Learning Outcomes? Check!

At the beginning of this term, I outlined my personal learning plan for achieving the learning outcomes of our class.
These learning outcomes were:

1. Know basic literary terms and methods 
2. Know basic literary genres and representative texts
3. Write literary arguments 
4. Engage literature creatively and socially
5. Use emerging communication tools and pedagogical methods

When I made my first plan, I became aware of the gaps in my literary knowledge. I was reminded that even though I had taken AP Language and AP Literature in high school, those were not substitutes for continued active reading and learning. I knew I had to do better, not only for this class, but because I care about English and enjoy being able to talk about it intelligently. 


So for the first order of business - 

1. Know basic literary terms and methods

I think I displayed this best in my analysis of "Tulipomania" by Katrina Vandenberg, but the majority of my learning in this area was done simply in my personal reading and learning. I utilized A Handbook to Literature a lot, studying terms that I had once learned but now forgotten, and terms I hadn't known in the first place. Our class discussions helped my learning in this aspect as well. Anytime I would hear a term I didn't recognize or couldn't immediately recall, I made an effort to learn it and apply it in my own reading. Simply being a more conscious reader has helped me too - I read two pieces of fiction this term, The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach and The History of Love by Nicole Krauss. In each case I was more aware of the literary devices at play and how those affected the stories.

2. Know basic literary genres and representative texts

This learning outcome was really enjoyable for me, because I don't often take the time to think about actively absorbing literature from various genres at an even pace. In my past habits, I stick mostly to the broad genre of fiction, occasionally veering off into other genres when they particularly appeal to me. But with the motivation from this class, I've been much improved, and made the necessary efforts to read widely across the four main genres. I outlined my personal reading of poetry, then delved into one of its subgenres, and even examined an emerging subgenre within that. I analyzed some nonfiction I had already read, and analyzed a subgenre I was currently reading. My favorite part of this learning outcome was discussing emerging genres that haven't necessarily been named or fine-tuned yet, like The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. 

3. Write literary arguments

I definitely had fun with this one. In my post about nonfiction, I argue in favor of Jonathan Safran Foer's book, Eating Animals. In my analysis of Tulipomania, I made arguments stating the favor humans pay toward fragile and broken things. I argued in favor of the use of new media within families, I reasoned with why The Lizzie Bennet Diaries was a successful series, I argued in favor of the rise of the amateur, and of course the biggest literary argument was in my final paper. The best part of this learning outcome to me is that making literary arguments is already so intertwined with the way we talk about literature - it's almost impossible to talk about literature without posing an opinion or argument of some sort. This means that all we need to do as lifelong students of literature is pay attention to what we ourselves and those around us are saying, and then create intelligent discussion from what's already there. 

4. Engage literature creatively and socially

This was a really important learning outcome for me because it gave me the push I needed to step out of my comfort zone and really engage with the people around me, both in real life and on the internet. My first endeavor with this was writing a review for The Art of Fielding and posting it on Goodreads. I addressed the result of this in my personal midterm progress post. Next up I started engaging with others on new media that was already using, and I discussed how this helped me connect with people. But probably the most daunting way I engaged literature socially this term was in my simple Father's Day gift. Giving a piece of literature (especially one that is important to me) to someone who doesn't typically read was pretty nerve-wracking, but I think it's important that I'm making the effort to share something important to me. 

5. Use emerging communication tools and pedagogical methods

Well the best part of this learning outcome is simple: Goodreads! I love love love Goodreads, and I love it even more now that I've been brave enough to start posting reviews. I addressed this learning outcome in my posts about spoken word poetry, and engaging literature socially. I also shared a new help for memorizing poetry. 

But most importantly, I've enjoyed blogging for this class so much that I decided to start my own literature blog. I'm really excited to continue blogging, and I'm hopeful that maintaining my blog will keep me motivated to maintain the learning outcomes I've achieved and continue my personal growth.