive Knowledge members.
Students will demonstrate depth of Communication
knowledge and the ability to use and apply Students will communicate effectively and
the distinctive methods and forms of inquiry appropriately in writing and speaking.
within the disciplinary area of the academic Cultural Competence
major. Students will demonstrate the ability to
Collaboration appropriately, respectfully, and effectively
Students will work effectively in communicate and work with people of
collaboration with others, being respectful diverse backgrounds and perspectives.
and civil toward others.
1
2
A GUIDE TO CRITICAL READING

By Rebecca Blair

Perception
involves looking for the meaning implied by
Effective critical reading really
the language of the text, how the actual
depends upon how we view the world
meaning can have alternate or deeper
around us. Each of us makes sense of what
meanings within a larger context. This kind
we see using information that we gather
of reading may relate to the period or culture
from previous experiences. We construct the
in which the text takes place or to the
beliefs and knowledge we hold from these
occasion for its being written, and it
experiences. We organize, interpret and file
certainly relates to our own experiences —
the sensations we experience and thereby
the context in which we are reading the text
form lenses through which we perceive
and the experiences we have had that relate
future information. For example, if a person
to the text. Reading beyond the lines
develops a skin rash, irritated eyes, and a
prompts us to think about how the text can
headache on repeated occasions after
have a deeper meaning applied to the world
swimming, this experience may well affect
at large. As we do so, we should think
how he or she views swimming as an
carefully about what words and sentences
activity. Moreover, this experience
mean, how ideas connect, and how the
contributes to how that individual constructs
larger concepts contained in the text fit into
his or her beliefs about this activity, which
various contexts both in the world of the text
may be expressed in statements such as,
and in our own worlds as readers. While
“Swimming makes people sick” or “Those
each one of us shares human experiences in
who choose to swim are foolishly taking
common with other people, we also have
part in a waste of time.” If these beliefs
accumulated a specific personal combination
remain unchallenged by new experiences or
of experiences, beliefs, and knowledge.
unexamined by the individual, then they
Each of us uses both of these sets of
become fixed as a part of the individual’s
information to create a unique web of
constructed knowledge, a “fact” about the
meaning as he or she reads any text. It is
world: “Swimming is a harmful activity.”
important, therefore, for any critical reader
So, as you begin to critically read, think
to take notes in the text and on separate
about how the lenses of your beliefs and
sheets of paper as he or she reads in order to
knowledge affect how you interpret the
record personal reactions, questions, and
ideas on the page. Now let’s take a close
interpretations. By doing so, each of us as a
look at the process itself.
reader constructs a record of his or her own

web of meaning as it is made. This kind of
What Is Critical Reading?
reading is very different from the surface
Critical reading is a term used to
reading we do when we skim a magazine
describe the kind of deeply engaged reading
article or glance over a cereal box. It may
expected of students in college. It depends
even differ from the reading process that
upon our being intellectually wide awake
you used to read textbooks and other
while we read, reading on the lines, between
materials in high school. Critical reading
the lines, and beyond the lines as you make
requires close, sustained attention, thorough
sense of the text. Reading on the lines means
reading and re-reading of the text, and
that you decode what the actual text says to
jotting down reactions, ideas, and questions
find the meaning. Reading between the lines
3
as they occur. It also involves stopping to that seem significant will provide crucial
look up new words rather than reading over information to help you explain and support
them. Since this process is somewhat your viewpoint. In your own mind, you
intense, it is wise to read chunks of the text, believe your statements are valid, even
focusing your attention completely on obvious, but remember that others do not
what’s there. Read for a short period of time share your particular reading lenses, so you
— about 20 minutes works well for many will need to provide textual evidence along
readers. Then, stop and allow yourself to with a supporting explanation for your
absorb the meaning of what you have read. assertion. You will want to look in the text
Make notes about the thread of the narrative for evidence that support your assertions
(who are the characters and what are they about this central idea, evidence that you
doing that seems significant); the cite in support of your assertions. The text
motivations, flaws, and misunderstandings offers us an opportunity to ask a number of
that drive the action; the patterns of images, questions, and the above response becomes
actions, themes, and ideas that you identify incomplete without posing such questions.
from one chunk to the next; the questions or After asking such questions, you can
responses raised by that critical voice in discover portions of the text which address
your head that reads along with you. It is a them. You can then use those portions of the
good idea to use a system of symbols to text to revise and strengthen your assertion.
mark what kind of note you are making. For Note that your response should contain three
example, a question mark for questions, an parts, sometimes called The 1-2-3 Rule: 1)
exclamation point for responses, an asterisk the assertion itself, 2) textual evidence and
for important ideas, etc. After you have explanation in support of the assertion, and
finished every three or four chunks, stop for 3) a direct statement of how the evidence
a moment to think about the larger issues reveals the significance of the assertion. All
and questions raised by the text. What key three parts of this equation must be present
ideas or questions does the author urge us to for the critical response to be complete.
consider? What patterns of ideas, images, or Putting forward a connected, supported
actions reinforce these key ideas? Make series of assertions coherently — whether in
notes of what you discern here. discussion or in writing — is one of the
essential skills we will work on in IS101.
Textual Evidence
Critical reading, thinking, and A Final Note About Textual Authority
writing processes don’t stop here. Once you For various reasons — lack of
as a reader have determined what you confidence, laziness, lack of knowledge —
believe to be the text’s total meaning and high school students often first look to
reflected a bit on its implications, you are outside sources such as Cliff’s Notes, Spark
then ready to respond to the text in a variety Notes, Monarch Notes, or other sources
of ways. Whatever the form of your which provide interpretive readings of texts
response — whether in class discussion, when these texts are assigned to be read.
formal argument, or written reflection — Sometimes students even use these sources
you will need to use evidence drawn from as substitutes or short-cuts for reading the
the text to support why you hold a certain actual primary text itself. While this
point of view. Note here that your marginal approach may achieve some successful
notes in the text as well as the other longer results in high school, it is inadequate and
reading notes you have made about ideas unacceptable in college-level work,
4
particularly in a liberal arts college which expressing our viewpoints, each of our
focuses on the use of critical process in responses can contain just as much authority
learning. These outside sources are as any outside published interpretation.
tempting to use in part because they contain More importantly, our responses possess the
an authoritative view and voice, a confident distinctive strength of being authentic, of
textual authority. The voices in these texts being “ours,” rather than someone else’s
proclaim, “This work means this and here’s belief. In short, the point is not reaching the
why.” Instead of simply accepting the destination of getting the assignment done
prescriptive authority of these sources, by whatever means, but rather the journey
which present the meaning of the text rather itself — how we go about making sense of
than a meaning (yes, texts can have more the texts we read. As each of you begin to
than one valid meaning), our focus in IS 101 engage in critical reading and thinking,
and in other Wartburg courses will be placed don’t worry if you feel unsure of your
on developing our own authoritative abilities. As with any process, these also
readings of the texts we read. If we read require practice. During your college
each text carefully, using the reading and experience in this first year, we will work
annotation processes detailed above, think together in this class and in others to sharpen
carefully about how and why we respond to your critical skills and abilities.
the text as we do, and use the 1-2-3 Rule in

5
6
IS 101 READER SAMPLE CITATIONS
Citations are important for two main reasons. First, they allow you to give credit to the
author who created the resources that have influenced your thoughts. Second, it gives your reader
the information they need to locate the sources for themselves. Different fields of study use
different citation styles to communicate within their profession. While the order and formatting
changes depending on what the discipline wants to emphasize within their style rules, the
information remains pretty consistent (who created the resource, when was the resource created,
what is the resource called, and where was it published).
Below you will find sample citations for a work that appears in an edited book, which is
what the IS 101 Reader is considered. Always check with your professor to make sure you are
using the citation style they prefer.

APA 7
Reference Citation
Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor & F. F.
Editor (Eds.), Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (pp. pages of chapter).
Publisher.
In-text Citation
(Author Surname, Date, Page number)

Sample from IS 101 Reader
Reference Citation
Bennis, W. (2020). Knowing yourself. In IS 101 Teaching Team (Eds.), IS 101 Reader: Asking
Questions, Making Choices (pp. 53-71). Akademos.
In-text Citation
(Bennis, 2020, p. 57)

Chicago/Turabian
Bibliography Citation
Author Surname, First Name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor Name, page
range. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.
Note
First Name Surname, “Chapter,” in: Title, ed. Editor (Publishing Data), Page Range.

Sample from IS 101 Reader
Bibliography Citation
Bennis, Warren. “Knowing Yourself.” In IS 101 Reader: Asking Questions, Making Choices,
edited by IS 101 Teaching Team, 53-71. Norwalk, CT: Akademos, 2020.
Note
Warren Bennis, “Knowing Yourself,” in IS 101 Reader: Asking Questions, Making Choices, ed.
IS 101 Teaching Team (Norwalk, CT: Akademos, 2020), 57.
7
MLA 8
Works Cited Citation
Last name, First name. "Title of Essay." Title of Collection, edited by Editor's Name(s),
Publisher, Year, Page range of entry.
In-text Citation
(Author Surname, page number)

Sample from IS 101 Reader
Works Cited Citation
Bennis, Warren. “Knowing Yourself.” IS 101 Reader: Asking Questions, Making Choices, edited
by IS 101 Teaching Team, Akademos, 2020, 53-71).
In-text Citation
(Bennis 57)

8